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Premier units able to adapt
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Horton
By Gary Horton
Scouts Inc.
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We've all heard the adage that defense wins championships in the NFL, and this is the time of year when that reality seems to take hold. An explosive offense excites fans, but a solid defense gives a team a chance to win every week. Let's take a look at arguably the best three defenses in the NFL in 2006.

Chicago Bears
The versatility of this defense is what makes it so special. This group can play any style, depending on the offense it is facing. It is basically a Cover 2 defense, but that doesn't mean it plays the scheme all the time.

The key in the secondary is the play of the safeties, who must have the range to cover the deep half of the field and be good open-field tacklers. The Bears now face their biggest challenge, with the season-ending loss of SS Mike Brown. He is the leader of this unit and makes all adjustments.

They now have three young safeties -- Chris Harris, and rookies Danieal Manning and Todd Johnson. All three have excellent physical skills, but they lack Brown's savvy. The Bears will be more vulnerable to giving up big plays.

The good news is Chicago is rock solid at cornerback with three players -- Nathan Vasher, Charles Tillman and Ricky Manning Jr. -- who have been playing good zone schemes, but might be even better in man-to-man situations. Manning's presence gives the Bears a chance to match up well against three-wide receiver sets.

Look for more Cover 1 and man-to-man schemes, and maybe more nickel personnel -- three DCs and one safety. The Cover 2 will be used primarily when the Bears are sitting on a lead.

The linebackers are still rock solid and MLB Brian Urlacher is coming off a 19-tackle performance at Arizona on "Monday Night Football:" He is playing at a level that defies description. OLBs Lance Briggs and Hunter Hillenmeyer are doing a great job of tackling in the open field and making plays behind without a lot of blitzing. ]

The defensive line is the strength of this defense. The Bears have a rotation seven or eight deep, and they are relentless one-gap penetrators, which is unusual for a Cover 2 defense. DT Tommie Harris is almost unblockable, and the leader in sacks is rookie Mark Anderson, who is not even a regular starter.

Defensive coordinator Ron Rivera is an aggressive play caller. He is excellent at orchestrating good matchups, while staying with the concept of rushing four and dropping seven into coverage. When January rolls around, this is a defense capable of taking over games.

Baltimore Ravens
This defense invariably has drawn comparisons to the great 2000 group that led the Ravens to a Super Bowl championship. While there are major philosophical and schematic differences, the results are similar.

The 2000 Ravens ran a simple 43 defense, with massive two-gap defensive tackles Sam Adams and Tony Siragusa eating up blocks and allowing the LBs, especially Ray Lewis, to fly to the ball and make plays.

The 2006 Ravens also give opponents a 34 look. They will flop their LBs, bring a safety in the box and blitz at any time. They also can drop any of their defensive linemen in their zone blitz schemes and show a lot of pre-snap movement.

Their most versatile player is OLB Adalius Thomas. He can line up at DE and serve as an edge rusher, and can play OLB in both the 43 and 34. He even has the athleticism to play safety in some of their exotic packages. Like the Bears, the Ravens can adjust their personnel and schemes to any offense they play against.

Under defensive coordinator Rex Ryan, the Ravens get production from everybody. Nine players have intercepted passes and seven players have registered sacks, leading to great chemistry.

Offenses try to attack this defense inside because of its speed and range on the edge, but still forces must deal with Lewis, SS Ed Reed and rookie DT Haloti Ngata (340 pounds), who eats up blocks and does an excellent job of stacking against the inside run.

The Ravens are allowing a paltry 2.7 yards per rush and giving the offense great field position. A year ago, the weakness of this defense was the inability to create turnovers, but this year has been a different story.

The Ravens have 17 takeaways in six games -- tied with the Bears for second in the NFL. They thrive on attacking and intimidating opposing offenses. They believe if their offense scores 14 points, that should be enough to win most games. This is a team nobody will want to play in January.

Denver Broncos
This is a defense playing at a high level, yet most fans don't know much about the unit. With the exception of Champ Bailey, it is a group of solid, veteran players.

Everything revolves around the LB trio of Al Wilson D.J. Williams and Ian Gold. They form the most athletic linebacking corps in the NFL, and their range and versatility keys everything the Broncos do on defense.

These guys never come off the field, even in nickel situations. They possess good coverage skills, matching up well on TEs and RBs in the passing game. A no-huddle offense doesn't faze the Broncos, because they don't have to substitute. Aging SS John Lynch is also having a great year and is almost like a fourth LB, bolstering the run defense.

Bailey takes away half the field for opposing QBs, as offenses are hesitant to throw his way. They are very productive upfront, without a lot of big names. DT Gerard Warren is playing very well, but the best pass rusher is undersized DE Elvis Dumervil (5-11, 250 pounds), who has recorded five sacks.

This defense plays smart and everybody contributes. In the last five games, the Broncos have held opposing offenses to under 10 points. Denver's defense went into the 2006 season with three defensive goals:

1. Improve on third down.
2. Play better in the red zone.
3. Get a better pass rush from the front four.

After six games, the Broncos are second in the NFL in third-down defense, first in the NFL in red zone defense and 14th in sack percentage. Denver's defense can also adapt its style and scheme to fit the offense it is playing against. It does a great job of limiting its blitzes and not taking a lot of chances.

Dominating Defenses
Team Ypg Rypg Gpp Sack INT GD Ppg Third Red-Z
Baltimore 3 3 9 2 1 2 3 9 2
Chicago 2 4 1 4 12 1 2 1 3
Denver 4 7 3 14 21 3 1 2 1