I agree with Rock here. I don't think there's any one thing that will take your team into the Super Bowl, otherwise everyone would be doing it. It's definitely a combination of different factors.

The one thing I dislike about stats is they never tell the whole story of a game. A football game is a lot about tempo, momentum and motivation. Whatever team wants it more is usually the team that's going to win.

I was not around in the Lombardi years but I feel that the team was good based on the inspiration of Vince. Anytime you have a man that can lead a team like that, regardless of the talent level of the players, you're going to fight and scrap for a win.

It's kind of like basketball. The teams that win the most aren't teams that are built around one superstar. They're the teams where players know their roles and have good chemistry. Where all the players fit in, work together and work hard.

Look at the Dallas Cowboys this year. Their morale was low you could see it on the field. Their body language said it all. Wade gets fired, Garret steps in and all of a sudden they have fire again, taking down the division leading Giants. Look at Rex Ryan. That team plays for him. The Vikings play in spite of Childress.

I love stats but I think that comes more with playing Fantasy and Madden than actual football.

Stats tell as much of the "whole story" of the game as anything else does. You may argue that the score tells more. A team can play VERY well but just not be able to finish it up. Stats tell the most about a game from a single standpoint, as far as I'm concerned.

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There is a myth that there is the perfect elite defense.. they are as rare as it gets. Most teams disguise their weakness very well and pass themselves off as a great defense.

The key to winning, isn't found in a single stat.. it is studying the opponent, identifying their weakness and being able to exploit them.

To be consistent game in and out.. you have to have the ability and the balance to be able to attack the opposition on any front.

You can win with a single faceted offense.. but if you truly want to be consistent and dominate.. you better be able to be able to do multiple things effectively.. because sooner or later a team you will run into will take away one or the other element of our offense.. and in game you will need to be able to adjust, force them out of their scheme and then hammer them with your strength.

You might think that only applies to offense, it doesn't.. the same is true on defense and most notably pass coverage. If you are cover two or zone defense.. teams will attack it and gouge you.. or if you are a man team they will employ presnap movement or stacked set and create natural space for the receiver release. You better be able to interchange effectively to adjust in game.. otherwise you are going to be attacked.

The equalizer is if you can dominate the line of scrimmage, but as you move on in the playoff, that is going to be less and less likely.

Again.. there is no single stat that will drive home a consistent dominate result.. pass happy, run happy, defense happy unless you possess a once in a decade type defense. I have seen two.. 85 Bears and 01 Ravens.. the rest.. great defenses, but they all could be attacked.

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I didn't watch much football in 2001, but rooted for the '85 Bears because it was my only chance to see Wallie get a SB ring. I was a huge Wallie fan.

Yes, their D actually attacked. It was the only D I've ever seen where the D attacked instead of reacted.

I agree with you, Pack. It takes a complete team. That's why I specifically say there's no magical formula. Plus, an O that just sits on the field all day long getting first down after first down while dragging the morale down for the opposing team sure makes the D's job easy.

I'm an O guy. I hate D. I'd much rather see a team like the '09 Saints where the D kind of sucked but at the absolute right time, got a game saving INT. I love seeing an O that's so good that they just keep scoring. My favorite game of all time was in '83 when the Dickey led Packers beat the SB champs 48-47. I hate seeing punts. I want to see score after score.

But let's say you never watched the game before. You're blind, or whatever. All you got is stats. You can't see the minute details, you just get figures in braille. Or, you're a historian 1000 years in the future and there's this thing called the Super Bowl that was a big thing with the nation America. You want to see which numbers made it more likely to win a game. Well, the answer would be the #1 D was your best shot at winning the Super Bowl game. No guarantee, of course. It's just your best shot.

That's what I'm getting at. You put in details. Take them out. Just look at numbers and numbers alone.

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I have been a big believer that the opportunity to make it to the SB coincides with having at least a top 5 D. If you have that you have a chance against anybody.

If you look at the BIG PLAY stats you know what you have.

Turnovers
Sacks/QB Pressures
Big Plays Allowed (30+yards)
Redzone stops
PA after a turnover

You look at the really good D's and their stats are at the top in these catagories. What do these stats represent? BIG PLAYS. MOMENTUM KILLING PLAYS. I agree momentum is HUGE. How do you get it?

It's a BIG PLAY league. The team making the most of them wins.

So if you don't think stats count for much work it backwards. Look at all these stats and find where your ranked and it will reflect back in the stat of Points Allowed. All the stats are doing is showing what's going on out there on the field.

We happen to be #1 in Points Allowed. You go back through and look at the stats I posted above and we are very high if not at the top of all of them. It's no coincedence since we have crept to the top in PA we are winning. The underlying stats that got us that ranking is the reason for it.

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Well said, Warhawk.

Let's take a look at the past 3 years - 2008, 2009, and 2010. 2008, we had a top tier O but no D. We sucked. 2009, we had a top tier O and a pretty good D (but not elite). We made the Playoffs. 2010, we have a lesser O than either of those 2 years, but the best D in the NFL. Well, this year we have a better shot at winning the SB than we did in '08 or '09.

Also note that in '10, we're turning the ball over. Yet, we'd still beat the '09 team even though the '09 Aaron Rodgers does circles around '10 Aaron Rodgers and Ryan Grant does circles around Brandon Jackson. Plus the '10 WR unit as a whole is not as good as '07, '08, or '09.

Gotta give some props to Mr. Capers.

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Ahhh... I shall ask the historian to quantify via stats why we have a better chance this season as last?

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This time last year we were 5-4. Today, we have the 2nd most wins in the NFC, and the 4th most wins in the NFL.

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So.. when asked.. you turned to the wins instead of the defensive ranking, TOP, TO ratio or what not.

Daily portion of giving Zombie a quick zing complete.. continuing the regularly scheduled program. 😉

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My brain just blew up.

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