Era of 'defense wins championships' is over-Rex Outdated?

[Gas2No99]

Era of 'defense wins championships' is over

January, 14, 2013 11:45 AM ET

By DJ Gallo | ESPN.com

Rest in peace, defense. We’ll miss you. You had a good run. You gave us a lot of memories. You were responsible for great nicknames like the Purple People Eaters and the Steel Curtain. You even gave us a cliché -- “Defense wins championships” -- that had the added benefit of being true ... for a time. But that time is over.

The Broncos scored 35 points in the divisional round in single-digit temperatures. And lost. The Packers scored 31 points and lost. The Seahawks and Texans both scored 28 points and saw their seasons end. The losing teams in the second round of the playoffs averaged 30.5 points per game. The winners averaged 38.5. This is not the NFL you grew up with. These are closer to Big Ten basketball scores than traditional playoff football scores.

But adapt or die. Die like defense has died. NFL teams must learn to play “defense” -- or whatever new name it is eventually given -- in modern times. Here’s how.

Bend and break

Look, you’re going to give up points. That’s a given. But does it have to be instantly? At least make your opponent go on a three- or four-minute scoring drive so your offense can rest a little bit between its scoring drives.

Don’t spend money on “defense”

Why spend big money on a pass-rusher or defensive back (REVIS) that could instead be budgeted for an extra tight end or dynamic third-down back? Your defense is going to get torched regardless, so why waste money on it? Oh, look! Your $10 million linebacker got to the quarterback! And now he’s being penalized for roughing the passer. Money well spent.

Don’t commit penalties

Most forms of tackling are now outlawed. Defensive pass interference is called approximately seven million times more than offensive pass interference (rough estimate). This is not going to change. Don’t fight it. And don’t give your opponent free yards with your penalties. Why are you jumping offsides? Did you want to get a head-start on your fine for hitting the quarterback? No, it’s better to avoid penalties and just try to gently angle your offensive opponents out of bounds after they break into the secondary. Getting them out of bounds can stop the clock and give your offense more time to catch its breath.

Give up fast late-game scores

Your team is winning by four points with 90 seconds left in the game. What do you do? Try to stop your opponent from scoring a touchdown? AHHHHHHHHHHHahahahahahaha. Stop living in the past, man. Chances are you’re not going to stop them from scoring a touchdown. What you need to do is practice smart defensive failure clock management and let them score a touchdown immediately. That way you get the ball back in the hands of your offense with enough time to win the game with a touchdown of its own.

Know your role

Look, you play defense. Not everyone can be important like offensive players or even kickers, who score points. You are now regarded as the equals of punters: something that has been part of football for decades and no one can figure out how to completely get rid of. But you still have some worth. Because sometimes a quarterback will accidentally throw you the ball and you can catch it and run with it and score a touchdown, and for that brief moment you will know what it’s like to be relevant. And it will feel amazing.

[Eckesg1]

Originally Posted by Gas2No99

Era of 'defense wins championships' is over

January, 14, 2013 11:45 AM ET

By DJ Gallo | ESPN.com

Rest in peace, defense. We’ll miss you. You had a good run. You gave us a lot of memories. You were responsible for great nicknames like the Purple People Eaters and the Steel Curtain. You even gave us a cliché -- “Defense wins championships” -- that had the added benefit of being true ... for a time. But that time is over.

The Broncos scored 35 points in the divisional round in single-digit temperatures. And lost. The Packers scored 31 points and lost. The Seahawks and Texans both scored 28 points and saw their seasons end. The losing teams in the second round of the playoffs averaged 30.5 points per game. The winners averaged 38.5. This is not the NFL you grew up with. These are closer to Big Ten basketball scores than traditional playoff football scores.

But adapt or die. Die like defense has died. NFL teams must learn to play “defense” -- or whatever new name it is eventually given -- in modern times. Here’s how.

Bend and break

Look, you’re going to give up points. That’s a given. But does it have to be instantly? At least make your opponent go on a three- or four-minute scoring drive so your offense can rest a little bit between its scoring drives.

