We can stop waiting for a 2008 type of D

[sick beats]

It comes down to turnovers and forcing field goals, with the rules and the efficiency of most nfl offenses its really hard to shut teams down.

That and I would add QB pressure, which helps with forcing turnovers and FGs.

[JoshBroski]

We (me included) have been whining about our porous D that we have been seeing the last few seasons, THIS one included. Harrison came out and said, "It is the players, not Lebeau" who are the reason for such a soft D. Cowher came out and said this D was soft. But you know what? They are all wrong.

This D may not be among the top in the league. But, that's not relevant. The fact is ANY D can be made to look soft, because with the rules and the refs' interpretation (obviously, in accordance with the NFL powers) we will no longer see ANY defenses that can hold today's offenses to 10 points or less on a steady basis.

What we say yesterday is a case where, even though the D gave up 30+ points, it was still a modern-day version of playing good D. The formula of a D consistently holding opponents to 14 or less points, and the offense scoring 20, no longer wins in today's NFL. So, since it's not realistic to consistently win in such a fashion, it's time to scrap that model. It's not sustainable. The Colts came in as the #3 D in the NFL. All Ben did was torch them for 522 yards and 6 TDs. Does that mean the Colts' D is terrible? Nope. It just means they faced an offense that kept the ball all day. The Colts will have other days where the D keeps their opponents score down; but today, no such D exists that can do that every week.

The truth is, an effort like we saw yesterday, against a franchise QB, will now be considered decent. I said early on that we have to score 35+ to win the game. We won't every week; we played the #1 O and won't every week. The point is, we need a new paradigm to judge what is and what is not a decent D. In hindsight, even though we gave up 34 points, the D was not all that bad, all things considered; they hit Luck all day long, mostly bottled up the run, and even got some turn overs. If we need our D told opponents under 20 points to win, then we can expect losing. That model simply doesn't exist any longer (unless playing the very worst teams). So don't expect it to. We are seeing record points, record come backs, etc. We will need offensive output to put up 30+ points, or we can expect to lose.

Not trying to be a downer but our defense is bad. When our QB has to set not only franchise but NFL records and the other team is still in the game, there's huge problems. One of them was addressed when we benched Allen.

Seattle proved last year that an elite D will beat an elite O in the playoffs and having one is not impossible with these new rules. D's will just have to adapt.

[pfelix73]

Baltimore is playing pretty good defense, here of late. So now, watch this week's score will be 9-6 after all that firepower on O.

[feltdizz]

Not trying to be a downer but our defense is bad. When our QB has to set not only franchise but NFL records and the other team is still in the game, there's huge problems. One of them was addressed when we benched Allen.

Seattle proved last year that an elite D will beat an elite O in the playoffs and having one is not impossible with these new rules. D's will just have to adapt.

Uhh.... the rules were changed this offeason because of Seattles D.

[WindyCitySteel]

Seattle has been the best defense the past two years, allowing 245 and 231 points. Detroit is on pace to allow 252 this year.

[BowCatShot]

I noticed that in the Colts game we played a nice tight man to man coverage. That proves that we can do that and we saw the results. It will be interesting and telling to see whether they return to their typical loose 10 yard cushion style of play during the next "contest".

[hawaiiansteel]

Ed Bouchette's Steelers chat transcript: 10.27.14

Guest: How would you rate the defense yesterday? They did give up some big plays.

Ed Bouchette: I heard some players say they thought their defense played "great.'' I'm not going there but they did score six on Willie Gay's pick, they came up with another 2 points on a safety, they averted six more with an interception in the end zone and they sacked Luck three times and pressure him all day. A decent day against the NFL's No. 1 offense, I would say.

[URL]http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/steelers/2014/10/27/Ed-Bouchette-s-Steelers-chat-transcript-10-27-14/stories/201410270160[/URL]

[RuthlessBurgher]

I noticed that in the Colts game we played a nice tight man to man coverage. That proves that we can do that and we saw the results. It will be interesting and telling to see whether they return to their typical loose 10 yard cushion style of play during the next "contest".

Why exactly are their quotes around the word "contest"? I could see someone putting quotes around " coverage" or "cushion" or something like that, but I struggle with the implication that our next game somehow wouldn't be a contest for some reason.

[JoshBroski]

Uhh.... the rules were changed this offeason because of Seattles D.

And that's why I said defenses are adapting to rule changes.

It's not like they weren't penalized last season by the way they played. They were the MOST penalized team in the NFL and still won the big game. They didn't give up splash plays like we do every game. Saying that our D is anything better than mediocre is false. Dick's defense doesn't give up big plays, and we give them up consistently against both good and bad teams.

[ikestops85]

I noticed that in the Colts game we played a nice tight man to man coverage. That proves that we can do that and we saw the results. It will be interesting and telling to see whether they return to their typical loose 10 yard cushion style of play during the next "contest".

Yes, we saw the results. Our defense gave up 34 points in only 20 minutes of possession for the Colts. I wonder what they would have scored if the offense didn't have such a great game?

I'm really confused by the logic of some of the posters. They've been crying for us to blitz, blitz, blitz. Just because we did that you think the defense played well.

[Slapstick]

I think the defense played better because they at least forced some errors instead of only giving up points.

[feltdizz]

And that's why I said defenses are adapting to rule changes.

It's not like they weren't penalized last season by the way they played. They were the MOST penalized team in the NFL and still won the big game. They didn't give up splash plays like we do every game. Saying that our D is anything better than mediocre is false. Dick's defense doesn't give up big plays, and we give them up consistently against both good and bad teams.

but it sounds like you are applying last years success to this years rule changes.

I don't think you can look to last year and say it's possible to do again when the D you used as proof is getting abused THIS year.

Seattle hasn't shown they have adapted IMO.

[feltdizz]

Yes, we saw the results. Our defense gave up 34 points in only 20 minutes of possession for the Colts. I wonder what they would have scored if the offense didn't have such a great game?

I'm really confused by the logic of some of the posters. They've been crying for us to blitz, blitz, blitz. Just because we did that you think the defense played well.

well, I don't think we played great but we played much better than we have been IMO.

This was Andrew Luck, not a Jax rookie or a journey man like most of the other QB's we've played. I don't think you can put up 51 points without giving up some yards and some points against an offense like that.

When the Pats hung 55 on us Ben had 400 yards, 4 TD's and we put up 31.

If our offense didn't have a great game DL would probably been more conservative.

[sick beats]

Not trying to be a downer but our defense is bad. When our QB has to set not only franchise but NFL records and the other team is still in the game, there's huge problems. One of them was addressed when we benched Allen.

Seattle proved last year that an elite D will beat an elite O in the playoffs and having one is not impossible with these new rules. D's will just have to adapt.

And since last year, they have made breathing on a WR too hard a penalty. This year is vastly differently than last. They obviously don't want dominating Ds in this league. The NFL was not happy seeing Manning shut down and have changed game rules/interpretations to address it.

[sick beats]

I think the defense played better because they at least forced some errors instead of only giving up points.

The D played the #1 offense in the NFL. And they forced some turnovers and hit the QB 7 times - both figured into the win.