LSU Football: 10 NFL Teams That Would Start Mo Claiborne and Tryann Mathieu

Defense wins championships, and there isn't a better defensive unit in all of college football right now than LSU's.

As good as this defense is, it all starts with the talented cornerback duo of Mo Claiborne and Tyrann Mathieu.

Both Claiborne and Mathieu will likely be first-round NFL picks when they decide to declare for the NFL Draft. And both will also likely be starters in the NFL at some point in their careers.

But would they start in the NFL right now?

Let's take a look at 10 NFL teams that the duo of Claiborne and Mathieu would start for right now.

St. Louis Rams

The St. Louis Rams are a bad football team, and it certainly doesn't help that their secondary is among the weakest in the NFL.

This unit has given up 28 or more points in three of their first four games of the season. The lone game they didn't give up that amount, they surrendered 17 points to a below-average Washington Redskins offense with Rex Grossman under center.

The Rams' defensive backfield has given up huge numbers to Michael Vick, Eli Manning and Joe Flacco this season.

Bradley Fletcher and Justin King just are not getting it done.

Carolina Panthers

The Carolina Panthers' secondary has actually posted some decent numbers this season, but some of them are quite deceiving.

Part of the reason for that is because Carolina had the luxury of going up against Blaine Gabbert in his first NFL start in Week 3, and then Jay Cutler and a Bears team that rushed for 200-plus yards in Week 4.

Take that away and this unit got torched by Kevin Kolb and Aaron Rodgers in Weeks 1 and 2.

Chris Gamble and Captain Munnerlyn (yes, that's his real name) have recorded a combined two interceptions this year, which is the third lowest number in the NFL amongst secondaries.

Miami Dolphins

When both Vontae Davis and Will Allen went down with injuries earlier this year, the Miami Dolphins secondary went from average to pure garbage.

This unit has given up over 1,200 yards through the air in just four games this season. They have recorded just two interceptions, compared to being victim to nine touchdown passes from opposing teams.

This unit is so bad that even their own quarterback, Chad Henne, would top 300 yards against them.

Claiborne and Mathieu would be the best possible thing for this team right now.

Oakland Raiders

Many people anticipated the Oakland Raiders' secondary to lose a step with the loss of the ever-so-talented Nnamdi Asomugha.

But they never expected it to be this poor.

The Raiders' secondary has given up an average of 274 yards per game through four games this season. They allow the third most passes per game against them, but only have come up with three interceptions thus far.

Mathieu and Claiborne aren't quite as good as Nnamdi Asomugha, but either of them would help this organization get over the loss of Nnamdi.

Indianapolis Colts

The absence of Peyton Manning might very well be the reason that the Indianapolis Colts are struggling so greatly this season.

But having a below-average secondary certainly doesn't help their case.

Jacob Lacey and Jerraud Powers could be the least-known secondary in the NFL, and for the right reason. The Colts have allowed opposing quarterbacks to complete 68 percent of passes this season through four NFL games.

That number would drop at least five percentage points with Claiborne and/or Mathieu in the secondary.

New York Giants

Before the injuries to Terrell Thomas and rookie Prince Amukamara, this unit was looking pretty strong heading into this season.

But those injuries have made this secondary into one of the weakest in the NFL, which would make Claiborne and Mathieu a lock to start here right now.

Corey Webster and Aaron Ross are by no means an All-Star combination.

Chicago Bears

The Chicago Bears have traditionally been known as one of the top defensive units in the NFL. And that is still the case this year, but it is the defensive front and linebackers that stand out, not so much the secondary.

Charles Tillman and Tim Jennings have been nothing short of awful thus far this year for the Bears. The team's secondary has given up over 1,200 yards through the air in the first four games this season. That is an average of over 300 yards per game.

The Bears' secondary have only picked off three passes this season and are allowing opposing quarterbacks to complete 67 percent of their passes.

San Francisco 49ers

The 49ers defense has looked solid thus far this season, but any defense would look good with Patrick Willis manning the middle.

This secondary, however, has not helped.

Carlos Rogers is a solid NFL cornerback, but his best days might be behind him. On the other side, Tarell Brown is way out of his element starting at cornerback for an NFL team.

This unit has surrendered close to 1,200 yards through four games this season, which makes it more than obvious that Claiborne and Mathieu would fit right in.

Denver Broncos

Champ Bailey is still one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL despite getting up there in age. But when he went down with an injury earlier this season, this secondary instantly became one of the weakest in the NFL.

Without Bailey holding down the cornerback reins, the Broncos are left with Cassius Vaughn and Andre Goodman. That is a step below atrocious.

We all saw what Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers did to this secondary this past weekend. Chances are that wouldn't have happened with Mathieu and Claiborne in the defensive backfield. That's a fact.

New England Patriots

Perhaps Devin McCourtey's rookie season was a fluke because there isn't a single secondary in the NFL that looks even as close to as pathetic as the New England Patriots' defensive backfield has looked thus far this year.

New England has given up 1,475 yards through the air in four games this season. That is an average of 369 passing yards per game, which is lightly put, flat-out pathetic.

Opposing quarterbacks have completed 66 percent of their passes against this secondary this year. They have made the likes of Ryan Fitzpatrick and Chad Henne look like All-Pro quarterbacks this season.

Mo Claiborne and Tyrann Mathieu would instantly help this group improve on those numbers.