Miami Has Best Defense in AFC East - Part 3

I saved the Jets for last as I knew it would be the hardest argument, but before we get into that, it's worth noting that since I wrote part 1 (Buffalo) and part 2 (New England), both teams have lost their middle linebackers to injury.  Jerod Mayo and Paul Posluszny both suffered injuries during the Pats vs. Bills matchup that could keep both out for 6 to 8 weeks.  The Bills also lost DE Chris Kelsay who sustained a knee injury.  Word is, Terrell Owens' ego also suffered a mild injury but is expected to play next week. 

Now, on to the Jets.  They hired former Baltimore Ravens Defensive Coordinator and all-around dumbass, Rex Ryan, to be their head coach, and so far they've been successful, winning game 1 versus Houston by the score of 24 to 7, and their defense totally stopped the Texans.  Or did they?

I needed to wait until after their first game to see if there was any meat on the bone of this defense.  We've all heard the bragging and all know what Ryan is famous for.  We knew they would blitz the s*** out of their opponent by giving tons of different looks but attempt to get good pressure without throwing the kitchen sink.  Baltimore was a team that under Ryan never blitzed 6 or 7 guys, and never sent the same guy twice.  This kept the field covered as well as keeping the opposing o-line and QB on their toes on every play.  The Jets continued this gameplan against Houston.  They would send 4 or 5 on every play but would move the D-line and LBs around constantly, on several occasions lining up four all the way to one side.

Now, in theory, this sounds like a great idea, and it is, as long as you can execute it.  And let's be honest, this kind of practice can wear down the defense as much if not more than the opponent.  So one thing needs to happen in order to keep this scheme working - The Offense.  

The offense needs to stay on the field as long as possible, and needs to give the Defense plenty of rest.  Baltimore did it by running the ball 3.5 yards at a time, slowing churning the first downs.  This worked two ways - keeping Ed Reed and Co. fresh, while also keeping the opposing offense cold.  The Jets managed to do this, running 42 times for 190 yards and racking up 462 yards overall.  Mark Sanchez had an over-rated, but solid day, completing 18 for 31 for 272 yards, 1 TD and 1 INT.  He was not sacked once.  And the most telling stat of all, time of possession, fell in the Jets favor by 38:46 to 21:14.  

So what does this have to do with the defense?  Well, a lot, actually, because they were hardly on the field.  The Jets were even 2/2 on 4th down conversions, proving they were in no rush to take their offense off the field.  And ST were vastly in the Jets favor as well, kicking off 5 times, they accrued 4 touchbacks.  The punting NET average was 41.0 yards.  

But let's compare the Jets 'D' straight up against the 'D' of the Dolphins. 

Rushing attempts faced                          MIA  27      JETS 13

Yards allowed per rushing play                 MIA  2.5     JETS  2.9    

Yards allowed per minute on the field       MIA  9.1     JETS  8.6

Yards allowed per play                            MIA  4.47   JETS  3.98

Sacks                                                   MIA  2        JETS  2

Players with more than 3 tackles               MIA 6           JETS  2

Passes defensed                                    MIA 5          JETS 3

When you look at the numbers, the thing that jumps out at me is the time and total number of plays.  Miami has a much better 'testing sample' if you will.  It's hard to judge the Jets on such a small sample.  One thing that is noticeable is that they didn't get a lot of sacks or turnovers, and Vernon Gholston still looks lousy.  And Houston's O-line had a worse game than Miami's did.

So, at this point I'm going to leave the debate open.  I know, another trilogy that has no ending.  Well, there is an ending...we just haven't reached it yet.  If you look at the games we've struggled in, including the entire 2007 season, our defense was on the field much longer than the offense was.  Four turnovers may seem like an offensive statistic, but in truth, it's a team statistic.  It stops the offense from putting points on the board, and it makes the defense have to go right back in the game after they already had their turn, often times a minute or two after forcing a punt or giving up a score after a long drive.  

Despite Miami's turnover woes, their defense stacks up versus the Jets who had to play only a third of the game.  If Miami's offense can do what the Jets did in week 1, I have no doubt our defensive stats will be twice as impressive.