Great NFL defenses

[Upnorth]

I think in this era of football you need to look at efficencey. Some teams give up more yards per point than others, some get more turnovers. The ability to consistently create fumbles is underrated in terms of traditional stats. Off has so much on their side now a defense with 'specalties' seems more effective. Greenbay gives up a ton of yards, but have more ints than anyone else. 49ers dominate on the run def which plays to their ball control off. I maybe way off on these but it seems to be the trend this year.

[vince]

I agree Upnorth. We still have a tendency to think of dominant defenses as those who can't be run on, but those day are gone. Today's "dominant" defenses stop teams from scoring through the air and create turnovers.

Here are the top 10 efficient defenses vs. the pass. Many of us can't wait to dismiss the Jets defense, and it looked early lke we would be able to do that, but they're still the best.

Rk Team Rate
1 New York Jets 60.5
2 Baltimore Ravens 65.5
3 Houston Texans 65.9
4 Detroit Lions 72.3
5 Buffalo Bills 76.3
6 Kansas City Chiefs 77
7 Oakland Raiders 77.9
8 San Francisco 49ers 78.3
9 Green Bay Packers 79.3
10 New York Giants 79.5

[3irty1]

The 49ers have had the best D in football so far this year IMO.

[Upnorth]

The texans and Lions having a def passer rating below 100 is suprising from recent history. A great deal of their improved record is likely due to this.
Also I think the 49ers have the best ball control defence. They remind me of a grinding defence where you need sustained excellence to out toghether a td drive.

[mraynrand]

The 49ers have had the best D in football so far this year IMO.

Yeah, they made the right choice taking Aldon Smith. TEams can't run on them and they generate turnovers. I thought they would take Amukamara because their pass defense was shaky, but they improved their defense quite a bit by bettering the line. And you knew Hairball would be self-confident enough to think he could improve that offense without major personnel changes.

When you look at the top defenses like - Raven, Lions, 49ers, even Texans, it just goes to show that it really helps to have a solid line.

[Harlan Huckleby]

When you look at the top defenses like - Raven, Lions, 49ers, even Texans, it just goes to show that it really helps to have a solid line.

you should be on TV, dude

[mraynrand]

you should be on TV, dude

I assume you are being sarcastic. I thought I just stated the obvious. Plus, I have a face made for radio.

[Harlan Huckleby]

I thought I just stated the obvious.

that was my point.

as to your radio-friendly face, you can always market yourself as ruggedly handsome.

[MadtownPacker]

The only great NFL defenses left are the league lawyers.

[mraynrand]

that was my point.

as to your radio-friendly face, you can always market yourself as ruggedly handsome.

But to the point, and specifically addressing the niners, they chose line over secondary, so generally speaking should D-line lead over secondary in building a defense? Probably so, but I bet you could get people to debate it.

[hoosier]

But to the point, and specifically addressing the niners, they chose line over secondary, so generally speaking should D-line lead over secondary in building a defense? Probably so, but I bet you could get people to debate it.

I bet you couldn't.

[Harlan Huckleby]

nobody puts baby in the corner

[Harlan Huckleby]

here's the only stat that means shit - points allowed



49ers 15.3 1
Ravens 15.7 2
Steelers 17.4 3
Bengals 17.6 4
Texans 18.1 5
Lions 19.4 6
Redskins 19.9 7
Browns 20.0 8
Packers 20.1 9
Jaguars 20.4 10
Titans 20.7 11
Bills 21.0 12
Jets 21.4 13

Bears 21.4 14
Eagles 21.7 15
Chargers 22.7 16
Patriots 22.9 17
Seahawks 23.1 18
Cowboys 23.1 19
Falcons 23.3 20
Giants 23.4 21
Saints 23.6 22
Dolphins 23.7 23
Buccaneers 24.1 24
Chiefs 24.3 25
Vikings 24.9 26
Raiders 25.4 27
Panthers 25.9 28
Cardinals 26.1 29
Rams 27.4 30
Broncos 28.6 31
Colts 31.5 32

[vince]

That's tough to argue with, because it's obviously the bottom line. However, you can argue that offense and special teams play varying roles in how many points a team gives up, as they can significantly impact field position and time of possession.

It's not perfect, but I think the measure which best isolates a defense's contribuion to winning in today's game is defensive passer rating. Points are generally scored through the passing game, as defenses will bring as many people up as they need to to stop the run. Stopping the pass isn't so simple because defenses have to have both a pass rush and a secondary working together.

[3irty1]

PPG doesn't even mean shit on its own. Defenses can't stop points scored by opposing defenses or big special teams plays. Offensive schemes play into it a lot too. Some teams like the 49ers, Bengals, Vikings, and Falcons have offenses that almost completely consist of running and checkdowns. These strategies boost their defenses ppg simply by making the game shorter.