Top 10 All Time NFL Defensive Teams

"When I was 10, I entered the NFL Gatorade Punt, Pass, and Kick contest. I came in 48th place. My passing stunk!! I went right home, painted a target on my tree and started throwing. And throwing. And throwing. And throwing." - Dan Marino

The Pittsburgh Steelers’ defense went into Sunday’s game in Baltimore ranked first in the NFL in every major category.

Sixty minutes later, it had held the Ravens to nine points and had surrendered only 202 yards. Sunday was Pittsburgh’s 14th consecutive game holding an opponent to less than 300 yards, tying the 1973 Rams for the longest such streak to start a season.

Clearly the Steelers have the best defense in the NFL this season. But where do they rank all time? Here’s a look at my top 10.

10. 1990 New York Giants: Like all great defenses, the ’90 Giants were solid against the run and the pass. But they also had the ability to send the great Lawrence Taylor after the quarterback. And Taylor also had the great idea to send female escorts after the quarterback.

9. 1991 Philadelphia Eagles: Reggie White, Jerome Brown and Clyde Simmons led a dominant Eagles defense that for years had been accused of taking bounties on opposing players. The ’91 Eagles went 10-6 but missed the playoffs, and for some reason the defense never thought to take a bounty on Eagles quarterbacks Pat Ryan, Brad Goebel, Jeff Kemp and Jim McMahon.

8. 1973 Miami Dolphins: The Dolphins went undefeated in 1972, but most people forget that in ’73 they won the Super Bowl again and set an NFL record by allowing only 150 points in the entire 14-game season. To this day, they pop champagne any time an NFL team plays its 15th game of the season.

7. 1971 Minnesota Vikings: The motto of The Purple People Eaters was "Meet at the quarterback." Or, wait … maybe it was "Meat at the quarterback." Ahh! Cannibals!

6. 1962 Green Bay Packers: The ’62 Packers’ defense boasted five future Hall of Famers and surrendered just 10.8 points per game -- or four fewer than the 2008 Packers allow per quarter.

5. 1969 Kansas City Chiefs: Hank Stram’s "triple stack" defense allowed an average of less than two touchdowns per game in 1969 and gave up only 20 points on the way to victory in Super Bowl IV. Since then, other teams have used players who are big proponents of the Triple Stack, but to less success.

4. 2000 Baltimore Ravens: Ray Lewis and Rod Woodson led a defense that allowed the fewest points and rushing yards in NFL history during a 16-game season. So overwhelming and intimidating was the presence of the Ravens’ defense that it often managed to keep its own offense scoreless, too.

3. 2008 Pittsburgh Steelers: The Steelers have the No. 1-ranked defense in the NFL this season across the board. But they need their own nickname. "The Steel Curtain" was the ’70s Steelers. Using it again is like being a cover band. Or even worse: a cover band of a hair band.

2. 1985 Chicago Bears: The Mike Singletary-led defense didn’t give up a point in the playoffs until surrendering 10 in a 46-10 victory over the Patriots in the Super Bowl, exposing every opponent’s weaknesses along the way. Who knows how many opposing coaches that team caused to drop their pants?

1. 1976 Pittsburgh Steelers: Pittsburgh had great defenses throughout the ’70s. But the ’76 squad was the best, surrendering only 28 points in the final nine games of the season. If only the Three Rivers Stadium security was as tough to breach back then. Arrest that kid! He is in a players-only area!

Source: ESPN Sports