Navy football struggled on defense during the 2016 season, allowing an average of 31 points and 434 total yards per game. The Midshipmen gave up 40 points or more in four contests and could not manage clutch defensive stops in numerous defeats.
Navy found itself in a slew of shootouts — beating Houston (46-40) and Tulsa (42-40) while losing to South Florida (52-45) and Louisiana Tech (48-45).
Some of the unflattering statistics could be chalked up to the high-scoring nature of college football during an era when spread offenses are difficult to contain. However, that does not fully explain how the Navy defense slipped so badly from the previous season when it limited opponents to averages of 21.