>Mike, #1 defense against the run simply means a team has permitted the fewest yards rushing per game.
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>Some numbers are inflated...for instance, a team could be #24 against the pass...but have an 8-3 record. It means they've been beating terms early, but the opponents pick up garbage yards (and maybe lots of them) at the end of the game.
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>Other numbers are far more important...like (and I hate to say this) the Bears having a balanced running and passing game yesterday.

I wasn't giving TOK (the other Kevin) a hard time. Ranking defenses by yards allowed is an old bugaboo of mine. No stat is going to be perfect but I would certainly go for points allowed rather than yards allowed. That can be skewed by garbage yards, as you say, defenses being on the field a lot because their offense is crap, defenses that give up yardage but get tough in the red zone, etc.