Generally NFL AM is pretty good but it was bad this morning...

First they said the Niners are the number 1 defense. Alright, we can let this one slide. Niners are really good and who knows exactly what stat they are basing this off of.

Second they were bashing the Chiefs and were talking about Cassel. I got no idea who the guy is but he goes on to say this "Cassel has as many interceptions as Russel Wilson and the original gracious pigskin donor, Carson Palmer".

WTF is that? Why just randomly choose to throw Russel Wilson in there? Wilson has 6 and Palmer has 3. I don't really get the angle there. I can say Cassel has as many INTs as the Manning brothers combined. It just seemed to me as a stab at Wilson.

The niners have the #1 defense if you go by the yards/game stat. We're currently #4, we were #1 before the Pats put up 475 yards on us.

So technically they are correct if you go off that one stat.

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You're the new Oakland Raiders; class-less and dirty (with trash-talking players, and an unapologetic head coach), no respect for the game, with a stadium filled with obnoxious/rude fans dressed up in corny Halloween costumes/flare. -49er fan

I hate how they go off yards to determine defense rankings. It should be points allowed (by the defense only). I think it is pretty clear the Seahawks and Niners Defenses are 1-2 in some order.

I agree - yards is a pointless metric to base a defensive ranking on. Way too many caveats to why a team might allow a lot of yards (being way up on a team, bend but don't break philosophy, etc.).

In fact, the only stat that "matters" in the NFL at all is points scored vs points allowed - obviously. All the fancy stats and window dressing mean squat.

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@SeahawkGreg

YEAH, WE HAVE A DUDE NAMED CHRISTINE...DEAL WITH IT!

yuck, I agree with a 9'er but yeah, you're right. Since the game is won on the scoreboard and not the stat sheet, it's really points that should truly matter when talking about who the best is. If you can hold a team to FG's, you're more than likely going to win (unless you're playing St. Louis with their space mutant kicker).

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My milkshake brings all the turtles to the yard.... damn right... and men's room Drakkar... damn right... and men's room Drakkar.

Timely defensive plays aren't measured (in stats), are they?

Points allowed (by defense only) can be misleading too. For example, if a punt returner returns it deep into the opponent's territory, obviously, they have a better chance to score than if the team on offense was deep into their own territory. Is there some kind of situational statistic that combines yards allowed and points allowed?

Haha, this board was loving it and jumping on the "We're the #1 Defense train" last week, but now that the Hawks have dropped to #4, all I hear is "the yardage stat is a poor determiner of defensive ranking".

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I've never been a fan of yards allowed, can't speak for others but I never felt like we had the #1 defense. I view defenses off points allowed.

Like I said in my original post, the Niner's defense ranking doesn't bother me. They are good. They've earned that status if based off nothing but reputation.

The reason I bought it up is the context of their conversations. It was kinda like "Hey the Niners are the best defense around" but they failed to mention that the Hawks are just as good while playing better offenses.

What bothered me more was the little shot at Wilson. There was no reason to throw Wilson's name out there when you are trashing another QB.

Just be careful over generalizing - "this board" is pretty broad.

I've never been a fan of the yardage metric. I also could care less if we are the #1 defense or the #10 defense or whatever, as long as we win games.

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@SeahawkGreg

YEAH, WE HAVE A DUDE NAMED CHRISTINE...DEAL WITH IT!

It is pretty broad, but I read a lot of posts about our "#1 Defense" last week and read absolutely zero posts about how "defensive rankings based on yardage are garbage".

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It does have the benefitof being a confidence builder going into any particular game if you need to rely on your defense to contain an opponent while trying to come from behind.
It has value, but you're right. Positive stats don't matter if it doesn't help W vs. L.

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Give me some damn skittles...

I agree, it makes no sense to assign the points to the defense when a pick 6 or a special teams return is the real culprit.

Both teams have tremendous defenses, it will be intersting to see how the offense perform.

I doubt the team bases its confidence on where the defense is ranked. I think they feel like they are the best in the NFL, and that's all that matters. They have confidence regardless.

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@SeahawkGreg

YEAH, WE HAVE A DUDE NAMED CHRISTINE...DEAL WITH IT!

I don't think that was a jab at Wilson. Wilson is a rookie, Cassel isn't. I think that was the comparison.

I've never been a fan of yards allowed, can't speak for others but I never felt like we had the #1 defense. I view defenses off points allowed.


I used to think that way too, until St Louis kicker were making 60 yard field goals. If that is the case, yards allowed does make a difference if they convert to points every time the opponent has the ball.

Our defense, overall, hasn't failed us all year long. I can't think Thursday will be any different.

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Dec. 16th ~ Sunday Night Football
Whinners AT Pats ( unless this game gets "flexed out" ?? )

.....let's see how many yards Brady & Co. put up on the San Fran D ???
THEN we'll see where both our defenses rank ??

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Go Hawks !!
~ ( in my best Russell impersonation )

Why throw Palmer into it? It was the most random thing I've heard in awhile. There are a ton of other combinations of QBs that combine for 9 INTs.

Well said NorCal.

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