# Rich Eisen: Eisen unveiled his top 10 NFL defenses for 2026, with Seattle first, Houston second and the Rams third, and said he deliberately put an AFC team and an NFC team at the top to hint at his Super Bowl matchup (Texans vs. Seahawks). **Claimed:** Jun 10, 2026 **Pundit:** Rich Eisen — https://missedtakes.co/pundits/rich-eisen **Outlet:** The Rich Eisen Show (podcast) — https://missedtakes.co/outlets/the-rich-eisen-show-podcast **How it reached us:** said on air, transcribed by us **Original:** https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/traffic.megaphone.fm/ESP1438291747.mp3?updated=1781119308 3 checkable claims — 2 conference champions and 1 position group ranking — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing bet. It names 2 players and teams, each linked to their own record. None of them have settled yet — they grade once their results are in. > And that's my power rankings of the NFL defenses, one to 10 in 2026 as it currently stands. *(their words, quoted for attribution)* ## The claims - **Houston Texans to reach the Super Bowl** - Kind: Conference Champions · About: Houston Texans - Verdict: not settled yet - **Seattle Seahawks to reach the Super Bowl** - Kind: Conference Champions · About: Seattle Seahawks - Verdict: not settled yet - **Number 10 on the list... I think the Ravens are gonna be a top 10 defense again... Number nine... the cowboys... I put the Vikings eight... the chargers are seventh here on my list. Number six on the list... The Philadelphia Eagles... I'm putting your Patriots five... I'm putting the Broncos at four. Number three... I think the Rams are now in the top five defensively... number two on the list are the Houston Texans... but number one is the defending Super Bowl champs... Seattle's defense.** - Kind: Position Group Rankings - Verdict: not settled yet ## Who this take is about - Houston Texans — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/texans - Seattle Seahawks — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/seahawks ## What others said about the same people - Chris Simms on Seattle Seahawks: Simms went through the entire Week 3 slate with straight-up winners and predicted final scores, taking Jacksonville, Buffalo, Cincinnati, Detroit, Houston, Carolina, Kansas City, Seattle, the Giants, Baltimore, New Orleans, Minnesota, San Francisco, Denver and Philadelphia. He also expected Zay Flowers and Puka Nacua to sit, Kyler Murray to play, and said Marvin Harrison Jr. projects as no better than a good No. 2 or high-end No. 3 receiver. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/662b7ba3-1bf6-4ad0-9f93-9f2ab83143fd (scored 30.95) - Connor Rogers on Seattle Seahawks: Rogers picked Detroit, Houston, Carolina, Kansas City, Seattle and the Giants to win their Week 3 games, saying the Chiefs win by two touchdowns and the Giants by a field goal. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/83d1e88b-95a0-45ba-83d3-f86297170c6c (scored 0) - Steven Ruiz on Houston Texans: Previewing Week 3, Ruiz picked the Ravens to beat the Cowboys in Brazil, Jacksonville over New England in a low-scoring game, an upset by the Broncos over the Rams, the Raiders over the Saints, the Eagles over the Bears, the Lions over the Jets, and his Hail Mary that Houston beats Indianapolis by two touchdowns. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/a30ff469-4972-4c48-855b-ba984e4de9d0 (scored 0) - Sam Monson on Seattle Seahawks: Monson picked the Chargers to beat the Bills outright (jokingly crediting Buffalo's gray 'Nickel City' jerseys), took the Vikings to win outright in Tampa, and said Seattle would destroy Washington. He also reiterated his Super Bowl pick of Denver over the Rams, called the Dolphins destined for the No. 1 overall pick, and said the Saints are a worst-to-first candidate in the NFC South. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/0b810ffd-fd93-4ea2-a208-b1353dea5fb0 (scored 0) - John Middlekauff on Seattle Seahawks: Middlekauff expects blowout wins for Seattle over Washington and Kansas City over Miami in Week 3, picks Cincinnati to beat Pittsburgh in the AFC North matchup, and takes Tennessee over the Giants if Jameis Winston is taking snaps. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/8115d255-82e3-442e-aeef-c3eaa3587603 (scored 0) - Nick Wright on Seattle Seahawks: On his Week 3 pick show, Nick Wright gave straight-up final-score predictions for five games, calling blowouts by Seattle over Washington and Kansas City over Miami, a Jacksonville home win over New England, a narrow New Orleans win over the Raiders and a low-scoring Baltimore win over Dallas in Brazil. He also called Seattle the best team in the NFL with the league's best defense. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/afa6070a-4229-4b28-a922-31d609ad1adf (scored 4.76) ## More conference champions The same kind of call, about other players and teams. - Nick Wright on New England Patriots: The host picks the Rams to beat the Seahawks in the NFC Championship game and believes the winner of that game wins the Super Bowl, i.e. that this is the Rams' year; he also picks New England to win in Denver despite taking the Broncos with the points, and says Stafford is winning MVP. He calls Sean McVay the second-best coach in the NFL. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/5d16f975-ba4e-46f4-8717-8962b81c5bdf (scored 100) - Nick Wright on Denver Broncos: Wright picked the Broncos to beat the Patriots in a low-scoring AFC Championship game (17-16), said Sean Payton would coach Denver to the Super Bowl, picked the Rams to win outright in Seattle 31-20, believes the winner of the NFC game wins the Super Bowl with the Rams the better team, and expects Matt Stafford to be named league MVP. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/afd8c9a0-6068-4bfc-8dac-3bcc196f1231 (scored 50) - AJ Hawk on Los Angeles Rams: Hawk picked the Patriots to win in Denver despite liking Stidham and the Broncos defense, and in the NFC he stuck with the Rams, saying Stafford gets to the Super Bowl. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/70ca2972-53a1-4559-bd03-94c5fede2f4e (scored 50) - Connor "Boston Connor" Campbell on New England Patriots: Connor expects a tight first half in Denver before New England pulls away in the second half and advances to the Super Bowl. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/c31dff9f-7c0a-422d-9df1-e7423b9edcc8 (scored 100) - Gregg Rosenthal on New England Patriots: Rosenthal picks the Patriots to beat the Broncos in a close, low-scoring AFC Championship in Denver (while liking Denver to cover the 4.5 points), takes the Seahawks over the Rams in a defensive NFC Championship he pegs around 23-19, and forecasts a Patriots-Seahawks Super Bowl. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/830a8ed3-b98f-4161-a71c-4c7beb80f350 (scored 100) - Richard Sherman on New England Patriots: Sherman picks the Seahawks to beat the Rams comfortably at home, 27-17, with a defensive score, and says the winner of that NFC Championship game will win the Super Bowl. He also picks the Patriots to win comfortably in Denver, 21-15, and assumes Matthew Stafford will be named league MVP. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/4711f09c-65e6-4c33-8374-9601a907fa43 (scored 100) --- Accuracy is 0-100 against what actually happened. The naive guess is what a strategy requiring no knowledge would have scored on the same call — the difference is the skill, and it is what the MissedTakes Score averages. Full method: https://missedtakes.co/methodology We summarize what a pundit said and quote a short span for attribution; we never republish their article. If this is wrong, tell us: https://missedtakes.co/corrections?pundit=rich-eisen