Defense may not get the same attention as quarterbacks throwing touchdowns or receivers making spectacular catches, but some players were so dominant that they could completely change a football game themselves.
Putting together a list of the five greatest defensive players ever is almost impossible. Legends like Reggie White, Ray Lewis, Ronnie Lott and Bruce Smith could easily make the argument that they belong here. But when I look at dominance, peak, longevity, accolades and how much opposing offenses had to account for a player, these are my five greatest defensive players in NFL history.
5. J.J. Watt
At number five, I have J.J. Watt, and his peak is the biggest reason why.
Prime Watt wasn’t simply the best defensive lineman in football. There were seasons where he had a legitimate argument as one of the most valuable players in the entire league. Watt won three Defensive Player of the Year awards, tying the NFL record, and earned five first-team All-Pro selections during his career.
His 2012 and 2014 seasons were ridiculous. Watt recorded 20.5 sacks in both seasons, despite primarily lining up along the defensive line rather than simply being an edge rusher whose only responsibility was getting to the quarterback.
The 2014 season might be his masterpiece. Watt finished with 20.5 sacks, forced four fumbles, intercepted a pass and somehow scored five touchdowns, including three offensive touchdowns. He finished second in MVP voting as a defensive player.
Injuries prevented Watt from maintaining that level throughout the second half of his career, and that’s what keeps him from climbing higher on my list. But when he was healthy and at his absolute peak, there weren’t many defensive players in NFL history I’d rather have.
4. Ed Reed
At number four is the greatest safety I’ve ever seen: Ed Reed.
Reed wasn’t simply a safety waiting for quarterbacks to make mistakes. He manipulated quarterbacks into making them.
His ability to read an offense, anticipate where the quarterback wanted to throw and cover an enormous amount of the field made him one of the most dangerous defensive backs ever. Quarterbacks had to know where number 20 was before snapping the football because one bad decision could immediately become a Ravens possession going the other direction.
Reed finished his career with 64 interceptions, won Defensive Player of the Year in 2004, earned five first-team All-Pro selections and was selected to nine Pro Bowls. He also helped Baltimore win Super Bowl XLVII.
And when Reed got the football, the play wasn’t necessarily over. He remains one of the greatest interception returners in NFL history, turning defense into offense better than almost any safety we’ve ever seen.
There have been plenty of legendary safeties, but if I need one player patrolling the back end of my defense, I’m taking Ed Reed.
3. Deion Sanders
At number three, Prime Time.
Deion Sanders might be the greatest cover cornerback in NFL history.
What made Deion special wasn’t necessarily putting up enormous tackle or interception numbers every season. His greatest weapon was something statistics struggle to measure: quarterbacks simply didn’t want to throw at him.
At his peak, Sanders could essentially eliminate one side of the football field. Put him on an opposing team’s best receiver and suddenly the quarterback had to start looking elsewhere.
Deion finished his career with 53 interceptions, was named Defensive Player of the Year in 1994, earned six first-team All-Pro selections and was selected to eight Pro Bowls. He also won back-to-back Super Bowls with two different franchises, first with San Francisco and then with Dallas.
And like Reed, getting an interception against Deion could quickly become six points. He returned nine interceptions for touchdowns during his career.
Cornerback might be the hardest defensive position to dominate consistently because one mistake can immediately become a touchdown. Deion didn’t just survive on an island. Teams were afraid to visit it.
2. Aaron Donald
At number two is Aaron Donald, the greatest defensive tackle I’ve ever seen and one of the most dominant football players of any era.
Donald wasn’t supposed to be able to do what he did from the interior of a defensive line.
Offenses knew exactly where number 99 was. They double-teamed him. They designed protections around him. They threw multiple offensive linemen at him.
It often didn’t matter.
Donald won three Defensive Player of the Year awards, earned first-team All-Pro honors eight times and made the Pro Bowl in all 10 seasons of his career. He retired with 111 career sacks, an unbelievable number considering how much of his career was spent attacking offenses from the interior.
His combination of strength, explosiveness, technique and speed was almost unfair.
And then there is the moment that completed his résumé.
With the Rams trying to win Super Bowl LVI, Cincinnati faced fourth down with its season on the line. Donald broke through the offensive line and pressured Joe Burrow into an incomplete pass, effectively sealing the championship for Los Angeles.
The greatest players are supposed to deliver when everything is on the line.
Aaron Donald did exactly that.
If you told me somebody had Donald number one on their list, I wouldn’t argue very hard.
Unfortunately for Donald, there is one defensive player I simply cannot put anyone ahead of.
1. Lawrence Taylor
Lawrence Taylor is the greatest defensive player in NFL history.
There are great defensive players, there are dominant defensive players, and then there are players who force football itself to adjust to their existence.
LT belongs in that final category.
Taylor completely changed what offenses had to worry about from the linebacker position. His combination of speed, strength and aggression coming off the edge created a nightmare for quarterbacks and offensive tackles.
He won three Defensive Player of the Year awards, earned eight first-team All-Pro selections and won two Super Bowls with the New York Giants.
But one accomplishment separates him from almost every defender who has ever played.
In 1986, Lawrence Taylor won NFL MVP.
Not Defensive Player of the Year.
NFL MVP.
Taylor recorded 20.5 sacks that season and became the first defensive player in 15 years to win the award. No defensive player has won it since.
Think about how difficult that is. The NFL is a quarterback-driven league, and even historically dominant defenders almost never receive serious MVP consideration. LT was so overwhelmingly dominant that voters decided the most valuable football player in the entire league was an outside linebacker.
His impact went beyond his own statistics. Having a pass rusher like Taylor attacking a quarterback’s blind side helped change how teams thought about pass protection and increased the importance placed on elite left tackles.
When one player’s dominance forces offenses to reconsider how they’re constructed, you’re dealing with something different.
Aaron Donald was incredible. Deion Sanders could erase receivers. Ed Reed terrified quarterbacks. J.J. Watt produced one of the greatest defensive peaks we’ve ever seen.
But for me, nobody tops Lawrence Taylor.
LT is the greatest defensive player in NFL history.
Final Rankings
1. Lawrence Taylor
2. Aaron Donald
3. Deion Sanders
4. Ed Reed
5. J.J. Watt
Leaving Reggie White, Ray Lewis, Ronnie Lott and Bruce Smith outside the top five shows just how difficult this list is. There is no shortage of defensive legends who have a legitimate argument.
But if I’m building a defense and can choose any five defensive players in NFL history at their absolute best, these are the five I’m taking.
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