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Do The Baltimore Ravens Have A Championship Caliber Defense?

By Chris Schisler

Sep 25, 2016; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Baltimore Ravens cornerback Kyle Arrington (24) and inside linebacker Zach Orr (54) run after intercepting the ball during the second half of a football game against the Jacksonville Jaguarsat EverBank Field. The Baltimore Ravens won 19-17. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 25, 2016; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Baltimore Ravens cornerback Kyle Arrington (24) and inside linebacker Zach Orr (54) run after intercepting the ball during the second half of a football game against the Jacksonville Jaguarsat EverBank Field. The Baltimore Ravens won 19-17. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports /
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Sep 25, 2016; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Baltimore Ravens cornerback Kyle Arrington (24) and inside linebacker Zach Orr (54) run after intercepting the ball during the second half of a football game against the Jacksonville Jaguarsat EverBank Field. The Baltimore Ravens won 19-17. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 25, 2016; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Baltimore Ravens cornerback Kyle Arrington (24) and inside linebacker Zach Orr (54) run after intercepting the ball during the second half of a football game against the Jacksonville Jaguarsat EverBank Field. The Baltimore Ravens won 19-17. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports /

They say defense wins championships and the 2000 Baltimore Ravens are proof. Can the Ravens prove the old sports cliché again?

The Baltimore Ravens offense has been inconsistent and the defense has carried the team to a 3-0 record. There was a time where this was the standard operating procedure for the purple and black. From 2000-2011 the Ravens were consistently a dominant defensive driven team. The Ravens won Super Bowl XXXV with a defense that was arguably the greatest defense of all time.

Related Story: Ravens Debates: 2000 Ravens Vs. 1985 Chicago Bears

While a good defensive never goes out of style, it has been harder to win with just a great defense. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers mimicked what the Ravens accomplished in 2002. The Patriots Super first Super Bowl win was much more about a dominant defense than it was about Tom Brady. As the 2000’s kept going though, it became clear that the quarterback was driving things in the NFL.

Three quarterbacks represented an AFC team in the Super Bowl 13 times since the 2001 season and there names are Tom Brady, Peyton Manning and Ben Roethlisberger. Joe Flacco was the one other quarterback that broke into the mix during that time. Tom Brady has won 4 of 6 Super Bowls. Peyton Manning is 2-2 and Ben Roethlisberger is 2-1 in the Super Bowl.

The NFC has seen more of a mix but great quarterbacks still have prevailed. Eli Manning won two Super Bowls, Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees both won a Super Bowl as well. It was starting to seem like the Super Bowl was determined by whichever great quarterback got on the biggest roll.

Than the Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos each won a Super Bowl with great defenses. The 2015 Denver Broncos won with the same model as the 2000 Ravens. In fact Trent Dilfer had a better statistical Super Bowl than Manning did against the Panthers. Yes, the Broncos had Manning, but they were no longer winning because of that fact.

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