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Does playing indoors boost receiving production?

Verdict — Yes — for wide receivers only

Domes help wide receivers by about +0.14 receptions. They do nothing whatsoever for tight ends or running backs.

Dome games are widely treated as a blanket boost for passing offenses. The effect is real, and it is far narrower than that.

-0.15-0.0375+0.075+0.1875+0.3no effectWide receivers+0.143n=5,172Tight ends-0.015n=3,200Running backs-0.009n=3,044Change in receptions indoors vs outdoors
Only one interval clears zero. Wide receivers gain; tight ends and running backs sit squarely on the line. That split is what makes this credible — if domes simply produced more offense, every pass-catcher would move.
PositionPlayer-weeksvs own baseline95% intervalclears zero?
Tight ends3,200-0.015-0.084 to +0.054no
Running backs3,044-0.009-0.082 to +0.064no
Wide receivers5,172+0.143+0.074 to +0.212yes

It is also small. A seventh of a reception is a tiebreaker between two similar options, not a reason to start someone.

How this was measured

Stadium roof state from the schedule, with dome and closed retractable counting as indoors, joined to each player-week and compared against that player’s own previous four games.

n=38,328 player-weeks · 2018–2025 · paired within player · last verified 22 September 2026

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