Ranking the Divisions: Front 7

I took a couple week haitius from my ranking the divisions series, but I thought I’d get back to it today by ranking the division by the front 7. Originally I was going to rank the defensive lines, but I think with the huge difference between a 43 and 34 defensive line I should just do the front seven overall.

8. N.F.C. West

The front seven is all about stopping the run and rushing the passer and the N.F.C. West is not very good at that. Who’s the most feared pass rusher in the N.F.C. West? No one. The 49ers, Rams, Cardinals, and Seahawks all felt their pass rush was lacking last season. The lead sack person for the Cardinals was Calais Campbell with six sacks and I”m not sure anyone believes Chris Clemons is for real. The Rams have a decent pass rush that should get better with Robert Quinn and the 49ers were led by Justin Smith with 8.5 sacks (which is very good). The front seven of the 49ers is not bad, they just need more of a pass rush. With the drafting of Aldon Smith they hope they have found that for the future.

7. N.F.C. South

The N.F.C. South had a hard time getting to the quarterback last year. In terms of number of sacks the teams ranked 18th (Saints), 20th, 20th (Falcons and Panthers) and 30th (Buccaneers) or the run with the Panthers the only team ranked in the top half of the league (7th). Saints 17th, Falcons 25th and Buccaneers 28th were not representative. The Buccaneers have been focusing hardcore on improving their front seven through the draft the past two seasons, while the rest of the division still needs to improve.

6. A.F.C. East

While the Patriots and Jets are good teams no one would argue that they don’t need to improve on their front seven. They could be a little better this year with the Jets spending draft picks on their defensive line. But the pass rush for the Jets and the Patriots was lacking a season ago. The Buffalo Bills had, perhaps, the worst front seven in all of football. They were unable to generate a pass rush or stop the run. I think independent of the coaches for the Patriots and Jets this ranking could even be lower. The Dolphins front seven is actually representable.

5. A.F.C. South

Robert Mathis and Dwight Freeney aside what does this division really offer? We’ll have to take a wait and see approach to how well the Texans can transition to a 34 defense. The Titans front seven has gone down hill the past few seasons, especially if you’re skeptical about a repeat performance from Jason Babin. Akeem Ayers will be a nice addition to that group though. The Jaguars have the makings of a pretty good front seven, but need more of a pass rush.

4. N.F.C. East

I may be bias towards the N.F.C. East, but I try to be fair. While I believe it’s arguably the most taletned division overall, I can’t in good conscience rank them super high in this category. The pass rush of the N.F.C. East is probably 1st, but the linebacker corps for the Cowboys, Giants, and Eagles leave a lot to be desired (if you consider DeMarcus Ware a pass rusher/DE). And the Redskins defensive line isn’t great. If the Eagles and Giants had better linebacker corps they’d be a lot higher.

3. A.F.C. West

Wowzee finally some love for the A.F.C. West in these rankings. The Broncos are also holding down this division, but you can’t be too upset with what the rest of the division is brining. The Chiefs have a wealth of talent along their front seven that’s young and improving. The Chargers and Raiders finished tied for second with 47 sacks last season. The Broncos front seven is virtually non existent. These teams also do a representable job of stopping the run, though there is room for much improvement there.

2. A.F.C. North

This ranking is held down by the Cleveland Browns. The Bengals have a very solid front seven. They have good young pass rushers and have more than enough play making ability at the linebacker spot though they hope for a much bigger season from Rey Maluaga. The Browns defensive play is pretty bad and they don’t have the right players yet for a 43 defense in my humble opinion. The Steelers and Ravens have two of the best front sevens in all of football, but the Browns need to step it up for this group to be number one. The Browns did a nice job stopping the run last year though.

1. N.F.C. North

When I started this I wasn’t planning on making this division the best front seven in all of football, but when you think about it really is. The Bears play a different style of football, but their front seven is very good at what it does. They can stop the run (3.7 yards per carry last year, fifth best in the league) and have a good pass rush considering they rarely bring more than four or five guys. The Packers front seven is among the best in the league, their linebacker corps is as good as any 34 linebacker teams linebacker corps in the league. The Detroit Lions have a ton of talent along their defensive line, and will probably add some more talent to their linebacker corps in free agency. The Vikings though they may not win a ton of games this year, it’s not because of their front seven. Pat Williams is old, but Jared Allen, Ray Edwards (assuming he’s back), Kevin Williams, and Chad Greenway have a lot of talent in their front seven. This division is on the rise and one huge reason for that is their front seven (and talented young quarterbacks).

Leave your thoughts? What do you think? Which ranking am I way off on?

Home/NFL Draft