NFL Defense Rankings 2025: Analysis of All 32 Defenses after Week 16

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 rankings are updated as of Sunday, December 21. You can dive into our analysis of all 32 defenses after Week 16.

1. Houston Texans (1)

Many of the best NFL defenses this season struggled in Week 16. That’s to say that the Houston Texans defense giving up 3 touchdowns and 315 total yards at home to Las Vegas on Sunday comes with fortunate timing. The good news is that there are things from this game that DeMeco Ryans can use to clean things up before the playoffs start. Given the talent at every level and the numbers put up this season, Houston still has the unquestioned No. 1 defense in the NFL.

2. Seattle Seahawks (2)

In Thursday’s win against Los Angeles, the Seattle Seahawks’ defense allowed more than 24 points to an opponent for the first time since Week 5, and it marked the first time since Week 10 that an opponent eclipsed 300 total yards. Tip your cap to the Rams’ offense; Puka Nacua and Matthew Stafford balled out. The Seahawks’ defense will rebound in Week 17 against the Panthers, shutting down the run and making it a long Sunday for Bryce Young.

3. Philadelphia Eagles (4)

The breakout season continued on Saturday for Jordan Davis, who now has career highs in sacks and tackles for loss. It gets even better for the Philadelphia Eagles’ defense in Week 17, as standout defender Jalen Carter is poised to rejoin the team. That is an All-Pro talent being added back to a unit that has allowed just 15.5 points, 16.9 first downs, and 286.5 total yards per game with a 66.5 QB rating and a 37 percent third-down conversion rate over the last eight contests. What will be key for Philadelphia in Week 17 against the Bills—an area where it has struggled—is stopping the downhill rushing attack.

4. Los Angeles Chargers (6)

In-game adjustments can make all the difference. The Los Angeles Chargers’ defense allowed 17 points, 215 total yards, and a 7.2 yards-per-play average in its first three drives to the Cowboys on Sunday in the first half. After that, the Cowboys’ offense put up just 125 total yards and averaged just 20.8 yards per drive on its final six possessions and was shut out. Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter is doing insane work with this unit for the second consecutive year, and you can bet he will create some havoc for C.J. Stroud in Week 17, especially given the Texans’ offensive line issues and struggles running the football.

5. Minnesota Vikings (8)

Brian Flores did not completely get to terrorize rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart, with New York allowing its new face of the franchise to attempt just 13 passes. When the Minnesota Vikings’ defense did have an opportunity to pin its ears back and come after Dart, it sacked him five times, snagged an interception, and held him to 13 net passing yards with a 2.5 yards-per-attempt average. Minnesota’s run defense—128 rushing yards and 4.3 yards per carry allowed—leaves something to be desired, but this unit is excelling against the pass right now. Heading into a Week 17 matchup against Detroit, feeding Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery might be the only viable path to success versus the Vikings’ defense.

6. Jacksonville Jaguars (9)

While the Broncos offense was able to rack up great yardage (445 total yards, 6.8 yards per play and 37.1 yards per drive) this Jacksonville Jaguars defense got stops when it mattered. Denver reached the red zone on just two of its 12 drives and went 5-for-13 on third downs, while turning it over twice. Jacksonville is on a roll defensively right now, holding its last four opponents under 21 points. Expect that streak to continue in Week 17 versus Jonathan Taylor and Philip Rivers.

7. Denver Broncos (3)

Things are quickly headed in the wrong direction for this Denver Broncos’ defense. Jacksonville finished Sunday with a 53.3 percent third-down conversion rate, reached the red zone on five of its 12 drives, and found the end zone on 80 percent of its red-zone trips. Fortunately, there is a get-right game in Week 17 against a Chiefs’ offense that will be starting a third-string quarterback.

8. Los Angeles Rams (5)

Over the last four games, the Los Angeles Rams’ defense has allowed a 100.0 passer rating, 256.8 passing yards, and 2.5 passing touchdowns per game. The holes in the secondary are starting to show again, as evidenced by the 120 points surrendered (30 points per game allowed) in that four-game span. A playoff spot is already locked up, but the Rams’ secondary might wind up being the reason they have to be a road team in the playoffs and could ultimately be the team’s downfall in an elimination game.

9. Cleveland Browns (7)

With how dominant Myles Garrett has been as a pass rusher, opponents are now just running on this Cleveland Browns defense until they cannot. James Cook averaged 7.3 yards per carry on Sunday, racking up 117 yards and two touchdowns on just 16 touches. Now, over the last three games, Cleveland has allowed 163.3 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns per game with a 5.1 yards-per-carry average. That should make it pretty clear for the Pittsburgh Steelers exactly what they must do to have success against this Browns’ defense in Week 17: take the football out of Aaron Rodgers’ hands and just pound the rock.

