IllegalContact

defense made plenty of stops against the ravens.....


that said, the defense still needs work although I would try to minimize the personnel changes. this was pretty much the 3rd different defense the pats have had personnel-wise in the last 3 years.

wilfork, mayo, ninko, mccourty are the only starters remaining from 2010

jones, hightower, dennard, talib, gregory....all new this year....

if there's that kindof turnover again, the defense will have the same kinds of issues.....

at some point you have to stick with someone for awhile........

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“ I think good coaches will coach with the personnel they have, and if you only have one (good) linebacker, you’re not going to play a 3–4. ”
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jbb9s

I think there is some interesting data in here. A few take aways:

1) Ravens stopped 49ers on 2 pt conversion (for a tie game) and the final drive (for the win). Huge stops when they needed them. Championship stops. In the Pats SBs and the 2007 AFFCG they didn't get those stops. Couldn't do it for their lives. And I'm not talking about the helmet catch or the Manningham grab. Those were lucky, but those drives were long and resulted in TDs.

2) Throw the stats on the windows. So the ravens won with a defense ranked X and Y .....Pats had Z...blah blah. Ravens chances of winning the SB would have increased with a better defense. Their chances of losing would have increased with a worse defense. So a team should always be incentived to get better on D.

KontradictioN

As far as I see it, the defense needs to: a) Get more physical at safety, b) Get more talented at CB (particularly if Talib isn't coming back), c) Get more coverage ability at LB, and d) Pick up a DE/DT/OLB (depending on what Belichick's plan for the "base" is). Do that and add in some minor modifications with the offense, then pray for good health, and this team is back in the big dance.

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Brady'sButtBoy

It's the lack of scoring in crunch that remains my real concern for this team. A stop or two by the D would be nice - and they made plenty in the first half of the AFCG - but it became irrelevant when the O couldn't score anymore points. They had their chances but managed 0 points in the 2nd half. To win you often need to beat a good D in the playoffs.

Better crunch time scoring, and more big plays down the field would make more of a difference to me than LBs that can cover better. And I still think it's as much about how you play D and as who's playing it for you, especially in the redzone.

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Deus Irae

The Ravens won 4 games this postseason. Two were won by the defense choking down an opposing offense (Colts/Patriots). Two were won by putting up points (Broncos/49ers). The 14 and 17 points games you say won't get you anywhere would have been good enough to win two of the 4 games.

You can look for confirmation of your own pre-formed opinions, or you can look at the data and then form your opinions. The latter is almost always going to be the smarter approach.

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Mack Herron

Ravens beat Pats. Twice. Better on offense and defense.

edboc

Aren't the keys to an effective defense red zone defense (making the opponent kick FGs), generating turnovers, limiting explosive plays (more than 20 yards), and defensive passer rating? Ranking teams by yards gained and given up is somewhat archaic.

KontradictioN

I tend to think you should take into account all of them. For instance, red zone defense is great and all and you always want to hold the opponent to field goals. But if you're overly reliant on red zone defense to get stops, it usually means that the opponent is putting together drives down the field on your defense which takes the ball out of your offense's hands. Ultimately, you want a defense that does everything well and can do everything when needed. That's what Belichick has been trying to build here since the old guard left.

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PatsSweFan

Ravens held Manning's to 21 offensive points for +5 Qtr...
Sure they gave up 29pts against 49ers but 14 of them was on two possession in a row started inside Ravens own 25

ausbacker

The Patriots need a better D and a healthy Gronk.