Fox Sports ranks the defensive lines.

[Bob's your Information Minister]

http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/5819844

1. Chicago

Tackle Ian Scott doesn't get much attention, but you can bet Brian Urlacher sends him a nice fruit basket every Christmas. Scott keeps opposing guards away from Urlacher, and his fellow starting tackle, Tommie Harris, has a very good first step. No pair of ends gets off the ball more quickly than Alex Brown and Adewale Ogunleye. Backup tackle Tank Johnson has great talent but has had multiple scrapes with the law and multiple injuries, and the Bears' front office might have lost patience with him. Third-round pick Dusty Dvoracek could move ahead of Johnson on the depth chart.

2. Seattle

As I've written before, Chuck Darby and Rocky Bernard start, and Craig Terrill and Marcus Tubbs come off the bench to give Seattle a four-tackle rotation that no team in the league could match. The Seahawks don't have quite as strong an end rotation, but Bryce Fisher had nine sacks and Grant Wistrom deserves more credit than he receives for his play against the run. Second-round draft pick Darryl Tapp should help the pass rush. Running backs averaged just 3.47 yards per carry against the Seahawks, third in the league.

3. Pittsburgh

The loss of end Kimo von Oelhoffen could hurt the Steelers line, but even without von Oelhoffen, Pittsburgh should have the best three-man front in the league. Opposing centers almost always need help with tackle Casey Hampton, and end Aaron Smith is the rare lineman who can play the run and the pass with equal efficiency. Chris Hoke doesn't get a lot of playing time behind Hampton, but he provides excellent depth. The biggest question is whether rookie Orien Harris will be ready to contribute immediately. If he is, he'll take von Oelhoffen's place and the Steelers won't miss a beat. Pittsburgh was the most balanced front seven in the league according to the Football Outsiders stats. The Steelers opposing running backs to just 3.41 yards per carry, second in the NFL, and they ranked third in adjusted sack rate, which measures sacks per pass play adjusted for situation and opponent.


4. Carolina

Can Kris Jenkins ever return to health? The last time he was 100 percent, in 2003, he was one of the best players in football. But he's played five games in the last two years. Team Jenkins with Julius Peppers, and the defensive line could dominate. Peppers is probably the best pure athlete in the NFL ... great size, great strength and great stamina. Mike Rucker is an underappreciated end who makes opposing offenses pay when they devote all of their attention to Peppers. Free-agent signing Ma'ake Kemoeatu was a great addition. He's a 350-pounder who will make the lives of the Panthers' linebackers a lot easier this year. Last year Carolina was the only NFL defense to stop the opposing offense more than half the time in power situations (runs on third or fourth down, or goal line, with 1-2 yards to go).

5. New York Giants

Talk about an embarrassment of riches. Michael Strahan, who belongs on the short list of the best defensive linemen ever to play the game, is the trusty veteran who's showing three youngsters how it's done. Those youngsters, Osi Umenyiora, Justin Tuck and Matthias Kiwanuka, can guarantee the Giants will have a healthy pass rush even after Strahan retires. The loss of Kendrick Clancy will hurt because the Giants' starting tackles, William Joseph and Fred Robbins, are mediocre.

6. Philadelphia

Tackle Mike Patterson had a surprisingly effective rookie year, and veteran Darwin Walker is very quick on inside penetration, which makes him a perfect fit for coordinator Jim Johnson's blitz-happy defense. But when Patterson and Walker need a breather, Eagles fans will be in for a treat: Rookie tackle Brodrick Bunkley is a freak of nature who combines incredible upper-body strength with great speed. He'll look good next to "The Freak," end Jevon Kearse. End Darren Howard was a great free-agent signing. End Trent Cole is a converted linebacker and a good pass rusher.

7. New England

Richard Seymour's talents help keep New England a winner. (Harry How / Getty Images)

Richard Seymour is the best all-around lineman in the game. He's the key to the Patriots defense. Ty Warren, Vince Wilfork and Jarvis Green are all versatile players who understand exactly what is needed of them in Bill Belichick's schemes. The biggest question regards Johnathan Sullivan, whom the Patriots recently acquired in a trade with New England. No one disputes that Sullivan has natural ability, but everyone disputes whether he cares enough about football to put in the necessary work to get into shape and learn the defense. That doesn't exactly sound like a Belichick-type player.