10. Baltimore Ravens (10)

Updated after Sunday Night Football

11. New Orleans Saints (12)

The New Orleans Saints’ defense is just feasting right now. On Sunday, Brandon Staley’s group recorded 11 tackles for loss, nine quarterback hits, and sacked Brady Cook eight times while generating two turnovers. Just for good measure, the Saints’ defense also allowed just a 3.1 yards-per-play average and a 13.3 percent third-down conversion rate. From Weeks 10–16, New Orleans has allowed just 15.8 points and 258.7 total yards per game with 18 sacks recorded and eight takeaways. The Saints D/ST is an elite fantasy option in Week 17 versus Tennessee.

12. Green Bay Packers (11)

If Romeo Doubs simply holds onto an onside kick, we are talking about a Green Bay Packers defense—without three of its best starters (Micah Parsons, Evan Williams, and Devonte Wyatt)—that allowed just 283 total yards on seven drives with an 18.2 percent third-down conversion rate. Instead, Chicago’s offense recovered it and put up 117 total yards and 13 points on two drives. Williams will return in a week or two, but the absence of Parsons and Wyatt is showing up in this unit’s inability to generate consistent pressure and chase down the quarterback for sacks. That is going to get exposed in Week 17 versus Lamar Jackson.

13. New England Patriots (15)

Updated after Sunday Night Football

14. Chicago Bears (14)

Allowing Emanuel Wilson (82 yards, 5.9 yards per carry) and Malik Willis (121 passing yards, 11.0 yards per attempt, 142.8 QB rating) to thrive is not exactly a ringing endorsement of the Chicago Bears’ defense. Yes, the forced fumble near the goal line proved crucial in Week 16, and this unit continues to demonstrate seemingly every week that it can generate at least one takeaway. However, the truly elite offenses rarely turn the football over, and they see the issues this unit is having and see opportunities to put up 28-plus points in the playoffs.

15. Pittsburgh Steelers (18)

We’re still not totally sure why the Lions basically refused to run the football on this Pittsburgh Steelers defense (11 carries), but it evidently wasn’t in their game plan. Instead, Jameson Williams (5-70), Kalif Raymond (4-62-1) and Jahmyr Gibbs (10-66) did a majority of the damage against Pittsburgh’s pass defense. This isn’t a particularly good unit, but we’ve learned this season that there’s a massive drop-off after the top 12 defenses.

16. Kansas City Chiefs (13)

The proverbial white flag has been waved by the Kansas City Chiefs’ defense. Multiple starters are now being shut down for the season, and those who are on the field do not quite seem to be putting up the same effort as before, evidenced by the Titans’ offense putting up 376 total yards and 26 points on Sunday. Expect Bo Nix, RJ Harvey, and Courtland Sutton to put a hurting on the Chiefs’ defense come Christmas Day.

17. Indianapolis Colts

The good news for the Indianapolis Colts’ defense entering Monday Night Football is that standout defensive tackle DeForest Buckner is returning to the field. Unfortunately for Indianapolis, it is still without both Charvarius Ward and Sauce Gardner. To make matters worse, the Colts have been abysmal this season at defending passes over the middle of the field. Kyle Shanahan, Brock Purdy, and Co. should be able to take full advantage of the Colts’ defensive issues.

18. Carolina Panthers (20)

Tampa Bay decided it was going to force the run against the Carolina Panthers’ defense, and it resulted in ball carriers—outside of Baker Mayfield—averaging just 3.1 yards per carry on 29 attempts. When Mayfield stood in the pocket and threw, he averaged just 5.6 yards per attempt and finished the day with 127 net passing yards on 26 attempts. Kudos to Ejiro Evero, who continues to get the most he can out of the Panthers’ defense this season. Facing Seattle in Week 17, we would anticipate that Carolina has a bit more of a problem defending the passing game.

19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (21)

It was an adequate performance from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ defense on Sunday, allowing just 275 total yards and two red-zone trips on nine drives. That at least represents a marginal step forward, but it might say more about the competition since Tampa Bay came into this one allowing 29.3 points and 384 total yards per game over its last six contests. Set to face Quinn Ewers in Week 17, we would advise finding better options in fantasy football than the Buccaneers D/ST.

20. Atlanta Falcons (24)

The Atlanta Falcons defense exceeded our expectations on Sunday, bottling up Michael Wilson (2-52) and Trey McBride (4-27) with Jacoby Brissett finishing with just 188 net passing yards on 31 attempts with 2 sacks and 1 interception. There have been lots of highs-and-lows with this Falcons defense in 2025, especially in the second half of the year. With that said, it is worlds better than what it used to be in previous years.

