[News] Eisenberg: Evidence NFL Is Utterly Obsessed With Offense

[BR News]

All seven new head coaches are offensive gurus, yet all the remaining playoff teams rank high in defense.

View the full article

[nevermorebmore]

I wonder if any of the OC-to-HC trend is tied to national visibility and brand? While defense still wins championships, the national fan obsession with fantasy is won with offense. I'm not at all familiar with how advertising revenue, flex scheduling, and red zone channel profits are distributed, but I wonder if there's hidden economic dynamics tied to the continuing surge in fantasy sports and the offensive NFL. Defensive teams seem to struggle to inspire much loyalty/viewer interest beyond their own fan base. Is the tail wagging the dog in head coaching choices?

[Ravenous92]

I'd be curious to see if offensive-minded head coaches actually produce better offenses, and if defensive-minded head coaches actually produce better defenses.

[Ravensfansince03]

thanks to the blizzard I'll be able to sit at home and watch all the games tomorrow!  

Edited January 23, 2016 by Ravensfansince03

[ellicottraven]

Let the NFL continue to be obsessed with offense. We the Baltimore Ravens will focus on our tradition - Defense. We have a decent QB, OL and RB now. With SSS and Perriman (praying) coming back healthy we will be able to put up between 20-30 points per game. If we focus on building our brand of defense with free agency and the upcoming draft, we'll be back to our glory days again thanks to our 'Hunting D'!!! Our mantra should always be defense first!

[BmoreB]

I'd be curious to see if offensive-minded head coaches actually produce better offenses, and if defensive-minded head coaches actually produce better defenses.

It usually works the other way around lol ,,, with the exception of Harbaugh of course as we always seem to produce top special teams units year in and year out

[The Greek]

Let the NFL continue to be obsessed with offense. We the Baltimore Ravens will focus on our tradition - Defense. We have a decent QB, OL and RB now. With SSS and Perriman (praying) coming back healthy we will be able to put up between 20-30 points per game. If we focus on building our brand of defense with free agency and the upcoming draft, we'll be back to our glory days again thanks to our 'Hunting D'!!! Our mantra should always be defense first!

i agree with you on focusing on building the defense which is what ravens football is known for but i do not believe pees is the guy to coach them. this defense has been average and unraven like since the 2nd half of the superbowl. jmo

[HomeoftheBRAVENS]

You need to be strong on both sides of the ball to get you this far.Carolina may not have been ranked in the top ten in offense,but Newton,Olsen and Stewart are just as big of a reason why they won so many games this year as the defense is.Denver is the only offense that you could say is weak offensively because of their QB situation.When you look at every other position on their offense though,they're stacked!A strong passing game is more important than defense in my opinion.It's not a coincidence that 3 of the 4 QB's left standing are the three players being considered for MVP.

[Barry S]

So John Harbaugh is a special teams coach and our special teams excelled this year, that explains why the rest of the team sucked offense and defense. Hmmmmmmm!!!!!!!!!!!!

[cobrajet]

Let the NFL continue to be obsessed with offense. We the Baltimore Ravens will focus on our tradition - Defense. We have a decent QB, OL and RB now. With SSS and Perriman (praying) coming back healthy we will be able to put up between 20-30 points per game. If we focus on building our brand of defense with free agency and the upcoming draft, we'll be back to our glory days again thanks to our 'Hunting D'!!! Our mantra should always be defense first!

I remember the first year the team was in Baltimore, the offense would put up a lot of points but the defense would give up a few more because it just was not very good. I wish we could put up points like that again and still have a defense that could hold a lead.

[ellicottraven]

I remember the first year the team was in Baltimore, the offense would put up a lot of points but the defense would give up a few more because it just was not very good. I wish we could put up points like that again and still have a defense that could hold a lead.

Clearly your sentiment and mine are very unpopular with some on this forum. I don't quite get why, but perhaps they may be mesmerized with an offensive juggernaut and a leaky defense. This may make games fun for some, but won't ever get us back to the promised land.

[Crusader]

So are the Ravens and both SB times the defense won the game. If this secondary sucks as bad as it did last year,someone more than a assistance coach needs fired.

