Washington played good defense in 2014, Chris Petersen's first season as head coach, and the primary reason for that was talent recruited by former coach Steve Sarkisian. That crew offered up four players to the NFL draft, split evenly between the first and second rounds, and all four became NFL starters.

What happened next, however, is why Huskies fans probably shouldn't worry too much about their 2017 defense, which will be replacing six starters, five of whom are nearly certain to be drafted.

The 2015 defense went from good to very good despite the draft losses, and the 2016 unit reached elite status. The Huskies, in fact, have become the West Coast's preeminent defensive power, leading the conference in both scoring defense and yards per play the past two seasons. They were eighth in the nation in scoring defense last season and fourth in yards per play, as Washington rolled to its first Pac-12 title since 2000 and a berth in the College Football Playoff.

"The results speak for themselves," Washington defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski said. "They played extremely hard and performed at a high level."

Having a healthy Azeem Victor at linebacker will be a big boost to the Washington defense. Elaine Thompson, File/AP

How good was Kwiatkowski's crew last year? Four players made first-team All-Pac-12, two were second-team and three others earned honorable mention. A 10th player, outside linebacker Joe Mathis, was headed toward first-team honors before he suffered a season-ending injury in October.

"We had some talent, but talent can only take you so far," Kwiatkowski said. "How we prepared week-in and week-out, it's the standard. It's what we expect every year. Now it's an opportunity for the guys who played behind them to step up and play as well or play better."

In other words, Kwiatkowski rejects the notion of rebuilding, and his track record validates his perspective.

The Huskies certainly won't be devoid of talent when they begin spring practices March 27. For one, the front seven looks stout with the return of linemen Vita Vea and Greg Gaines -- without question the best returning D-line tandem in the Pac-12 -- as well as all-conference linebackers Azeem Victor and Keishawn Bierria. Victor will be ready to go this spring after a leg injury against USC ended his season on Nov. 12.

The secondary is a bit more of a question, at least in terms of departed star power (Sidney Jones, Budda Baker and Kevin King). Still, safety seems set, as JoJo McIntosh returns, as does Taylor Rapp, the Pac-12 Freshman Defensive Player of the Year.

The returning talent at cornerback -- Jordan Miller, Austin Joyner and redshirt freshman Byron Murphy -- is intriguing, if unproven. Running back Jomon Dotson also has moved to corner, and pair of touted incoming freshmen could push their way into the mix.

The biggest question, in fact, might be who leads the pass-rush. When Mathis got hurt, a previously dominant pass-rush diminished over the second half of the season, forcing the Huskies to use more stunts. While senior Connor O'Brien filled in for Mathis, he will be challenged this spring by a host of younger players looking to make their mark.

"We got a lot of guys behind him, so there's a lot of good competition," Kwiatkowski said. "We've got about eight guys who are all right there. No one is really standing out as being a dominant-type player. I like the competition there."

The Huskies offense, led by quarterback Jake Browning, the Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Year, appears poised to be even better than the unit that led the conference in scoring with 41.8 points per game. So many prognosticators will raise an eyebrow at the defense when evaluating whether the Huskies will be good enough to hold off USC and repeat as Pac-12 champions.

Recent history suggests such skeptics might want to rein in their supercilia.