Defense wins championships, they say, and the logic behind that mantra is pretty clear: A team can’t win against you if it can’t score points. And that’s where each of the 32 NFL teams’ defensive squads come in.
Some of the NFL’s defenses, like the Carolina Panthers and the Jacksonville Jaguars, are essentially porous, allowing upwards of 350 average yards per game, while others, like the Philadelphia Eagles and the Denver Broncos, are downright elite, shutting down their opponents’ momentum week after week.
So, which teams currently have the best defense in the NFL? Let’s take a look.
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2024-25 NFL Regular Season Defensive Rankings
An NFL defense’s performance can vary from week to week, depending heavily on each team’s particular matchup. Even the Philadelphia Eagles or the Denver Broncos can find themselves hard-pressed to stop the likes of dynamic offenses like the Detroit Lions or the Baltimore Ravens this season.
To get a sense of which teams have had the best defense in the NFL across the season, we’ll look at three key categories of defense performance statistics: average total yards allowed per game, average passing yards allowed per game and average rushing yards allowed per game.
Right now, the Philadelphia Eagles (10-2), Tennessee Titans (3-9) and Denver Broncos (7-5) are leading the league as the top three defenses. The New York Jets, Houston Texans and San Francisco 49ers, home to some of the top defensive players like Sauce Gardner and Nick Bosa, are also near the top of the list.
Honorable mention: the T.J. Watt and the Pittsburgh Steelers, Chris Jones and the Kansas City Chiefs and the Miami Dolphins.
On the other end of the defensive spectrum, the Jacksonville Jaguars (2-10), Carolina Panthers (3-9) and the New Orleans Saints (4-8) defenses have struggled through the season. Unsurprisingly, these teams are also near the bottom of the league’s overall standings. Jacksonville, in particular, has the only total yards allowed higher than 400.
Also notably struggling: the Baltimore Ravens, Seattle Seahawks, New York Giants and New England Patriots. The Patriots, specifically, have been in the spotlight this season, their first without legendary, defensively minded head coach Bill Belichick on the sideline.
Here’s a complete look at the top NFL defenses right now (as of December 2, 2024).
Total Yards per Game
| Team | Yards per Game |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 282.8 |
| Tennessee Titans | 291.9 |
| Denver Broncos | 296 |
| New York Jets | 301.2 |
| Houston Texans | 308.5 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 309.9 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 311 |
| Miami Dolphins | 311.4 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 311.9 |
| Detroit Lions | 320.3 |
| Buffalo Bills | 321.6 |
| Green Bay Packers | 323.9 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 324.7 |
| Los Angeles Chargers | 325.8 |
| Las Vegas Raiders | 327.7 |
| Washington Commanders | 327.7 |
| Arizona Cardinals | 334.8 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 337.6 |
| New York Giants | 340.1 |
| New England Patriots | 340.2 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 342.9 |
| Chicago Bears | 344.5 |
| Cleveland Browns | 345 |
| Baltimore Ravens | 347.6 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 359.5 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 359.7 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 369.2 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 375.4 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 379.4 |
| New Orleans Saints | 385.1 |
| Carolina Panthers | 392.1 |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | 406.4 |
Passing Defense: Pass Yards per Game
| Team | Pass Yards per Game |
| Tennessee Titans | 171.8 |
| New York Jets | 174.9 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 178 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 190 |
| Washington Commanders | 190.7 |
| New York Giants | 194.2 |
| Houston Texans | 198.8 |
| Buffalo Bills | 199.7 |
| Denver Broncos | 199.8 |
| Miami Dolphins | 203.9 |
| Los Angeles Chargers | 206.4 |
| Chicago Bears | 209.4 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 210.6 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 212.1 |
| Las Vegas Raiders | 212.9 |
| Cleveland Browns | 214.4 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 215.3 |
| New England Patriots | 215.5 |
| Green Bay Packers | 217.3 |
| Arizona Cardinals | 217.5 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 220.5 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 221.7 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 224.1 |
| Carolina Panthers | 225.2 |
| Detroit Lions | 226.8 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 232.4 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 241 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 243.3 |
| New Orleans Saints | 249.1 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 258.2 |
| Baltimore Ravens | 264.9 |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | 273.2 |
Rushing Defense: Rush Yards per Game
| Team | Rush Yards per Game |
| Minnesota Vikings | 81.3 |
| Baltimore Ravens | 82.7 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 87.8 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 90.5 |
| Detroit Lions | 93.5 |
| Denver Broncos | 96.2 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 104.8 |
| Green Bay Packers | 106.6 |
| Miami Dolphins | 107.5 |
| Houston Texans | 109.7 |
| Las Vegas Raiders | 114.8 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 117.2 |
| Arizona Cardinals | 117.3 |
| Los Angeles Chargers | 119.4 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 119.9 |
| Tennessee Titans | 120.1 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 121.2 |
| Buffalo Bills | 121.9 |
| New England Patriots | 124.7 |
| New York Jets | 126.2 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 127 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 128.2 |
| Cleveland Browns | 130.6 |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | 133.2 |
| Chicago Bears | 135.1 |
| New Orleans Saints | 136 |
| Washington Commanders | 137 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 144.2 |
| New York Giants | 145.8 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 147 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 147.6 |
| Carolina Panthers | 166.8 |
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Frequently Asked Questions
Which teams currently have the best defenses in the NFL?
The Philadelphia Eagles, the Tennessee Titans and the Denver Broncos currently lead the league in defense.
Who are some of the best NFL defensive players right now?
Nick Bosa, T.J. Watt, Sauce Gardner, Myles Garrett, Micah Parsons and Maxx Crosby are all among the NFL's top defensive players in 2024.
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