2012 NFL Playoffs Proving That Defense Still Wins Championships

The 2011 NFL season saw offensive record after offensive record fall as quarterbacks seemed able to pass the ball and score at will. Strong defense, formerly a hallmark of the league's best teams, appeared to be out of fashion, and worse, appeared to be unnecessary for teams with high-scoring offenses.

However, now that we're just two games away from the Super Bowl, some of the league's most dominant offenses are conspicuously out of the picture.

The Green Bay Packers and New Orleans Saints both fell in the divisional round of this year's playoffs, thanks to strong defensive efforts by their opponents, the New York Giants and San Francisco 49ers, respectively.

One of the two AFC divisional round matchups featured two teams well known for their strong defenses—the Houston Texans and Baltimore Ravens.

That game could have gone either way, with both defenses performing at a high level. The Ravens picked off Texans quarterback T.J. Yates three times and the Texans sacked Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco five times and kept pressure on him all day.

Indeed, the New England Patriots remain as the lone representative of the regular season's offensive explosion.

Even the New York Giants, who have a strong offense in their own right and a quarterback who threw for nearly 5,000 yards in the regular season, have relied on their defense to win games, including last week's victory over the Super Bowl favorite Packers.

But no defense looks more brutal, more intimidating than the one fielded by the 49ers. For a majority of their game against the Saints, the Niners defense seemed to hold the team's explosive receivers to nearly no yards after catch.

That is, if they caught the ball at all. The Niners, league leaders in forced turnovers this season, picked off Saints quarterback Drew Brees twice and forced three Saints fumbles, which San Francisco recovered.

The Niners defenders look as if shot out of a slingshot on every offensive snap and penetrate the line of scrimmage with lightning speed. If an opposing quarterback manages to get a pass off in time, and completes it, the receiver is covered almost immediately and can't get any additional yardage out of the catch.

And when it comes to the run game, no defense has been more successful than San Francisco's. In the regular season, they were giving up an average of just 77.3 yards per game, and last week allowed the Saints and their top 10 rushing offense just 37 total yards on 14 carries.

Though Brees ultimately threw for 462 yards and Niners quarterback Alex Smith had to perform some impressive offensive feats of his own to keep the Saints at bay, it was their defense that not only made it possible for the team to win, but was the primary reason why they went 13-3 this year and earned a playoff berth.

Defense will be the order of the day in their contest this Sunday against the Giants, and it will be the defense that makes all the difference when the Patriots host the Ravens.

Even the Patriots themselves looked improved on defense last week, holding Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow to just nine completions in 26 attempts, for 136 yards. They also sacked Tebow five times and notched 10 tackles for loss.

A strong offense, as we've learned this year, is enough to get a team to the playoffs. But for a team to win, and keep winning all the way to the Super Bowl, an equally strong defense is a more effective tool.

The cliche says that defense wins championships, and like most cliches, it has become one because it's true. While it's preferable to have both a high-scoring offense and a dominating defense, the latter has proven to be the greatest asset for a team with the Super Bowl in their sights.