Don’t spend money on “defense”

Why spend big money on a pass-rusher or defensive back (REVIS) that could instead be budgeted for an extra tight end or dynamic third-down back? Your defense is going to get torched regardless, so why waste money on it? Oh, look! Your $10 million linebacker got to the quarterback! And now he’s being penalized for roughing the passer. Money well spent.

Don’t commit penalties

Most forms of tackling are now outlawed. Defensive pass interference is called approximately seven million times more than offensive pass interference (rough estimate). This is not going to change. Don’t fight it. And don’t give your opponent free yards with your penalties. Why are you jumping offsides? Did you want to get a head-start on your fine for hitting the quarterback? No, it’s better to avoid penalties and just try to gently angle your offensive opponents out of bounds after they break into the secondary. Getting them out of bounds can stop the clock and give your offense more time to catch its breath.

Give up fast late-game scores

Your team is winning by four points with 90 seconds left in the game. What do you do? Try to stop your opponent from scoring a touchdown? AHHHHHHHHHHHahahahahahaha. Stop living in the past, man. Chances are you’re not going to stop them from scoring a touchdown. What you need to do is practice smart defensive failure clock management and let them score a touchdown immediately. That way you get the ball back in the hands of your offense with enough time to win the game with a touchdown of its own.

Know your role

Look, you play defense. Not everyone can be important like offensive players or even kickers, who score points. You are now regarded as the equals of punters: something that has been part of football for decades and no one can figure out how to completely get rid of. But you still have some worth. Because sometimes a quarterback will accidentally throw you the ball and you can catch it and run with it and score a touchdown, and for that brief moment you will know what it’s like to be relevant. And it will feel amazing.

He's exaggerating, but he is right to a point. The thing with Revis is that when he is right, the QBs don't even try and throw in his direction. Which funnels the offense to other places. So Revis is still valuable because he is feared.

[jetstream23]

Some pretty good defenses still left in the final 4. The difference is those teams have QBs.

A QB and a great D still wins a championship.

[detjetsfan]

Originally Posted by jetstream23

Some pretty good defenses still left in the final 4. The difference is those teams have QBs.

A QB and a great D still wins a championship.

Yep, only team left that does not have an elite D is the Pats and they have Brady.

[adpz]

Originally Posted by jetstream23

Some pretty good defenses still left in the final 4. The difference is those teams have QBs.

A QB and a great D still wins a championship.

+1

Top 8 defenses - 5 of those teams were in the playoffs. And Chicago just missed (and went 10-6).

Bottom 9 defenses - Pats, Washington and Indy made the playoffs.

Going back a few years tells pretty much the same story: easier to be playoff-bound with a great D unless you have a QB/offense that really does allow your D to bend-not-break.

Going to points-allowed-per-game hugely increases the correlation to being a playoff team. Defense still counts plenty.

[Chupa]

Ravens, Seahawks, 49ers are all defensive teams with strong rushing attacks. The fact that a ton of points were scored this weekend was an irrelevant fluke.

[SAR I]

"I want an attack offense. An all-weather attack offense."

--Rex Ryan

SAR I

[FijiJet]

Originally Posted by jetstream23

Some pretty good defenses still left in the final 4. The difference is those teams have QBs.

A QB and a great D still wins a championship.

Truth

[BamaJets]

You still need a good defense to win, just go look back at the past handful or so of super bowl winning teams. Even the Giants who in the regular season blew, but came together defensively in the playoffs. It's more balance than anything. Playmaking QBs and good run games are also needed. The teams remaining have them (though ATL's run game not great, but it was last week and Flacco makes plays in big games usually).

[Dunnie]

Defense no longer wins championships. The team must be competent at defense, and must be able to create a handful of stops per game. Never before has a great defense been more of a luxury than a necessity. I submit the highest total scoring playoff weekend ever as evidence.

This game has turned into the arena football league before our eyes. If you have ever seen the movie Starship Troopers, there was a football like game in that movie .., and at my friends, is the sad destination we are headed towards.

The secondary is at a HUGE disadvantage not being able to hit the receiver until he is able to defend himself AFTER he has caught the ball.

[Kentucky Jet]

Originally Posted by SAR I

"I want an attack offense. An all-weather attack offense."

