Defenses drive NFL's final 4
January 16
Chicago Tribune columnist Dan Pompei
"For the AFC and NFC championship games, U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates should do play-by-play and famous defense attorney Alan Dershowitz should be the color commentator.
Yes, the NFL postseason has been all about defense.
The teams that finished 1-2-3 in defense during the regular season—the Steelers, Ravens and Eagles—earned spots in the final four. And the team that finished 19th, the Cardinals, is still alive because its defense has staged an about-face.
We expected dominant defense from the Steelers. Defense has pretty much been their franchise signature, from Mean Joe Greene to Troy Polamalu. In the last 10 years, the Steelers defense has ranked in the top seven of the NFL six times and in the top three four times.
Defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau is the father of the zone blitz, and a special game planner and play-caller. He finds ways to maximize the pass rush skills of linebackers like James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley, the standouts on this year's team.
The Ravens of Ray Lewis also have earned a reputation as one of the hardest-hitting, toughest and most efficient defenses in the NFL. The defense was designed by Rex Ryan. He is the son of Buddy Ryan, known as St. Buddy around here.
It's one thing to punch offenses in the mouth, which the Baltimore defense has done for years. It is another to take their lunch money. That's what the Ravens are doing this season, as they led the NFL with 34 regular-season takeaways.
The Eagles play a different style of defense, but they are no less effective. Theirs is a smaller, faster unit that out-schemes and out-hustles.
Defensive coordinator Jim Johnson dials up blitzes like no one else, with a knack for finding the weak spot in the protection.
"Jim Johnson is the best there is," former 49ers offensive coordinator Mike Martz said. "I don't think there is anybody on his level in the league.
"He looks at what you do and is disruptive at the right time. He has a great feel for attacking your protections, getting pressure and taking away your run."
From the Steelers, Ravens and Eagles, we expect to see goose eggs on the scoreboard, opponents' helmets sent flying and pick sixes. We have expected considerably less from the Cardinals, and for good reason.
In the regular season, only four teams surrendered more points than Arizona did. They were especially soft down the stretch, when good teams toughen up. The Cardinals allowed 35 or more points in four of their last six games. In two of those games, they gave up 970 yards and 82 points to the Vikings and Patriots.
And it was the best thing that could have happened to the Arizona defense.
"The one thing we felt we were missing was that kind of leadership," Cardinals general manager Rod Graves said. "We made a huge step toward that kind of leadership over the last several weeks. It came about in the time of adversity coming out of the Minnesota [and] New England games. Guys started stepping up and taking the bull by the horns.""
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