Due to the successful seasons of Ajax and PSV, several players from these teams are present in this list. In addition, some players from Feyenoord, the third-placed team, had incredible seasons that made the presence in the upper part of this list possible.
| Player | Rating | Defense | Minutes Played | Team |
| Thom Haye | 8.72 | Back 5 | 780 | Heerenveen |
| Dušan Tadić | 8.62 | Back 4 | 2763 | Ajax |
| Orkun Kökçü | 8.58 | Back 4 | 2624 | Feyenoord |
| Joey Veerman | 8.44 | Back 4 | 1510 | Heerenveen |
| Joey Veerman | 8.36 | Back 4 | 1033 | PSV Eindhoven |
| Luis Sinisterra | 8.32 | Back 4 | 2405 | Feyenoord |
| Ibrahim Sangaré | 8.19 | Back 4 | 2416 | PSV Eindhoven |
| Rai Vloet | 8.01 | Back 4 | 900 | Heracles Almelo |
| Antony | 8.00 | Back 4 | 1724 | Ajax |
| Cody Gakpo | 7.92 | Back 4 | 1635 | PSV Eindhoven |
| Edson Álvarez | 7.82 | Back 4 | 2231 | Ajax |
| Ryan Gravenberch | 7.82 | Back 4 | 2205 | Ajax |
| Jesper Karlsson | 7.76 | Back 4 | 2730 | AZ Alkmaar |
| Steven Berghuis | 7.70 | Back 4 | 2389 | Ajax |
| Iñigo Córdoba | 7.48 | Back 4 | 1042 | Go Ahead Eagles |
| Mario Götze | 7.48 | Back 4 | 2130 | PSV Eindhoven |
| Fredrik Aursnes | 7.43 | Back 4 | 2393 | Feyenoord |
| Fredrik Midtsjø | 7.43 | Back 4 | 2206 | AZ Alkmaar |
| Zian Flemming | 7.42 | Back 4 | 1055 | Fortuna Sittard |
| Neraysho Kasanwirjo | 7.40 | Back 4 | 540 | Groningen |
| Guus Til | 7.37 | Back 4 | 2509 | Feyenoord |
| Luca de la Torre | 7.31 | Back 4 | 2505 | Heracles Almelo |
| Sondre Tronstad | 7.30 | Back 5 | 2558 | Vitesse |
| Olivier Boscagli | 7.28 | Back 4 | 456 | PSV Eindhoven |
| Adam Maher | 7.25 | Back 4 | 2664 | Utrecht |
| Younes Namli | 7.25 | Back 4 | 632 | Sparta Rotterdam |
| Jonathan Okita | 7.24 | Back 5 | 460 | NEC Nijmegen |
| Lasse Schöne | 7.18 | Back 4 | 1760 | NEC Nijmegen |
| Luuk Brouwers | 7.16 | Back 4 | 2155 | Go Ahead Eagles |
| Lasse Schöne | 7.14 | Back 5 | 1170 | NEC Nijmegen |
| Michal Sadílek | 7.10 | Back 4 | 2042 | Twente |
| Luuk Brouwers | 7.09 | Back 5 | 716 | Go Ahead Eagles |
| Ritsu Doan | 7.06 | Back 4 | 1356 | PSV Eindhoven |
| Jordy Clasie | 7.00 | Back 4 | 2329 | AZ Alkmaar |
| Quinten Timber | 7.00 | Back 4 | 2261 | Utrecht |
Conditions for the presented data:
– Minimum minutes played in the season: 450 minutes (equivalent to 5 full games) per type of defense played (Back 4 or Back 5);
– Relegation/Promotion play-off data excluded;
Data from FBref.