[Fastynart]

Geez, do the writers of these articles really think we are that stupid OR are we that stupid that we have to be told that the NFL is doing everything it can for offense? This namby pamby "illegal contact" rule is for pansies. Every new baloney rule they come up with makes it more and more difficult to play defense. Football is physical. If you want to penalize every hard hit, go play checkers but leave football alone. The flags are more and more absurd and are ruining the game.

[Purple Dawg 96]

It all comes down to whom your QB is! A former defensive coordinator turned head coach could go farther with a good QB like Bellichick has! Harbs is rite there but Joe's motivation has to go up a few notches so the Ravens can take over the AFC! Two teams the Ravens gotta step their game up with the bungles and the bills former DCs of the Ravens!

[stixfix69]

Offense is what the N.F.L is all about these days.....But its days like today when it's all about Defense, and running the ball, especially in Carolina today.....Playoff football you better have a solid D as you never know what the weather will be like....

[PalmBayRaven]

Let me see a Defense like 2000 one more time in my lifetime. In the end it's Defense that wins championships. How many years do we have to watch our Offense flounder with their notorious slow starts? It's Defense that keeps us in those games.

[Raven'evermore]

Let me see a Defense like 2000 one more time in my lifetime. In the end it's Defense that wins championships. How many years do we have to watch our Offense flounder with their notorious slow starts? It's Defense that keeps us in those games.

 

 Actually  I don't think the defense changed all that much afterward, but our offense did.  the result was no playoffs for quite awhile.  I think it's a combination of both O and D. I think someone said that offense will take you to the playoffs and defense will win you the championship.  I dunno.

[balfan23]

"At least once during the doubleheader, the football nation will shake its head and grouse that the officials don't know what they're doing"

 

What are the odds that, when this happens, it will be in favor of the New England Patriots?

[balfan23]

Geez, do the writers of these articles really think we are that stupid OR are we that stupid that we have to be told that the NFL is doing everything it can for offense? This namby pamby "illegal contact" rule is for pansies. Every new baloney rule they come up with makes it more and more difficult to play defense. Football is physical. If you want to penalize every hard hit, go play checkers but leave football alone. The flags are more and more absurd and are ruining the game.

Perhaps the writer of this article suspects that people on this board may not have noted that current round of coaching hires and promotions involve guys exclusively on the offensive side of the ball AND that the evidence suggests (based on the current playoff entries) that you still need a defense to succeed. 

 

I don't see anywhere in the article where the writer is educating an otherwise ill-informed group of fans that the NFL has made rules that are skewed toward favoring offense. 

[RavensDieHard21]

Defense has and always will win championships. The recipe has been the same. Get a ferocious defense, a franchise QB, solidify the trenches on offense and you have a chance to win a SB every year. Look at the defensive talent of Denver, Carolina, and Arizona, they al%u0142 have at least 4-5 blue chip players on defense. We are just one or two pieces away from that. Focus of the offseason is to nab one more receiver, via draft or free agency,and load up our defense. Teams need to be frightened when they face us!

[Halshayeji]

Offense is what the N.F.L is all about these days.....But its days like today when it's all about Defense, and running the ball, especially in Carolina today.....Playoff football you better have a solid D as you never know what the weather will be like....

Bingo!

A solid D is much more reliable than a high flying offense. I'm not saying better or worse because we can go back and forth all night lol

To win a Super Bowl, a team must beat 3 or 4 playoff games against some of the NFLs best teams (back to back to back)

These games are played in Jan and Feb. It's highly likely that youl play 1 or 2 games in horrible weather. Thus, passing games usually fall off a bit and great Defenses seem a bit better.

To win 4 in a row against very good teams you need a really efficient quarterback. Even the best of quarterbacks are bound to throw a few interceptions or get caught off guard early in 1 of those 4 games. We were blessed when Flacco just went bazerk with 11TD to 0 INT. That simply doesn't happen very often in the playoffs against great coaches and really good Ds. That's where a solid D keeps you in the game and gives your QB a few more chances. Otherwise you'll just chase games and look like the Colts last year.

Last but not least, A solid D is a culture and a 10-15 really good players playing their roles. A solid passing game is 5 playmakers (usually killing cap space) that catch fire together.

