Where Seattle's D ranks all time

http://insider.espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/ ... st-all-nfl

I don't have insider but I'm curious if someone can summarize this a bit.

Not sure what the article says, but this is a pretty telling stat:

Seahawks are 1st team to lead NFL in fewest points per game and yards per game allowed in consecutive seasons since 1985-86 Bears.

Been watching football since 1980. I'd rank the 85 Bears ahead of you in my life..... Wasn't watching in the 70's when Minnesota, Pittsburgh, Dallas etc had great defenses so....

We might be best ever in modern era. Here's what PFT said:

The Seahawks have led the league in scoring defense in each of the last three seasons. Seattle allowed 15.3 points per game in 2012, 14.4 points a game in 2013 and finished this season allowing 15.9 points per game.

It’s the first time that feat has been accomplished since the fabled “Purple People Eaters” of the Minnesota Vikings led the league in scoring defense from 1969-71....

We are the best given the current offense friendly rules
No doubt about it. To adapt and still be the best is really really a great accomplishment.

ptisme":1ey3o76c said:

Been watching football since 1980. I'd rank the 85 Bears ahead of you in my life..... Wasn't watching in the 70's when Minnesota, Pittsburgh, Dallas etc had great defenses so....

Click to expand...

Yeah they were amazing but it's so hard to compare eras. Rules are different and how many high-powered offenses were there back then? Seems like we have a ton of QBs throw for 4K yards these days and how many did that in the early and mid 80s?

Maybe someone smarter than me can pull together some stats that fairly compare the teams across eras.

marko358":3kmssjay said:

ptisme":3kmssjay said:

Been watching football since 1980. I'd rank the 85 Bears ahead of you in my life..... Wasn't watching in the 70's when Minnesota, Pittsburgh, Dallas etc had great defenses so....

Click to expand...

Yeah they were amazing but it's so hard to compare eras. Rules are different and how many high-powered offenses were there back then? Seems like we have a ton of QBs throw for 4K yards these days and how many did that in the early and mid 80s?

Maybe someone smarter than me can pull together some stats that fairly compare the teams across eras.

Click to expand...

Yes but also the amazing thing about Seattle is they were able to do this in the era of salary cap and free agency. The players you watch on sundays, many of them won't be in Seattle in five years. Too many stars and you can't pay everybody. Imagine if you had this team back in the 80's? You might win seven or eight Lombardis... The thread earlier that said "Enjoy it now" is no joke.

So while Hawk fans get to watch a defense that lines up, no gadgets and punches people in the mouth.... I have to deal with this from Dom Capers.... Pathetic....

http://www.jsonline.com/sports/packers/ ... 39471.html

Dude, bro... you do know the Seahawks Defense is pretty much locked up for another year...

Defensive Starters/ Final Year of Contract *Replacement*

Michael Bennett/ 2017
Tony McDaniel/ 2015 *Jordan Hill/2017*
Brandon Mebane/ 2016
Cliff Avril/ 2018

Bruce Irvin/ 2015 or 2016, w/5th yr option
Bobby Wagner/ 2015, likely to be extended soon
KJ Wright / 2018

Byron Maxwell/ FA after this year
Richard Sherman/ 2018
Earl Thomas/ 2018
Kam Chancellor/ 2017

The only starter that will be a free agents after this season CB Byron Maxwell. And without drafting or free agency they have talent already on roster ready to step up if they move on:

Tharold Simon
Jeremy Lane
Marcus Burley

Seahawks also have a lot of offensive talent coming off the books in '15/'16 that will help keep that defensive money together longer without cuts if players are still performing at a high level.

The Seahawks D should be able to continue to play at an elite level for at least the next 2 years and unless the Seahawks flub their next 3-4 drafts they should have smooth transistion to younger players.

If the Seahawks lead the league in Defensive Points Allowed for 2015 and 2016... they won't be in the conversation of one of the greatest defenses ever, they will become "the Best Defense in NFL history*. Other than 2008 Steelers, any other big time defenses from the 2001 and before, the Seahawks D would have destroyed those ERA of offenses as rules weren't in place yet that started to cater towards high-scoring offenses and protecting those players.

i read the article. maybe our defense statistically wont be considered the one of the best over a 3 year span, but then again, all things arent equal. so, besides the reality that this is now a passing era of big yards as aforementioned, one must also consider this:

our defense exists in a salary cap era, where these other storied defenses that had longevity, cant say that. in this era a front office cant just sign or resign whoever they want to whatever the players want. there is turnover. players will not take massive paycuts or discounts. we cannot sign/retain a deep powerhouse team talent-wise. if we were able to add free agent talent all while keeping the likes of clemons, bryant, mcdonald, thurmond, bb, we could have been even more dominant in 2014. it just doesnt work that way anymore. jared allen would have been a big get. but he wouldnt take substantially less. and few will.

to some we cant touch the "purple people eaters", but that doesnt make what we have created any less special; simply there is a limit on what we can spend/invest on the roster. our recent success anyway is a result of careful planning, elite scouting and player development and team philosophy. the whole team has been rebuilt in 4 years, just as carroll said it would. we are taking 5th-7th rounders and undrafted guys, finding diamonds in the rough, unique talents, having them buy in and then creating and unleashing these monsters. then we even have the arrogance and audacity to design the defense around some of these monsters. our whole defense is predicated on competition, creating big plays/limiting big plays, intensity, relentlessness, technicality, and players playing for each other.

thankfully, our defense isnt going anywhere as long as our coach/gm are around :mrgreen: we have already locked up the rockstars of the defense to long term deals. weve seen flashes of what jordan hill and simon can do. we know where all these players came from, who found them, who developed them. there should be atleast a few more dominant years ahead...

