Defense.

Many have said that defense wins championships and I’m not surprised to here this in the 2008-09 NFL football season. Year-in and year-out NFL teams try to make the necessary adjustments and bring in new players and coaches trying to come up with the perfect defense that might just earn them a championship.

Of course, the Minnesota Vikings still have the best defense in football but since they lost to Aaron Rodgers to start their campaign, we’re going to take a look at other teams and try to determine if their defense can really win a championship for them this season.

Last year was a breakout season for the Pittsburgh Steelers. They led the league overall in yards per game with 266.4 while consistently getting ranked in the top ten in fewest points allowed and fewest 100 yard rushers and total defense.

The Steel Curtain should hold opponents down again but I’m not sure if they can do that against teams like the Bengals or the Dallas Cowboys this season.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers had 1726 rushing yards last year while only allowing 16.9 points per game. Tampa added a play-making corner in Aqib Talib to a solid secondary that allowed less than six yards-per-attempt passing in 2007.

That number will go up a little, but it will be more than offset by the development of the pass rush, namely Gaines Adams, and guys like Talib and Tanard Jackson, who can pick the ball off. Sure, the Buccaneers let Anthony Becht go, but they still have six tight ends on the roster, five of which were legitimate NFL starters.

Surprisingly, the Indianapolis Colts have one of the better defenses in the league this season. Although the Colts are known as kings of the passing game, they have speedy corners that is very good at picking off passes, causing fumbles and can score off of the other team’s offensive miscues.

I’m not quite sure what happened when they lost to the Bears in Week 1 though.

Who will win Super Bowl XLIII in Tampa, Florida? Bodog sportsbook has the odds.

New York Giants 17.00

New England Patriots 4.50

Dallas Cowboys 7.00

Indianapolis Colts 8.50

Want more odds? Visit Bodog sportsbook for more football betting odds and the best betting lines on some of today’s biggest sporting events.

2008 NFL Season Pittsburgh Steelers