The NFL put on a great defense show in week seven as some defenses absolutely dominated their opponents while others fell flat on the field and have some issues to fix for the following weeks.
Here is where all 32 NFL Teams’ defenses look after week 6 games:
Arizona Cardinals: C- (Last week D+)
The Arizona Cardinals may not have had the offensive performance they wanted to have, but they had somewhat of a good game on defense. The defense, as a whole, had two sacks and Garrett Williams had an interception against Geno Smith. The Cardinal’s defense isn’t the strongest team to go up against, but they have some playmakers that can rally and make some noise with guys like Budda Baker leading the cover.
Atlanta Falcons: C+ (Last week C)
The Falcon’s defense played a fair game against their division rival, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Falcons managed to secure three sacks and Richie Grant secured an interception against Baker Mayfield. Nate Landman had 12 tackles on the day and Calais Campbell had four tackles and a sack in the victory. The Falcon’s defense is an above-average unit that can be a force to be reckoned with against opponents, but the Falcon’s identity is more on offense at this point of the season.
Baltimore Ravens: A (Last week B+)
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The Ravens’ defense attacked the Lions’ offense on all fronts in their week seven meeting. Roquan Smith had eight tackles and a pass deflection, Kyle Van Noy had five tackles and two sacks, and Geno Stone had three tackles, a pass deflection, and an interception on the day. The Ravens’ defense had five sacks against Jared Goff on the day. The Raven’s defense wasn’t playing around when the Lions (who were favored to win with a” Roar”) came to town and were dominated on all fronts of the game- leaving with little more than an audible “Meow”.
Buffalo Bills: D+ (Last week B-)
The Bill’s defense. for some inexplicable reason, obviously left their minds behind, in week six, as they couldn’t stop the Patriots offensively in the first half. During the game, they couldn’t get an interception against the Pats. However, Jordan Poyer did have 10 tackles, and the Bills only sacked Mac Jones once during the game. The Bills have a great defensive unit which looked like it fell asleep against one of the worst teams in the league. This Bills team must wake up and rebound for the weeks to come if they want to earn their fourth straight divisional victory. The Miami Dolphins may seize an opportunity, even if they are trailing behind them in the AFC East.
Carolina Panthers: Bye Week (Last week F)
The Panthers have a lot of issues on defense to fix if they are to compete with more talented opponents.
Chicago Bears: B- (Last week D)
The Bear’s defense finally woke up after a long slumber and took their aggression out on the Las Vegas Raiders visiting the Windy City. Justin Jones had three tackles, a sack, and a pass deflection, Tremaine Edmunds had eight tackles, two pass deflections, and an interception, and Jaylon Johnson had two interceptions for 39 yards and scored a touchdown. When the Bears compete against struggling teams, they can come to life and possibly pull off those unexpected upsets against good teams who aren’t expecting to lose. Pass the coffee.
Cincinnati Bengals: Bye Week (Last week B+)
The Bengal’s defense needs to keep playing well as the offense has been doing a lot of the work, so far, all season long.
Cleveland Browns: B- (Last week Bye Week)
The Brown’s defense managed to get four sacks on Gardner Minshew and Denzel Ward had an interception returned for 20 yards on the day. Myles Garrett had nine tackles, two sacks, and a pass deflection while Tony Fields II had six tackles, recovered a fumble, and scored a touchdown. The Browns have great defensive playmakers which helps them win games despite a somewhat weak offense.
Dallas Cowboys: Bye week (Last week B-)
The Cowboys defense need to keep playing well like they did in their week six victory against the Los Angeles Chargers from playmakers like Micah Parsons and Stephon Gilmore.
Denver Broncos: C- (Last week D-)
The Broncos defense played fair and competitively against a Green Bay Packers offense coming off a week six bye week. The Broncos couldn’t get a sack against Jordan Love but got an interception off Love via P.J. Locke. However, earlier in the game, safety Kareem Jackson was suspended for four games for unnecessary roughness against Packers tight end Luke Musgrave. The Bronco’s defense may not be as mighty as it was during the team’s Super Bowl 50 run, but they can still muster up a few wins.
Detroit Lions: F (Last week B+)
The Lions’ defense was nonexistent in their week seven loss to Baltimore. The team did not land a single sack or interception against Lamar Jackson and company as well as couldn’t stop the Raven’s run and receiving game all day long. It was a very painful day for the Lion’s defense as a whole, but they will rebound from this for their next opponents in the weeks to come. They may be licking their paws, but it would be a mistake to discount their roar.