...enjoy

ptisme":2yf8hfgb said:

Yes but also the amazing thing about Seattle is they were able to do this in the era of salary cap and free agency. The players you watch on sundays, many of them won't be in Seattle in five years. Too many stars and you can't pay everybody. Imagine if you had this team back in the 80's? You might win seven or eight Lombardis... The thread earlier that said "Enjoy it now" is no joke.

Click to expand...

aye.

Pandion Haliaetus":1owc10tm said:

Dude, bro... you do know the Seahawks Defense is pretty much locked up for another year...

Defensive Starters/ Final Year of Contract *Replacement*

Michael Bennett/ 2017
Tony McDaniel/ 2015 *Jordan Hill/2017*
Brandon Mebane/ 2016
Cliff Avril/ 2018

Bruce Irvin/ 2015 or 2016, w/5th yr option
Bobby Wagner/ 2015, likely to be extended soon
KJ Wright / 2018

Byron Maxwell/ FA after this year
Richard Sherman/ 2018
Earl Thomas/ 2018
Kam Chancellor/ 2017

The only starter that will be a free agents after this season CB Byron Maxwell. And without drafting or free agency they have talent already on roster ready to step up if they move on:

Tharold Simon
Jeremy Lane
Marcus Burley

Seahawks also have a lot of offensive talent coming off the books in '15/'16 that will help keep that defensive money together longer without cuts if players are still performing at a high level.

The Seahawks D should be able to continue to play at an elite level for at least the next 2 years and unless the Seahawks flub their next 3-4 drafts they should have smooth transistion to younger players.

If the Seahawks lead the league in Defensive Points Allowed for 2015 and 2016... they won't be in the conversation of one of the greatest defenses ever, they will become "the Best Defense in NFL history*. Other than 2008 Steelers, any other big time defenses from the 2001 and before, the Seahawks D would have destroyed those ERA of offenses as rules weren't in place yet that started to cater towards high-scoring offenses and protecting those players.

Click to expand...

No doubt... Trust me man, that year or two goes quick...

ptisme":ivv2qjxf said:

Been watching football since 1980. I'd rank the 85 Bears ahead of you in my life..... Wasn't watching in the 70's when Minnesota, Pittsburgh, Dallas etc had great defenses so....

Click to expand...

Been watching football since 1971. The '85 Bears D was exceptional. But it was a gimmick Defense that caught teams off guard. Buddy Ryan implemented a 4-6 scheme to apply constant pressure to the QB. He had very good personnel that executed it very well. But It was a 1 year wonder so to speak. What happened to that D afterwards? Teams adjusted. Anyone still run a 4-6 scheme?

That's what makes our D so outstanding. We run the same scheme each week, each year with the same personal. We don't try to disguise much. We have success through teamwork. We lineup, ask our guys to be accountable, and go play football.

Chawks1":i16sclr6 said:

ptisme":i16sclr6 said:

Been watching football since 1980. I'd rank the 85 Bears ahead of you in my life..... Wasn't watching in the 70's when Minnesota, Pittsburgh, Dallas etc had great defenses so....

Click to expand...

Been watching football since 1971. The '85 Bears D was exceptional. But it was a gimmick Defense that caught teams off guard. Buddy Ryan implemented a 4-6 scheme to apply constant pressure to the QB. He had very good personnel that executed it very well. But It was a 1 year wonder so to speak. What happened to that D afterwards? Teams adjusted. Anyone still run a 4-6 scheme?

That's what makes our D so outstanding. We run the same scheme each week, each year with the same personal. We don't try to disguise much. We have success through teamwork. We lineup, ask our guys to be accountable, and go play football.

Click to expand...

No doubt... Enjoy it... I haven't been able to watch exceptional defense from my team since 96'.

Chawks1":rhyi7lpc said:

We might be best ever in modern era. Here's what PFT said:

The Seahawks have led the league in scoring defense in each of the last three seasons. Seattle allowed 15.3 points per game in 2012, 14.4 points a game in 2013 and finished this season allowing 15.9 points per game.

Click to expand...

Not to nitpick, just wistful, but I'm thinking the 15.9 points per game average would be closer to around 15.5 (anyone care to do the math?) were it not for a couple miscues that gave our opponents the ball with less than 15 yards to goal: the mishandled kickoff by ET vs GB and the muffed punt by John Ryan vs. Eagles. Were there any others?

If you believe John Clayton, top 7-8.

I say top 3, and on the way to #1
I'm talking the run that started last year and hasn't ended yet.
http://m.espn.go.com/general/video?vid= ... i_internal

Let's table this discussion for whenever the season ends. Remember how the perception of our D totally changed after the superbowl..... the story is not yet written.... lets wait it out.

Seahawks Defenses the past 3 years already have a legacy of dismantling some of the best offenses in the NFL.

Some of the best offenses in league history.

And its already very rare company to lead the league in scoring defense three years in a row.

And while the best defenses of today will have 3-4 bad games.

Seahawks only have about 1-2 a year.

That's crazy consistency in a copy cat league catered for high scoring offenses and parity.

What the Seahawks D has done is nothing short of amazing especially doing so with a young roster and having players step-up to fill in during injuries/suspensions.

People want to look at the increased 15.9 ppg number and compare it to the 13.4 number of 2013.

But the Seahawks still led the leaugue in defensive scoring despite having 8 less sacks and considerably less turnovers the year before.

gowazzu02":1vjlmvrd said:

Let's table this discussion for whenever the season ends. Remember how the perception of our D totally changed after the superbowl..... the story is not yet written.... lets wait it out.

Click to expand...

That is correct. If we get another ring this year, that changes the discussion considerably.