Lemme try to explain it another way. If the best Defense in the NFL looses its best player, it's still gonna be good. Real good as long as everyone else does their job and the coordinator tweaks his scheme a bit. If a high flying passing game loses the #1 WR then it's much harder to offset because the second best receiver gets doubled etc.... same thing goes with QB LT and TE in most great passing games.

Bottom line.... I'd love to see Flacco with 3 superstar receivers and a great line and a descent RB but it can't be to the expense of our D. It's just not fair to Flacco to continually throw him under the buss with a below average D. If Peyton in his prime couldn't win Super Bowls consistently without a solid D then no one will.

In Ozzie I trust

Edited January 24, 2016 by Halshayeji

[RavensFanMania]

So are the Ravens and both SB times the defense won the game. If this secondary sucks as bad as it did last year,someone more than a assistance coach needs fired.

The defense did not win the game for us in the 2012-13 season.  If anything, they almost gave up the lead that the offense built for  them.  Plus it was Flacco and the offense that did well throughout the playofffs.  The defense wasn't a particularly strong unit.  Ray Lewis was injured most of the season and Ed Reed was past his prime at that point.

[cobrajet]

"At least once during the doubleheader, the football nation will shake its head and grouse that the officials don't know what they're doing"

 

What are the odds that, when this happens, it will be in favor of the New England Patriots?

I'll put some some money on those odds any day.........it will be like money in the bank!

[ravefan52]

It's a QB driven league

[thecommish]

I have watched the defenses play through the playoffs and our defense looks nothing like these - DOnt get me wrong... we are equally as talented, especially in the front 7. THey are physical and aggressive, nasty and playing downhill. There is little room for offenses to operate and the windows are very small. I cant remember the last time our defense has played like that. I cant remember the last time our defense looked that physical. I cant remember the last time we played with that type of speed on that side of that ball and gang tackled..... SMH we have the talent but just havent played like it since Pees came to BMORE>... DEFENSE still wins championships.... im afraid that with dean at the helm we may not be that team again for some time???? I hope i am wrong but he hasnt showed many anything to make me believe that our defense can look like that under him!~

[ReginaldColeman1]

Offense, defense have your say. Gary Kubiak won that game. Period. Yes of course Von Miller. The names on both lines were like a Who's Who of the recent drafts. So when someone mentions Brandon I have to wonder without second guessing Ozzie why hasn't our defense looked quite like this one? The sort of dominance and physicality the Broncos showed with few penalties was not so much amazing as surprising. As the clock dwindled down I kept waiting to see the All Mighty Yellow Flag thrown on Denver to give Brady a reprise. They just kept churning out the plays even after a late drive. That's teamwork. That's coaching. That's desire. Can they repeat against the Panther's? I wouldn't bet on it. But it could be the best swan song Peyton will ever get. When I think about the way the Baltimore defense has looked stats don't mean a thing. When the other QB throws do u feel the end of the world is coming? When Brady threw it wasn't the same dynamics we're so accustomed to. Both QB's must have thrown more ground balls and one hoppers and out of bounds passes than any other combo before. I'd like to see that type of defense back here in Baltimore. But balance wins not one of the other. Of all the names the two that stuck in my head were Brady Roby and Cody Latimer. Big Ten players. Late first and late second round picks. Adrian Branch, Malcolm Brown,Jamie Collins, Hightower, Malcolm Butler, Ty Sambrailo, FA's Evan Mathis, Owen Daniels and Darian Stewart. Contributors. Not just big name playmakers.

[RavenManiac#7]

