Did Some Research

[ROH522155]

Okay, everytime an expert on ESPN or anywhere else predicts a bad season for the Ravens, they always say the age of our defense will catch up to them. Well, I'm sick of it. So, I researched the ages of the starting defenses of the Ravens and the Steelers. I got the Ravens' from the roster on this site and got the Steelers' from NFL.com. Here we go.

Steelers CBs: Taylor-29, Townsend-33 AA-31(Average Age)
Ravens CBs: Foxworth-26, Washington-26, AA-26
Steeler S: Clark-29, Polamalu-28, AA-28.5
Ravens S: Reed-30, Landry-26, AA-28
Steeler LBs: Harrison-31, Farrior-34, Timmons-23, Woodley-24, AA-28
Raven LBs: Suggs-26, Gooden-24, Lewis-34, Johnson-28, AA-28
Steeler Dline: Smith-33, Hampton-31, Keisel-30, AA-31.3
Raven Dline: Ngata-25, Gregg-32, Pryce-34, AA-30.3

Steelers Defense Average Age-29.5
Ravens Defense Average Age-28.3

The shocking truth comes out! The Steelers defense is older than the Ravens' by over 1 year! The Ravens are younger at every spot except linebackers where we are both at 28! The Steelers have 6 players on that D that are 30 or older compared to the Ravens 4.

So in conclusion, if the experts want to talk about an aging defense, they should look at Pittsburgh well before they look at Baltimore.

[PuRock]

Nice Research.

So if we are going to crumble because of Age, the Steelers should crumble that much faster.

Eric on Mike and Mike in the Morning kept talking about how our defense is one year older. But kept saying the Steelers were going to run away with the division.

The problem is everybody associates our entire defense with Ray Lewis. Since he is one year older, our defense is one year older.

So if Ray Lewis got up to take a pee, "The entire Ravens team got up to take a pee."

[thewarden86]

[quote name='ravensorioleshoyas522155' date='26 August 2009 - 06:55 PM' timestamp='1251327327' post='225109']
Okay, everytime an expert on ESPN or anywhere else predicts a bad season for the Ravens, they always say the age of our defense will catch up to them. Well, I'm sick of it. So, I researched the ages of the starting defenses of the Ravens and the Steelers. I got the Ravens' from the roster on this site and got the Steelers' from NFL.com. Here we go.

Steelers CBs: Taylor-29, Townsend-33 AA-31(Average Age)
Ravens CBs: Foxworth-26, Washington-26, AA-26
Steeler S: Clark-29, Polamalu-28, AA-28.5
Ravens S: Reed-30, Landry-26, AA-28
Steeler LBs: Harrison-31, Farrior-34, Timmons-23, Woodley-24, AA-28
Raven LBs: Suggs-26, Gooden-24, Lewis-34, Johnson-28, AA-28
Steeler Dline: Smith-33, Hampton-31, Keisel-30, AA-31.3
Raven Dline: Ngata-25, Gregg-32, Pryce-34, AA-30.3

Steelers Defense Average Age-29.5
Ravens Defense Average Age-28.3

The shocking truth comes out! [b]The Steelers defense is older than the Ravens' by over 1 year![/b] The Ravens are younger at every spot except linebackers where we are both at 28! The Steelers have 6 players on that D that are 30 or older compared to the Ravens 4.

So in conclusion, if the experts want to talk about an aging defense, they should look at Pittsburgh well before they look at Baltimore.
[/quote]

Sure seems that way. But you need to consider two things:

1). Townsend hasn't been a starter in two years (Gay is this year's projected starter..not that it'd make a big difference).
2). Stop worrying about what ESPN says. lol

[Perfekt]

this is one of the best threads i have seen started in a few days. im not really worried that they think our defense is old because were like a fine wine that only gets better with time.

[mhead66]

[quote name='ravensorioleshoyas522155' date='26 August 2009 - 06:55 PM' timestamp='1251327327' post='225109']
Okay, everytime an expert on ESPN or anywhere else predicts a bad season for the Ravens, they always say the age of our defense will catch up to them. Well, I'm sick of it. So, I researched the ages of the starting defenses of the Ravens and the Steelers. I got the Ravens' from the roster on this site and got the Steelers' from NFL.com. Here we go.

Steelers CBs: Taylor-29, Townsend-33 AA-31(Average Age)
Ravens CBs: Foxworth-26, Washington-26, AA-26
Steeler S: Clark-29, Polamalu-28, AA-28.5
Ravens S: Reed-30, Landry-26, AA-28
Steeler LBs: Harrison-31, Farrior-34, Timmons-23, Woodley-24, AA-28
Raven LBs: Suggs-26, Gooden-24, Lewis-34, Johnson-28, AA-28
Steeler Dline: Smith-33, Hampton-31, Keisel-30, AA-31.3
Raven Dline: Ngata-25, Gregg-32, Pryce-34, AA-30.3

Steelers Defense Average Age-29.5
Ravens Defense Average Age-28.3

The shocking truth comes out! The Steelers defense is older than the Ravens' by over 1 year! The Ravens are younger at every spot except linebackers where we are both at 28! The Steelers have 6 players on that D that are 30 or older compared to the Ravens 4.

