As the years go on, it is becoming ever more increasingly noted how the 2013 Seattle Seahawks defense truly was one of the greatest units of all time. The famed Legion of Boom was truly a terror for opposing offenses, and was the most dominant force in football at the time.
On Thursday, the NFL Stats Twitter account tweeted a nice little reminder about just how suffocating the Legion of Boom was.
In 2013, the #Seahawks defense led the league in fewest points allowed (231), fewest yards allowed (4,378), and most takeaways (39).
They were the 1st team to lead all 3 categories since the 1985 #Bears. pic.twitter.com/ZHswm2zzZH
— NFL Stats (@NFL_Stats) March 30, 2023
Of course, the ’85 Chicago Bears are typically noted as the best defense of all time, but quite frankly I think the Legion of Boom has them beat. Chicago played in a much different era of football, which was far more defense friendly. They also played in an era before widespread free agency.
Meanwhile, the Legion of Boom had figured out how to play within the rules skewed so heavily in favor of offenses, yet still prevented them from doing much of anything.
To me, what takes the cake is how they fared against opponents in the playoffs. Seattle had to face against Drew Brees in his prime, Jim Harbaugh’s explosive 49ers, and of course… Peyton Manning’s Denver Broncos, who became the greatest single season offense in NFL history.
The greatest offense, who was held to eight measly points in Super Bowl XLVIII.