Quote Originally Posted by th87 View Post
You know how people say, well, we can't devote resources to the defense, because we're allocating our money to Rodgers' contract and weapons for him?

Well I checked whether that's actually true, and it isn't. The Packers actually spend around the top 5 for defense.

So the next question is whether they're getting value (i.e. a good defense). You would think that spending around the top 5, we'd be getting a top 5 defense in return, right? Well we know that's not true.

Below is a list of the Packers' weighted defensive DVOA rankings, along with defensive spending rankings (active roster cap) by year:

2016: 23; 6
2015: 14; 5
2014: 18; 4
2013: 29; 6

So for example, for 2016, the Packers spent the 6th most in the NFL on defense, and only achieved a 23 ranking defensively. Every year, we've gotten terrible, terrible value.

How have other teams done?

Here's a list of the top defensive spending teams (in rank order; active roster cap) by year, and their DVOA ranking:

2016:

Bengals; 16
Bucs; 4
Giants; 2
Broncos; 1
Seahawks; 9
Packers; 23
Jaguars; 13
Jets; 19
Titans; 27

2015:

Jets; 6
Colts; 10
Seahawks; 3
Texans; 4
Packers; 14
Bengals; 9
Browns; 23
Chiefs; 2
Cardinals; 7
Broncos; 1

2014:

Bengals; 17
Bucs; 15
Bills; 2
Packers; 18
Browns; 8
Lions; 7
Steelers; 27
Ravens; 12
Seahawks; 1
Dolphins; 25

2013:

Bengals; 6
Chiefs; 14
Vikings; 26
Ravens; 8
Bucs; 12
Packers; 29
Colts; 19
Browns; 27
Bills; 5
49ers; 11

My takeaways:

- The Packers have gotten poor value every year; this is true of no other team.
- The majority of teams getting poor value replaced their coach soon after (2013 Browns, 2013 Bucs, 2013 Vikings, 2014 Dolphins, 2014 Steelers; 2014 Bucs; 2015 Browns; none in 2016).
- The Packers are a complete outlier in this analysis, having gotten poor value every year and retaining their coaches despite this.
- Someone is asleep at the wheel - either TT is handing out bad contracts, and/or Capers is not getting expected value out of his players/defense.
So....something has to give and I hope that happens after this what certainly appears as 'a lost Season'.

Isn't it too obvious what needs to be done !?

Do we always place blame on lousy or unfortunate adversity and too many injuries?

Do we look at what supplies the talent available on the Packer Roster?

I say look at both and do everything possible to correct both.