NFL Defense vs Position Rankings 2025-26

Fantasy points allowed to running backs by every NFL defense • Final season

Completed 2025-26 season: every column is that season's real per-game average, with no blending or projection.
QB RB WR TE
●Elite Matchup (Target)
●Good Matchup
●Average
●Tough
●Avoid

Best RB Matchups (Most Points Allowed)

#1 Cincinnati Bengals 29.4 FPA
#2 New York Jets 28.7 FPA
#3 Arizona Cardinals 27.0 FPA

Toughest RB Matchups (Fewest Points Allowed)

#32 Denver Broncos 17.2 FPA
#31 Jacksonville Jaguars 18.4 FPA
#30 Seattle Seahawks 18.7 FPA
Rank Team DK FPA FD FPA vs Avg 2024-25/G 2025-26/G L4 Rush Yds Rush TD Targets Rec Rec Yds Trend
1
Cincinnati Bengals
29.4
 26.0
+6.8
24.8 29.4 21.3 119.2 0.76 5.9 4.6 41.8
2
New York Jets
28.7
 26.0
+6.1
20.3 28.7 33.9 109.8 1.00 4.6 3.6 33.2
3
Arizona Cardinals
27.0
 24.1
+4.4
24.7 27.0 32.1 113.3 1.00 5.5 4.3 34.1
4
Washington Commanders
26.8
 23.8
+4.2
23.4 26.8 28.4 115.5 0.94 4.9 3.4 33.7
5
New York Giants
26.7
 23.5
+4.1
26.9 26.7 17.2 116.5 0.88 5.5 4.5 29.9
6
Dallas Cowboys
26.0
 22.4
+3.4
25.1 26.0 25.9 95.2 0.88 5.8 4.9 43.2
7
Miami Dolphins
25.5
 22.0
+2.9
21.0 25.5 35.9 106.3 0.71 5.4 4.8 35.8
8
Buffalo Bills
24.9
 22.0
+2.3
26.4 24.9 21.3 107.3 1.06 5.2 3.9 24.9
9
Carolina Panthers
24.8
 21.8
+2.2
31.2 24.8 23.1 105.6 0.94 5.5 4.4 28.3
10
San Francisco 49ers
24.0
 20.7
+1.4
26.0 24.0 27.7 93.1 0.71 6.6 5.5 35.9
11
Philadelphia Eagles
23.8
 21.1
+1.2
17.0 23.8 19.2 96.1 0.76 5.1 3.7 37.5
12
Baltimore Ravens
23.4
 20.4
+0.8
20.2 23.4 21.1 82.1 0.71 6.8 5.5 42.6
13
Las Vegas Raiders
23.1
 20.7
+0.5
24.7 23.1 20.0 97.7 0.94 5.4 4.4 26.5
14
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
23.0
 20.0
+0.4
20.5 23.0 18.1 78.6 0.59 5.6 4.7 51.5
15
Cleveland Browns
22.2
 19.5
-0.4
18.2 22.2 27.2 96.4 0.71 5.2 4.0 26.3
16
Atlanta Falcons
22.0
 19.6
-0.6
22.1 22.0 16.5 101.7 0.53 5.4 3.9 30.0
17
Green Bay Packers
22.0
 19.2
-0.6
23.1 22.0 27.5 100.5 0.71 5.6 4.5 26.6
18
Tennessee Titans
22.0
 20.0
-0.6
24.2 22.0 15.8 91.4 1.00 4.2 3.2 26.5
19
Chicago Bears
21.8
 19.2
-0.8
25.7 21.8 20.9 104.2 0.53 5.1 3.9 26.8
20
New Orleans Saints
21.5
 19.1
-1.1
25.5 21.5 14.7 102.7 0.65 4.1 3.3 23.3
21
Los Angeles Rams
20.8
 17.9
-1.8
22.1 20.8 32.1 88.6 0.35 6.2 4.6 36.5
22
Indianapolis Colts
20.5
 18.0
-2.1
24.7 20.5 18.1 86.8 0.71 5.5 3.9 24.8
23
Minnesota Vikings
20.4
 17.9
-2.2
18.0 20.4 18.1 104.6 0.71 4.2 3.2 19.5
24
Pittsburgh Steelers
20.2
 16.8
-2.4
21.1 20.2 17.9 96.4 0.29 5.6 4.4 30.7
25
Houston Texans
19.9
 17.5
-2.7
20.2 19.9 21.7 73.4 0.71 5.2 4.1 31.5
26
Detroit Lions
19.7
 17.6
-2.9
18.1 19.7 30.1 89.1 0.71 4.6 3.5 24.6
27
New England Patriots
19.6
 16.4
-3.0
25.0 19.6 27.5 77.1 0.47 5.8 4.8 29.9
28
Kansas City Chiefs
19.4
 17.0
-3.2
15.5 19.4 20.8 83.1 0.47 4.8 3.9 27.8
29
Los Angeles Chargers
19.1
 16.8
-3.5
20.1 19.1 11.0 84.8 0.71 4.9 3.4 24.0
30
Seattle Seahawks
18.7
 15.7
-3.9
21.5 18.7 18.3 72.9 0.29 7.2 5.5 35.4
31
Jacksonville Jaguars
18.4
 16.0
-4.2
27.3 18.4 21.2 67.7 0.47 6.0 4.6 32.6
32
Denver Broncos
17.2
 15.5
-5.4
22.2 17.2 17.3 71.8 0.47 4.2 2.8 21.2

How These Ratings Work

FPA (Fantasy Points Allowed)

Every player game is scored with official DraftKings and FanDuel scoring (including DK yardage bonuses), then the position group is totaled per game. Higher FPA means a softer defense to target.

Season Blend

This is the completed 2025-26 season: every column is that season's real per-game average, with no blending or projection.

Moving Averages

The 2024-25/G, 2025-26/G, and L4 columns show the raw windows feeding the rating, so you can see exactly why a defense ranks where it does.

vs Average and Trend

vs Avg compares a defense to the league mean for the position (22.6 FPA for RBs). The trend arrow flags defenses drifting softer or tougher over their last four games.

Defense vs Position FAQ

What is NFL Defense vs Position (DvP)?

Defense vs Position measures how many fantasy points and raw stats each NFL defense allows to a specific position (QB, RB, WR, TE). It is built from real box scores: every player at that position who faced the defense, summed per game and averaged.

How are fantasy points allowed calculated?

We score every player game with official DraftKings and FanDuel scoring, including DraftKings 100-yard and 300-yard bonuses, then total the position group per game. FPA is the per-game average of those totals.

Which defenses allow the most fantasy points to quarterbacks?

Softest 2025-26 matchups for QBs: Dallas Cowboys (24.5 FPA), Tampa Bay Buccaneers (21.3 FPA), Washington Commanders (20.9 FPA).

Which defenses allow the most fantasy points to running backs?

Softest 2025-26 matchups for RBs: Cincinnati Bengals (29.4 FPA), New York Jets (28.7 FPA), Arizona Cardinals (27.0 FPA).

Which defenses allow the most fantasy points to wide receivers?

Softest 2025-26 matchups for WRs: Dallas Cowboys (40.0 FPA), Indianapolis Colts (37.3 FPA), Baltimore Ravens (37.2 FPA).

How is this different early in the season?

This is the completed 2025-26 season: every column is that season's real per-game average, with no blending or projection.

Put These Matchups to Work

Pair the softest defenses with our NFL weekly projections, attack them in the DFS lineup optimizer, or shop the numbers on the player props board. Check the weekly schedule to see who draws each matchup next.