Okay, so, I’ve been digging into this whole “best defense in the NFL” thing, and let me tell you, it’s a rabbit hole. I started off thinking, “This should be easy, right? Just look at the stats.” Ha, I was so naive.
First, I pulled up some basic rankings, you know, the kind you see on any sports site. I looked at who is letting in the fewest points, who is giving up the fewest yards, that sort of stuff.
I found that the Philadelphia Eagles, Tennessee Titans, and Denver Broncos are usually listed among the top three defenses right now.
Then I saw that the New York Jets, Houston Texans, and San Francisco 49ers also have some of the top defensive players like Sauce Gardner and Nick Bosa, and they’re near the top of the list, too.
I figured, “Cool, I’ll just see which teams have the best numbers across the board.” But then I realized it’s not that simple. One team might be great at stopping the run but not so great against the pass. Another might be awesome at forcing turnovers but give up a ton of yards. It’s like, do you want a team that bends but doesn’t break, or a team that’s super aggressive but sometimes gets burned?
So, I started looking at individual players. I went through that they are the good defenders in the league. I mean, how can you compare a defensive end to a cornerback, you know? But I noticed that a strong safety (SS) is on average 6′1, weighing over 200 lbs, and has enough speed to help cover the fast receivers. The strong safety also needs to be fairly strong, as he will often be tasked to make the tackle on some big runners.
Digging Deeper
Then, I started to realize maybe those numbers don’t tell the whole story. I dove into some more advanced stats, like third-down conversion rates and red-zone defense and so on. I mean, a team could give up a bunch of yards between the 20s but then tighten up when it really matters, right? The Dolphins, for example, have been the third-best third-down defense this year (35%) and fourth-best red-zone defense (48.9% TD rate).
I went looking at some game stats, and trying to figure out who really is good at the whole defense thing. It’s been kind of a mess, to be honest. I am feeling like every team has its good days and bad days. There isn’t a totally clear answer here.
And then there’s the whole coaching aspect. I mean, a great defensive coordinator can make average players look amazing, and a bad one can make great players look, well, not so great.
- Watched a bunch of game highlights.
- Read some articles from “experts” who all seem to disagree with each other.
- Looked at all 32 team defenses.
- Compared them from worst to first after Week 11.
- Found that Myles Garrett is the best defensive player on the planet, ranking 2nd in ESPN’s pass rush win rate.
My Takeaway
After all this, I’m still not sure I can definitively say who the best defense in the NFL is. I mean, at least now I kinda get what I am looking for when it comes to seeing a good defense. It’s a mix of talent, coaching, scheme, and probably a little bit of luck, too. But I’m definitely leaning towards thinking that it’s more about matchups and specific situations than just overall rankings.
So, yeah, that’s my journey into the world of NFL defenses. It’s way more complicated than I thought, but it’s been pretty interesting. I guess the search continues!
