{"id":86152,"date":"2025-08-21T12:05:07","date_gmt":"2025-08-21T12:05:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/86152\/"},"modified":"2025-08-21T12:05:07","modified_gmt":"2025-08-21T12:05:07","slug":"where-does-every-nfl-defense-rank-for-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/86152\/","title":{"rendered":"Where Does Every NFL Defense Rank for 2025?"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Shemar Stewart, Ted Karras, and Orlando Brown Jr. before a preseason 2025 game against the Philadelphia Eagles<\/p>\n

Getty Images<\/p>\n

I have long made the argument that a team with a great offense and bad defense can usually land a playoff berth. But last year\u2019s Bengals were the exception. When the defense is as bad as Cincinnati\u2019s was in 2024, it\u2019s hard to win close games. Cincinnati made a coaching change in the offseason, replacing coordinator Lou Anarumo with Al Golden, who\u2019s jumping to the NFL from Notre Dame. As mentioned above in the Colts section, Anarumo produced an above-average defense just once in six seasons. Having said that, talent was and continues to be the big issue for this group. The Bengals finished 27th<\/a> in efficiency last year, and what makes that especially alarming is that they faced backup quarterbacks at the third-highest rate of any team.<\/p>\n

How often did defenses face the opposing team’s preferred quarterback last year? League average: 76.4%.<\/p>\n

The Titans, Colts, Bengals, Commanders, and Jaguars faced backups most often.<\/p>\n

The Browns, Rams, Vikings, 49ers, and Chiefs faced the opposing team’s #1 QB most often. pic.twitter.com\/ISjdSlixor<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Bill Barnwell (@billbarnwell) August 15, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

There aren\u2019t a whole lot of reasons to feel optimistic about a major improvement. Since 2022, the Bengals have spent 10 picks on defensive players in the first three rounds of the draft, and the bottom line is that they need those young players to be productive. For our purposes, we\u2019ll assume that edge defender Trey Hendrickson, who is unhappy with his contract, won\u2019t miss regular-season games. If first-round pick Shemar Stewart can contribute right away, maybe the Bengals pass rush can have some juice. But ultimately, their success might come down to whether the young defensive backs\u2014Cam Taylor-Britt, DJ Turner II, Dax Hill\u2014can perform. If I were Golden, I\u2019d try to manufacture turnovers and negative plays. That\u2019s a high-variance style of play, but it\u2019s just hard to believe that this will be a sound unit on a down-to-down basis.<\/p>\n