The 10 best defensive teams in the NFL
No. 9: New England Patriots
The Patriots are a hard unit to predict. If you simply look at their numbers from last season there is a mix of good and bad. They allowed the tenth fewest points, had the fifth most sacks, and forced an impressive 29 turnovers. However, they ranked an unimpressive 26th in yards allowed and were near the bottom of the league in third down conversion percentage allowed.
So how will the Patriots perform in 2014?
That will ultimately come down to the health and production of three key veteran players. The Pats have two key players returning from injury in Jerod Mayo and Vince Wilfork. They also added All-Pro cornerback Darrelle Revis. If those three players all stay healthy and perform anywhere near the levels they have in the past the Pats should be a force on defense. Chandler Jones is an emerging star as a pass rusher and they drafted the incredibly talented Dominique Easley in the first round (although he’s also coming off an injury). So the talent on this defense is there, it’s just a matter of if they will be healthy and still playing at an elite level.