8. Miami

Nick Saban has assembled a solid group of veterans. Jason Taylor is still going strong even though he's about to turn 32. Kevin Carter is a year older than Taylor and still a solid player, although he has a tendency to take plays off. Keith Traylor is still very effective against the run, and he's five years older than Taylor. Tackle Vonnie Holliday is a good inside pass-rusher, and he's the youngster of the group at 30. The key to the line's future will be how well the promising but occasionally troubled youngsters, Manuel Wright and Rodrique Wright, develop.

9. Tennessee

Kyle Vanden Bosch is a terror. After entering last season with four sacks in his four-year, injury-plagued career, he turned into a dominant pass rusher. The Titans rewarded him handsomely with a new contract. Albert Haynesworth is very stout in the middle of the line. Five of the Titans' defensive linemen were selected in the 2004 draft: Randy Starks, Travis LaBoy, Bo Schobel, Jared Clauss and Antwan Odom. If those five can take a big step forward in their third season, the Titans will have the best depth in the league.

10. Washington

Defensive tackle Cornelius Griffin shoves his opponents aside. Just watch the way even some of the league's best guards struggle to stick with him. Griffin missed three games last year and was at less than 100 percent in a few others, but when he's healthy, he is one of the few defensive tackles in the league who is effective both against the run and at rushing the passer. Griffin is the only star on the line, but the rest of the unit has been built to fit the strengths of coordinator Gregg Williams' defense. Griffin's fellow tackle, Joe Salave'a, is strictly a run-stopper, but he's a good one. The four-end rotation consists of Andre Carter, Phillip Daniels, Renaldo Wynn and Demetric Evans, all of whom are high-motor players.

11. Baltimore

Kelly Gregg helps plug up the middle for the Ravens. (Doug Pensinger / Getty Images)

Rookie tackle Haloti Ngata will make an instant impact. He should form a nice team alongside Kelly Gregg and help keep linemen away from Ray Lewis, who complains loudly when the opposing offense dares to block him. Both starting ends, Terrell Suggs and Trevor Pryce, are good pass rushers.

12. Kansas City

Jared Allen had a Bruce Smith-like season last year. The combination of an ability to rush the passer and an ability to stop the run is what made Smith so special, and that's who Allen most resembles. Sure, it sounds ridiculous to compare the little-known Allen, a 24-year-old from Idaho State, to one of the all-time greats. But he earned it last season. Rookie Tamba Hali has promise and could press Eric Hicks for the other starting end position. Lionel Dalton has quietly developed into one of the most effective tackles in the league, but Ryan Sims has never lived up to the potential the Chiefs thought he had when they made him the sixth overall pick in the 2002 draft.

13. Tampa Bay

Simeon Rice is 32 but showing no signs of slowing down. He had 14 sacks last year. On the other side, end Greg Spires is a solid run-stopper. Booger McFarland and Chris Hovan are exactly the kind of small and quick tackles that fit perfectly in the Tampa 2 defense. Backup end Dewayne White is a good situational pass rusher. Until last year, Tampa was always a better pass defense than a run defense, but in 2005 they led the league by keeping opposing running backs to just 3.29 yards per carry.

14. San Diego

Jamal Williams is a huge and effective run-stopper in the middle, and the Chargers have big and athletic ends on either side of him in Luis Castillo and Igor Olshansky. If these ratings were based purely on the starting unit, the Chargers would rank higher, but the backups in San Diego are nothing special.

15. Denver

Importing the defensive line from Cleveland worked better than most observers thought, as Courtney Brown, Michael Myers and Gerard Warren all played well in their first year in Denver. Defensive end Elvis Dumervil, a rookie from Louisville, is a sleeper. Dumervil is tiny for a lineman (listed at an even six feet and 255 pounds, but is probably a bit smaller) but was the best pure pass rusher in college football last year.

16. Indianapolis

The Colts have the hardest-to-evaluate defensive line in the league because they're great at rushing the passer but almost nonexistent against the run. Ends Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis are very good at pressuring the quarterback, which is fine because the Colts get so many early leads that opposing teams are usually passing against them. But when they have to stop the run it's easy to pick them apart. The tackle rotation of Montae Reagor, Raheem Brock and Corey Simon is nothing special.

