However, they also lost some talent in free agency, and it has shown throughout the year. -- John Keim, What will define Eric Bieniemy's success? Thankfully, the defense is not devoid of talent. The defense lead the Vikings to a road playoff win vs the Saints. T.J. Watt, Cameron Heyward, Alex Highsmith and Minkah Fitzpatrick are the reason why Pittsburgh has one of the best NFL defenses in 2023. The greatest issue the Dolphins are having this season is when they are in the red zone. Terrell, the Falcons have some work to do when it comes to bringing in more talent to improve this unit. Cleveland was missing three of its four starters along the defensive line in Sunday's loss to the Falcons, including star pass-rusher Myles Garrett. Next year, the defense will be able to not have to worry about a full install but rather tweaking things and bringing in more personnel. San Francisco ranks near the top of the NFL in nearly every major defensive category, but the offense has been near the bottom of the league in a number of areas, most notably points scored. There is also a lot of room for improvement in the red zone and on third downs. NE | NO | NYG | NYJ | PHI | PIT | SF -- Rich Cimini, Defensive efficiency: 59.0 The 27-year-old rushed for 1,173 yards and eight touchdowns on 264 carries last season, with another 39 catches for 295 yards and two scores on 56 targets, though his 4.4 yards per carry was a. Bet Tip: Aidan Hutchinson to Win Defensive Player of the Year (+850) at Caesars Sportsbook. Los Angeles' defense, which ranked second in Football Outsiders' rush DVOA going into the Week 4 matchup, ranks significantly worse against the pass (23rd in the NFL). The biggest issue on defense is getting gouged on the ground, again. While injuries to the secondary forced their defense to take a step back, they are managing to get the job done when they need to. Transactions | Injuries Miami currently has the second-worst pass defense in the NFL through its first four games, although that hasn't translated to the scoreboard. League rank: 14th. Mel Kiper takes another shot predicting the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft, with elite QBs and defensive players highlighting the latest mock. -- Stephen Holder, Defensive efficiency: 46.0 I wanted to look this up and post it because I've seen a lot of people say that we had bad defenses in 2018 and 2019. Getting Von Miller and Micah Hyde back for the 2023 NFL season are huge boosts for the Buffalo Bills defense. League rank: 32nd. In the NFC Championship Game, DeMeco Ryans unit handled the Eagles offense until late in the second quarter, when undisciplined play by players extended the drive. Therefore, selecting just five team defenses from a 59-year pool was not elementary. Give Martindale more talent to work with and this can be a top-12 defense. Patrick Surtain II is the best cornerback in the NFL and the ability to blanket No. However, defensively, it hasnt been that bad. Consistently a top-12 pass and run defense, the Ravens have room for improvement if they find younger plays to fill the voids left by Peters and Co. Without either, the Browns couldn't get pressure, while the Falcons ran the ball at will. A top-11 unit in points per game, the Titans defense is one of the stingiest defenses against the run, allowing the fewest rushing scores in the NFL, as well as the third-fewest rushing yards. Following J.J. Watts retirement, almost the entire Arizona Cardinals defense needs to be addressed. -- Jordan Raanan, Defensive efficiency: 68.3 Barnwell predicts the next QBs to get benched: Did Pittsburgh wait too long? They are also 31st in plays, showing they cant get off the field. However, the Vikings are one of the best teams in the NFC because they find a way to get the job done, making plays when they need to. Rushing Leader: Derrick Henry, 2027 Yds. Jim Schwartz has plenty to work with, but Schwartzs approach doesnt work without a strong defensive interior and improved play on the boundary. CBSSports.com 247Sports MaxPreps League rank: 15th. Defense has carried the Saints since the retirement of Drew Brees. Teams have still been able to run on the Buccaneers, something that was an afterthought under Todd Bowles, but theyre a bit more difficult to throw on, allowing the fifth-fewest passing yards in the NFL. However, Houston doesnt have much standout talent on the defensive side right now with Derek Stingley Jr. a work in progress and Jalen Pitre still needs to iron out a lot of issues. They must also find a way to create more turnovers. We paired each response with the team's defensive efficiency rating and where that stacks up in the league. The Cardinals' four sacks are the fewest in the NFL, and their sacks per pass attempt rate is a league-low 2.88%. They are the No. With Jamin Davis added in the 2021 NFL Draft, things are only looking up for this young defense. 