Bearerofnews Posted August 19, 2020 Share Posted August 19, 2020 what are your opinions on the list. https://www.nfl.com/news/nfl-s-top-nine-defenses-in-2020-chargers-bills-49ers-all-loaded-but-who-s-no-1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMG5 Posted August 19, 2020 Share Posted August 19, 2020 Surprised to see us in the Top 10. I know we have talent, but we don't play consistently enough to be a Top 10 unit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter2_1 Posted August 19, 2020 Share Posted August 19, 2020 (edited) Mixed. Seem to be placing a lot on individuals. An example is LAC is number 1, they have a great roster sure, but last season they were dead last in takeaways and middle of the road in YPA rushing, even with a talented roster. There's more to it. i think most of the right ones are there though. Not sure about TB and KC being quite so high. Edited August 19, 2020 by Hunter2_1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WizeGuy Posted August 19, 2020 Share Posted August 19, 2020 I'm surprised Buffalo is ranked #2. I mean- it's well known around the league that they have an elite defense, but I thought the lack of premiere pass rushers would hurt their final ranking. No doubt they're top-5/ borderline top-3. The strength of the unit (outside the secondary) is the incredible amount of depth at every position. The pass rush specifically is built on depth. A premiere pass rusher would be a luxury at this point. We'll likely finish around top-10 in sacks again just by keeping a rotation of players fresh and wearing down O-lines. If Oliver takes the next step...watch out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Archimedes Posted August 19, 2020 Share Posted August 19, 2020 Chiefs will have question marks in the secondary to start the season, with Breeland’s suspension and Thornhill’s health. When those two come back I actually would think the unit could be top third of the league, so if we’re considering at full strength then I think the ranking isn’t that bad. The glaring omission is the Patriots IMO. I know they lost a couple of contributors but they still have arguably the best secondary in the NFL, and one the most brilliant defensive minds in history at HC. They were also so ludicrously good last year they have room to slip and still be an elite unit. I’d still have them ranked in the top 3 coming into this year, pushing everyone else down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soko Posted August 19, 2020 Share Posted August 19, 2020 Out the gate, as @Hunter2_1 said, seems like they’re focusing on names. I’d probably have the Chargers much lower, the Buccs lower or out, possibly take the Chiefs out, and consider adding Green Bay or Tennessee into those spots. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Archimedes Posted August 19, 2020 Share Posted August 19, 2020 22 minutes ago, Yin-Yang said: Out the gate, as @Hunter2_1 said, seems like they’re focusing on names. I’d probably have the Chargers much lower, the Buccs lower or out, possibly take the Chiefs out, and consider adding Green Bay or Tennessee into those spots. I don’t really see how GB or Tenn have a strong case over the Chiefs D. Those teams both have solid defenses but the Chiefs outperformed both in most relevant metrics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soko Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 (edited) 39 minutes ago, Archimedes said: I don’t really see how GB or Tenn have a strong case over the Chiefs D. Those teams both have solid defenses but the Chiefs outperformed both in most relevant metrics. Bulk, maybe. And barely. Per drive they performed worse than Green Bay and Tennessee. Were penalized more, gave up more first downs as a result. 12th in 3D%, which edges out GB at 15th but gets bounced by Tennessee at 8th. Performance wise, they were all in the same realm. And since we’re projecting performances, we can look at the rosters on paper. The Titans have the best secondary amongst these three teams by a decent margin and also the best off-ball LBers by probably an even bigger margin (more due to the low quality of the others). They’re behind KC in the pass rush department (although by less than you probably think, Landry had more pressures than Clark and Jones last year) but definitely makeup for it in the back 7. With Green Bay, I think they have pretty unspectacular linebackers (off ball), as do the Chiefs. Amos and Savage aren’t Mathieu and Thornhill, but Jaire and King present value over Breeland (when he comes back) and Ward too. And I think the units up front are pretty similar (Jones probably above Clark pass rushing, Zadarius above Clark pass rushing) but add in Preston and he tips it there. So yeah, I’m not sure I’d die on that hill, but I’d be comfortable projecting the 2020 Titans and Packers defenses to be better than the 2020 Chiefs if everyone