17. Jacksonville

By now every fan knows about the tackle tandem of John Henderson and Marcus Stroud. But the addition of end Reggie Hayward made a major impact on the Jags' pass rush, and Paul Spicer had his best season as a pro last year with 7.5 sacks. Jacksonville ranked first in the league last year in adjusted sack rate. On the basis of their starters, the Jags would be higher, but their bench is questionable, and they were mediocre last year at stopping the run.

18. Minnesota

Pat Williams' presence made a big difference on Minnesota's run defense, which improved from terrible to average, and his absence made a big difference on Buffalo's run defense, which declined from great to terrible. Many analysts called Kevin Williams a reach when the Vikings took him ninth overall in 2003, but he's developed into a very good player. Minnesota's starting ends, Kenechi Udeze and Erasmus James, haven't yet lived up to their potential. Both were first-round draft picks.

19. St. Louis

La'Roi Glover has had a long and impressive career. At age 32, he's not quite the player he used to be, but he is still a dependable tackle who hasn't missed a game in eight years and was a good free-agent addition. Tackle Jimmy Kennedy was the Rams' first-round pick in 2003 and has disappointed. Leonard Little is a good pure pass rusher, but he doesn't do much against the run and his repeated problems with alcohol make it hard to say the Rams can count on him. End Tony Hargrove had a promising second season last year with 6.5 sacks. Rookie tackle Claude Wroten will be the first lineman off the bench.

20. New Orleans

End Will Smith is emerging as a good pass rusher and would have drawn a lot of attention last season if anyone had paid any attention to the Saints. Charles Grant looked like a very good young player with back-to-back double-digit sack seasons in 2003 and 2004, but last year he disappeared and finished the season with only 2.5 sacks. The Saints acquired veteran tackle Hollis Thomas in a trade with the Eagles, but coach Sean Payton has complained that Thomas is overweight and out of shape. One problem for the Saints is stopping the opposition when it really counts; last year they were 31st in preventing success in power situations (runs on third or fourth down, or goal line, with 1-2 yards to go).

21. Arizona

Chike Okeafor was a good pickup last season for the Cardinals. (Alfredo Estrella/AFP / Getty Images)

End Chike Okeafor was a solid addition last year, recording 7.5 sacks. Bertrand Berry missed half the 2005 season, but he's a good pass rusher who has 32 sacks in his last 40 games. Third-year tackle Darnell Dockett should develop nicely now that he has free-agent acquisition Kendrick Clancy lined up next to him. Keep an eye on rookie Gabe Watson, who slipped into the fourth round but can contribute immediately if Dennis Green can motivate him to go all-out on every play.

22. Dallas

The starting trio of ends Marcus Spears and Greg Ellis and nose tackle Jason Ferguson looks like a talented bunch, but last year the sum was less than the parts. Opposing offenses ran up the middle against the Cowboys with ease. The key to the line might be the development of second-year end Chris Canty, an enormously talented player who is still learning the NFL game.

23. Detroit

The retirement of Big Daddy Wilkinson is a much greater loss than most fans realize. Wilkinson, unlike nearly all of his Detroit teammates, has consistently played at a high level in the last few years. Shaun Rogers is a massive and surprisingly quick run-stopping tackle, but he doesn't fit the mold of the defensive linemen Rod Marinelli coached in Tampa Bay — Marinelli likes smaller, quicker players like Shaun Cody, who will take over Wilkinson's starting role. Ends James Hall and Kalimba Edwards are both speed rushers who should fit nicely with the Marinelli defense.

24. San Francisco

It's simply amazing how well the 34-year-old Bryant Young played last year. Twelve years after the 49ers last won the Super Bowl, most of the contributors on that team are distant memories, but Young is still an impressive defensive end. Unfortunately, the 49ers don't have any promising youngsters to learn from Young.

25. Green Bay

Aaron Kampman is a very good end and the Packers were wise to sign him to a long-term contract this year. Kampman is a much better all-around player than the more heralded Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila, a one-dimensional pass rusher. The signing of Ryan Pickett as a free agent from St. Louis won't make much difference. Pickett never did much with the Rams.

26. Atlanta

The Falcons' line can rush the passer but can't stop the run, allowing opposing running backs a league-worst 4.88 yards per carry last year. The addition of John Abraham helps the Falcons' pass rush, but Abraham hasn't shown he can stop the run consistently either. The other end, Patrick Kerney, turned in a disappointing season in 2005 but will benefit from Abraham's presence. But Kerney, like Abraham, struggles when opposing offenses run directly at him. Tackle Rod Coleman is another Falcons lineman who is purely a pass rusher, which means he gets more media attention than he deserves. Tackle Chad Lavalais is the only run-stopper on the Falcons' line. He's a talented player who looks like he could take a big step forward in his third season.

