Originally posted by AKfanster:
Originally posted by KknighthawkK_9er:
Originally posted by taney71:
Originally posted by KknighthawkK_9er:
Throw in a playmaker in the secondary and this question is affirmative.
One playmaker doesn't make this defense better than some of the ones in the 1980s or the 1995 Super Bowl team.
I'd take Menton Hanks, Eric Davis, and Deon Sanders in the secondary over Micheal Lewis, Goldson, Clements, and Spence (and even if you replaced one of them with a "playmaker").
Also, I'd take the 1994 4ers front 7 over this team's front 7 any day. Of course P. Willis is better than Ken Norton but the drop off isn't that huge and the other linebackers for the 1994 team are much better than the linebackers for the current 9ers.
I disagree completely. Goldson compares quite well to Merton Hanks. Deon couldn't tackle anybody, but in terms of coverage, Nate is only a few notches below Deon. Overall, prime to prime, i'd take Clements over Deon. Adding "one playmaker" would make the secondaries very close to equal IMHO. Why all of the love for Deon? I think that he is one of the most overrated players in NFL history.
In terms of the front 7, I wouldn't really take one over the other. Kevin Greene and Ricky Jackson were great, but both were also past their prime. They weren't much better than the Lawson/Haralson/Brooks combination, and against the run I would rate them as equal. Richard Dent was long past his prime. The DL is better now than it was in 94 or 88/89.
Did you just say you'd take Nate over PrimeTime????????? You, my friend, are drunk.
I did, and maybe it was probably a biased move, but look at it this way.....
Deon was here for one season. Nate is much more physical, and light years beyond Deon versus the run. Yes, Deon was a blanket cover corner, but he also had limitations. If you ever want to see something funny, check out Deon vs. the run bloopers. His tackling skills were on par with Nedney's.
In regards to the question/topic, this is probably not the best Defensive Unit Ever, from strictly a talent perspective. However, the margin between the two units is not as wide as you would think.
It is very difficult to compare units, whether offensive or defensive, from different periods in history. All of the Niners Superbowl teams had #1 Offenses; that makes defensive statistics gilded. This was also prior to the pass interference/5 yard bump rule, meaning defenses got away with a lot more. It was a different game. Hence, the easiest point of comparison is in relation to how other defenses in the league ranked at that point in time. Were the past defenses considered one of the better defenses in the league at that time? Yes. Were they ever considered the best? Probably not. Is the current defense one of the better defenses in the league? Yes. Are they the best defense in the league? No.
The current defense COULD be one of the best units ever with another piece or two. In regards to Deon Sanders, he is one of the most overrated players in NFL history IMHO. Not to mention, he bolted to the freakin COWBOYS.