The Los Angeles Chargers have been flagged for 431 penalty yards through five weeks, the most in the NFL. Dallas is next at 412 yards on a league-high 51 accepted penalties. Tennessee (397), Seattle (355) and Jacksonville (347) round out the top five as every club sits idle until Thursday night in Denver.
League-wide, the 32 teams have been assessed 1191 penalties for 9510 yards across 158 team-games, an average of 60.2 penalty yards per team per game. Washington has the cleanest book at 165 yards on 26 flags; Kansas City is next at 176 yards, also on 26 penalties, in four games.
Most penalty yards after Week 5
| Rank | Team | Abbr | Record | Pen | Yards | Yds/G | Pen/G |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chargers | LAC | 0-5 | 45 | 431 | 86.2 | 9.0 |
| 2 | Cowboys | DAL | 2-3 | 51 | 412 | 82.4 | 10.2 |
| 3 | Titans | TEN | 0-5 | 46 | 397 | 79.4 | 9.2 |
| 4 | Seahawks | SEA | 3-2 | 46 | 355 | 71.0 | 9.2 |
| 5 | Jaguars | JAX | 4-1 | 48 | 347 | 69.4 | 9.6 |
| 6 | Patriots | NE | 3-2 | 35 | 345 | 69.0 | 7.0 |
| 7 | Eagles | PHI | 2-3 | 39 | 335 | 67.0 | 7.8 |
| 8 | Texans | HOU | 1-4 | 41 | 334 | 66.8 | 8.2 |
| T-9 | Vikings | MIN | 5-0 | 43 | 333 | 66.6 | 8.6 |
| T-9 | Bills | BUF | 4-1 | 41 | 333 | 66.6 | 8.2 |
| 11 | Giants | NYG | 3-1-1 | 38 | 327 | 65.4 | 7.6 |
| 12 | Colts | IND | 2-3 | 36 | 320 | 64.0 | 7.2 |
| T-13 | Raiders | LV | 3-2 | 44 | 317 | 63.4 | 8.8 |
| T-13 | Buccaneers | TB | 1-4 | 39 | 317 | 63.4 | 7.8 |
The Chargers’ 86.2 penalty yards per game is the highest rate in the league, and they are 0-5. Dallas is averaging 82.4 yards per game on those 51 flags. Jacksonville’s 48 penalties are second only to Dallas in raw count, but the Jaguars’ 347 yards leave them fifth on the yardage board while they sit 4-1.
Most accepted penalties
| Rank | Team | Abbr | Record | Pen | Yards | Yds/G |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cowboys | DAL | 2-3 | 51 | 412 | 82.4 |
| 2 | Jaguars | JAX | 4-1 | 48 | 347 | 69.4 |
| T-3 | Titans | TEN | 0-5 | 46 | 397 | 79.4 |
| T-3 | Seahawks | SEA | 3-2 | 46 | 355 | 71.0 |
| 5 | Chargers | LAC | 0-5 | 45 | 431 | 86.2 |
| T-6 | Raiders | LV | 3-2 | 44 | 317 | 63.4 |
| T-6 | Steelers | PIT | 3-2 | 44 | 314 | 62.8 |
| 8 | Vikings | MIN | 5-0 | 43 | 333 | 66.6 |
| 9 | Bengals | CIN | 3-2 | 42 | 314 | 62.8 |
| T-10 | Texans | HOU | 1-4 | 41 | 334 | 66.8 |
| T-10 | Bills | BUF | 4-1 | 41 | 333 | 66.6 |
| 12 | Bears | CHI | 3-2 | 40 | 271 | 54.2 |
Seattle and Tennessee are tied at 46 penalties; the Titans have been more expensive in yardage (397 to 355). Pittsburgh and Las Vegas each have 44. Minnesota, undefeated at 5-0, still sits 10th in yardage with 333 yards on 43 flags.
Fewest penalty yards
| Rank | Team | Abbr | Record | Pen | Yards | Yds/G |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Commanders | WSH | 1-3-1 | 26 | 165 | 33.0 |
| 2 | Chiefs | KC | 4-0 | 26 | 176 | 44.0 |
| 3 | Saints | NO | 1-4 | 32 | 214 | 42.8 |
| T-4 | Cardinals | ARI | 1-4 | 27 | 234 | 46.8 |
| T-4 | Lions | DET | 3-2 | 28 | 234 | 46.8 |
| 6 | Panthers | CAR | 2-2 | 39 | 247 | 61.8 |
| 7 | Rams | LAR | 2-3 | 33 | 248 | 49.6 |
| 8 | Falcons | ATL | 2-3 | 35 | 249 | 49.8 |
| 9 | Ravens | BAL | 4-1 | 28 | 251 | 50.2 |
| 10 | Jets | NYJ | 2-3 | 32 | 258 | 51.6 |
The Commanders’ 33.0 yards per game is the lowest rate among teams that have played five games. The Chiefs are at 44.0 per game in four. New Orleans (214 yards), Arizona (234) and Detroit (234) are the next cleanest on total yards; Detroit is off in Week 6 along with Cincinnati, Miami and Minnesota.
Penalty yards per game
| Rank | Team | Abbr | Record | G | Pen | Yards | Yds/G |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chargers | LAC | 0-5 | 5 | 45 | 431 | 86.2 |
| 2 | Cowboys | DAL | 2-3 | 5 | 51 | 412 | 82.4 |
| 3 | Titans | TEN | 0-5 | 5 | 46 | 397 | 79.4 |
| 4 | Seahawks | SEA | 3-2 | 5 | 46 | 355 | 71.0 |
| 5 | Jaguars | JAX | 4-1 | 5 | 48 | 347 | 69.4 |
| 6 | Patriots | NE | 3-2 | 5 | 35 | 345 | 69.0 |
| 7 | Eagles | PHI | 2-3 | 5 | 39 | 335 | 67.0 |
| 8 | Texans | HOU | 1-4 | 5 | 41 | 334 | 66.8 |
| 9 | Bills | BUF | 4-1 | 5 | 41 | 333 | 66.6 |
| 10 | Vikings | MIN | 5-0 | 5 | 43 | 333 | 66.6 |
Carolina has played only four games and ranks sixth in yards per game at 61.8 despite sitting outside the top 10 in total yardage. The Chargers, Cowboys and Titans are the only clubs above 75 yards per game.
Los Angeles visits Kansas City on Sunday at 4:25 p.m. ET (11:25 p.m. Cairo), a meeting of the league’s most-penalized yardage team and one of its cleanest. Dallas hosts no one this week on the London slate; the Cowboys play at Green Bay on Sunday night. Totals are accepted penalties and yards through Monday night of Week 5 and do not include Thursday’s Seahawks-Broncos game.
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