When we think about defining games and seasons in the NFL, it is almost always tied to the quarterbacks.
Nobody impacts the game more than the Patrick Mahomeses and Joe Burrows of the world. Yet the defensive side of the ball can also swing Sunday afternoons and seasons, either because it’s disrupting the sport’s paramount players or covering those who are its targets.
For this piece, we aren’t naming the 10 best defensive players in the league. If that were the case, T.J. Watt, Micah Parsons, Nick Bosa, Myles Garrett, Sauce Gardner and Aaron Donald would all be atop the list. Instead, we’re focusing on the 10 players whose performances will alter the season of their respective contenders.
