The Dallas Cowboys Memorial (2015 Off-Season) Thread

Merrith

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People sleeping on 2002 Tampa D? Sapp, Brooks, Simeon Rice, Lynch, Ronde Barber.

Edit: Not saying all are in the Hall btw, or even that all would be Hall-worthy or be considered, just that I hadn't seen them mentioned and they were a great D with a ton of recognizable names.
 

Phazael

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Yeah there are basically four great all time Ds and maybe you now add Seattle and maybe the Ravens to that list. Purple People eaters, the Steel Curtain, the Bears 46 D, and Tampa in 2002 are the four elite. Seattle is a stand out because they have done it in an age when the rules favor the passing game so much and with the salary cap in place. One thing all of these teams had in common, however, was a phenomenal running game. Time of possession is the difference between the good and elite when it comes to defenses.
 

Grimmlokk

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People sleeping on 2002 Tampa D? Sapp, Brooks, Simeon Rice, Lynch, Ronde Barber.

Edit: Not saying all are in the Hall btw, or even that all would be Hall-worthy or be considered, just that I hadn't seen them mentioned and they were a great D with a ton of recognizable names.
Sapp is in and Brooks probably should be. Strong arguments could be made for the other 3 as well, so yeah they definitely make the short list.
 

Merrith

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Yeah there are basically four great all time Ds and maybe you now add Seattle and maybe the Ravens to that list. Purple People eaters, the Steel Curtain, the Bears 46 D, and Tampa in 2002 are the four elite. Seattle is a stand out because they have done it in an age when the rules favor the passing game so much and with the salary cap in place. One thing all of these teams had in common, however, was a phenomenal running game. Time of possession is the difference between the good and elite when it comes to defenses.
Maybe the Ravens and Seattle? I think they're both definitely on the list. However many PED's Seattle is taking leading the league in Yards and Points allowed in back to back years is ridiculous. Also the Ravens 2000 D has to be included, and to a greater extent their D the last X amount of years as it stayed near the top for a lot of years through the Lewis -> Reed time period.

Mentioning the Ravens D over the '00's you have to look at the Steelers D through those years as well. 2 Super Bowls, 3 Conference Championships. Now I'd agree I'm giving the nod to those Ravens and Steeler D's (aside from the 2000 Ravens D which stands near the top by itself) based a lot on longevity in the Top 5, but they have to be given some consideration.
 

Hoss

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Yeah there are basically four great all time Ds and maybe you now add Seattle and maybe the Ravens to that list. Purple People eaters, the Steel Curtain, the Bears 46 D, and Tampa in 2002 are the four elite. Seattle is a stand out because they have done it in an age when the rules favor the passing game so much and with the salary cap in place. One thing all of these teams had in common, however, was a phenomenal running game. Time of possession is the difference between the good and elite when it comes to defenses.
Really? Even with the title of the thread, you're going to leave out the Doomsday Defenses as one of the elites in favor of a couple that lasted like a year? I think Doomsday topped out at 3 hall of famers on the field at the same time (Lilly / Renfro / Adderly). In its second decade, Randy White was the only Hall of famer. To be fair, there are a few of them that are probably only not in the hall because of off the field problems, but I'm sure you could say that about a lot of teams.

Also, as long as you're naming flashes in the pan as elite defense, why'd you leave out the no-name defense? They're better than Tampa at least.
 

Famm

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The 2000 Ravens are a top five all time defense by pretty much everyone's ranking, along with at least one of the Steel curtain teams and the '85 Bears.
 

Famm

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Ravens had Gase in town to interview last night before the coaching staff has to leave for the pro bowl today. Looks possible he could be signed and announced as the OC today.
 

Kirun

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Mentioning the Ravens D over the '00's you have to look at the Steelers D through those years as well. 2 Super Bowls, 3 Conference Championships. Now I'd agree I'm giving the nod to those Ravens and Steeler D's (aside from the 2000 Ravens D which stands near the top by itself) based a lot on longevity in the Top 5, but they have to be given some consideration.
Well, there are basically 2 types of defenses: There are the "GOAT" level defenses that basically won SBs on their own, e.g., 70s Steelers, '85 Bears, '00 Ravens, '02 Bucs, and probably the '13-'14 (maybe) Seahawks. Then there are the "pretty damn good" defenses that are supported by a really solid offense, e.g., 80s Niners, mid 90s Packers, early-mid 90s Cowboys, '03-'04 Pats, '05 Steelers, etc.
 

Famm

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Doug Marrone apparently going to be O-line coach for the Jags. What a demotion this guy's career has taken.
 

Kirun

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Doug Marrone apparently going to be O-line coach for the Jags. What a demotion this guy's career has taken.
I actually thought the Jags showed "flashes" last year. I could honestly see them having a 6-10ish type of season this year.