27. Oakland

Derrick Burgess led the league in sacks. He also led the league in wild overpursuit on running plays. The Raiders' other end, Tyler Brayton, is slow off the ball and shouldn't be a starter. Speaking of players who shouldn't be starters, Warren Sapp gets pushed around on running plays, and his official listed weight of 300 pounds is the funniest thing in the NFL aside from Clinton Portis press conferences.

28. Cleveland

Ted Washington makes Sapp look young and thin. Washington must have knees made of titanium; at age 38 with a 365-pound frame, it's incredible that he's still able to walk, let alone play football. He understands the nose tackle role in the 3-4 defense Romeo Crennel is implementing, but he's so slow getting out of his stance that he really doesn't make any impact at all anymore. Alvin McKinley is a versatile player who makes a decent 3-4 end. Orpheus Roye has never been much of a pass rusher and is only adequate against the run. Crennel has a big job on his hands turning this unit around.


29. Buffalo

Aaron Schobel had a very good year in 2005, but on the other side, Chris Kelsay managed only 2.5 sacks. Tackle John McCargo was a first-round reach, but he still might become a starter, with Larry Tripplett and Tim Anderson ahead of him on the depth chart.

30. Cincinnati

Last season Marvin Lewis built his defense with small and fast linemen, which is odd considering that his greatest success came in Baltimore with two enormous tackles, Sam Adams and Tony Siragusa, on his line. Lewis signed Adams as a free agent this off-season, but the 33-year-old Adams isn't anything like the 27-year-old version who won a Super Bowl ring with Lewis in Baltimore. End Duane Clemons played well last season, but he's currently a free agent and the Bengals haven't expressed any interest in bringing him back. Starting end Robert Geathers isn't much of a pass rusher and gets lost on running plays. The other end, Justin Smith, also gets lost on running plays, but he gets good pressure on the quarterback.

31. Houston

The Texans could be much higher if Mario Williams makes an instant impact. Last year's first-round pick, tackle Travis Johnson, didn't do much of anything as a rookie. Veterans Anthony Weaver, Robaire Smith and Seth Payne don't have much left in the tank.

32. New York Jets

The addition of Kimo von Oelhoffen will help the transition to a 3-4 front, but the Jets don't have any linemen who will make the opposing offense nervous in the film room. Nose tackle Dewayne Robertson was a bust as the fourth overall pick in 2003. End Shaun Ellis had a combined 23.5 sacks in 2003 and 2004, then fell to a career-low 2.5 in 2005. The Jets allowed opposing offense to convert in 83 percent of power situations last year, the worst figure in the league.

[Requiem]

Jacksonville that low? Are you ****ing kidding me. You give us Jacksonville's defensive line and we'll win the Super Bowl. That's just garbage. Denver should be like 25, not 15.

[Bronco9798]

I like Jared Allen. I like watching him play. He's a beast.


But, the Chiefs still suck.

[Kaylore]

We're ranked about right. The Chiefs might be there if their rookie works out, but they're hardly better than the Chargers. Why the Boltz are so low is beyond me. The Raiders line is better than that.

[Kaylore]

Originally Posted by Requiem

Jacksonville that low? Are you ****ing kidding me. You give us Jacksonville's defensive line and we'll win the Super Bowl. That's just garbage. Denver should be like 25, not 15.

Wow I missed that. You're absolutely right. The Jags are the most disrespected and ignored team in football, I'd say. They have the best interior line in the game right now.

[Saddletramp]

15. Denver

Importing the defensive line from Cleveland worked better than most observers thought, as Courtney Brown, Michael Myers and Gerard Warren all played well in their first year in Denver. Defensive end Elvis Dumervil, a rookie from Louisville, is a sleeper. Dumervil is tiny for a lineman (listed at an even six feet and 255 pounds, but is probably a bit smaller) but was the best pure pass rusher in college football last year.

WELL we ranked higher than I thought we might.

[Requiem]

Jacksonville's back-up defensive tackle and defensve ends posted more sacks than any of our starting defensive lineman. In fact, I think their 11.5 combined is more than all four of our starters added up. Just ridiculous.

