11-14-2018, 01:38 PM
I would have them as one of the top 10 defenses in NFL history, in any given year.
I would put them lower on the list because their biggest weakness was the secondary and they never had to play a lot of great quarterbacks that year with the easiest SOS of any team in the AFC.
They faced off against Scott Mitchell and Akili Smith against the Bengals.
They played Jacksonville twice, and in those contests they played Mark Brunell in one game and Jamie Martin in the other game.
They faced the Cleveland Browns twice that season, who were in only their second season back in the NFL. In the first game, a 12-0 win, the defense faced off against Tim Couch, who is much better then a bust to me as he never played with a single pro bowler, on offense, in his Cleveland Browns career, but still not great.
During the second game, a 44-7 Baltimore victory, they played a mixture of Doug Pederson and Spergon Wynn.
They played Pittsburgh twice in 2000 and the teams split the series.
In the season opener, they played against Kent Graham and he was the team's quarterback in the Steelers' loss and the game against Kordell Stewart they loss.
The Ravens' biggest loss of the season turned out to be their 19-6 defeat by the Miami Dolphins. It was their first year without Dan Marino. The quarterback was Jay Fiedler.
Luckily, the defense experienced the joy of going against Ryan Leaf against the Chargers.
Against the Jets they played Vinny Testaverde who managed to complete 36 passes for 481 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions.
They faced off against Tennessee twice, meaning the defense squared off with Steve McNair each time. He was probably the best quarterback they played that year.
In the NFC, they played against Brad Johnson, Troy Aikman, his last and arguably his worst year, and Jake Plummer.
It's not to discredit what they did, but if I'm judging against all time greats then it has to at least be brought up.
My question would be do you think our defense would play better in the next 7 games if we had 2 games against the 2000 Akili Smith led Bengals, a game against the Ryan Leaf led Chargers, 2 games against Cleveland, one against Tim Couch and one against Doug Pederson and Spergon Wynn?
A game against a Brad Johnson led Buccaneers and a game against a Kent Graham led Steelers?
Of course it would improve. That's why I would put them lower on the list, but you can only play the opponents they give you.
I'd still put them in the top 10.
I would put them lower on the list because their biggest weakness was the secondary and they never had to play a lot of great quarterbacks that year with the easiest SOS of any team in the AFC.
They faced off against Scott Mitchell and Akili Smith against the Bengals.
They played Jacksonville twice, and in those contests they played Mark Brunell in one game and Jamie Martin in the other game.
They faced the Cleveland Browns twice that season, who were in only their second season back in the NFL. In the first game, a 12-0 win, the defense faced off against Tim Couch, who is much better then a bust to me as he never played with a single pro bowler, on offense, in his Cleveland Browns career, but still not great.
During the second game, a 44-7 Baltimore victory, they played a mixture of Doug Pederson and Spergon Wynn.
They played Pittsburgh twice in 2000 and the teams split the series.
In the season opener, they played against Kent Graham and he was the team's quarterback in the Steelers' loss and the game against Kordell Stewart they loss.
The Ravens' biggest loss of the season turned out to be their 19-6 defeat by the Miami Dolphins. It was their first year without Dan Marino. The quarterback was Jay Fiedler.
Luckily, the defense experienced the joy of going against Ryan Leaf against the Chargers.
Against the Jets they played Vinny Testaverde who managed to complete 36 passes for 481 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions.
They faced off against Tennessee twice, meaning the defense squared off with Steve McNair each time. He was probably the best quarterback they played that year.
In the NFC, they played against Brad Johnson, Troy Aikman, his last and arguably his worst year, and Jake Plummer.
It's not to discredit what they did, but if I'm judging against all time greats then it has to at least be brought up.
My question would be do you think our defense would play better in the next 7 games if we had 2 games against the 2000 Akili Smith led Bengals, a game against the Ryan Leaf led Chargers, 2 games against Cleveland, one against Tim Couch and one against Doug Pederson and Spergon Wynn?
A game against a Brad Johnson led Buccaneers and a game against a Kent Graham led Steelers?
Of course it would improve. That's why I would put them lower on the list, but you can only play the opponents they give you.
I'd still put them in the top 10.