Where do Seahawks rank among best defenses ever?
Chris Simms, Devin McCourty, Tony Dungy and Jason Garrett break down the Seahawks' impressive defensive season and compare Seattle's unit to some of the best in NFL history.
Video Transcript
Yeah, but I go back to this, though: I think Seattle was better.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I, I, I do, and I think Seattle had a lot to do with everything- Right ... that we're talking about.
Right, right.
You know, they, they affected- No question ... Drake May.
They rushed him.
Yeah.
They made him uncomfortable.
It affects so many things, right?
They stopped the run.
Right.
They can cover.
'Cause every- yeah.
You know?
So you try different things, and nothing's really working, because the guys on the other side, they're pretty darn good.
Well, the example I always like, like to use is, like, you see those basketball teams that shoot really good.
They play a good defensive team, and they're like, "Oh, nothing's falling tonight!"
Yeah.
But the reality is, is like- Yeah ... no, if you were out there on the floor with the team playing defense, it- they're big, they're fast, and you're rushing everything, and- Yeah ... ooh, I don't know, right?
That's it.
That's exactly it.
And that's kind of how you feel as a quarterback at times.
Seattle's D, though, they Listen to some of these, stats we got here.
Seven players with a QB hit.
Derek Hall, of course, two sacks during the regular season.
He got two tonight, one a strip sack, right?
The pressure all night long, and we're seeing here two years in a row where we've gone to the Super Bowl And listen, I'll, I'll s- last year, the Eagles were a defensive team, and the Chiefs were a defensive team.
Were a defensive team, yeah.
And here we are again, it was two defensive coaches, and this Seattle defense, I mean, I'm gonna just ask generally.
You guys have been around a lot of great defenses.
Kind of where does this Seahawk defense stack up for you maybe all time?
They're, they're very good.
Yeah.
you look at their team this year, they played in the toughest division in football.
They lost three games all year, none of them by more than three points.
We didn't hear about them a lot.
They We only had them one time- Right.
Yeah ... on, on Sunday Night Football.
they're playing late West Coast games- Yeah ... and, and I don't think they got the credit they really deserve.
This is a good football team and a very good defense.
Yeah, and I, and I think what took away was they didn't have the splashiness.
You know, like, when, when we watch Houston, it was the strip sacks, it was all these different things that they were able to do that made everybody run with that at the end of the season.
"This Houston defense is a Super Bowl defense.
They're the best defense."
And people forgot about kind of what Seattle was doing.
What I love about Seattle is they take great players, and they add scheme with it.
Right.
Sometimes when you're really good and you have good players, you say, "Hey, let's, let's dumb it down.
Let's make it m- really basic-" Let's be real simple, 'cause we're good.
"Let our guys- Right ... be fast and go."
Right.
Mike McDonald says, "Yes, our guys are good, but I'm gonna add a little flavor in this.
We're gonna disguise coverages.
We're gonna do those different things."
So where do they stack up against some of the greats?
For me, it's hard to say that right now- Yeah.
Right ... to put them up there with some of those legendary defenses.
And at this panel, I've probably seen the least amount of all of those legendary defenses.
But you were on some, though, so.
But they, they were, they were damn good this year.
And then nothing is better than playing well in the regular season and ending it all playing in a Super Bowl that way.
Yeah.
Yeah, dominant in the playoffs.
Yeah.
no- I think another reason maybe we didn't really give them enough credit, they didn't have the one guy.
The one big superstar.
You know, they don't have a Myles Garrett- Right ... or a J.J. Watt or a Ray Lewis.
Right.
They have 10, 11- Yeah ... 15 really good players, but not that one star that everybody latches onto.
But they play together, they hustle, they hit, they don't make mistakes.
they're very well-coached.
It, it is a, an excellent defense.
Yeah, you know, thinking about the stacking up against the best ever, I, I was with the Giants when we played the Ravens- Right ... in 2000.
