Rams, Bucs & Ravens: Top NFL 2021 Defenses

Heading into the upcoming NFL 2021 season, a number of offenses could be about to find it rather difficult to put points up on the board when they come up against certain teams.

Whilst there are some teams who have offenses that are incredibly and will find it extremely hard not to put up points on a consistent basis, such as the likes of Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers who are the favorites in the NFL betting to be the next Super Bowl winner, there will be teams who will find it difficult to split certain defenses wide open.

Here, we take a look at some of the teams that will likely have the best defensive groups throughout the 2021 NFL season and highlight what makes them so good.

Los Angeles Rams

When looking to highlight the best NFL defensive core that a franchise has, it would be wrong to start with any team other than the Los Angeles Rams.

The Californian organization have stars all over the field when it comes down to the defensive side of the ball, with men such as Aaron Donald, Jalen Ramsey and Darious Williams all available to Head Coach, Sean McVay.

Starting with Donald, anyone that follows American Football will know how dominant the defensive tackle has been ever since he entered the league as a rookie in 2014. Drafted by the Rams as the 14th pick in the 2014 Draft, Donald has gone on to achieve incredible things. He has been a Pro Bowler in each of his seven seasons, he was Defensive Rookie of the Year, as well as being the Defensive Player of the Year in three of the last four seasons.

Add Jalen Ramsey as perhaps the best cornerback in the league currently, as well as fellow corner, Darious Williams, the LA Rams were the best ranked defense last season in points allowed and yards allowed and it would not be a surprise if they lead the charts at the end of the 2021 season, as well.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers were mentioned earlier as one of the teams that will likely be able to put up a number of points throughout the season offensively without too much trouble, but they are also a side that will likely be able to keep other teams restricted on the other side of the ball, too.

They may have finished sixth in the league for fewest yards conceded and eighth for fewest points conceded, but the Bucs still managed to show that they can get the job done as Todd Bowles and his defense kept the Chiefs to just nine points in the most recent Super Bowl.

With a front line that consists of Vita Vea, Ndamukong Suh and William Gholston blocking runners, whilst Jason Pierre-Paul and Joe Tryon continue to put pressure on the quarterback, there is plenty to like about them. Add Lavonte David into the mix with Devin White in the secondary and opposition franchises are not going to enjoy their matches against the current champions.

Baltimore Ravens

The Baltimore Ravens have been in and around the hunt in recent years and their defense is a strong reason as to why the team continues to be within a chance of reaching a Super Bowl for the first time since 2013.

Don Martindale is the defensive coordinator and in the three seasons he has held that post, the Ravens have managed to field a top-three scoring defense in each season. That should be no surprise given the personnel that the team has available to them.

Calais Campbell, Brandon Williams and Derek Wolfe are as solid as a core could hope, whilst the secondary boasts Marlon Humphrey and Marcus Peters who are incredibly effective in their cornerback duties. Matt Judon and Yannick Ngakoue could be big losses for John Harbaugh’s side but with plenty of depth, the Ravens defense could have another solid year blocking out teams and keeping them at bay throughout the 2021 NFL season.

Indeed, last season they were only second to the LA Rams for fewest points conceded, whilst they were seventh for fewest yards allowed.