ALP
Pro Bowl Player
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CLICK HERE to Register for a free account and login for a smoother ad-free experience. It's easy, and only takes a few moments.You know it's one of those things, so hard to answer a question like this in a vacuum. I tell you, I watched the Chiefs-Steelers and Chiefs-Packers games and you would think no defense in the NFL could match that Chiefs squad. Then you look at where they rank and go hmm, not that exciting.
So many factors go into these things too. I mentioned in another thread but teams that score fast put their defense on the field a lot and usually in a situation where the other team is going to try to score fast, sling the ball around. That is reflected in their rankings, right? Teams with ball control offenses are going to put less pressure on the D.
So anyway, in this case - it's probably a wash. Houston is outstanding. They beat us on both sides of the ball last game, just couldn't make up for their mistakes. I guess I'd say the Ravens D has more vulnerabilities but is more likely to make big plays and kind of take over a game, I mean at least historically. But for every game where Suggs has 3 strip sacks, you've got a game like the SD game. I am not sure but I feel like Houston is more consistent and our team is more dynamic.
Houston had a great defense this year. They (finally) got a good secondary player in Joseph, and their front 7 was still amazing. Especially with the emergence of JJ Watt, who should become a star in this league.
The NFL is a sport where I don't think you can really say A is better than B, or vice versa. This is a game of matchups.
this game as matchup based, which team can create the more favorable situation for themselves.
Rewatching the Baltimore/Houston game yesterday I came away grateful we weren't playing Houston's defense (playing their offense would be great). I thought they had a lot more energy and just played better. That's not saying anything to put down Baltimore, but Baltimore had only to hold in check a rookie quarterback who regularly delivered interceptions and basically had only one receiver to throw to.
It also felt like Houston's defense is coming on, whereas Baltimore's is relying more on past strengths carried forward to today. I still think Baltimore will be plenty tough to play against, but I feel confident we will win.
I mean, Baltimore had 17 points at the end of the first quarter, 14 of which were hand-delivered by the Houston offense and special teams -- they didn't even have to work hard to get those turnovers, just catch or cover the ball when it was served up. It took Baltimore 37 yards of offense to convert those turnovers into 14 points.
At the end of the game Baltimore had 20 points. 3 additional points over 3 quarters. Granted, they passed on a field goal trying to score a touchdown from the half-yard line. But they couldn't score it. Houston definitely has a great defense. They wouldn't have come close to being in last week's game without it. With a real quarterback they'll be tough.