#364 The Guard Tier List | 28 Different Guards RANKED

From I Suck At Jiu Jitsu Show by Josh McKinney

March 5, 2026 · 1h 19m

About this episode

In this episode, Josh McKinney ranks 28 different Jiu-Jitsu guards from F Tier to SS Tier based on their effectiveness in high-level competition.

I ranked 28 different guards in Jiu-Jitsu from F Tier to SS Tier based on real effectiveness at the highest levels of grappling. Which guards are actually worth learning… and which ones are a complete waste of time? In this video I break down the best guards in Jiu Jitsu, the most overrated guards, and the positions that still dominate modern gi and no-gi competition. ⚠️ Some of these rankings may make you mad. Jiu-Jitsu for Imbeciles, feat. Rob Biernacki(FREE): https://www.bjjmentalmodels.com/isuck sportshygiene.com Promo Code “ISUCK” Datsusara 10% OFF with Promo Code “ISUCK”: https://www.dsgear.com/ The Competitor’s Journey: https://www.simplifyingjiujitsu.com/comp 0:00 Intro 0:16 I Ranked Every Guard in Jiu-Jitsu 3:32 Criteria for the Tier List 9:21 Quarter Guard 12:17 Donkey Guard / Reverse Closed Guard 17:04 X Guard 20:06 Lockdown 22:55 Knee Shield 23:54 Coyote Guard 25:50 Deep Half Guard 28:04 K Guard 29:31 Single Leg X Guard (SLX) 33:03 Seated Guard (Sit-Up / Koala Guard) 34:12 Reverse De La Riva (RDLR) 35:35 De La Riva (DLR) 37:32 Spider Guard 39:38 Collar Sleeve Guard 41:16 Lapel Guards (Overview) 41:40 Shallow Lapel Guards (early lapel / lapel lasso / lapel spider)…

People in this episode

Host: Josh McKinney

Guest: Rob Biernacki

Topics covered

Jiu-Jitsu
guard rankings
grappling techniques
competition strategies
effective guards

Keywords

Jiu-Jitsu
guard tier list
grappling
effective guards
overrated guards
competition
techniques

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: BJJ Mental Models, Simplifying Jiu Jitsu

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