The Denver Broncos completed an improbable postseason run by manhandling Carolina Panthers and their MVP quarterback Cam Newton en route to a 24-10 victory in the Super Bowl. The game’s biggest storyline, of course, was Peyton Manning, who will likely retire this offeason as arguably the most accomplished quarterback in the history of the NFL.
But the story of the final game of the season was the incredible Denver Broncos defense, led by the Assistant Coach of the Year Wade Phillips. A unit that harrassed and pressured Newton all game long, two weeks after doing the same to future Hall of Famer Tom Brady, the Broncos recorded six sacks and four turnovers.
Their win solidified their defense as one of the best units in recent memory. But just how great was it and where does it rank among the most incredible units of the last 15 seasons? That’s what I’ll address below here, as I have ranked the seven best defenses of the new millennium.
| Team | Record | Postseason | Points | <10 points | Yards | Turnovers | Sacks | Def TD | Pro Bowls |
| 1. 00 BAL | 12-4 | 4-0, won SB | 165 | 9 | 3967 | 49 | 35 | 1 | 3 |
| 2. 13 SEA | 13-3 | 3-0, won SB | 231 | 6 | 4378 | 39 | 43 | 4 | 3 |
| 3. 02 TB | 12-4 | 3-0, won SB | 196 | 7 | 4044 | 38 | 43 | 4 | 5 |
| 4. 03 NE | 14-2 | 3-0, won SB | 238 | 5 | 4666 | 41 | 41 | 6 | 4 |
| 5. 15 DEN | 12-4 | 3-0, won SB | 296 | 1 | 4530 | 27 | 52 | 5 | 4 |
| 6. 08 PIT | 12-4 | 3-0, won SB | 223 | 4 | 3795 | 29 | 51 | 3 | 3 |
| 7. 06 CHI | 13-3 | 2-1, lost SB | 255 | 5 | 4706 | 44 | 40 | 3 | 3 |
1 – No defense in the history of the NFL compares to the 2000 Baltimore Ravens, and that includes the 1976 Steelers and 1985 Bears. The most suffocating defensive unit the game has ever seen, the Ravens surrendered just 10.4 points per game in the regular season and allowed a single offensive touchdown in four postseason games. They’re the only unit in the 16-game era to hold offenses under 1000 rushing yards (970 yards on 2.7 yards per carry) and they recorded twice as many interceptions (23) as touchdown passes allowed (11). They also overcame an offense so historically awful that they went five straight regular season games without scoring a touchdown, even benching one middling veteran quarterback for another. It didn’t matter. The 2007 Patriots wouldn’t have been able to move the ball against Ray Lewis and company, especially as the stage grew bigger.
2 – Here’s the list of defensive categories the 2013 Seattle Seahawks ranked first in during the regular season: points, yards, turnovers, passing yards, interceptions and rushing touchdowns. The secondary for the Seahawks stands as arguably the best the game has seen in the new millennium, with All-Pros in Earl Thomas and Richard Sherman and a third Pro Bowler in Kam Chancellor. In the NFC championship game, Sherman became a legend when his last-second deflection of Colin Kaepernick’s pass led to an interception and Sherman’s rant heard ’round the world. Facing the highest-scoring offense in NFL history in the Super Bowl, the Seahawks turned in what might be the most impressive single-game defensive performance in postseason history, scoring more points with their defense (9) than league MVP Peyton Manning and the Broncos could score with their offense (8).
3 – The 2002 Tampa Bay Buccaneers didn’t have a weakness at a single spot on their defense. From defensive tackle Warren Sapp to defensive end Simeon Rice to linebacker Derrick Brooks to cornerback Ronde Barber to safety John Lynch, the Bucs absolutely dominated for 16 games before turning it up a notch in the postseason. Brooks, the Defensive Player of the Year winner during the regular season, recorded one of three interception touchdowns in the Super Bowl, as the Bucs completely humiliated the Oakland Raiders and league MVP Rich Gannon.
4 – The best of several elite Bill Belichick defenses in the early 2000s, the 2003 New England Patriots allowed just 11 touchdown passes while recording 29 interceptions during the regular season. Cornerback Ty Law and safety Rodney Harrison played a role in dismantling league MVP Peyton Manning and the Colts in the postseason to the extreme that the NFL reinforced the illegal contract rule for defensive backs in 2004. The only blemish for the ’03 Patriots was a near-collapse in the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl, as the Panthers scored 19 points and came within a field goal of an improbable upset.
5 – The reigning Super Bowl champions, the 2015 Denver Broncos were built on the league’s best pass-rush, a unit as ferocious as any the game has seen in recent years. After collecting 23 hits against Tom Brady in the AFC championship game, the most by any team in a game in a decade, the Broncos stifled MVP Cam Newton and the Panthers in the Super Bowl, forcing four turnovers and adding a defensive touchdown. Although the Broncos ranked just fourth in the NFL in points allowed and 14th in turnovers per drive during the regular season, their historic postseason vaults them into the top five of the last 16 seasons.
6 – A similar unit to the 2003 New England Patriots, the 2008 Pittsburgh Steelers were led by All-World safety Troy Polamalu and linebacker James Harrison, the league’s Defensive Player of the Year. It was Polamalu who recorded an interception touchdown to clinch the AFC championship, while Harrison’s 100-yard return for a touchdown in the Super Bowl is probably the most memorable defensive touchdown in the game’s 50-year history. First in sacks but just ninth in turnovers, the Steelers were also helped by two historically weak teams in their own division.
7 – The 2006 Chicago Bears are the only team on this list not to win the Super Bowl, and it’s a shame because they really could have defeated Peyton Manning and the Colts with average quarterback play. The Bears recorded multiple turnovers in their first 13 games of the regular season, and no one will ever forget their legendary Week 6 win against the Arizona Cardinals when two defensive touchdowns (and one by their special teams) overshadowed one of the most anemic performances by a winning quarterback in history.