2 outside corner, this could be an excellent unit. However, theres no feasible way to call this one of the best NFL defenses in 2023. League rank: 29th. 1 ranking at defensive back also secures the top spot in the overall NFC North roster points standings. The Chiefs' defensive rankings in four years with Patrick Mahomes as their quarterback: 24th, 14th, 18th, and 26th. Opponents posted a 92.7 QB rating with an 11-5 TD-INT ratio in the final eight games and Minnesota had one of the softest second-half schedules. -- Jamison Hensley, Defensive efficiency: 68.2 The biggest issue on defense is soft coverage. The Vikings are allowing the 11th-most points per game. There will be some big losses defensively, but a pair of first-round picks could go a long way to help this remain one of the best NFL defenses in 2023. . This was especially so when Denver was forced into its nickel package on defense and the Raiders then pounded away at it. The Baltimore Ravens are set at safety and linebacker, but it will be losing No. The Vikings pass defense has been interesting to say the least. Stroud: No. The Browns defense is more than just elite pass-rusher Myles Garrett. The 2022 version of the Bill Belichick defense is one with flaws. While the Falcons have exceeded expectations with five wins through 13 games, their defense is not the reason why. The biggest issue on defense is finishing the game. Because DVOA measures scoring, defenses are better when they are negative. The Vikings defense graded highly in PFFs model, ranking fourth in the NFL with a grade of 85.3. Crosby has four of the Raiders' five sacks -- cornerback Nate Hobbs has the other -- and while that's a good early return on Las Vegas' four-year, $98.98 million investment via the extension Crosby got this offseason, the Raiders need more from the defensive line in general, Chandler Jones in particular. Arizona has some players on defense like Budda Baker, Zaven Collins, and Isaiah Simmons, but when you are light on the back end and the EDGE, youre going to give up lots of yards in the pass-heavy NFL. As if getting gashed by Aaron Jones and AJ Dillon wasn't enough to have the Bears licking their wounds after a Week 2 loss at Green Bay, Giants running back Saquon Barkley totaled 145 yards on 31 carries and earned 94 of his rushing yards after first contact in Week 4. Change is coming. They open up against Miami and . The 2022 Vikings defense isn't in the upper echelon of most statistical rankings through six games, but Head Coach Kevin O'Connell referred to the group as the team's "backbone" shortly after. Each one hit the 10-sack benchmark (a top 20 . Cornerbacks D.J. Pro Bowl cornerback J.C. Jackson missed Weeks 1 and 3 after undergoing ankle surgery in August, and when he did give it a go in Week 2, he said he was playing at less than 100 percent. The Giants have a top-10 pass defense at the moment. This would be a bottom-feeding team in the NFC if Smith didnt bail out this defense as much as he has. Ranking 15th in points per game allowed, the Indy defense is still a middle-of-the-pack unit, but they have been slashed and gashed by superior offenses. That's exactly when it mattered. The Jaguars have to figure out what went wrong because they face Dameon Pierce, Jonathan Taylor and Saquon Barkley the next three weeks. 2022 Regular Season Statistics Minnesota Vikings OPPONENTS 382 TOTAL FIRST DOWNS 359 93 244 45 FIRST DOWNS Rushing Passing By Penalty 113 224 22 93 / 226 THIRD DOWN CONVERSIONS 82 / 215 9 / 19. Call 1-800-GAMBLER. The Chicago Bears had the worst defense in the NFL this season. QB Power Rankings: Williams leads trio of Pac-12 stars . | 13th most accurate ranker in the FantasyPros ECR for in-season accuracy, including 2nd at quarterback and 3rd at tight end (2021). When youre not getting pressure, opposing signal-callers will pick you apart. League rank: 5th. The biggest issue on defense is no T.J. Watt. It is important to note that Pittsburgh is 24th in sacks. Let's overreact to NFL Week 4: Cooper Rush as Cowboys starter? So 3 years were ahead of 2017 by total number but one of those was ranked #4 within it's year. Who has the best NFL defense in 2023? When you are allowing the second-fewest passing touchdowns in a passing league, you know you have some talent on the back end to build off of. Buffalo Bills defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier. Our power panel -- a group of more than 80 writers, editors and TV personalities -- evaluated how teams are stacking up through four weeks and named a new No. The other shocking thing is our 2020 defense wasn't as bad as we all remember (although I think the 18th ranking is a bit high) I'm guessing Alvin Kamara deleted anything positive from our brains. The Vikings rank in the bottom eight of almost every defensive category. Responsible Gaming: Many sportsbooks offer ways to encourage responsible gaming, including the establishment of limits to deposits, spending, and time dedicated to betting.
By. I am being generous with my ranking of the Cardinals. However, the Seattle defense is allowing the fifth-most points per game while slated in the bottom six in a slew of categories including points, plays, passing yards, rushing yards, and touchdowns allowed. Despite a rough start to the year, as well as the fact that Chase Young has yet to play a snap, Jack Del Rios unit has turned it around. It might work against the quarterbacks they faced, but life is about to get much more difficult with Aaron Rodgers, Lamar Jackson, Trevor Lawrence and Geno Smith on deck. The biggest issue on defense is getting home. They are 27th against the run, 25th in pass defense, and 25th in points allowed, and 27th in total yards allowed. . When you can hold the Chiefs to 24 points, you know you are doing something right. Although, New England would be wise to improve at outside corner. League rank: 20th, The Texans are allowing 5.1 yards per carry and have allowed 688 total rushing yards, the second most in the NFL. Alabama linebacker Will Anderson Jr. -- 2022's consensus defensive player of the year after winning the Bronko Nagurski Trophy, the Chuck Bednarik Award, the Lott IMPACT Trophy and the Vince Lombardi Award -- has battled some of the NCAA's toughest linemen across his three-year collegiate career.