That's, that's might be the best ever.
I know, a- and they were, they were so good.
Right.
They were so good.
Right.
You talk about being good on all three levels and all of that, I mean, they were fast, physical.
You couldn't make an inch on them either.
Right.
We all talk about the '85 Bears.
Sure.
So disruptive, sacks, takeaways, all that.
Coach, you were talking about the '74 Steelers today.
I mean, what, what an amazing defense that was, the original Steel Curtain.
I don't think these guys are in that- Quite there ... category.
Right.
Yeah.
But there are some amazing- Yeah ... other defenses.
We talked about some of your defenses in Tampa.
Maybe they're just a smidge down from those elite- Right ... elite teams.
And what I love about this group is they're so complete.
They're good on the defensive line.
Yeah.
Linebackers, cover.
You mentioned it's fast, it's physical.
There's some scheme issues you have to deal with.
Right.
And to me, that E- even if they're not in that top three of all time- Yeah ... they're kind of in that next level.
That next group.
Of those ones that are like- Yeah ... it's easy to see why you guys are winning the championship- ... 'cause you make it really hard on the other offense.
That, that's kind of how I look at it, too.
I think, you know, your Steelers defenses, you g- you know, the 2000 Ravens, '85 Bears, 2013 Seahawks, 2015 Broncos who won on this field, right?
Yeah, yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I, I, I think I agree with you.
They're all those- The, the, the Seahawks defense is phenomenal, but I'd put it just a hair under even your Bucs teams, and Gruden winning the Super Bowl in 2002.
I don't know if it's quite up to that extent.
Well, well, what- Yeah ... Coach said that's exciting for these guys, though, is this is, like, year two of Mike McDonald.
All these guys, they're young, they got a good mix of vets and young guys.
I just think they're getting started.
And I, I have to give a shout-out to John Schneider- Oh.
Yeah ... their general manager.
Okay, you build the Legion of Boom, w- who was phenomenal, and there's talk in Seattle, "Are these guys as good as the Legion of Boom?"
Maybe, maybe not.
Doesn't matter now.
But he Yeah, he tore that- took that defense down, and now put this group together, just bringing in veterans, young guys, drafting, and he knows how to put defenses together.
They're gonna get some more players, because he knows how to pick them.
You know, and, and you, and you talk about personnel guys, general managers, a- and, and some guys are really good at identifying a talented football player.
They're really good at saying, "That guy can play."
Yeah, yeah.
Right.
Okay?
The next level is, "I can identify the really good players, and then we can put them together to make a great unit- Yeah ... and a great team," and I think that's what John- Yeah ... Schneider did.
I mean, he picked some really good players, both in free agency and the draft, but then the combination that they have all throughout this defense- Yeah ... it's really impressive.
It's, it's incredible, it really is, and I, I think I echo your point.
I mean, other than Leonard Williams and DeMarcus Lawrence, your old, you know, old player, everybody else is young and, like, either in their prime or still going up- Yeah ... ascending into their prime.
Yeah.
And a lot of guys drafted by Seattle.
Yeah, they're a Seattle guy.
Built through the draft.
Are we okay- that your guys are all good.
Like, so see what I, I like defense, and I look at games like this- Yeah -and go, I mean, we were sitting there at one point, it was 298 yards by the Seahawks offense, and 51 yards from the, the New England Patriots.
The end of the game stats are gonna look a little skewed.
But it's also hard when a defense just dominates a game like that.
No defensive player ever gets the MVP, 'cause, like, everybody kicks butt.
Who was the MVP tonight?
It was Kenneth Walker.
Kenneth Walker.
Right, so which, which is good and deserving of that.
But I do think we thought the story of the game for three quarters was like- Yeah ... Seattle's D is killing it.
A little like last year, where we know Jalen Hurts got it, but when we all got back Monday morning, we were all like, "Man, maybe Philly, somebody on Philly's defense should have won the MVP."