Green Bay Packers: D+ (Last week Bye Week)
The Packer’s defense couldn’t stop Russell Wilson from cooking in the game nor could they get an interception against him. Preston Smith had a sack against Wilson as well as two tackles on the day and Isaiah McDuffie led the Packers with 10 tackles on the afternoon. The Packers need to chop this loss up and throw it in the dumpster and pull together the needed ingredients to they can prepare themselves for the following weeks if they want to be relevant in the NFC North again.
Houston Texans: Bye Week (Last week B-)
The Texans defense needs to keep playing well with head coach DeMeco Ryans and defensive coordinator Matt Burke in command of a young and hungry team.
Indianapolis Colts: C (Last week D+)
The Colt’s defense was able to stop the Brown’s passing game but wasn’t able to stop the Brown’s rushing attack. The Colt’s defense got two sacks against PJ Walker and intercepted him twice thanks to Julian Blackmon and Rodney Thomas II. Kenny Moore II had 10 tackles, 1.5 sacks, three tackles for a loss, and two quarterback hits. The Colts still have good defensive playmakers who can make noise, but, need to step up in the coming weeks if they want to make a playoff run this season.
Jacksonville Jaguars: B (Last week B-)
The Jaguar’s defense did not play around as they kept the Saints in check in the first half of the meeting. Dawuane Smoot had two tackles and a sack and Foyesade Oluokun had 14 tackles, two pass deflections, an interception returned for 24 yards, and a defensive touchdown on the night. The Jaguar’s defense is a ferocious unit that can handle any competition thrown their way and still come out on top as the victors.
Kansas City Chiefs: A (Last week A-)
The Chiefs’ defense came out and put on an excellent show against the visiting Los Angeles Chargers. The Chiefs sacked Justin Herbert five times and forced him to throw two interceptions recovered by Bryan Cook and L’Jarius Sneed, respectively. Mike Danna had six tackles and one of the Chiefs’ five sacks on the day. The Chiefs know how to play MVP football on all sides of the ball and the defense is one of the best units in the league.
Las Vegas Raiders: D (Last week B)
The Raider’s defense took a major step back in their week seven loss to the Chicago Bears. Even though Maxx Crosby and Tyrese Wilson had one sack each, the Raiders couldn’t force Tyson Bagent to throw an interception, all game, as well as stop the Bear’s rushing attack from causing damage throughout play. The Raiders need to carefully review the film and fix defensive play in order to compete with tougher opponents in the coming weeks!
Los Angeles Chargers: D+ (Last week C+)
The Chargers defense managed to sack Patrick Mahomes and get him to throw an interception caught by Asante Samuel Jr., but they struggled all game long against Mahomes and company as the Chiefs offense left the Chargers defense burned and torched. The Chargers have a lot to overhaul in order to stay relevant in the AFC West.
Los Angeles Rams: D+ (Last week B)
The Ram’s defense managed to get two sacks against Kenny Pickett, but they couldn’t force any interceptions or fumbles all game. Michael Hoecht had seven tackles and two sacks and Christian Rozeboom had six tackles and a pass deflection. The Ram’s defense needs to wake up, show up, and play for keeps, in extremely competitive games whether it’s against strong opponents or average contenders looking to pull off an upset.
Miami Dolphins: C+ (Last week C+)
The Dolphins may not have played their best football against the Philadelphia Eagles on the road, but the defense did make some impactful noise. Jerome Baker had 11 tackles, a pass deflection, an interception returned for 24 yards, and a touchdown while Bradley Chubb had seven tackles and two sacks on the night, Jaylen Phillips had seven tackles and a sack of his own. The Dolphins have a good defense which can help them win crucial games, unfortunately, this game was a loss for Miami to a very elite Eagles team.
Minnesota Vikings: B (Last week B+)
The Vikings’ defense surprised everyone by playing fast and aggressively against arguably one of the supposed best teams in the NFL. Camryn Bryne forced two interceptions off of Brock Purdy as well as had nine tackles and two pass deflections on the night while Dean Lowry had three tackles and a fumble recovery, and Danielle Hunter had two tackles and a sack. The Vikings proved they are still in it to stay relevant this season with some spectacular play from their defense!
