NFL Defense Rankings 2026
Compare NFL defenses by points and yards allowed, sacks and takeaways. Filter by week, compare two teams and download or print the rankings.
How NFL defenses stack up
Season · Per game · 32 teams
Updated Nov 14, 2026 · 3:27 PM ET · 137 completed league games in the selected season. Results through 2026-11-12. Based on ESPN box scores.
Select two teams to compare. Click any stat to sort the table.
| Rank | Team | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 | 14.5 | 280.0 | 161.1 | 118.9 | 1.6 | 3.6 | 31.2% | |
| 2 | 8 | 15.1 | 318.3 | 229.0 | 89.3 | 1.9 | 2.0 | 34.0% | |
| 3 | 8 | 17.9 | 307.9 | 210.4 | 97.5 | 1.4 | 1.8 | 36.7% | |
| 4 | 8 | 18.0 | 305.6 | 221.8 | 83.9 | 1.6 | 3.3 | 34.3% | |
| 4 | 9 | 18.0 | 244.2 | 155.1 | 89.1 | 1.4 | 2.3 | 30.6% | |
| 6 | 8 | 19.5 | 291.9 | 211.0 | 80.9 | 1.5 | 1.9 | 40.4% | |
| 7 | 9 | 19.8 | 292.9 | 213.8 | 79.1 | 2.3 | 1.9 | 34.5% | |
| 8 | 9 | 20.1 | 302.4 | 198.7 | 103.8 | 1.1 | 1.8 | 31.6% | |
| 9 | 9 | 20.4 | 310.9 | 219.8 | 91.1 | 1.4 | 2.9 | 22.8% | |
| 10 | 9 | 20.7 | 355.0 | 230.7 | 124.3 | 1.3 | 2.9 | 41.2% | |
| 11 | 9 | 21.2 | 322.9 | 213.9 | 109.0 | 2.1 | 2.9 | 41.7% | |
| 12 | 9 | 21.8 | 331.6 | 201.0 | 130.6 | 1.3 | 2.9 | 39.4% | |
| 12 | 9 | 21.8 | 305.7 | 184.1 | 121.6 | 1.3 | 1.9 | 38.8% | |
| 14 | 8 | 21.9 | 354.9 | 228.3 | 126.6 | 1.5 | 2.9 | 47.5% | |
| 15 | 9 | 23.0 | 328.6 | 231.9 | 96.7 | 0.9 | 2.8 | 38.0% | |
| 16 | 8 | 23.4 | 330.4 | 238.8 | 91.6 | 1.5 | 2.1 | 38.6% | |
| 17 | 8 | 23.6 | 355.0 | 260.9 | 94.1 | 1.0 | 3.4 | 44.4% | |
| 18 | 8 | 24.0 | 338.6 | 235.6 | 103.0 | 1.0 | 3.6 | 38.7% | |
| 19 | 9 | 24.6 | 353.4 | 227.3 | 126.1 | 0.6 | 1.8 | 40.6% | |
| 20 | 9 | 24.8 | 346.8 | 228.0 | 118.8 | 1.1 | 2.2 | 42.6% | |
| 20 | 9 | 24.8 | 325.8 | 197.8 | 128.0 | 1.1 | 2.4 | 42.3% | |
| 20 | 9 | 24.8 | 348.6 | 244.8 | 103.8 | 1.6 | 2.0 | 39.3% | |
| 23 | 8 | 24.9 | 382.4 | 258.3 | 124.1 | 1.4 | 2.5 | 43.6% | |
| 24 | 8 | 25.0 | 326.1 | 214.4 | 111.8 | 0.9 | 1.5 | 47.4% | |
| 25 | 9 | 26.2 | 329.7 | 229.8 | 99.9 | 1.0 | 1.9 | 39.0% | |
| 25 | 9 | 26.2 | 372.7 | 225.2 | 147.4 | 0.9 | 1.9 | 48.3% | |
| 27 | 8 | 27.0 | 370.5 | 236.6 | 133.9 | 1.1 | 2.9 | 47.2% | |
| 28 | 8 | 27.4 | 344.9 | 211.5 | 133.4 | 1.4 | 1.5 | 47.7% | |
| 28 | 8 | 27.4 | 343.3 | 221.3 | 122.0 | 1.5 | 1.6 | 34.3% | |
| 30 | 9 | 27.7 | 361.8 | 224.8 | 137.0 | 0.7 | 2.1 | 32.4% | |
| 31 | 9 | 28.3 | 337.3 | 215.4 | 121.9 | 0.9 | 2.1 | 40.7% | |
| 32 | 9 | 29.8 | 385.4 | 234.2 | 151.2 | 1.6 | 2.1 | 44.0% |
How to read NFL defense rankings
Start with points allowed per game to see which teams have kept opponents off the scoreboard. Then check yards allowed, sacks and takeaways to see how they do it. The default table puts the lowest points allowed first. Click any column heading to rank teams by that stat; click again to reverse the order.
Per game or season totals?
Per-game stats divide a team's totals by its games played (GP). They help when bye weeks leave teams with different game counts: 120 points in four games is 30.0 per game, ahead of 140 points in five games at 28.0. Choose totals for the full count, or select a week for one week's results.
Which defensive stats should be lowest?
Fewer points, passing yards and rushing yards allowed are better in those categories. A lower opponent third-down percentage means fewer successful conversions. For sacks and takeaways, look for higher numbers.
NFL team stat abbreviations and definitions
- Points / points allowed
- All scoreboard points scored by the team or its opponent. Defensive and special-teams scores count too, so points allowed is not a defense-only measure.
- Total yards and pass yards
- Total yards combine net passing and rushing yards. Team passing yards subtract yards lost on sacks; individual passing yards do not. Return yards are not part of total offense here.
- Turnovers / takeaways
- Turnovers are interceptions thrown plus fumbles lost. Takeaways count those same losses by the opponent. A fumble that the offense recovers is not a turnover.
- Sacks / sacks allowed
- The defense's sacks come from its opponents' times sacked. Sacks allowed show how often a team's own quarterback was sacked.
- 3rd down %
- Successful third-down conversions divided by attempts, multiplied by 100. Season percentages use combined attempts and conversions, rather than averaging each game's percentage.
Compare two teams before kickoff
Check the boxes beside two team names to open their side-by-side comparison beneath the table. Check the same week and totals/per-game setting for both teams. Switch between offense and defense to compare a team's scoring with its opponent's points allowed, or its rushing production with the opponent's run defense.
Keep games played and the opponents faced in mind, especially early in the season. These rankings describe completed games; they do not adjust for schedule difficulty or predict the next score. Use NFL standings for records and this week's schedule for the next matchup.
Questions about these NFL defense rankings
Do these rankings include live games or the playoffs?
No. The table uses completed 2026 regular-season games. Preseason, ongoing games and playoffs are excluded. A week without completed games has no rows yet.
Can I download or print the rankings?
Download CSV exports the table's current rows and order. Filter and sort first to get the view you want, or choose Print for a paper copy.
Where do the stats come from, and when do they update?
We combine team figures from ESPN game box scores. During the configured season, updates are checked about every six hours and published after completeness checks. The timestamp above the table shows the latest saved update; source corrections can change earlier totals.