The nfl ranks its defenses based on yards conceded, specifically yards per game. On one hand this seems fair based on the fact that yards do lead to points and probably serve a better representation of the opposition's success rather than points alone, which can come from flukey situations and special teams success. On the other hand, points win and lose games and are therefore more important than yards by default. But points can come from the offense when, in fact, their special teams are the squad responsible for the short field position. Offenses can steal the points from their special teams returns, so yards are the more accurate way of measuring success and failure. Even though the pack have given up the lowest amount of yards through this week in the league, there are 5 reasons why they definitely are NOT the best defense in the league, yet: st. louis, detroit, cleveland, detroit, and horrible special teams. 4 cupcakes in which the defense could've pulled out the beach chairs, put on the sunscreen, put their hand out for an interception, and sacked the qb 5 times a games all while sipping their margaritas. In those four games combined, they gave up 32 points and just under 900 yards. That's 8 POINTS and 225 YARDS A GAME! That kiiiiind of pads the stats juuust a bit, considering we crumbled against sota, cincy, and tampa freaking bay. In addition to the cushion of the horrible opposition we've faced, the green bay packers have given up the most yards on special teams from kick and punt return yards combined in the nfl (any team not named the oakland raiders). This means that the defense usually has a really short field to defend, so if they get the job done it's even more impressive, but even when they give up touchdowns they sometimes only give up 30 or 40 yards. This is why the pack have given up the lowest amount of yards. They have faced some of the weakest opposition in the league and have the worst special teams coverage on earth (raiders are in a galaxy of their own). Don't get me wrong, it was impressive shutting down cutler when people thought he was good and before they realized he's an absolute mess, and I was pissing my pants with joy watching that dallas game, the most promising show of defense i've seen from this squad since '07. They've also shut down a bunch of fantastic running backs all season long, which is a big step forward from last year, not to mention my man chuck holdin it down at corner (DPOY). The defense looks good, but until they show up against baltimore, pittsburgh, and arizona....I'm still not too confident with this in the playoffs. Imagine facing the who dat saints....or even brett again....:xcensoredx:

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To be honest we dont need much to beat the viks ...
kampman and harris is a big loss to our defense thou and I would of rather played the viks with them in our lineup.

IMO we are a few questionable ref calls and a catch or 2 away from taking both games away from the viks - simple as that.

They arnt so hot. D lee dropping that ball in the endzone and MM going for it on the 1 instead of a FG ...

I say we take em and have the upset of the season.

I'd feel better about the D had they gotten to Favre and not given up so many big plays against the Vikings. But I am pleased with the progress. When the blitzes start getting home, this team will be ready for the next step and moving up upper echelon of teams. Maybe have to wait until next year, but who knows.

I sure would love to stick it the Vikings and give Favre a big shitburger to choke all winter. And Dulak, the only problem I have following your analysis is that we couldn't stop them when we needed to, so I'm not exactly buying it; what I would like to see is for them to play from behind instead of us. That would involve not shooting off our own foot in the red zone.

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The Saints, not the Vikings, are the team I'm most worried about. Especially after what I saw last night.

I think if you polled the '72 Dolphins, last night they probably all crapped in their pants. I just hope they were wearing Depends and not the bargain brand.

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Kampman and Harris are huge losses for NorthWar III with the Vikings. A big problem for our D in the first two games was stopping the run (which we did) AND getting pass rush on Favre AND covering receivers downfield. The Vikings offense is dynamic enough that defenses need to shut it down completely to stop them at all, one aspect isn't good enough. Kampman gave us a shot at pass rush and Harris is still a great cover corner. But they're both gone.

All that being said, I think the defense has improved since the second Vikings game. The run D has really solidified, and our front seems to be getting more penetration toward the QB. I think we will really know whether or not our coverage downfield is for real after the next two or three weeks.

On the offensive side: The O-line is better, not really "good" but better, which would have made both games against the Vikings closer match ups. I've also liked seeing Rodger's take more responsibility calling out pass blocking coverage before the snap. I think this has a lot to do with his protection lately. With the subtle improvement of the O-line the running game seems to be finding its legs as well. Jackson is getting healthier each week and Green (though he's been banged up) is going to be an option as well.

Our receivers seem to be more confident too. They're pulling down balls they were dropping earlier in the season. Driver is playing as well as he ever has, if not better, especially in the last three weeks. The more success he has the more we've seen Jennings get open and get the ball.

Our TE situation is only improving too. We've seen Lee involved in the offense a bit more, everyone's favorite new Packer, Havner, is turning it on when defenses aren't looking and we know Finley is a force, though perhaps not yet the star he has the skills to be.

IF the whole team continues to improve, to cut down on mistakes and to cover weaknesses with strengths then beating the Vikings in the playoffs seems like a real possibility. The Vikings showed in the first two games that they were the better team, but not so much better that they cannot be beaten, especially if the Packers shore up a few key spots on offense and defense, which the Packers seem to be doing each week. Games against the Ravens, Steelers, and Bears are going to be very important for the whole team, offense and defense, to make a statement about the kind of team the Packers is. I want to see bold, definitive wins against these teams (especially the Ravens and Steelers) before I'll be convinced of the strength of the team.

Can't wait for Monday night.

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I dunno. The possibility of Brett Favre being on the field at the same time as Jarrett Bush scares the crap out of me.

Even adjusting for the Brad Childress factor.

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I say we beat the queens if we get em in the playoffs. It's damn hard for any NFL team to beat a team that is a playoff contender 3 times in a season.
I'm thinkin nobody wants to face the Packers in round 1.

I agree with a lot of your points but that's always been a part of statistics. They are not supposed to be a completely 100% accurate reflection but an attempt to narrow down the candidates. What being ranked #1 means is that we have done well enough to be a top 5 defense, maybe not that we are the best but that we have done a good job in comparison to other teams. Plus isn't it natural to give up more yards to better teams?

First of all the rub on the competition as it relates to padding the numbers is invalid. Look at the schedules of the other top teams and they all played their fair share of poor teams. It's basically about 50/50 in playing the decent and better teams vs. the number of bad teams.

Secondly, I don't believe, as bad as ST's have performed, that the defense has gained by the poor field position it has seen at times over the course of 11 football games. When you stack up the times they have had to go out and defend a short field over ALL the drives the defense takes the field it just isn't enough to say that has HELPED reduce the yards they give up. There has been PLENTY of opportunity for this D to give up WAY more yards then they have.

Lastly, I will say the YPG this D has allowed has been HUGE for the team BECAUSE there has been extremely poor ST's play at times and where would we be if we weren't shutting down teams in those cases where teams have a whole field to go which we do most of the time.

Put an offense out there with 80 yards to go and I will take the Pack's D every time. Sure, they will give up a FEW scoring drives, but for the most part they win that battle. You better be glad for it too because I still wince every time a ball leaves our kickers foot. There ain't no telling what will happen next.

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Of course it's natural...that's why they're better...but wouldn't you think that the number 1 defense in the league should be able to contain really good teams for the most part, or at least limit them to a below average performance? The only REALLY good team we've faced is the vikes, and the defense was absolutely shredded both times. i'm just saying that nobody should get too hyped about being ranked number 1 because we are far from the best defense in the league. Again, the Dallas game was a FANTASTIC indicator of what they're capable of, but we gotta pass the three tests we have remaining with pittsburgh, baltimore, and zona, not to mention dismantle the emBEARassments and seachickens like we're supposed to. I would say top 10, which is quite impressive, but maaaan it's a stretch to put them in the top 5...

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