So in conclusion, if the experts want to talk about an aging defense, they should look at Pittsburgh well before they look at Baltimore.
[/quote]
Very interesting, but one thing:

William Gay, age 24, is starting at CB for Pitt, not Deshea Townsend.

This makes the Ravens Defense Average Age 28.3, Pittsburgh's 28.5...

[ROH522155]

[quote name='thewarden86' date='26 August 2009 - 07:05 PM' timestamp='1251327944' post='225118']
Sure seems that way. But you need to consider two things:

1). Townsend hasn't been a starter in two years (Gay is this year's projected starter..not that it'd make a big difference).
2). Stop worrying about what ESPN says. lol
[/quote]


oh i thought townsend started

and its not just espn. everybody says that

[ravens rule]

espn underrates us way too much we were one game away from the sb last year

[kash96ravenstotalfan]

Age, so they say, is just a state of mind. I think our D will remain dominate this season - and I don;t care how old they are!

[Bltravens]

The other thing is the steelers have 2 linebackers who are on the wrongside of 30, whereas we only have 1 and he happens to be one of the greatest of all time. Johnson, Suggs, and Gooden all have at least 5-6 years of prime left, gooden's case has 8 years. This is all under the assumption that a players "prime" of high level play ends at 30-31. And by all means Lewis is a freak of nature, im not so sure Farrior is, and Harrison has avoided 10 years of wear and tear in the NFL as hes only been fulltime the last 3 years. So when we have to replace Ray, the Steelers will have to have replaced 2 linebackers and both starting corners. Both Dlines will offset themselves in turnover rate. Although it will be nice not to have Harrison rushing off the edge and Farrior not commanding the middle, neither defense have much problem implementing new talent. I have no problem admitting good Steeler defenders but one guy im not a fan of is Hampton, dudes just a whale in the middle doesnt generate a pass rush and hardly pushes the pocket at all doesnt do anything but be fat and take up blockers.

[tweety]

Webb is a football player with a full motor. I liked his Red-zone defense. He batted the 2-pt conversion attempt and nearly batted the end-zone attempt. I haven't seen him blow coverage.

[ROH522155]

[quote name='mhead66' date='26 August 2009 - 07:09 PM' timestamp='1251328190' post='225122']
Very interesting, but one thing:

William Gay, age 24, is starting at CB for Pitt, not Deshea Townsend.

This makes the Ravens Defense Average Age 28.3, Pittsburgh's 28.5...
[/quote]
ok, so even so, we are still just a bit younger than them.

the point is, people should stop talking about how old our defense is when the Steelers is just as old and actually a bit older.

[mhead66]

[quote name='ravensorioleshoyas522155' date='26 August 2009 - 07:33 PM' timestamp='1251329638' post='225137']
ok, so even so, we are still just a bit younger than them.

the point is, people should stop talking about how old our defense is when the Steelers is just as old and actually a bit older.
[/quote]
True that. Both defenses are excellent, top-3 D's...
Neither one is too old, both have a good seasoning of youth and experience, and both FOs have the talent to replace them with quality.

The Ravens have consistently found quality to replace lost quality. Bart, Adalius and Hartwell gone, and [b]loads[/b] of talent - Gooden, Barnes, and McClain are ready.

The Steelers' front line is getting long in the tooth, but several scouts have said that their new replacement, Ziggy Hood, looks like a beast.

There's a reason both teams are always competitive - excellent front offices. As time goes by, I don't expect this to change.

Sorry, Browns/Bengals fans...

[thewarden86]

[quote name='ravensorioleshoyas522155' date='26 August 2009 - 07:11 PM' timestamp='1251328266' post='225123']
oh i thought townsend started

[b]and its not just espn. everybody says that[/b]
[/quote]

I know. They can be aggravating, but it's so much fun to see them eat crow at the end of the year. Collinsworth has eaten his share, that's for sure. [img]http://boards.baltimoreravens.com/public/style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif[/img]

[ROH522155]

[quote name='thewarden86' date='26 August 2009 - 07:48 PM' timestamp='1251330497' post='225146']
I know. They can be aggravating, but it's so much fun to see them eat crow at the end of the year. Collinsworth has eaten his share, that's for sure. [img]http://boards.baltimoreravens.com/public/style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif[/img]
[/quote]

i hate chris collinsworth

[thewarden86]

[quote name='ravensorioleshoyas522155' date='26 August 2009 - 07:50 PM' timestamp='1251330644' post='225150']
i hate chris collinsworth
[/quote]


lol. We all do.

[Alexir]

Thanks for the research man, Now I can use this in arguements with my stupid bandwagon steeler friends.

[darklight1216]

Great research.

