Inside the Numbers Behind Rashaad Penny's Torrid Hot Streak

Finally healthy and playing with great confidence for the Seahawks, Penny notched a new career-high for the third time in a month in a sensational performance against the Lions on Sunday. But that's far from the only impressive number he has posted in the past five weeks.

Continuing to run wild as he heads towards free agency, Rashaad Penny set a new career-high with 170 rushing yards on just 25 carries and scored a pair of touchdowns in the Seahawks dominant 51-29 win over the Lions on Sunday.

Coming off another impressive performance, Penny now has 516 rushing yards in Seattle's past five games, the second-most in the NFL behind only Colts MVP candidate Jonathan Taylor. Per TruMedia, he also has the second-highest yards per carry average among qualified backs (6.53) during that span, trailing only Patriots standout Damien Harris.

"Rashaad ran like crazy again," coach Pete Carroll gushed. "Someone asked me during the week, what does Rashaad Penny have to do to, whatever. He's just got to go play again. That's all we have to do is get him back out there again. He looked great again today. It's a big boost. You can see the rhythm it gives our offense, the balance that gives our offense to be able to be that explosive and he looked great again."

After injuries dogged him during his first three-plus seasons in the NFL, Penny has finally been able to stay healthy and showcase the skills that led to the Seahawks taking him with the No. 27 overall selection in the 2018 NFL Draft. Capitalizing on great run blocking in front of him and making tacklers miss regularly, the former San Diego State star has simply been electric since taking over as the starting running back in Week 13, bringing the team much-needed balance on offense.

"He is just running with confidence, you can see the switch that he has had over the past few weeks," tackle Duane Brown said. "I think it is a combination of things, but [Rashaad] Penny has been a force to be reckoned with over the last few weeks. The guys up front, I take pride in my guys, whenever we dial up the run, we want to make it happen, so they continue to do it. To have him go over 100 yards in the first half, there is no better feeling in the world.”

Just how good has Penny been over the past five games? Here's a look at six key numbers behind the talented back's breakthrough second half for Seattle in the photo gallery below:

6

Number of runs eclipsing 25 yards, the second-most in the NFL behind only Jonathan Taylor. Taylor currently has eight such runs on 343 carries, while Penny has nearly matched him on less than 100 carries.

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5.8

Yards per carry average for Penny, which would be the highest mark for any running back with 100 or more carries in a season in franchise history. Currently, Thomas Rawls holds that distinction averaging 5.65 yards per carry as a rookie in 2015, while quarterback Russell Wilson holds the team record averaging 7.19 yards per carry in 2014.

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10.4

Percentage of Penny's 96 carries this season that have gone for at least 15 yards. In comparison, none of the NFL's four 1,000-yard rushers heading into Week 17 - Jonathan Taylor, Dalvin Cook, Nick Chubb, and Joe Mixon - had higher than seven percent.

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1,754

Total rushing yards Penny would produce maintaining five-game pace for the entirety of a 17-game season. Only Shaun Alexander (1,880) produced more yardage in a single season, doing so while scoring a then-record 27 rushing touchdowns and winning NFL MVP in 2005.

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15.8

Rushes per touchdown during the past five games for Penny, which ranks sixth among running backs since Week 13. Maintaining that production for a full season would put him fifth among all qualified backs.

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3 / © Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sport

Games with at least 130 rushing yards for Penny, tying him with Shaun Alexander and Ricky Watters for third-most games meeting that criteria in a single season. Alexander achieved the feat seven times in his 2005 MVP season and six times in 2004.

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23

Missed tackles forced by Penny since Week 13 per Pro Football Focus, second-most behind Rams running back Sony Michel. This stat illustrates that while he has enjoyed excellent blocking during the best stretch of his career, he's made a lot of yardage for himself as well.

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