The size of the barrier potential is a measure of how hard it is to score. The smaller the barrier potential, the easier it is to score. When the barrier potential is zero, scoring approaches 100% as the team approaches the goal line. Therefore, in more realistic scoring models, barrier potentials tend to appear.
It is entirely possible that the larger barrier potentials of the NFL passer formula merely reflect the times in which the model was created. The 1970s was an era dominated by defense and a running game. It was harder to score then. It would be interesting to calculate scoring rates for first and one situations from, say, 1965 to 1971, when the NFL passer formula was created, and see if the implied formula actually matches the data of the times.
