ESPN NFL

Posted by ESPN.com’s Pat Yasinskas

Time for the midseason All-NFC South defense.

Defensive end: Julius Peppers, Panthers. Peppers has a division-high seven sacks and has been dominant at times. Problem is, at other times, he’s disappeared. Same old story.

Defensive end: Will Smith, Saints. He has 6.5 sacks. Not bad for a guy who faced a possible suspension in the preseason and has often been called an underachiever.

Defensive tackle: Jonathan Babineaux, Falcons. Probably the most underrated player in the NFC South. Definitely the best defensive tackle.

Defensive tackle: Sedrick Ellis, Saints. Yes, he’s banged up right now. But he was playing at a very high level before he got hurt. He’s a big part of the reason ends Smith and Charles Grant are playing to their potential.

Linebacker: Thomas Davis, Panthers. He just went on injured reserve and will miss the rest of the season. But this guy was the best linebacker in the division through the first eight games.

Linebacker: Curtis Lofton, Falcons. The guy’s become an every-down player and he’s leading the NFL in tackles.

Linebacker: Mike Peterson, Falcons. Yes, I’m well aware that entering the season there was a strong consensus that Jon Beason, Jonathan Vilma and Barrett Ruud were the best three linebackers in the division and I thought I’d go that route as I started this project. But once I really started looking at it, I couldn’t. Davis and Lofton have outperformed them. The final spot came down to Vilma and Peterson and I could have gone either way. Both have played well and been the leaders of their defense. I went with Peterson, though, because we’re about to get very heavy with Saints.

Cornerback: Jabari Greer, Saints. Best cornerback in the division -- by far.

Cornerback: Tracy Porter, Saints. Chris Gamble and Ronde Barber have bigger names. But Porter is playing better than them.

Safety: Darren Sharper, Saints. He’s been the best defensive player in the division … maybe in the entire NFL.

Safety: Roman Harper, Saints. I’m making it a sweep for the Saints’ secondary. I considered Atlanta’s Erik Coleman and Thomas DeCoud and Tampa Bay’s Tanard Jackson would have gotten consideration if he wasn’t suspended for four games. But Harper is playing at a high level now that he’s got some talent around him.

Posted by ESPN.com's Pat Yasinskas

We started the All-NFC South team with the offense earlier today. Now, it's time for the defense.

We'll have specialists, coaching and front office a bit later.

Defensive end: Julius Peppers, Panthers.
He bounced back nicely after a hugely-disappointing 2007 season. With the Panthers cleaning house and going with role players on the rest of the defensive line, Peppers got back to superstar status. It also might have helped that this was a contract year.

Defensive end: John Abraham, Falcons.
One of the smartest things coach Mike Smith did was make Abraham a part-time player. Abraham's 30 and has a history of injuries. The Falcons cut him down to about 50-percent of the plays and made sure he was on the field for most passing downs. He responded with 16.5 sacks.

Defensive tackles: Jonathan Babineaux, Falcons.
He stepped up and was a big reason why Atlanta's defensive line was a lot better than most people expected.

Defensive tackles: Sedrick Ellis, Saints.
He's far from a finished product. But Ellis showed enough bright spots to suggest he can become a dominant defensive tackle in a division that doesn't have any others besides Babineaux.

Linebacker: Jon Beason, Panthers.
He showed his big rookie season was no fluke and became the unquestioned leader of Carolina's defense.

Linebacker: Barrett Ruud, Buccaneers.
He emerged as the best player on Tampa Bay's defense and should help ease he transition of a defense that's moving from old to young.

Linebacker: Jonathan Vilma, Saints.
New Orleans still had plenty of defensive problems. But the arrival of Vilma gave the Saints a strong presence in the middle of the defense. Getting back into a 3-4 defense helped Vilma's career get back on track. Yes, I know Vilma, Ruud and Beason are all middle linebackers. But they're the three best linebackers in this division.

Cornerback: Chris Gamble, Panthers.
Carolina rewarded Gamble with a $53 million contract around midseason. Gamble's already the division's best cornerback and he's still getting better.

Cornerback: Chris Houston, Falcons.
Atlanta unloaded DeAngelo Hall before the season and that thrust Houston into the No. 1 cornerback role. Houston responded nicely and showed he can cover top receivers.

Safety: Tanard Jackson, Buccaneers.
He's got a nose for the ball and he wasn't one of those players who struggled in Tampa Bay's late-season collapse.

Safety: Chris Harris, Panthers.
Harris got better in coverage, but that's still not a strength. Harris plays the run as well as any safety and is a strong tackler.

Posted by ESPN.com's Pat Yasinskas

Carolina's defense may not get the nation-wide respect it did in the Panthers' 2003 Super Bowl season. That's starting to change. In their past three victories, the Panthers held opponents to single digits in scoring. It's only a matter of time, and a few more strong games, before this defense starts being mentioned as one of the league's elite.

"I see a good defense,'' Arizona quarterback Kurt Warner said of the defense he'll play Suday. "Solid across the board, making plays, not giving up a lot of big plays. I see a good defense. I know maybe nationally they're not getting the respect they deserve, but in this locker room and in locker rooms around the ;eague, people have taken notice of who they aredefensively, who they are as a football team. We give them a bunch of credit. In the amount of film that I watched, I see a very good, solid defense and one that you know that you have to be on top of your game if you want to be successful against them.''