Five Best Defenses Heading Into 2018.

 
  I will always take an explosive offense over a very good defense. I enjoy an offense beating out a defense on plays to get the ball into the end-zone. However, I have to admit that sometimes watching a defense making a crucial stop and forcing a turnover out of nowhere gets me off my chair. To win in the NFL consistently you need a good offense and a good defense. Once in a while, an extraordinary defense is able to carry a below average-offense to a Super Bowl title. Ravens in 2000, Buccaneers in 2002, and Broncos in 2015 are three defenses that carried very mediocre offenses to Super Bowls. I also wanted to say Seattle Seahawks' defense in 2013 carried a mediocre offense to Super Bowl, but that offense did have a quarterback with mobility, an all-pro running back, and two very good receivers. For the upcoming season, there are five defenses that can be very special. Let's take a look at the teams with the best defenses to offer in 2018.

Philadephia Eagles.

  When plays needed to be made, Eagles' defense made all the plays. Last year, the Philadephia Eagles won the Super Bowl despite losing the front-runner for MVP, quarterback Carson Wentz late in the season. For the year 2017, they finished fourth in scoring defense, fourth in yards allowed, and fourth in forcing turnovers. The Eagles' defense was able to make big plays in crucial situations thanks to in large part of Fletcher Cox who is a top three defensive lineman, Brandon Graham who came up with huge forced fumbles throughout the season, and Malcolm Jenkins who besides his leadership was able to make big-time tackles to get a stop and/or force incompletions. Eagles' defense has playmaker all over the field and now they are getting another stud on defense with Michael Bennett. Jim Schwartz, the defensive coordinator of the Eagles is going to terrorize all the opposing quarterbacks with his schemes and playmakers on defense.

Jacksonville Jaguars.

The Jaguars last year went all the way to the AFC Title game with a good running game and with a defense loaded with talented players. The general manager of the Jaguars (David Caldwell) acquired players on defense in all three ways a GM could acquire players for the roster. The Jaguars built their defense through the draft, free agency, and by trading for players on the block. This defense features players like Jalen Ramsey, A.J Bouye, Telvin Smith, Myles Jack, Malik Jackson, Dante Fowler Jr, Yannick Ngakoue, Calais Campbell, and more. With all this talent, the Jaguars' defense finished the 2017 season second in scoring, second in yards allowed, second in forcing turnovers, and they also finished second with red-zone stops. Jaguars' players and coaches would certainly like to move up one more spot in these key statistics. If they get to do that and their offense plays reasonable, then they just might be able to beat the Patriots in the playoffs next year.

Minnesota Vikings.

  They offered the best defense for the majority of the season last year. Vikings' defense doesn't have superstar players, but they certainly do have studs who could make plays all over the field. Their defense features players like Harrison Smith, Andrew Sendejo, Xavier Rhodes, Everson Griffen, Anthony Barr, Eric Kendricks, the newly acquired Sheldon Richardson, and others. Last year, they finished number one in scoring defense, yards allowed, and in third-down conversions. Surprisingly, they finished somewhere in the bottom half in forcing turnovers, as they forced only nineteen turnovers all of last year. Like the Jacksonville Jaguars, they got eliminated in the Conference Championship Round during the 2017 playoffs. However, they just didn't lose in the Conference Round. The Vikings' defense was completely destroyed by the Eagles' offense led by Nick Foles. I expect Mike Zimmer to have his guys learn from that game and play better than they did all of last year. Statistically, they were the best defense in the regular season, but in the playoffs they were awful. They have the players and chemistry to do amazing in 2018.

LA Rams. 

  The 2017 season was a very disappointing season for the LA Rams' defense. The Rams, overall as a team did well in 2017 as they made an appearance in the playoffs for the first time since 2004. In 2017, the Rams finished the year fifth in forcing turnovers, twelfth in scoring defense, and nineteenth in yards allowed. All year long, the Rams' defense struggled with forcing stops when they really needed to. For this upcoming season, the Rams have reshaped their defense by adding some star players. In the offseason, the Rams were able to make trades for two pro-bowl corners Aqib Talib and Marcus Peters, and they were able to sign Ndamukong Suh as a free agent. Suh along with Aaron Donald (arguably the best defensive player in the game) and Michael Brockers could create havoc for all the offensive linemen who will have to deal with them in 2018. Also, the defensive coordinator of the Rams, Wade Phillips knows how to best use talented players on defense to dominate games. The Rams' defense has a chance to be as good as the Jaguars' defense was last year or even better.

LA Chargers.

I was heading in the direction of picking the Denver Broncos' defense as a top-five defense for the 2018 season. Then I realized they don't have as much talent on defense as the LA Chargers' do. In 2017, the Chargers finished the year third in scoring defense, fifteen in yards allowed, and sixth in forcing turnovers. In the past, we have never seen the Chargers as a very good defensive team or a team with star defensive players. However, the Chargers have recently added playmakers on all three phases of the defense, via draft and free agency. Joey Bosa, Melvin Ingram, Jason Verrett, Casey Hayward, Derwin James, and Denzel Perryman could all play their positions at a very high level. This defense knows how to finish tackles, force turnovers, and how to slow best offenses in the NFL. These group of guys may not always knock an offense out of the game, but they could certainly confuse an offense with their defensive schemes. This Chargers' defense might finally help Philip Rivers succeed in the playoffs.

Defense that has the best chance to be an all-time great?

  Of these five defenses, I expect the Jaguars to offer the best and the most dangerous defense next season. They have talent, leadership, coaching, and playoff experience from last year. This Jaguars' defense knows what it needs to do in order to dominate offenses in the regular season and in the post-season. Here is my ranking of these defenses for the 2018 season:

1) Jacksonville Jaguars,
2) LA Rams,
3) Philadephia Eagles,
4) LA Chargers,
5) Minnesota Vikings.