Ranking Michigan's Defensive Positions Entering 2026

On Monday, I ranked the positions for Michigan's offense, and now, I will rank them on defense. Like the offense, the defense will have a new coordinator in Jay Hill who came over from BYU. Hill was able to manage a top 25 defense in both points allowed and turnovers forced. Now coming to Michigan, he will be able to work with more talented players than he's ever coached. The hopes and expectations for Michigan's defense in 2026 will be very high, and rightly so. Let's dive into ranking the defensive positions below.

West Virginia Mountaineers quarterback Khalil Wilkins runs away from Utah Utes defensive end John Henry Daley during the third quarter at Milan Puskar Stadium | Ben Queen-Imagn Images

#1: Defensive End

For the sake of the article, I split up the defensive line into ends and tackles. The defensive ends for Michigan are the best position on the defense in my opinion. John Henry-Daley is a big reason why, as he totaled 48 tackles, 11.5 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles last year at Utah. He's a plug and play 10-sack guy who has legitimate first round upside in the NFL Draft next spring. He is coming back off an Achilles injury but is expected to be full go for fall camp in August.

Behind him, Phil Steele recently projected Dominic Nichols to be the starter opposite Henry Daley, following a conversation he had with Kyle Whittingham. Cameron Brandt also will be in contention to start there, with highly ranked rising sophomore Nate Marshall having an outside chance to start there as well.

Whoever ends up winning the job will have a quality backup that Michigan feels good about, as they have four defensive ends in total that they are comfortable starting in 2026. No other position on the defense can make the same claim, and that's why it's my top ranked position on Michigan's defense entering next season.

Behind those four is likely to be Lugard Edokpayi and 5-star true freshman Carter Meadows. Both of those guys have very high ceilings but may be another year away from seeing major snaps. If they are good enough to break into the rotation this season, that'd be a good thing for this defense because it means they're passing other good players on the depth chart. Michigan is loaded at this position group for 2026 and that's why it ranks #1 on this list.

Michigan State Spartans quarterback Aidan Chiles throws downfield as Michigan Wolverines defensive lineman Enow Etta | Brendan Mullin-Imagn Images

#2: Defensive Tackle

Defensive tackle is number two on the list for me because I really like the two projected starters in Enow Etta and Trey Pierce. Both of them are prime candidates to make a huge jump entering this season, but they're both a little more unproven than what Michigan has at defensive end.

Behind Etta and Pierce are Jonah Lea'ea, a Utah transfer, and Deyvid Palepale, an experienced returner who looked good in the spring game. That leaves you with at least four solid or better players at this position and all four already have college experience.

The big question mark at the position for me is if the two very highly rated true freshmen will be able to sneak into the two deep by the end of next season. As recruits, I loved both Alister Vallejo and Titan Davis. Both were ranked in the top 200 nationally and while they will need to add weight, they both have very high ceilings and looked the part of being able to contribute sooner rather than later.

Regardless of if Michigan gets anything from the two true freshmen this season, they have four solid or better defensive tackles and that is enough to put them #2 on this defense.

Washington wide receiver Ja'Lynn Polk is tackled by Michigan defensive back Rod Moore during the second half of the College Football Playoff national championship game against Washington | Melanie Maxwell / USA TODAY NETWORK

#3: Safety

Safety is my third ranked position on Michigan's defense entering 2026 but I will admit a lot of it hinges on the health of Rod Moore. When healthy, he's been a Round 2-3 of the NFL Draft type player. If he can get back to that form, Michigan's defense as a whole will likely be very good next season.

The other projected starter at safety is Chris Bracy, who was a transfer from Memphis, but was praised very highly from Michigan's safeties coach Tyler Stockton:

"He wasn't a guy who's highly recruited or anything; he has a chip on his shoulder," Michigan safeties coach Tyler Stockton said this spring. "So he knows that his whole objective is to prove to the country that he can be one of the best safeties in the country. I've been so impressed with Bracy. I know his teammates have been impressed with him as well. And I'm expecting big things from him this year as well."
Tyler Stockton

If Rod Moore and Chris Bracy are the two starters, that still means rising sophomore Jordan Young will be safety #3. He will rotate in heavily, and he looked good last year as a true freshman.

Filling out the depth at safety will be Mason Curtis, Kainoa Winston, Jacob Oden, Jordan Deck, and Taylor Tatum. Mason Curtis has played a fair amount already during his tenure in Ann Arbor and should be able to take another step forward this off season. The others, in Winston, Oden, Deck, and Tatum, shouldn't be counted on to see the field much in 2026 unless injuries hit this position hard.

Overall the safeties should be a strong position on Michigan's defense in 2026, but hinges on the health of Rod Moore, so I can't rank it any higher than third.

Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver David Adolph head butts with Michigan Wolverines defensive back Jyaire Hill | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

#4: Cornerback

Back from last season as starters are Jyaire Hill and Zeke Berry. They also welcome in Smith Snowden as the likely nickel, and CB#3 from Utah. While on paper the top three look good, the cornerback depth is the area of concern for me.

Shamari Earls and Jo'Ziah Edmond are likely CB's #4-5, and while they are both talented, especially Earls, neither of them have gotten much game action yet in college. Both of them may turn out to be good cornerbacks as soon as this season, but without having seen it yet, it's hard for me to trust this room as a whole behind the top three at this a position as they enter 2026.

Filling out the depth at cornerback are Jamarion Vincent, Joshua Nichols, and Jeremiah Lowe. Vincent is a true freshman they're excited about long term but probably needs a year or two to adjust to the speed and strength of the college game. The other two in Nichols and Lowe are experienced college players who are best slotted in for depth roles.

The top three at this position have the potential to be really good for Michigan in 2026, but the lack of depth is what pushes it to 4th on this list for me.

Michigan linebacker Chase Taylor tackles Purdue running back Antonio Harris | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

#5: Linebacker

This position group has the same concern for me as the cornerbacks, it's not necessarily the starters that are the concern, but the lack of obvious depth. Chase Taylor is expected by many to have a good season, and he should be one of the starters. The other starter will be either Troy Bowles, Nathaniel Staehling, or Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng. Bowles and Owusu-Boateng are both talented and former highly ranked recruits. Neither one has played a ton yet in their college career but both have looked fairly good in their limited playing time thus far.

The big X-factor at the position for me is Nathaniel Staehling. He's a transfer linebacker from North Dakota State who racked up 74 tackles last year in his first year as a starter. Michigan was reportedly very glad they were able to secure his commitment in the transfer portal, but he's never done it at this level, in the Big Ten. If he ends up being as good as Michigan seems to think he is, this position group will likely rank higher on the list than I have them here.

As it stands, Michigan has four players who all look like they can be good for them this season, but none of them have actually done it yet at this high of a level. It's a big make or break position for this defense next season, and that's why it ranks #5 for me on this list.

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