The Best Defense in NFL History? (My Project)

[lhslancers]

1963 Bears deserve some mention. I would have liked to see Tittle play this game in good weather.

[55]

I'm the biggest Bucs fan I know, but there is no way I would ever claim that the '02 squad was the best ever. Top five? Absolutely. Also probably had the best defensive scheme/personnel ever, but I'd be hard pressed to pick them over the '85 Bears or the '00 Ravens. The defense they had in '99 has become incredibly underrated though, I see. Holding the "Greatest Show on Turf" to 11 points (only 9 of which came on offense) in their house in the NFC Championship Game gets overlooked a ton. If it weren't for that one play by Bert Emanuel then I'm sure the '99 squad would be much more heralded.

[ImTellinTim]

The 85 Bears playoff performance sets them apart from everyone. 2 shutouts, 1 TD allowed while up 44-3 in the 4th quarter of the SB (and for good measure, they sacked Grogan for a safety later in case anyone thought they were slipping).

The 00 Ravens are the only defense that should be mentioned in the same breath as them.

Of course, these days, the entire defense would be suspended with the way they played, so now it's getting hard to compare these defenses across eras.

[SPTO]

Quote: Originally Posted by 55

I'm the biggest Bucs fan I know, but there is no way I would ever claim that the '02 squad was the best ever. Top five? Absolutely. Also probably had the best defensive scheme/personnel ever, but I'd be hard pressed to pick them over the '85 Bears or the '00 Ravens. The defense they had in '99 has become incredibly underrated though, I see. Holding the "Greatest Show on Turf" to 11 points (only 9 of which came on offense) in their house in the NFC Championship Game gets overlooked a ton. If it weren't for that one play by Bert Emanuel then I'm sure the '99 squad would be much more heralded.

It's tough to be remembered more fondly than they currently are when Shaun King was the guy at QB down the stretch. If that Bucs team had won the SB there wouldn't be Trent Dilfer jokes but rather Shaun King jokes being made when it comes to game managers etc etc. Actually I kinda feel bad for King. He had the starting gig the following season in 2000 and didn't do that bad but he got thrown under the bus and Brad Johnson came in. From that point on King's career basically stalled out to nothingness.

King was really young too so it's not like this was some guy who toiled around for years either.

Quote: Originally Posted by ImTellinTim

The 85 Bears playoff performance sets them apart from everyone. 2 shutouts, 1 TD allowed while up 44-3 in the 4th quarter of the SB (and for good measure, they sacked Grogan for a safety later in case anyone thought they were slipping). The 00 Ravens are the only defense that should be mentioned in the same breath as them. Of course, these days, the entire defense would be suspended with the way they played, so now it's getting hard to compare these defenses across eras.

That's why I go with the eye test as being a factor. I've seen just about the entire '85 Bears season and a lot of the '00 Ravens to know that those were two of the greatest defenses ever. You're right, the entire defense for both teams would be suspended for their play which shows just how much the league has changed over the years. I will say that at least one of the Steel Curtain Steeler teams should be in the the top 5 somewhere. I'm thinking the '75 team will obviously get a lot of love but one should look at the '76 squad even though they didn't make the SB. They had a 5 game stretch where they allowed a grand total of NINE points. That's pretty damn impressive.

[wwharton]

I applaud the effort. Like with everything, you can't find a fool-proof formula to rank teams based on stats... especially across eras and especially when talking defense. So I think this is a good effort considering that.

At the very least, it's a fantastic way to start the conversation.

[Chip Douglass]

Quote: Originally Posted by 55

I'm the biggest Bucs fan I know, but there is no way I would ever claim that the '02 squad was the best ever. Top five? Absolutely. Also probably had the best defensive scheme/personnel ever, but I'd be hard pressed to pick them over the '85 Bears or the '00 Ravens. The defense they had in '99 has become incredibly underrated though, I see. Holding the "Greatest Show on Turf" to 11 points (only 9 of which came on offense) in their house in the NFC Championship Game gets overlooked a ton. If it weren't for that one play by Bert Emanuel then I'm sure the '99 squad would be much more heralded.

Quote: Originally Posted by ImTellinTim

The 85 Bears playoff performance sets them apart from everyone. 2 shutouts, 1 TD allowed while up 44-3 in the 4th quarter of the SB (and for good measure, they sacked Grogan for a safety later in case anyone thought they were slipping). The 00 Ravens are the only defense that should be mentioned in the same breath as them. Of course, these days, the entire defense would be suspended with the way they played, so now it's getting hard to compare these defenses across eras.

Number of defensive TDs 2002 Bucs scored in the playoffs: 4
Number of offensive TDs allowed: 3

And they did that against the 2nd and 4th best offenses in the NFL by points scored that year. I have zero problems putting that team up there in the pantheon of great defenses.

[Chip Douglass]

As for the methodology, you're going to run into some problems using yards per game since some teams are going to have more drives/play run against them than others.

For example, 2000 Baltimore had 924 plays run against them versus 990 for last year's Seattle defense.

[55]

The thing I remember most about the 2000 Ravens is that they had a five game stretch where they didn't score a single touchdown. It's a safe bet that a Super Bowl winning team never does that again. They literally went a third of a season without scoring a single touchdown.