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 Sunday, September 7, following the late-afternoon games in Week 2. You can find an analysis of all 32 defenses immediately below. On Monday, we’ll release the NFL stats on the five best and worst pass and run defenses this season. Coming on Tuesday, our Week 3 fantasy defense rankings.
Read More: NFL Week 3 Power Rankings, Evaluating all 32 Teams after Week 2
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 Week 3.
The Houston Texans have to love the timing of their matchup with the Buccaneers’ offense on Monday Night Football. Tampa Bay is still without Chris Godwin and Tristan Wirfs, two critical players whose absence can be exploited by Houston. Danielle Hunter should have a field day against fill-in left tackle Graham Barton and Houston has the corners to blanket both Mike Evans and Emeka Egbuka. If there’s a big game that the Texans’ defense could win almost single-handedly, it’s this one on Monday Night Football.
When Mike MacDonald’s defense was at its best with the Baltimore Ravens, he had a game-wrecker on the defensive interior (Nnamdi Madubuike), playmakers in the secondary and two linebackers he trusted to execute his scheme. The Seattle Seahawks have all of that now. Byron Murphy II, the 2024 first-round pick, recorded 1.5 sacks in Week 2 and he also added a tackle for loss. Seattle had little trouble pressuring Aaron Rodgers on Sunday – 8 QB hits and 3 sacks – which helped generate 2 interceptions.
The Seahawks’ defense also allowed just a...
