Week 4 in the NFL has come and gone, and in a league that’s catered to the offenses here’s the top 5 defenses in the league.
1. New York Jets
Yes, the Jets are 1-3, and the loss of Aaron Rodgers has been nothing short of devastating to a team that had Super Bowl aspirations coming into the 2023.
The injury to Rodgers has completely ruined an offense with playmakers everywhere, but the defense is still playing at a Super Sunday level.
Following Sunday night’s effort in which the referees played a huge role in a loss to the defending champions Kansas City Chiefs, the Jets defense earns the top spot on our list.
After falling behind 17-0 the Jets defense keyed a comeback to tie it at 20-20. In doing so they forced reigning NFL and Super Bowl MVP Patrick Mahomes into two interceptions. This defense is fast, disciplined and they play with a nasty streak, but the offense is awful and will not let them he great.
Linebacker Quincy Williams told reporters this following the loss:
“For our standard, we started off kind of slow. We came to the sideline, got a lot of looks real fast, made some corrections, and fell back on our fundamentals. When we came out we were all communicating on the same page and we were unstoppable.”
2. Buffalo Bills
Since their season-opening loss to the Jets (22-16) in overtime this Bills team has been hitting on all cylinders, led by a stingy defense that’s allowed just 33 points since that loss.
Led by new defensive play-caller Sean McDermott, who’s also the head coach, the Bills are much more aggressive, which is a welcome change from former defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier’s style.
Sunday, they harassed Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa all game and held the Fins to 20 points just one week after their 70-point explosion.
With edge rusher Von Miller expected to begin practicing this week, the Bills are gelling early. The team did lose starting cornerback Tre’Davious White for the season to a torn Achilles.
3. San Francisco 49ers
Each week this defense invents new ways to dominate their opponent. Sunday it was reigning DPOY Nick Bosa’s supporting cast who benefited from him constantly drawing double teams.
Safety Talanoa Hufanga was all over the field racking up tackles for loss. Linebackers Fred Warner and Dre Greenlaw did what they always do by controlling the middle of the field and making the Cardinals play east and west. A huge test versus the Cowboys awaits this defense on Sunday night.
4. Dallas Cowboys
One week after getting gashed by the Arizona Cardinals, the Cowboys bounced back against Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots.
In the team’s 38-3 win they returned a fumble and interception for touchdowns. When they weren’t forcing turnovers, they were battering New England quarterbacks Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe all game. The strength of the Cowboys team is their defense led by Micah Parsons, and that defense will be tested next week at the Niners.
5. Baltimore Ravens
One week after losing at home in overtime to the Indianapolis Colts, the Ravens dominated the Deshaun Watson-less (injured shoulder) Cleveland Browns squad in Cleveland.
Inside linebackers Roquan Smith and Patrick Queen dominated action and showed why they’re an elite NFL duo.
