Professional Football Researchers Association Forum

All general historic praise aside, yes they were amazing (can’t see them not making my cut), but I’m not placing ’00 Ravens at #1. Heck, maybe (just maybe) Titans from that very year might be better or at least even-enough. Anyone agree? And all Steeler-fandom aside, not going to place ’08 at #1; and not totally sure they’ll even be in Top 5. Tampa Bay’s 2002 and Seahawks’ 2013 Ds are the first two coming to my mind. They should be my top-2. So many great ones to pick from!

The 2000 Ravens, 2002 Buccaneers, 2013 Seahawks, and the 2015 Broncos are on my list because they won Super Bowls. I don't have a clear fifth one right now. I guess I'd be looking at the 2008 Steelers or 2010 Packers.

The 2000 Titans, 2009 Jets, 2010 Steelers, 2011 49ers, and all Seahawks defenses from 2012 and 2014-16 should be considered. But those teams did not win it all so they will never make any list of mine as top defenses unless the list is Top Defenses of Non-League Champions.

The 2017 Jaguars remind me of the 2009 Jets. Both defenses had/have a bunch of good players. Darrelle Revis in 2009 was better than anybody on the current Jaguars defense but the Jaguars overall probably have better quality players. Jalen Ramsey is 1st round All-NFL material in my book. Calais Campbell and Telvin Smith might be as well. Tashaun Gipson and Yannick Ngakoue are very good too. What list will this team go on- the one above that starts with the 2000 Ravens or the one that starts with the 2000 Titans? Like the 2009 Jets, the Jaguars have major question marks at the quarterback position. I have always contended that the 2009 Jets were a 13-3 team dropped down to a 9-7 record due to poor quarterback play. The 2017 Jaguars are probably 14-2 material with elite quarterbacking.

The 2000 Ravens and Titans were at the time the two best single season defenses I've seen since the 1985 Bears, so I would include both of them; there just weren't any really dominating defensive teams in the 90's as good as either of them. I also think the Ravens and Titans were the two strongest teams in the 2000 playoffs, and I knew going into the postseason that the winner of their Divisional Playoff game was going to win the Super Bowl.

I would also include the 2002 Bucs and 2013 Seahawks. The window is slowly closing on the Seahawks, but the Seahawks defense of last 5-6 seasons ranks with the greatest defenses of all time, the Steel Curtain and Doomsday and the Purple People Eaters and the like; they just don't have the cool nickname. The 2002 Bucs defense was led by a couple future HOFers and they dismantled the Raiders in the Gruden Bowl.

The other one I would go with is the 2006 Ravens. Fewest yards and points allowed, in 11 of their games they gave up 14 points or less, and of the other five games they managed to win four of them. In the Divisional game against they Colts the Ravens defense bent but did not break, giving up five FG's to Vinatieri although the Ravens offense turned it over four times in a 15-6 loss.

I think the Jags could be 14-2 with good QB'ing. In Yanick, AJ, Jalen and Telvin I think they have the core of a Seahawks, Steel Curtain style run of great defenses, Calais can likely hold on a while, but I wouldn't expect this again next year and on after, all the others are less than 27 - could be scary next year.

Thought I'd stretch this thing out to a Top Ten. The more I thought of it after the fact, the more defenses came to mind and just thought to alter it. Considering just how notoriously overly offense-friendly things have at least seemed to become as of late, many a great defense even in this century so far. And, end of day, it seems a great defense still beats a great offense when it really matters most (Seahawks over Broncos, Bucs over Raiders, Pats over 'Greatest Show' or any early-'00s wins over Peyton's Colts, etc).

After really thinking it out, I feel '02 Bucs & '13 Hawks in whatever order will still be the two tops. However, so many have come to mind and, who knows, may end up knocking real hard on their doors or, perhaps (just perhaps) break-on-in. For starters, I can't believe I initially forgot to mention the other great D from 2000...Fox & Strahan's Giants! Perhaps they may not only be #2 between they, Ravens, and Titans; but maybe...#1. As I pointed out before on this site, Jerome Bettis in an interview pre-SBXXXV opined that Giants' D was better than Ravens if only because they 'game-planned' better. Bettis played vs both that season; G-men clubbed Steelers in Meadowlands in a late-season affair. Not sure what #36's opinion was of Titans' D compared to other two but I'm sure quite high. Three amazing D's in one single season! What are your opinions on this '00 trio in comparison to one another? Or do some of you feel 2008 (year after Strahan) G-men has some say?

