'14 Player Rankings, Defense: 100-91

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ESPN.com news services
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August 18, 2014, 12:21 PM ET
6 min read

— -- ESPN.com is ranking NFL players and counting them down (follow on Twitter @ESPNNFL) from No. 100 to No. 1 on offense and on defense, 10 per day for 10 days. The top 10 on both sides of the ball will be revealed Friday, Aug. 29.

What is #NFLRank?

#NFLRank is the Twitter hashtag to use if you want to get involved in the discussion or just follow along. You can also follow along @ESPNNFL and on Facebook.

How did we rank the players?

We polled 85 experts to rate each player on a 0-to-10 scale, with 10 being the best regardless of position in the NFL. Ties, as denoted by an asterisk, were broken by determining which player had more ballots with the higher number (if players are tied, the player with three 10s is ranked higher than the player with two 10s; if the tied players had the same amount of highest numbers -- each with two 10s -- we moved to the next number: three 9s beats two 9s).

Here is the full list of voters from ESPN.com, ESPN TV, ESPN The Magazine, ESPN Insider (including Football Outsiders and Pro Football Focus), ESPN fantasy, ESPN locals and ESPN Stats & Information.

The Patriots allowed a Total QBR of 44.1 with Spikes on the field last season, compared to a Total QBR of 59.7 without him. Spikes forced five fumbles in 2012, tied for the sixth most in the league, but did not force a fumble in 16 games last season.
-- ESPN Stats & Information ( @ESPNStatsInfo)

Since joining the Dolphins in 2008, Starks is the only defensive tackle with at least three sacks in each of the last six seasons. Starks also leads all defensive tackles with four interceptions during that span.
-- ESPN Stats & Information ( @ESPNStatsInfo)

Since 2010 (his rookie season), no player has more postseason interceptions than Shields (four). Shields also set a career high with 61 tackles last season.
-- ESPN Stats & Information ( @ESPNStatsInfo)

The Seahawks allowed 3.4 yards per rush with Mebane on the field last season, compared to 4.8 yards per rush without him. He is one of two defensive tackles to start 16 games in each of the last three seasons.
-- ESPN Stats & Information ( @ESPNStatsInfo)

Laurinaitis has recorded 100 tackles in all five seasons of his NFL career. Only four other defenders have recorded 100 tackles in each of the last five seasons.
-- ESPN Stats & Information ( @ESPNStatsInfo)

Since 2008 (his rookie season), Flowers led the Chiefs in interceptions (17) and pass breakups (31). He was selected to his first Pro Bowl last season, becoming the first Chiefs corner in the Pro Bowl since 2000 (James Hasty).
-- ESPN Stats & Information ( @ESPNStatsInfo)