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View Full Version : Kovacevic: Steelers' D hovering like a hawk



stillers4me
09-06-2013, 06:22 PM
“Ballhawks?” Cortez Allen came back with an eyebrow raised. “Are we talkin' ballhawks?”

And yeah, we were.

We were talkin' ballhawks over on the South Side, shortly before the Steelers (http://triblive.com/sports/steelers/) took to a sun-splashed field for one of their final tune-ups before opening the 2013 for-real season Sunday against the Titans..............


Read more: http://triblive.com/sports/dejankovacevic/dejancolumns/4654890-74/defense-allen-steelers#ixzz2e9qU3Ovk

Craic
09-07-2013, 01:14 AM
Interesting read . . . but it still astounds me that people would rather trade a number one defense against the pass and two against the run for turnovers. No way, no how, no thank you. Three and out is just as much a turnover as a interception on a forty yard pass, and depending on who's the punt receiver, it might even mean better field position.

Count Steeler
09-07-2013, 06:23 AM
Interesting read . . . but it still astounds me that people would rather trade a number one defense against the pass and two against the run for turnovers. No way, no how, no thank you. Three and out is just as much a turnover as a interception on a forty yard pass, and depending on who's the punt receiver, it might even mean better field position.

Absolutely agree. If the STs and O were anywhere near credible, we would have had a couple of great years. And kept healthy.

jb500ex
09-07-2013, 08:31 AM
Couldn't disagree more number 1 defense just means they have up the least yards. You guys must be Arians fans who believe yards is the end all be all. The game is about points yards mean absolutely zero

fansince'76
09-07-2013, 09:42 AM
Couldn't disagree more number 1 defense just means they have up the least yards. You guys must be Arians fans who believe yards is the end all be all. The game is about points yards mean absolutely zero

In that respect they were ranked 6th, which still isn't too bad for such a "shitty" defense. And from your posts, I deduce you're either a troll or just another spoiled-rotten Steelers "fan" for whom the glass is perpetually half-empty and bitches about everything endlessly to the point that even if the team won it all, you'd STILL find something to squawk about.

Moose
09-07-2013, 11:06 AM
Three and out is just as much a turnover as a interception on a forty yard pass, and depending on who's the punt receiver, it might even mean better field position.

Couldn't agree more ! I would love to see our defense start handing out the 3 and out's ! That is definitely one point that was a killer last year, there were games where the defense couldn't get off the field.

Steeldude
09-07-2013, 02:56 PM
The first game is coming : ) Hopefully we see some promising things. I am mainly worried about the O-line.

Craic
09-08-2013, 12:04 AM
Couldn't disagree more number 1 defense just means they have up the least yards. You guys must be Arians fans who believe yards is the end all be all. The game is about points yards mean absolutely zero

Seriously? Do you not understand that if a team can't get yards, they can't get a first down, and if they can't get a first down, they can't score a touchdown? As FS said, they were sixth in points scored against them, and remembering the short field they had to defend a number of times, that is VERY impressive.

Just to show the depth of your misunderstanding of this defense, let me highlight a few things:

Overall Defensive Stats

Least average yards per play allowed overall: 1st place
Least plays the defense were on the field for during the season: 1st Place
Least first downs allowed during the season: 1st place
Least first downs given up by penalty: tied for 8th place, one penalty out of 6th place.
Least points scored against defense: 6th place
Least overall yardage against defense: 1st place
Least amount of plays per drive: tied for 3rd
Least net yards per drive: 2nd place, one tenth of one yard out of first place.
Least time on field per drive: 6th place

Least number of drives ending in offensive scores: 11th place. That one is misleading however, because of two other stats:
Average points per drive: tied for 6th place, one tenth of a point out of 2nd place, two tenths of a point out of first place.
starting position for drive: 7th WORST starting position for drives.


Defensive Passing Stats

Net Average for passing yard per pass: 2nd place
First downs by pass, least given up: 5th place
TD's surrendered through the air: 9th place
Total completions allowed: 5th place
Least yards given up through the air: 1st place
Least Net Yards gained per pass attempt (includes sacks): 2nd place
Least Adjusted Net Yards gained per pass attempt (weighted for sacks) 8th place.

This one deserves to be highlighted. Number of points expected from passing defense per game: 8th highest. Yeah, that's right, only seven other teams had a passing defense that scored more points that ours.

Here's another one: Sack percentage . . . 8th highest sack percentage. Yeah, that's right, highest, as in only seven other teams had a better sack percentage than the Steelers.


Defensive Rushing Stats

Least total yards per rush given up: tied for 3rd place
Least amount of yards given up total: 2nd place
Least amount of first downs given up: 5th place
Expected points contributed by rushing defense: 9th highest
Least amount of touchdowns by rush: tied for 6th, one out of fifth place, two out of fourth place, three out of first place.

________

Oh, and since we're doing stats tonight, let's bust the bubble a little more, shall we? Just how important are sacks for making the playoffs?

Playoff teams - Defensive Rank Most Sacks

For comparison, we were 8th best in sacks per pass play

Super bowl teams:
Ravens - 16th
San Francisco - 13th

Conference Losers
Patriots - 21st
Falcons - 27th

Divisional Losers
Seattle - 18th
Packers - 4th
Texans - 6th
Broncos - 2nd

Wild Card Losers
Bengals - 3rd
Redskins - 28th
Vikings - 7th
Colts - 25th

And to make it short and sweet . . .
Defensive Turnover percentage top teams in playoffs

Superbowl
Ravens - 16th best
SF - 13th best

Conference Championship Losers
Patriots 2nd best
Falcons - 3rd best

Look at that, of the last four teams, the two teams with a much worse turnover ratio won. I wonder why?

SF - 2nd against the run in Average Yards per Carry, 3rd against the pass in Average Yards per Pass.
Ravens - 8th in Average Yards per Carry, 15th in Average Yards per pass.

The only stats that seems strange, is the Raven's Average yards per pass. Then again, they played the Patriots in the championship game, who while having a good per run average, was 28th per pass. So there simply was no reason to run against them (seventh highest pass attempts against, 11th lowest in rushes against bears this out). They also played the Bengals, who while being good on both sides of the ball, can't win a playoff game to save their lives. Thus, the 15th in average yards against and still making it as far as they did is an anomaly.

Conclusion:

Either you are a troll, or your highly ignorant about the total game of football. Please, this isn't fantasy football, team statistics and overall team play and chemistry is much more desirable than a few sacks and turnovers but still losing games because the team can't stop drives.

steeldawg
09-08-2013, 12:41 AM
I don't see how anyone could complain about the defense, we get a consistent result year in and year out. Our defense is designed to force quick short passes which is why we don't get as many turnovers as most teams. The only thing I think our D needs to improve on is pressuring the qb and with that I think the turnovers will come.

Texasteel
09-08-2013, 07:34 AM
The first game is coming : ) Hopefully we see some promising things. I am mainly worried about the O-line.

Sound like a broken record, doesn't It Bud. I think the O-line will come together, I just don't know how long it will take. Preacher may very well be right about the first half of the season.

Bluecoat96
09-08-2013, 08:50 AM
I don't see how anyone could complain about the defense, we get a consistent result year in and year out. Our defense is designed to force quick short passes which is why we don't get as many turnovers as most teams. The only thing I think our D needs to improve on is pressuring the qb and with that I think the turnovers will come.

And I think the pressure will come with having McClendon/Keisel/Hood/Heyward/Woods up front. Hampton was great for us, but I think that if the d-line is allowed to pressure more, things could get ugly real quick for opposing offenses.