Sportsnaut
Our weekly NFL defense rankings examine every unit across the league to determine the best defenses in the NFL. With the preseason wrapped up, let’s dive into our evaluations for the worst and best NFL defenses this season. We’ll update our NFL defense rankings, with analysis on all 32 teams, every Sunday night each week.
Our NFL defense ranks are updated as of Tuesday, September 16. You can find an analysis of all 32 defenses immediately below. You can find our Week 3 fantasy defense rankings immediately below. After that, NFL defensive stats on the worst and best pass defenses and run defenses, along with team-by-team analysis in our NFL defense rankings for 2025.
Read More: NFL Week 3 Power Rankings, Evaluating all 32 Teams after Week 2
The following order is exclusively Week 3 fantasy defense rankings. You can find NFL defensive stats and our season-long defense rankings below.
Related: Week 3 Fantasy Rankings
The Green Bay Packers defense faced one of the best NFL offenses from last season for the second consecutive week. It held Jayden Daniels and company to a 3.1% explosive play rate, the lowest rate allowed since the 2023 season by a defense. Green Bay’s pass rush, with Micah Parsons leading all defensive ends in snaps played, generated 4 sacks and 12 QB hits, marking the second consecutive week that the Packers recorded four or more sacks and nine or more QB hits in a game. Additionally, Green Bay held its opponent under 3.8 yards per play.
Related: Winners, Losers from Packers’ TNF Win over the Commanders
That covers the Packers’ pass rush, but it’s not the only aspect of this defense that is standing out. Coming out of Week 2, opponents are averaging just 48.5 rushing yards per game (1st in the NFL) with a 2.4 yards-per-carry average. That creates many third-and-long situations, which helps explain the Packers’ outstanding success in preventing third-down conversions (a 32.3 percent conversion rate). The Browns’ offense is in for a long...