Speaking on the referee issue. I do think that this was the worst season, by far, that I've seen them have. Maybe Bisciotti has a point. I definitely think that his take on it has justification. But, I don't think that, alone, is the problem. I thought I saw a bad call yesterday in the Panther/Arizona game, and it was even reviewed, which made it even worse in my opinion. I mean, when they have a chance to look it over, slow motion, multiple angles, zoom and stop cameras, I think that they should get it right. If they only miss one call in a game they've done well. It's just reviewed plays, I think, should be gotten right. On the Carson Palmer fumble in which he landed on his back, holding the ball against the defender's helmet, I think that he Clearly was down With the ball held securely against that helmet. That ball didn't move an inch, until his back hit the ground. Hitting the ground was what jarred that ball loose and we all know that the ground cannot cause a fumble by rule. As soon as his back hit that ground the play should have been over. Of course, that one bad call, at least in my opinion it was bad, had absolutely No outcome in the game's result. Palmer had a horrendous day, but that fumble, at least, I feel certain was bogus. The Panther's looked So strong. You know, I really didn't think they were as good as they obviously are. I kept waiting and expecting them to come back to earth. But, by now, I think it's obvious that they are for real. Their defense is superb and it just seems to be their year. We're going to watch two great and dominating defenses at work in this SB, and I think that Cam will fair better than Peyton with his mobility. I think it's just their year, but one Never knows.

[rmcjacket23]

Speaking on the referee issue. I do think that this was the worst season, by far, that I've seen them have. Maybe Bisciotti has a point. I definitely think that his take on it has justification. But, I don't think that, alone, is the problem. I thought I saw a bad call yesterday in the Panther/Arizona game, and it was even reviewed, which made it even worse in my opinion. I mean, when they have a chance to look it over, slow motion, multiple angles, zoom and stop cameras, I think that they should get it right. If they only miss one call in a game they've done well. It's just reviewed plays, I think, should be gotten right. On the Carson Palmer fumble in which he landed on his back, holding the ball against the defender's helmet, I think that he Clearly was down With the ball held securely against that helmet. That ball didn't move an inch, until his back hit the ground. Hitting the ground was what jarred that ball loose and we all know that the ground cannot cause a fumble by rule. As soon as his back hit that ground the play should have been over. Of course, that one bad call, at least in my opinion it was bad, had absolutely No outcome in the game's result. Palmer had a horrendous day, but that fumble, at least, I feel certain was bogus. The Panther's looked So strong. You know, I really didn't think they were as good as they obviously are. I kept waiting and expecting them to come back to earth. But, by now, I think it's obvious that they are for real. Their defense is superb and it just seems to be their year. We're going to watch two great and dominating defenses at work in this SB, and I think that Cam will fair better than Peyton with his mobility. I think it's just their year, but one Never knows.

I mean, I watch the exact same replays and slow motion as you did, and I thought the ball was clearly out before he hit the ground.

 

Its the biggest fallacy regarding instant replay... fans think there's no debate when you get it in slow motion. You and I watched the exact same thing in the exact same manner, and neither of us can say with any sort of certainty what actually happened.

 

Instant replay has become one of the biggest liabilities to officials in my opinion. What the league should enforce much more in the offseason is the INDISPUTABLE aspect that instant replay was founded on. Instant replay was founded to get blatantly obvious wrong calls corrected. It wasn't founded on the concept of reviewing milliseconds of footage and making subjective determinations about calls.

 

Stick with the call on the field unless its blatantly obvious that the call is wrong. Debating over whats a catch vs whats not a catch or whether or not a guy is down a millisecond before the ball comes out or not isn't what officials should be doing. Its a waste of everyone's time and its not doing the sport one bit of good.

[Un World]

Totally agree that solid Defense allows your team to get to the playoffs, and a Top Defense allows you to drive deep towards a Super Bowl.  BUT - although the Ravens were ranked #8 overall defensively in YARDAGE, our team actually ranked in at #24 in POINTS ALLOWED.  This is often overlooked.  

 

The only thing that ultimately determines who gets the "W" when the clock hits 00:00 is "which team has more points than the other".

Being ranked 24th in Defensive PTS/G ain't gonna put the hay in the barn.

Baltimore Ravens - #24 @ 25.1 points allowed per game

 

Denver Broncos - #4 @ 18.5 points allowed per game

Carolina Panthers - #6 @ 19.3 points allowed per game

 

Seattle #1, Cincinatti #2, Kansas City #3, and Minnesota #5 - in POINTS allowed - all made the playoffs, but ultimately had Offensive meltdowns/shutdowns and were knocked out.

Carolina obviously doesn't have this problem (good night Arizona, lol).

Panthers points scored on offense - Ranked #1 @ 31.3
Ravens points scored on offense - Ranked #25 @ 20.5

NFL Playoffs = "Defense gets you IN... Offense gets you THROUGH"