New England Patriots: C+ (Last week F)
The Patriots managed to play well defensively against their well-known division rival, the Buffalo Bills. Jabrill Peppers secured an interception against Josh Allen and Christian Barmore had three tackles and a sack against Allen on the day. The Patriots may have struggled on all sides of the ball this season, but when it comes to sneaking away with wins on defense, they are very good at doing just that against a first-place divisional opponent in Buffalo.
New Orleans Saints: D (Last week C+)
The Saint’s defense fell flat as the Jaguars invaded and took a victory in the Superdome. Not one defensive player could get a sack or an interception against Trevor Lawrence. Carl Granderson and Lonnie Johnson Jr. recovered two fumbles in the game for New Orleans. But it wasn’t enough as the Saints were defeated at home.
New York Giants: C (Last week D+)
The Giant’s defense took a slight step up in their week seven victory over the Washington Commanders. Deonte Banks picked off Sam Howell and returned his interception for six yards while also having seven tackles and a pass deflection in the game. The Giant’s defense also sacked Howell six times in the game with Dexter Lawrence II having six tackles and two sacks. The Giants are a bottom-feeder team at this time, but they have managed to squeak out a few wins here and there.
New York Jets: Bye Week (Last week B)
The Jets defense is a force to be reckoned with that can potentially help the Jets become a dark-horse playoff contender even though the Jets offense led by Zach Wilson can be questionable at times.
Philadelphia Eagles: B (Last week C)
The Eagles defense came out and helped get the Eagles the win over the Miami Dolphins. The team had four sacks against Tua Tagovailoa and Darius Slay intercepted him and returned it for 16 yards. Josh Sweat had two tackles and two sacks on the night as the Eagles beat out the Dolphins on Sunday Night Football.
Pittsburgh Steelers: B (Last week Bye Week)
The Steeler’s defense kept things on par with the Rams but TJ Watt changed all of that with a 24-yard-interception to help the Steelers get the week seven victory on the road in Inglewood, CA. Minkah Fitzpatrick had 11 tackles on the day while Larry Ogunjobi had four tackles and a sack. The true leader of the Pittsburgh Steelers is their commanding defense led by TJ Watt who is the heart and soul of Steel City in 2023!
San Francisco 49ers: D (Last week B-)
The 49ers’ defense entered Monday Night Football and couldn’t even land a sack against Kirk Cousins. Charvarius Ward was able to intercept one pass from Cousins in the 49ers’ 17-22 Monday Night loss while Fred Warner had 13 tackles and a pass deflection. This loss shows the 49ers may not be the most elite team many in the league thought they would be. This points to the 49ers’ having more work to do in order to regain that elite status we saw last year.
Seattle Seahawks: C+ (Last week D+)
The Seahawks’ defense came back to form in their week seven victory at home against division rival, the Arizona Cardinals. The team may not have gotten any interceptions, but they did get four sacks against Joshua Dobbs. Darrell Taylor had three tackles, 1.5 sacks, and a pass deflection while Devon Witherspoon had four tackles and a pass deflection, and one of Witherspoon’s tackles went viral on social media where he had a clean hit on Rondale Moore in the second half. The Seahawks are potentially a wildcard team in the playoffs and can make noise with this defensive unit.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: C- (Last week D+)
The Bucs defense played an alright game against their division rivals, the Atlanta Falcons, in a 16-13 week seven loss at home. Shaquil Barrett had seven tackles, a sack, and a pass deflection while Lavonte David had 13 tackles and a pass deflection. Unfortunately, the Bucs did not get an interception against Desmond Ridder, all game, but deflected the ball three times during the game and Jamal Dean and Yaya Diaby recovered two fumbles, as well. The Bucs must steer their losing ship in a new direction, toward the high seas of victory, in the coming weeks if they want to secure the NFC South.
Tennessee Titans: Bye Week (Last week C-)
The Titans defense took a bit of a hit during the bye week when they traded away safety Kevin Byard to the Philadelphia Eagles for Terrell Edmunds and a fifth-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
Washington Commanders: D+ (Last week B)
The Commander’s defense took a big step back in their week seven loss to the Giants. The team couldn’t intercept any of Tyrod Taylor’s passes but did sack him four times. Chase Young had three tackles and two sacks against Taylor while Daron Payne had four tackles and recovered a fumble. The Commanders are a hit-or-miss team, but, when they lose games to a weak offense like the Giants, it’s not an easy task to recover. But, that is exactly what they need to do in the following weeks.
