Comparing absolute numbers here would have the Ravens far out in front. Giving up under yards per game is remarkable. That is nearly 30 yards per game fewer than the Seahawks. Looking at the league rank gives us a clue that the relative numbers may not tell the same story. The Ravens were not even first in the NFL that year in yards allowed.
That was the Tennessee Titans. Yards speak to a defenses overall level of suffocation. Any coach, though, would take a defense that gives up more yards but fewer points. Baltimore allowed four fewer points per game than the Seahawks. That is a big difference.
Only eight teams have allowed less than This is where comparing different teams from different eras can be difficult. Rules were different in than they are now. Players were different. Offenses were different. The average offense scored That is not to say it was without firepower. The Greatest Show On Turf was still going strong. The best way to account for the differences is to take the standard deviation of what offenses were scoring in each year, and then see just how special each defense was in holding teams below the league average in their year.
That is a terrific number, but is not even in the top ten historically. The best scoring defense of all-time, the Minnesota Vikings, will be the subject of a future battle. For this contest, Seattle actually comes out on top when looking at the relative numbers, holding opponents 2. Up to this point, we have been comparing the two defenses performance against league averages. But neither the Seahawks nor the Ravens played every opposing offense in the league. We need to get specific about which offenses they played, and how they did relative to the averages of those offenses.
Baltimore faced four of the best offenses in the league, including the 2nd-ranked Broncos and 3rd-ranked Raiders in the playoffs. They held those two teams to a combined 6 points. The Seahawks faced the top-ranked, highest scoring offense in the history of football in the Super Bowl, and held them to 8 points. If this was versus the top eleven offenses instead of the top ten, the Seahawks would have had six games against those teams, compared to still four by Baltimore.
Defense is not only about stopping the opposing offense. The most dominant defenses also create opportunities for their offense via takeaways. Both teams led their league in takeaways, but Baltimore comes out on top in this round both in absolute numbers and relative numbers. The gap is not wide 2. Our offense sucked! Admittedly, I will not go is deep here or else this would turn into an equally long assessment of each offense.
Instead, we will stick to some absolute numbers and get some relative information via league rankings. The Seahawks offense scored more points, gained more yards and turned it over less than the Ravens offense. It was a better offense. But the advantage is not quite as wide as most might think. That shows up in the league rankings.
Seattle was actually ranked lower than the Ravens in yards per game, and was slightly above in points scored. The Ravens offense, for all the derision it gets, was a league average offense that year. The Ravens defense is one that set the standard for dominance while I grew up watching football.
It felt as though no offense had a chance against that group. They were the benchmark. From the team: Packers Dope Sheet. By almost any measure, Packers have NFL's worst special teams. Packers QB Aaron Rodgers confident injured toe won't keep him from playing.
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