Getting after the quarterback helps, but a strong play in coverage by both linebackers and defensive backs is essential for teams to effectively defend in today's NFL. Here, we've pulled team coverage grades from Premium Stats 2.0 to rank all 32 teams' coverage units after Week 7.

The following ranks purely run off of our team coverage grades, which are updated weekly and made available to all ELITE subscribers. This is the second installment of a four-part series that will cover all 32 teams’ pass-rush, run-defense, coverage and total defense grades. The total defense rankings will debut after Week 8.

1.

TEAM Coverage Grade: 86.0

Forced Incompletion %: 11.6 (9th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 92.4 (7th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): LB Darron Lee (89.5)

2.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 85.9

Forced Incompletion %: 10.2 (T-17th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 94.6 (9th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): CB Stephon Gilmore (80.1)

3.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 85.4

Forced Incompletion %: 11.9 (7th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 96.7 (11th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): S John Johnson III (85.4)

4.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 84.2

Forced Incompletion %: 8.5 (26th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 96.4 (10th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): CB Prince Amukamara (79.2)

5.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 80.6

Forced Incompletion %: 14.8 (1st)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 88.1 (4th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): S Anthony Levine Sr. (90.7)

6.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 80.5

Forced Incompletion %: 8.2 (27th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 100.5 (16th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): LB Blake Martinez (86.8)

7.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 80.1

Forced Incompletion %: 8.0 (28th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 101.9 (19th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): S D.J. Swearinger Jr. (86.0)

8.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 79.6

Forced Incompletion %: 11.3 (11th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 98.9 (13th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): CB Desmond King II (87.8)

9.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 78.2

Forced Incompletion %: 12.6 (2nd)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 81.7 (1st)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): LB Joe Schobert (91.2)

10.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 77.2

Forced Incompletion %: 12.3 (T-4th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 92.6 (8th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): CB Chris Harris Jr. (78.9)

11.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 77.1

Forced Incompletion %: 9.5 (T-21st)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 83.2 (2nd)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): S Earl Thomas (90.6)

12.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 76.8

Forced Incompletion %: 8.9 (24th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 102.3 (20th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): CB Adoree' Jackson (73.6)

13.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 74.5

Forced Incompletion %: 5.0 (32nd)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 99.2 (15th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): S Malik Hooker (79.9)

14.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 74.3

Forced Incompletion %: 12.2 (6th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 101.1 (17th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): S Micah Hyde (73.6)

15.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 74.1

Forced Incompletion %: 10.3 (16th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 103.5 (23rd)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): S Clayton Fejedelem (90.4)

15.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 74.1

Forced Incompletion %: 10.2 (17th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 105.7 (25th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): CB Byron Jones (90.3)

17.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 72.0

Forced Incompletion %: 6.3 (31st)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 103.1 (21st)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): CB Patrick Peterson (84.8)

18.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 71.0

Forced Incompletion %: 10.9 (T-13th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 101.2 (18th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): CB Johnathan Joseph (78.7)

19.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 69.9

Forced Incompletion %: 9.5 (T-21st)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 87.7 (3rd)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): S Tashaun Gipson Sr. (77.8)

20.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 68.9

Forced Incompletion %: 11.4 (10th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 99.1 (14th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): S Andrew Sendejo (70.0)

21.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 68.7

Forced Incompletion %: 12.3 (T-4th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 98.7 (12th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): S Rodney McLeod (78.2)

22.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 65.8

Forced Incompletion %: 12.5 (3rd)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 104.3 (24th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): CB Mike Hilton (70.9)

23.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 65.5

Forced Incompletion %: 8.7 (25th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 103.2 (22nd)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): LB Luke Kuechly (79.7)

24.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 61.9

Forced Incompletion %: 9.1 (23rd)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 131.1 (32nd)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): LB Lavonte David (77.6)

24.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 61.9

Forced Incompletion %: 11.1 (12th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 108.9 (27th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): S Ricardo Allen (80.2)

26.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 61.0

Forced Incompletion %: 10.9 (T-13th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 91.5 (5th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): CB Steven Nelson (74.5)

27.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 60.9

Forced Incompletion %: 6.7 (30th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 92.0 (6th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): CB Bobby McCain (68.7)

28.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 60.5

Forced Incompletion %: 11.7 (8th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 106.0 (26th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): S Landon Collins (79.0)

29.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 57.2

Forced Incompletion %: 10.7 (15th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 113.7 (29th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): S Reggie Nelson (70.3)

30.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 53.4

Forced Incompletion %: 10.1 (19th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 115.8 (30th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): CB Darius Slay (64.8)

31.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 52.9

Forced Incompletion %: 7.6 (29th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 121.2 (31st)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): S Vonn Bell (66.6)

32.

TEAM COVERAGE GRADE: 37.6

Explosive Catches Allowed %: 9.7 (20th)

Team Passer Rating Allowed%: 112.0 (28th)

Top Coverage Defender (Coverage Grade): CB K'Waun Williams (71.3)

[Editor's Note: In case you didn't read the second introductory paragraph, this is the second installment of a four-part series that will cover all 32 teams' pass-rush, run-defense, coverage and total defense grades over the next two weeks. The total defense rankings will debut after Week 8]

PASS-RUSH | RUN-DEFENSE | COVERAGE | TOTAL DEFENSE