Okay, so today I decided to dive into NFL defense rankings. It’s something I’ve been meaning to do for a while, just to see how teams stack up against each other. So, I fired up my computer and got started.
Getting Started
First things first, I needed to find some data. I figured the NFL’s official site would be a good place to start, and it was! They have all sorts of stats there, neatly organized.
Gathering the Data
I started poking around, looking for stats like yards allowed per game, points allowed per game, sacks, interceptions – you know, the usual stuff that shows how good a defense is. I started jotting down numbers for different teams, just making a big list in my trusty old notebook.
- Yards Allowed Per Game: This seemed like a pretty basic stat to start with. The fewer yards a team gives up, the better, right?
- Points Allowed Per Game: Obviously, the whole point is to prevent the other team from scoring, so this was another crucial one.
- Sacks: Getting to the quarterback is huge, so I definitely wanted to track how many sacks each team was getting.
- Interceptions: Turning the ball over is a game-changer, so I made sure to include interceptions in my notes.
My Analysis
I am not gonna lie, after collecting it all, it started to look like a jumbled mess. Numbers everywhere! It took me a few minutes of staring, but I start to arrange it, comparing it all, to see how it looks.
Putting It All Together
After I felt like I had enough data, I started putting teams into tiers like Top, Mid, Bottom, etc.
It was a fun little project! I feel like I have a much better grasp on which NFL defenses are truly elite this year. I might even try to do some predictions based on this data – we’ll see!