21. Buffalo Bills (22)

Takeaways (2 on Sunday) are going to be essential for this Buffalo Bills defense to be successful in the playoffs. That’s because Cleveland (5.2 ypc) joined the laundry list of teams running it with ease on Buffalo and the Bills’ safety are exploitable in coverage, especially with this unit’s tendency to miss tackles. Both of those weaknesses will be tested in Week 17 against the Eagles offense.

22. San Francisco 49ers (19)

The fatal flaw of this San Francisco 49ers defense, no pass rush, can’t be exposed by Philip Rivers and a banged-up Colts offensive line. That’s the thing about San Francisco’s success defensively as of late, it’s come against bottom-barrel offenses. When the playoffs begin, San Francisco will have one of the worst defenses out there.

23. Miami Dolphins (16)

The Miami Dolphins’ defense has come crashing back to earth in the last two weeks. Quarterbacks have recorded 510 passing yards with six touchdowns in the last two games against Miami, and they are not the only ones having success. The Dolphins have also surrendered 240 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns in that two-week span. It seemed like this unit had turned things around during its win streak, but Miami again looks like it has one of the worst NFL defenses.

24. Detroit Lions (23)

Coming into Sunday, opponents were torching the Detroit Lions’ defense through the air (328.8 passing yards and 2.5 passing touchdowns per game) over the last four weeks. Aaron Rodgers did that a bit (266 yards and one touchdown), but Pittsburgh decided to mix things up and decimate the Lions’ run defense (230 yards and two touchdowns). Maybe the Vikings will not be able to fully exploit it in Week 17, but we guarantee the Bears’ offense will in the regular-season finale.

25. New York Giants (32)

The New York Giants’ defense outscored its offense on Sunday. This unit sacked JJ McCarthy three times and picked him off before getting to tee off on backup Max Brosmer. Unsurprisingly, New York still has massive issues defending the run, and that will be something the Raiders exploit with Ashton Jeanty in Week 17. Now, with that said, this Giants’ defensive line could get four-plus sacks on Geno Smith and force an interception.

26. Tennessee Titans (28)

Once Gardner Minshew went down for an injury, forcing the Chiefs to turn the offense over to Chris Oladokun, it was a cakewalk for this Tennessee Titans defense. There really is nothing to take out of this performance, that’s how bad Kansas City’s offense is with a third-strinf quarteback.

27. Arizona Cardinals (26)

Of far greater issue than the performance on Sunday is that first-round pick Walter Nolen III was carted off with a knee injury that could now sideline him for a portion of the 2026 NFL season and cornerback Garrett Williams might be in the same boat with an Achilles injury. On top of that star edge rusher Josh Sweat also suffered an injury that forced him from the game, but it might only be a season-ender because there are two games left.Joe Burrow and Co. should have a field day against the Cardinals defense in Week 17.

28. Las Vegas Raiders (30)

A respectable performance from the Las Vegas Raiders defense nearing the end of the season, how about that. Houston mustered just 4.4 yards per play and reached the end zone on only 2 of its 11 drives Sunday, a real achievement after how things looked over the last month. Set to face Jaxson Dart and Chris Oladokun in the next two weeks, Las Vegas should put up decent numbers defensively.

29. Cincinnati Bengals (29)

The Cincinnati Bengals defense is now responsible for 11 takeaways in the last five games. That is doing the heavy lifting for this unit allowing just 24.8 points per game in that stretch. The big-play ability is great, but Cincinnati is still giving up explosive plays on the ground in bunches and can be exploited through the air. There should be of plenty of points put up in Week 17 when the Bengals and Cardinals square off.

30. Dallas Cowboys (25)

Jerry Jones can fire who he wants but the secondary is the biggest reason why the Dallas Cowboys have on of the worst NFL defenses in 2025. In the last four games, quarterbacks have now accounted for 11 passing touchdowns and averaged 273.6 passing yards per game while completing 70 percent of their passes against the Cowboys defense.

31. Washington Commanders (27)

The Washington Commanders’ defense has allowed 27 points and 371 total yards per game over the last four weeks, with a 5.64 yards-per-play average. Saquon Barkley took full advantage of a run defense that has surrendered five yards per carry in the last four games, and we would fully expect the Cowboys’ offense to put up outstanding numbers on Christmas Day versus Washington.

32. New York Jets (32)

The New York Jets have the worst defense in the NFL right now and it’s not close. In the last four games, the Jets defense has surrendered nearly 400 total yards per game to opponents with 9 passing touchdowns allowed. Drake Maye and the Patriots offense should challenge for video game numbers in Week 17.

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