stays healthy. Edited August 20, 2020 by Yin-Yang Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bearerofnews Posted August 20, 2020 Author Share Posted August 20, 2020 1 hour ago, Yin-Yang said: Out the gate, as @Hunter2_1 said, seems like they’re focusing on names. I’d probably have the Chargers much lower, the Buccs lower or out, possibly take the Chiefs out, and consider adding Green Bay or Tennessee into those spots. Much lower? Let's not get carried away. Maybe #3. But #1 with that talent seems logical. Teams who struggle with turnovers typically bounce back big in that stat the following year. Outside obviously health, only real question is how some of their young guys progress like Tranquil, Tillery and Adderley in year 2. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soko Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 12 minutes ago, Bearerofnews said: Much lower? Let's not get carried away. Maybe #3. But #1 with that talent seems logical. Teams who struggle with turnovers typically bounce back big in that stat the following year. Outside obviously health, only real question is how some of their young guys progress like Tranquil, Tillery and Adderley in year 2. If it’s maybe 3, which two teams are you putting maybe 1 and maybe 2? Just so I know who I don’t have to address. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FinSting Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 Broncos and Patriots should be on the list. Not sure who to drop tho Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AkronsWitness Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 (edited) 11 minutes ago, FinSting said: Broncos and Patriots should be on the list. Not sure who to drop tho Yeah im not sure how DEN gets left off. They had the #10 ranked defense in the NFL last year and added Bradley Chubb, Aj Bouye, Jurell Casey and Bryce Callahan. Edited August 20, 2020 by AkronsWitness Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bearerofnews Posted August 20, 2020 Author Share Posted August 20, 2020 36 minutes ago, Yin-Yang said: If it’s maybe 3, which two teams are you putting maybe 1 and maybe 2? Just so I know who I don’t have to address. Prolly 49ers and maybe Ravens. But even those 2 i don't feel very confident with. Steelers could be darkhorse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacReady Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 The Patriots haven't been outside of the top 20 in scoring defense in Belichick's entire time there. They've been outside of the top 10 twice since Brady was a rookie. Any list that doesn't have the Patriots on top defenses is idiotic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soko Posted August 20, 2020 Share Posted August 20, 2020 14 minutes ago, Bearerofnews said: Prolly 49ers and maybe Ravens. But even those 2 i don't feel very confident with. Steelers could be darkhorse. Statistically they were a mixed bag. Did very well in total yards, decent in bulk points. Great vs the pass, minus the interceptions and the NY/A - those weren’t good. They weren’t good vs the run. They committed a lot of penalties. And their per drive stats are average or below average, pretty much across the board. DVOA has them 21st. On third down they were abysmal. Not good in the red zone. Not great rushing the passer despite having Bosa and Ingram, to a lesser degree. So strictly looking at how the unit performed last year, there’s little argument for them as a top 10 unit at all, let alone top 3 or 4. So the Chargers’ legs to stand on really only come from their talent on paper. They have one of the best secondaries in the league, indisputable point. They have a great pass rusher and another good one on the other side. They have Linval Joseph who is still a good big man in the middle. There are however still question marks about many of the second year players and the LBing core. I still have the Chargers somewhere in that top 10, but having them number 1 or even top 3 seems crazy to me since we can’t really use anything except some aspects of their previous pass defense and their talent to justify a high rank. To put them that high you have to be willing to either overlook some of their question marks or project that a handful of young players become high quality starters, which is 100% possible but does not seem as solid of a base compared to other teams that have more proven pieces to play with. Player for player, the Chargers have more talent than a team like the Bills, but the Bills routinely have a better defensive unit. Talent’s nice but it has to manifest into something on the field to really be worth anything. It’s very possible that happens with the LAC but there are teams that already have a track record of utilizing it’s players beyond their physical ability. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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