Play-Action Rate Leaders
Play-Action Rate — 2026 NFL leaders, updated Oct 16, 2026. Kansas City Chiefs led the league in play-action rate at 36.6%, ahead of 31 other qualifying teams. Based on verified play-level charting from FTN Data via nflverse, regular season only. Through Week 5 of the 2026 season.
Play action is the offense selling a run it never intended to hand off, and it works for a mechanical reason: a linebacker who takes even a false step toward the line is late getting to his drop, and the throwing lane behind him is open for exactly as long as that step lasted. The rate is a coordinator's decision rather than a quarterback's, which is why it holds steady from week to week and says something about the shape of a passing game before a snap is played.
| # | Team | Δ WK | G | PA% | PA | DB | Read |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kansas City Chiefs | No change; did not play this week | 4 | 36.6% | 52 | 142 | Read |
| 2 | Seattle Seahawks | No change | 5 | 32.7% | 53 | 162 | Read |
| 3 | Detroit Lions | Up 2 places, from 5 | 5 | 31.9% | 66 | 207 | Read |
| 4 | Chicago Bears | Down 1 place, from 3 | 5 | 30.5% | 60 | 197 | Read |
| 5 | Minnesota Vikings | Up 4 places, from 9 | 5 | 30.2% | 51 | 169 | Read |
| 6 | Indianapolis Colts | Down 2 places, from 4 | 5 | 29.6% | 56 | 189 | Read |
| 7 | Buffalo Bills | No change | 5 | 28.0% | 46 | 164 | Read |
| 8 | Baltimore Ravens | Down 2 places, from 6 | 5 | 27.0% | 43 | 159 | Read |
| 9 | Los Angeles Chargers | Down 1 place, from 8 | 5 | 26.7% | 47 | 176 | Read |
| 10 | Carolina Panthers | No change; did not play this week | 4 | 26.6% | 47 | 177 | Read |
| 11 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | Up 4 places, from 15 | 5 | 25.4% | 48 | 189 | Read |
| 12 | Los Angeles Rams | Up 8 places, from 20 | 5 | 25.0% | 57 | 228 | Read |
| 13 | Miami Dolphins | Down 1 place, from 12 | 5 | 25.0% | 40 | 160 | Read |
| 14 | San Francisco 49ers | Up 3 places, from 17 | 5 | 25.0% | 39 | 156 | Read |
| 15 | New England Patriots | Down 1 place, from 14 | 5 | 24.7% | 46 | 186 | Read |
| 16 | Jacksonville Jaguars | Down 5 places, from 11 | 5 | 24.2% | 38 | 157 | Read |
| 17 | Atlanta Falcons | Up 5 places, from 22 | 5 | 23.8% | 36 | 151 | Read |
| 18 | New York Giants | No change | 5 | 23.1% | 43 | 186 | Read |
| 19 | Las Vegas Raiders | Down 6 places, from 13 | 5 | 22.8% | 43 | 189 | Read |
| 20 | Washington Commanders | Down 1 place, from 19 | 5 | 22.8% | 44 | 193 | Read |
| 21 | Dallas Cowboys | Down 5 places, from 16 | 5 | 22.5% | 47 | 209 | Read |
| 22 | Houston Texans | Up 1 place, from 23 | 5 | 22.2% | 45 | 203 | Read |
| 23 | Denver Broncos | Down 2 places, from 21 | 5 | 21.5% | 37 | 172 | Read |
| 24 | New York Jets | Up 1 place, from 25 | 5 | 20.5% | 35 | 171 | Read |
| 25 | Tennessee Titans | Down 1 place, from 24 | 5 | 20.5% | 36 | 176 | Read |
| 26 | Green Bay Packers | Up 5 places, from 31 | 5 | 20.4% | 40 | 196 | Read |
| 27 | Philadelphia Eagles | Up 1 place, from 28 | 5 | 19.4% | 35 | 180 | Read |
| 28 | Pittsburgh Steelers | Down 1 place, from 27 | 5 | 18.7% | 38 | 203 | Read |
| 29 | Cleveland Browns | Down 3 places, from 26 | 5 | 18.5% | 34 | 184 | Read |
| 30 | Arizona Cardinals | Up 2 places, from 32 | 5 | 17.2% | 37 | 215 | Read |
| 31 | Cincinnati Bengals | Down 1 place, from 30 | 5 | 16.7% | 34 | 204 | Read |
| 32 | New Orleans Saints | Down 3 places, from 29 | 5 | 16.1% | 36 | 223 | Read |
Other seasons
More leaderboards
- Rushing Yards Over Expected
- Target Share
- Running Back Receiving Efficiency
- Completion Percentage Over Expected
- Adjusted Net Yards per Attempt
- Quarterback Pressure Rate
- Defensive Blitz Rate
- Quarterbacks vs Man and Zone Coverage
- Pass Rate Over Expected
- Clean-Core Rating
- Usage vs Production
- Team Expected Points Added
- Quarterback EPA per Dropback
- QB Composite Rating
- Air Yards Share
- Stacked Box Rate
- Regression Flags
- Weighted Opportunity Rating
- Snap Share
- Pass-Snap Share
- Receiving Yards per Pass Snap
- Availability
- Tight End Receiving Efficiency
- Tight End Average Depth of Target
- Stat Stickiness
- Pre-Snap Motion Rate
- Drop Rate
- Contested Catch Rate
- Interception-Worthy Throw Rate
- Quarterback-Fault Sack Rate
- Quarterback Intended Air Yards
- Team Air Yards and Passing Volume
- Receiver Separation and Cushion
- Wide Receiver Receiving Efficiency
- Team Success Rate and Explosive Play Rate
- Goal-Line Usage
- Quarterback Deep Ball
- Team Pace
- Screen Pass Rate
- No-Huddle Rate
- RPO Rate
- Light Box Rate
- Quarterbacks vs the Blitz
- Throwaway Rate
- Catchable Throw Rate
- Out-of-Pocket Rate
- Time to Throw
- Aggressiveness
Follow Play-Action Rate. When this board moves, you'll know — what changed, week over week.
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