[JO_75]

How long did that take you to do all of that? That's impressive and a very interesting stat(if you wanna call it that) I didn't realize that the Steelers had that many people hitting the 30 mark or over 30. I knew they had an aging d-line but not that much aging. If everything pans out the way you did the re-search and everybody starts it would be interesting to see what the average age is when the final depth charts are released. I might have to bring this up to James Walker(the only person at ESPN who is actually pretty cool and knowledgeable) and see what he says about it.

[flynismo]

[quote name='thewarden86' date='26 August 2009 - 07:05 PM' timestamp='1251327944' post='225118']
Sure seems that way. But you need to consider two things:

1). Townsend hasn't been a starter in two years (Gay is this year's projected starter..not that it'd make a big difference).
[b]2). Stop worrying about what ESPN says. lol[/b]
[/quote]

Yeah, no kidding!
We may have "aging defenses", but these two groups of old men set the standard on how defense is played in this league. The rest of the pretenders can keep their little boys, since they all just want to be us when they grow up anyway

[RavensClaw52]

[quote name='ravensorioleshoyas522155' date='26 August 2009 - 07:50 PM' timestamp='1251330644' post='225150']
i hate chris collinsworth
[/quote]

haha me too, I was watching the Hall of Fame game (Bills vs. Titans) and after the tribute to Madden he was like, "im working soo hard that maybe I can be the next John Madden".....LOL yeah right

[Alexir]

I don't mind Gruden though. But Collinsworth is such a turd burglar.

[Purple Nurple]

[quote name='Alexir' date='26 August 2009 - 10:56 PM' timestamp='1251341819' post='225250']
I don't mind Gruden though. But Collinsworth is such a turd burglar.
[/quote]

Yeah, I liked listening to Gruden. He's a cool guy. Living in Tampa for a few years, I've kinda taken a liking to Chucky. Bucs suck, of course.

[RavensClaw52]

I didnt know how Gruden would play out but I can stand him, something about his voice doesnt sound right doing play by play type stuff

[Steelers#1]

[quote name='Bltravens' date='26 August 2009 - 07:13 PM' timestamp='1251328390' post='225127']
The other thing is the steelers have 2 linebackers who are on the wrongside of 30, whereas we only have 1 and he happens to be one of the greatest of all time. Johnson, Suggs, and Gooden all have at least 5-6 years of prime left, gooden's case has 8 years. This is all under the assumption that a players "prime" of high level play ends at 30-31. And by all means Lewis is a freak of nature, im not so sure Farrior is, and Harrison has avoided 10 years of wear and tear in the NFL as hes only been fulltime the last 3 years. So when we have to replace Ray, the Steelers will have to have replaced 2 linebackers and both starting corners. Both Dlines will offset themselves in turnover rate. Although it will be nice not to have Harrison rushing off the edge and Farrior not commanding the middle, neither defense have much problem implementing new talent. I have no problem admitting good Steeler defenders but one guy im not a fan of is Hampton, dudes just a whale in the middle doesnt generate a pass rush and hardly pushes the pocket at all doesnt do anything but be fat and take up blockers.
[/quote]

I agree with your assessment of Hampton. He was good in his prime but that dude has not showed up in shape for a camp in some time. Hopefully drafting Ziggy will help. You guys have a much better D-line IMHO, but i will take our linebackers over yours any day. I feel our secondaries are pretty evenly matched so let the games begin.

[BloodRaven]

I thought this was common knowledge, I made the same arguement last year.

[ROH522155]

[quote name='BloodRaven' date='27 August 2009 - 09:36 AM' timestamp='1251380196' post='225391']
I thought this was common knowledge, I made the same arguement last year.
[/quote]

good for you

[ROH522155]

[quote name='darklight1216' date='26 August 2009 - 09:24 PM' timestamp='1251336241' post='225217']
Great research.
[/quote]


thanks. although I was off when I said Townsend started over Gay

[wolfzie06]

I think we have just the right mix of experience and youth. We have a guy over 30 in the seconday, Ed Reed, who has been a tremendous mentor to a lot of the young safeties and corners. We have a guy over 30, Ray Lewis, who is almost unrivaled in the NFL as a leader and mentor and is helping tutor our linebackers. We have a couple guys over 30 on the defensive line, like Trevor Pryce and Kelly Gregg, who have also made big contributions to the game play of our lineman.

[SackinU]

All I know is I feel awful old after seeing that breakdown... I am still a beast , but old all the same....heh

[TheRavenouseD2008]

[quote name='thewarden86' date='26 August 2009 - 07:05 PM' timestamp='1251327944' post='225118']
Sure seems that way. But you need to consider two things:

1). Townsend hasn't been a starter in two years (Gay is this year's projected starter..not that it'd make a big difference).
2). Stop worrying about what ESPN says. lol
[/quote]

warden on this topic and many others , are you sure your a steelers fan you seem too level headed , you know espn has been wrong more times then right remember in 2001 - The Ravens Could not Win in pittsburg and they also said the Ravens D could not win them the SB which point was right none so stop with espn

wow the ravens are now half a year younger then me I am now 29 today