2026 Positional Spending Rankings: Defensive Tackles

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To help pass the time from now until the start of training camp, we’ll be looking at where every team ranks in positional spending. All the offensive positions are in the book, so now we’re turning our attention to the defensive side of the ball and starting with defensive tackles. There’s been a big boom in spending here in recent years as teams continue to prize players who can affect the opposing quarterback. One note: rather than count dead money toward the positional groups, we will have it ranked separately in a post of its own. For example, Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa ‘s $55.4 million dead cap hit won’t count toward Miami’s quarterback spending, but it will be included in their league-leading $179 million dead cap figure. Here’s how the league’s defensive tackle rooms shake out from most expensive to least expensive: Resources: Salary information via Over The Cap Depth charts via OurLads Pro Football Focus grades 1 – New England Patriots: $60,461,453 Percentage of total cap: 20.07 percent 2025 rank: 11th Top cap hit: Milton Williams : $28,500,000 (9.46 percent) Other notable cap hit: Christian Barmore : $17,100,000 (5.68 percent) PFF grade: 63.1 (15th) Starters: Williams, Barmore, Cory Durden Key depth: Joshua Farmer , Eric Gregory , Jeremiah Pharms 2 – Kansas City Chiefs: $57,451,407 Percentage of total cap: 19.07 percent 2025 rank: 15th Top cap hit: Chris Jones , $44,850,000 (14.89 percent) PFF grade: 69.3 (9th) Starters: Jones, Khyiris Tonga Key depth: Peter Woods , Omarr Norman-Lott 3 – Washington Commanders: $54,847,936 Percentage of total cap: 18.21 percent 2025 rank: 7th Top cap hit: Daron Payne , $27,950,000 (9.28 percent) Other notable cap hit: Javon Kinlaw , $16,200,000 (5.38 percent) PFF grade: 59.7 (21st) Starters: Payne, Kinlaw, Tim Settle Key depth: Jer’Zhan Newton , Charles Omenihu , Deatrich Wise , Shy Tuttle 4 – Cincinnati Bengals: $53,035,600 Percentage of total cap: 17.61 percent 2025 rank: 22nd Top cap hit: Dexter Lawrence , $15,333,333 (5.09 percent) Other notable cap hits: B.J. Hill , $12,116,666 (4.02 percent), Jonathan Allen , $9,750,000 (3.24 percent), Tedarrell Slaton , $9,160,000 (3.04 percent) PFF grade: 64.4 (14th) Starters: Lawrence, Allen Key depth: Hill, Slaton, Kris Jenkins Jr. , McKinnley Jackson 5 – Seattle Seahawks: $48,839,920 Percentage of total cap: 16.22 percent 2025 rank: 12th Top cap hit: Leonard Williams , $29,636,250 (9.84 percent) PFF grade: 74.5 (4th) Starters: Williams, Byron Murphy II , Jarran Reed Key depth: Mike Morris , Rylie Mills 6 – Baltimore Ravens: $48,759,694 Percentage of total cap: 16.19 percent 2025 rank: 17th Top cap hit: Nnamdi Madubuike , $29,872,059 (9.92 percent) PFF grade: 61.3 (17th) Starters: Madubuike, Travis Jones , Broderick Washington Key depth: Calais Campbell , John Jenkins 7 – Indianapolis Colts: $46,298,333 Percentage of total cap: 15.37 percent 2025 rank: 4th Top cap hit: DeForest Buckner , $26,600,000 (8.83 percent) Other notable cap hit: Grover Stewart , $14,250,000 (4.73 percent) PFF grade: 65.7 (12th) Starters: Buckner, Stewart Key depth: Colby Wooden , Adetomiwa Adebawore , Jerry Tillery 8 – Carolina Panthers: $45,400,056 Percentage of total cap: 15.07 percent 2025 rank: 1st Top cap hit: Tershawn Wharton , $18,643,333 (6.19 percent) Other notable cap hit: Derrick Brown , $10,952,000 (3.64 percent) PFF grade: 58 (24th) Starters: Brown, Wharton, Bobby Brown Key depth: Lee Hunter , Cam Jackson , LaBryan Ray 9 – Tampa Bay Buccaneers: $44,553,227 Percent…