[MileHighMagic]

Originally Posted by Requiem

Jacksonville that low? Are you ****ing kidding me. You give us Jacksonville's defensive line and we'll win the Super Bowl. That's just garbage.

That is exactly what I was thinking. I just kept scrolling down farther and farther lookin for Jax and laughing. They are easily top 5.

[cutthemdown]

I think this is way to high for Denver.

[Garcia Bronco]

Jamal Williams makes SD the best line in the West

[12th man]

We are about right at 15. Hopefully we can be better than last year. I think we can. We were number two against the run last year, and got plenty of pressure, it's just we need to get sacks.

[Sassy]

I've noticed that you only post ranking articles when the Cheffies are rated higher than the Broncos...why is that?

[elsid13]

Originally Posted by Sassy

I've noticed that you only post ranking articles when the Cheffies are rated higher than the Broncos...why is that?

Something about the need for attention and that fact his daddy doesn't love him.

[Bob's your Information Minister]

Originally Posted by Sassy

I've noticed that you only post ranking articles when the Cheffies are rated higher than the Broncos...why is that?

I like to hear what females think about football.

[Gcver2ver3]

I'm surprised to see the us ranked better than the Colts....

The Colts pass rush is something fierce...I guess what the article is saying is that it's more important to stop the run than to stop the pass....

[12th man]

Originally Posted by gcver2ver3

I'm surprised to see the us ranked better than the Colts....

The Colts pass rush is something fierce...I guess what the article is saying is that it's more important to stop the run than to stop the pass....

IN that case, the broncos should be more near the top if it was more important on stopping the run. This whole article is off. The jags are way to far down, and IMO, it lost all credibilty when it compared Jarad Allan to Bruce Smith.

[Tombstone RJ]

Broncos are ranked about right, primarily because of depth and rotation. I agree Jacksonville is way too low. As for the best dline in the AFCW, its Sandy Eggo, not the chefs who have the top dline.

[azbroncfan]

Originally Posted by Bob's your Information Minister

http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/5819844

12. Kansas City

Jared Allen had a Bruce Smith-like season last year. The combination of an ability to rush the passer and an ability to stop the run is what made Smith so special, and that's who Allen most resembles.

That is one of the funniest things I've heard. Sure Allen is an good player but Bruce smith dominant Smith did his damage in a 3-4 which was amazing about his sack numbers.

[The MVPlaya]

Nah we are ranked too high, that's real talk.

We can't get a pass rush for ****..I honestly thought we would be near last...also due to Broncos being one of the most hated team in the NFL.

[Steve Sewell]

Fluff article alert!!! No objective facts or stats to back up the rankings, simply going off of what he remembered last season from watching a few highlights.

This kind of reminds me when I do an ESPN poll when they ask me to rank team for somthing. You have to click and drag a team's logo onto where you think they should be ranked (or vice versa). I almost always end up missing a team that I should have ranked much higher.

[Kaylore]

Originally Posted by Sassy

I've noticed that you only post ranking articles when the Cheffies are rated higher than the Broncos...why is that?

You'll also notice that he hasn't been posting many of these lately.

[WABronco]

Originally Posted by Steve Sewell

Fluff article alert!!! No objective facts or stats to back up the rankings, simply going off of what he remembered last season from watching a few highlights.

This kind of reminds me when I do an ESPN poll when they ask me to rank team for somthing. You have to click and drag a team's logo onto where you think they should be ranked (or vice versa). I almost always end up missing a team that I should have ranked much higher.

FoxSports.com articles are written by Football Outsiders. They use statistics in everything they write, almost to a fault. You can either subscribe to their DVOA statistics or not, but they're not your average joe writers...Len Pastabelli in other words.

[ward63]

Originally Posted by gcver2ver3

I'm surprised to see the us ranked better than the Colts....

The Colts pass rush is something fierce...I guess what the article is saying is that it's more important to stop the run than to stop the pass....

They don't play on turf every weekend..

[Car Ram Rod]

San Diego and Jax Dline are WAAAAAAAY much better than the Chiefs. Even though the Chiefs had a good run defense, they couldnt get to the QB. #12 is way too high of a ranking for the Chiefs Dline.

[Killericon]

Denver in the top half?

It's official, FOX Sports is a bunch of idiots.