--Rex Ryan

SAR I

But then Wrecks says a lot of things and keeps doing what he wants. He is looking to hire DAVID LEE as QB coach! That says it all and then add Cam Cameron as OC and we are back to a running type first game!

[sameoldjets]

dumb article. teams need enough balance between the defense and the offense. have a great offense like the marino doltfins and you go nowhere. tell me shula didn't try to put a better defense on the field. he did but marino scored so fast they were unable to stay on the field for the balance of the game. likewise the offense needs to be good enough to score points and move the chains. they need to have enough quick strike ability to keep the defense honest. and remember in both patriot ganints superbowls it came down to defense. remember when brady scoffed when asked if his team would only score 18?

[Flaming Mo]

Stupid overreaction.

49ers and Ravens defense played huge roles in them advancing against elite quarterbacks. Giants never win a Super Bowl if they wouldn't have had a fierce pass rush and elevated their defensive game in the playoffs.

Too bad hacks get paid to write such crap...

[Pats1960]

Originally Posted by adpz

+1

Top 8 defenses - 5 of those teams were in the playoffs. And Chicago just missed (and went 10-6).

Bottom 9 defenses - Pats, Washington and Indy made the playoffs.

Going back a few years tells pretty much the same story: easier to be playoff-bound with a great D unless you have a QB/offense that really does allow your D to bend-not-break.

Going to points-allowed-per-game hugely increases the correlation to being a playoff team. Defense still counts plenty.

I don't know where you're getting your numbers, but they're off a little. Below are the top 15 defenses in the NFL this season;

1 - Seattle
2 - SF
3 - Bears
4 - Denver
5 - Atlanta
6 - Pittsburgh
7 - Miami
8 - Cincy
T9 - The New England Patriots
T9 - Houston
11 - Green Bay
T12 - New York Giants
T12 - Baltimore
T14 - Minny
T14 - SL

The only playoff teams not on that list are Indy and the Skins, who are tied at 21st and went one-and-done in the playoffs.

I also noticed how highly ranked the Broncos were. After watching them play a few times I have to believe that those numbers are skewed by the easy schedule they played.

The remaining four defenses that are in the conference finals are; #2 SF vs #5 Atlanta in the NFC and #9 NE vs #12 Baltimore in the AFC. If I had to pick a winner of the SB I have to admit that the 49ers look real tough to beat.

Let us also not forget that the last team to win the SB in the NFL is the New York Football Giants, and they did it with defense.

[patman]

Originally Posted by detjetsfan

Yep, only team left that does not have an elite D is the Pats and they have Brady.

All 4 remaining teams are in the top 12 in points given up.

SF 3, ATL 4, pats 9, balt 12.

and in points scored

pats 1. ATL 7, SF 8 and Balt 11

They are all in the top 1/3 in both categories.

[Dirtstar]

Also in the Super Bowl itself, the team with the better defense wins the vast majority of the time.

[CleatMarks]

The author of that article doesn't understand bend don't break.

With Bend don't break, you don't give up points, you give up yards. You keep everyone in front of you and make the other team earn it. You hope they get impatient and make a mistake. As the offense moves the ball, you tighten up the defense as they get closer to the red zone.

Notice how loose the Pats play when the ball is on the other team's 20. They'll give you yards underneath and play a deeper cover 2. Now watch them when you get to their 20 yard line. They cover you like a blanket with all kinds of coverages and don't give up much. They have one of the best red zone defenses.

The problem with the Pats is that they've "broken" a lot this year. They aren't supposed to give up the big plays but they've given up the most in the NFL (I think).

Again, the author doesn't seem to understand bend don't break.

[CleatMarks]

Another thing, offenses, in general, don't like to rest. They like to keep going.

It takes much more energy to react than to act. Defense expend much more energy per play. Long drives wear done a defense, not an offense. Defenses like long rests, offenses don't. Offenses are about rhythm and momentum.

[Jordy]

Originally Posted by Gas2No99

-- “Defense wins championships” --

I urge everyone to avoid saying the above 3 times.

It may summon up our very own "Beetlejuice."

[child please]

The eventual SB champion 49ers have an awful defense.