The fantasy football season is almost here, but there’s still a lot to be determined when it comes to the best defenses and special teams in the NFL.
Ranking the top 25 D/ST units of the 2018 fantasy football season
The SB Nation crew ranks the top 25 defenses/special teams units heading into the 2018 NFL season. Check out our full 2018 Fantasy Football Draft guide!
There’s no question who earns the top spot, however, as the Jacksonville Jaguars return most of what was far and away the best defense in 2017. They became the league’s best while breaking in new players like Calais Campbell, A.J. Bouye, and Barry Church. Along with young emerging stars like Telvin Smith, Myles Jacks, Jalen Ramsey, and Yannick Ngakoue, there’s reason to believe this unit will be even better in 2018 — a scary thought for all 31 other NFL teams.
But if you can’t land the Jaguars in your league’s fantasy draft, the Philadelphia Eagles and Minnesota Vikings both have promising units, but they also faced tough schedules loaded with good offenses.
Sometimes, the best defense is a middle-of-the-road unit with a favorable schedule. One team to keep an eye on is the Baltimore Ravens, who have a very favorable early-season schedule that includes the Buffalo Bills, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns and Tennessee Titans, all of whom finished in the bottom 10 in total offense last year.
Defense/special teams rankings, preseason
(JM: Jason Marcum; DG: Derek Gordon; SK: Scott Kaliska; AW: Alex Welch)
D/ST rankings
Rk | Consensus | JM | DG | SK | AW |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jacksonville Jaguars | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2 | Minnesota Vikings | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 3 | Philadelphia Eagles | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| 4 | Los Angeles Rams | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| 5 | Houston Texans | 6 | 5 | 6 | 5 |
| 6 | Denver Broncos | 5 | 6 | 7 | 6 |
| 7 | New Orleans Saints | 7 | 9 | 9 | 7 |
| 8 | Baltimore Ravens | 9 | 8 | 8 | 9 |
| 9 | Los Angeles Chargers | 10 | 10 | 5 | 10 |
| 10 | Seattle Seahawks | 8 | 7 | 15 | 8 |
| 11 | Pittsburgh Steelers | 11 | 12 | 11 | 11 |
| 12 | New England Patriots | 13 | 11 | 10 | 13 |
| 13 | Carolina Panthers | 12 | 13 | 12 | 12 |
| 14 | Atlanta Falcons | 14 | 18 | 14 | 14 |
| 15 | Green Bay Packers | 15 | 15 | 17 | 15 |
| 16 | Kansas City Chiefs | 17 | 19 | 16 | 17 |
| 17 | Chicago Bears | 20 | 16 | 13 | 20 |
| 18 | New York Giants | 16 | 20 | 21 | 16 |
| 19 | Arizona Cardinals | 22 | 14 | 18 | 22 |
| 20 | Cincinnati Bengals | 18 | 21 | 20 | 18 |
| 21 | San Francisco 49ers | 19 | 17 | -- | 19 |
| 22 | Tennessee Titans | 21 | 22 | 19 | 21 |
| 23 | Buffalo Bills | 23 | 24 | 23 | 23 |
| 24 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 24 | 23 | -- | 24 |
| 25 | Detroit Lions | 25 | -- | 22 | 25 |
| -- | Dallas Cowboys | -- | -- | 24 | -- |
| -- | Washington | -- | 25 | 25 | -- |
