Okay.. I can throw out a couple numbers to defend my statement as well.. easily. Right off the NFL site, and I hate basing football off numbers.. they tell only a fragment of the story IMO.
Third down percentage given up.
43%... bottom third of the league.
22.4 first downs a game. 3rd worst in the NFL.
1049 plays defensed... bottom 10 of the league. Since we couldn't get off the field defensively it kept our offense off the field. Heightening the importance of each and every possession, and yes elevating the importance of the miscues on offense, including drops.
29 sacks... bottom 10 in the league.
29 receiving touchdowns.. 5th worst in the league.
122 Defensive Penalties Tied for second worst in the league.
22.4 points a game.. dead center of the league. Our defense tightened up as the opposing offense got towards the endzone.. where our overload in coverages help mask the inability to apply any pressure by the defense.
The fatal flaw.. Capers lost confidence in the ability for his defense to get home on the pass rush, electing to try an overload the coverages to little avail. This year.. the lack of confidence up front shifted the advantage to the opposing offenses and allowed them to dictate to us.. against our defense and indirectly to the offense by reducing the touches we got.
Yes.. the Packers may very well have outgunned there way to the Superbowl ala the Patriots.. but the odds were not in the favor of doing it. Not in a more balanced NFC.
"The oranges are dry; the apples are mealy; and the papayas... I don't know what's going on with the papayas!"