I mean, I played in one of those.
We, we won a Super Bowl 13 to 3.
Right.
It w- Like, outstanding defense.
It was all about, "Man, this defense is playing so well."
I don't think they ever thought about giving a, an MVP to a defensive guy, so- Who got the MVP in that one?
Julian Edelman.
Julian Edelman.
Oh, I remember that.
Yeah.
Yeah, like, and that- Yep ... that's why we were sitting down there, people like, "Hey, Kenneth Walker has to get a touchdown."
I'm like, "No, he doesn't."
I played in one of those.
So if you have a good am- a good stats, they'll give you that MVP.
They don't wanna give it to the defensive guy.
I, I You, I guess on the defensive side, you just have to have stats that just blow it out of the water.
Yes.
That's gotta be- Well, in, in a game like this, where it was six, seven, eight, nine guys making plays- Right ... it's hard.
It's just hard.
Yeah.
It's hard to pick out one guy and say- Yeah, they all wa- they wash each other away.
Yeah.
Malcolm Smith won it in that 2013- Yeah.
That's right ... at, Seahawks defense.
Dexter Jackson- Yeah ... on the '02 Bucs team.
I believe it's the first time we've had a running back be the MVP in a long time.
Says Terrell Davis, Denver Broncos, right?
Wow.
That, that- How about that?
Yeah, Super Bowl 32, "This one's for John," right?
Yeah.
That whole one, right?
here's another little stat, just to throw at you, right?
Will Campbell, 14 pressures tonight, the most allowed by a player in any game this season.
Wow.
Right?
Is that incredible?
The Super Bowl, again, I feel for him, 'cause you, like you said, he had a really good year, gets injured, and then has to come back, and it's like, "Oh, gosh, Will Anderson's coming to town?
Great, thanks for that, guys."
But still, it's hard to win a football game when your left tackle- Yeah ... is getting dominated like that.
Yeah, and going into it, we talked about it, you know?
Can this New England offensive line block this Seattle defensive front?
They got two rookies on the left side, they got a veteran group on the right side, but two rookies on the left-hand side, and we saw it right away.
They could.
Pushing 'em right back into the quarterback, and Will Campbell's gonna be a good player- No doubt ... for a long time, but, he too will learn from this experience.
Well, just like the Seahawks, I don't think the Patriots are going anywhere either.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Right?
They're playing with house money this year.
They still got a lot of good young- Yeah ... football guys that they've drafted in the last few years.
So I, I certainly don't think with Mike Vrabel coaching them- No doubt ... and Drake May playing quarterback, they're going anywhere any, anytime soon.
They just gotta realize that it doesn't just happen, though.
Sure.
Yeah, yeah.
Right.
Sometimes the worst thing is getting here and believing that you'll be back.
"I will be back," right, that's what Dan Marino said.
Yep.
And he said, "I'll be back," to a bunch of these.
Devin Witherspoon, M- should he have been MVP?
Three QB hits- Oh ... one pass breakup, right?
And then of course, he had the hit that caused the interception pick six by Chandler Ewusu.
Problem is, that doesn't give you a stat.
It doesn't give you a stat.
If it was a strip-sack, it would've been perfect.
No doubt.
So I think what we're saying is we're, we're, we're okay with Kenneth Walker being the MVP.
Well, we're not okay, but we'll take it.
Yeah.
Well, I, I, I do think you should be intentional in that situation.
The defense won this game.
Right.
So let's try to pick a guy out, and for me, Witherspoon would've been the guy more than anybody else.
Yeah.
I, I, I'm a little bit of a proponent, and I know Florio is, too, of like, "Let's all sleep on it.
Why do we have to vote on it right now?"
Can't we just sleep on it a little bit?
Sleep on it.
No, we can't sleep on it, man!
Florio's sleeping on it right now.
Florio's sleeping on it.
He just said, "The hell with it.
The hell with this show, I don't care."