How about the Bears' 2006 unit that (yes, with help of Hester and running game) carried Grossman to a SB? How about Vikings' 2009 installment led by Jared? And, from same year, the Champs themselves? Yes, 'opportunistic' many described them as, but a great D creates such...opportunities. Saints had one brutal pass-rush (ask Favre). Great debate as to what D was better in '09 - they or Vikes (both real stout and deserving of mention in this thread)? How about the early-'10s Forty Niner-Ds under Harbaugh? The very two participants of Super Bowl L itself (Carolina & Denver)?

Yes, Rupert, '06 Ravens scary enough going into those playoffs and impressive it was for the Colts to go into that hostile environment and play some D themselves after how horrid they played vs the run down stretch regular season. 1st-half of AFCC vs Pats aside, Colts played quite the D that entire '06 post-season; actually carrying a momentarily slumping Peyton. '05 Steelers (at least once Bears came to town and beyond, that is) and (as you mention, JWL) '10 Packers should be mentioned whether either actually make anyone's top-5 or 10. In either event, you would have to judge on an entire campaign/season or at least most of it; especially post-season. Packers I would pick over Steelers or Colts. Best Packer D so far this century is definitely 2010.

Yes, this current Jags D from what little so-far I gathered of them seems to have quite a ceiling above them. Perhaps a Lombardi this February may already crash them deep into this discussion. And let's not forget about at least considering the already forever overlooked Patriots defenses; early-'00s, '07 itself, or even these recent SB-winning installments. And it is okay to place multiple Ds from the same team on the same list. Example being '13 and '14 Seahawks one after the other. However, not too sure about that. Whether comparing both teams overall, or simply both defenses, as great as '14 Hawks are I see the 'gap' between they and '13 reminiscent of the 'gap' between '85 and '86 Bears (agree?). I, at least, feel there is a noticeable difference.

So many great 21st Century D's to pick from. Any others I failed to mention? Making a top-5 or even top-10 is going to be so tough (with likely many rebuttals/corrections from many of you). As much as I respect the adage that those on this list - or even a #1 - must have actually won-it-all (and I certainly do respect that), I would have to respectfully decline. Yes, there's '00 Ravens & '02 Bucs, but in basically all other cases a D can only do so much no matter how superb they may be. You got to judge them on their very own merit. When if either had to accommodate that Eagles' O with, yes, Randall Cunningham but nothing ELSE (no QB-coach, no offense-coordination-in-general)? No real running game which, at least, both Ravens and Bucs still had hence was enough altogether to bring them all over the top.

I remember a few years ago someone did a detailed statistical analysis on the best defenses of all-time, with 'strength of opposing offenses faced' and 'strength of your defense relative to the other defenses in the NFL that year' being two of the main factors. In this study, the top two defenses of all-time were...the 2008 Steelers and the 1969 Chiefs. I found that to be very surprising.

The Chiefs had a great defense, but they deserve an asterisk as their defense was compared to only the other 1969 AFL defenses. The Chiefs gave up 177 points, much fewer than the 2nd lowest AFL total of 242, and they played in the higher-scoring AFL West division. But if you included the 1969 NFL defenses in the comparative analysis, such as the Vikings, then the Chiefs probably don't appear so relatively superior.

The numbers don't jump out at you immediately, but the 2008 Steelers are kind of an all-around statistical anomaly. They gave up the fewest yards and fewest points...not surprising for a great defense. They gave up the fewest passing yards and 2nd fewest rushing yards. Being so high in both areas is rarer than you'd think...2000 Ravens (8th pass, 1st run), 2002 Bucs (1st pass, 5th run), 2013 Seahawks (1st pass, 7th run), 2015 Broncos (1st pass, 3rd run). The 2008 Steelers really shine in yards per play...1st in both pass yards per play and rush yards per play. The only other teams I can find who did this were the 2015 Broncos, the 1991 Eagles, and the 1969 Vikes. The most amazing stat is the 2008 Steelers giving up only 3.9 yards per play at a time when the league average was 5.3 yards per play.

2008 Steelers (3.9/5.3 NFL average)
2000 Ravens (4.3/5.1 - 2nd in YPP behind the Titans)
2002 Bucs (4.2/5.2)
2013 Seahawks (4.4/5.4)
2015 Broncos (4.4/5.5)

Two interesting notes...the 2015 Broncos were closest to the 2008 Steelers in all this 'yards per play' stuff, but they somehow finished 'only' 4th in points allowed that year with 296. The 2008 Steelers 3.9 yards per play was significantly lower than the 2nd place team (Eagles at 4.4 yards per play).

Jacksonville is currently on a pace for an unusual defensive triple crown, leading the league in scoring defense, sacks, and takeaways.