A rare back-to-back week of the Streamable Defenses of the Week. Part of my motivation to get an article out this week was so I could highlight the fact that the Cleveland Browns were one of our suggestions last week! Just kidding; kind of. We’re getting down to the nitty gritty with playoffs beginning in most leagues next week (Week 15.) Getting those added bonus points from a streamable defense this week could be the difference between a playoff berth or packing it up for the season. With that being said, let’s see what Week 14 has to offer us!
I’m one to never invest a high draft stock into team defenses. I play the waiver wire every single week to find my D/ST for the upcoming week. Due to this, I find myself never drafting a defense and waiting for just before the start of Week 1 to grab my first defense of the season. This is where this series comes into play. Every week I will be suggesting my favorite three team defenses that are regularly available on waiver wires across most formats. I will also keep a running total of how my selections measure up across the season below.
The premise of this article is to bring forth three streamable defenses that fantasy football players should look to use for that respective week. To qualify for this series, defenses must be owned in less than 40-percent of Yahoo and/or ESPN leagues. At least one of the suggested defenses will be owned in less than 10-percent of Yahoo and/or ESPN leagues to cater to every fantasy player. You can find last week’s results below and previous week’s results at the bottom of this article.
The Seattle Seahawks were our top suggestion a week ago as they played the Los Angeles Rams. They scored eight fantasy points behind four sacks and two interceptions. The Cleveland Browns may have put up the biggest defensive fantasy stat line of the season last week with 30 points against the Houston Texans. They were owned in less than 10-percent of leagues last week. They held the Texans to just 12 points while scoring two defensive touchdowns. The Atlanta Falcons did not play as well as I thought they would, recording just one fantasy point.
Week 13 Results
Seattle Seahawks at Los Angeles Rams - 8 Points
Cleveland Browns at Houston Texans - 30 Points
Atlanta Falcons vs. Pittsburgh Steelers - 1 Point
Overall Results
Top Suggestion - 99 Points (DST6)
Middle Suggestion - 109 points (DST3)
Under 10-Percent Owned - 99 Points (DST6)
Week 14 Suggestions
Las Vegas Raiders at Los Angeles Rams (Owned in 12% of Yahoo and 7.2% of ESPN Leagues)
There aren’t many options this week that I’m in love with and that’s the hardship of streaming defenses. There will be some weeks where finding the right selection would be more challenging than the next. That’s where we land. The matchup is there as the Rams have allowed the third most fantasy points to opposing defenses. The Raiders are riding a three game win streak heading into Thursday’s contest. It’s likely not probable, but it’s not impossible that the Raiders could wind up with a playoff berth. It would take a bunch of things to happen that would be out of their control, but one thing that they control is winning the games they play. Their defense will continue to come out on a mission as the team looks to bounce back from that 2-7 start. They haven’t scored under six fantasy points in three straight weeks and allowed just 14 points last week to Justin Herbert and the Los Angeles Chargers. Let’s hope for a big week this week.
Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Baltimore Ravens (Owned in 29% of Yahoo and 44.5% of ESPN Leagues)
Lamar Jackson has a PCL strain and will more than likely miss this week against the Steelers. That means Tyler Huntley will start for the Ravens. Now, Huntley is one of the better backups in football but he’s far from Jackson. This offense is very limited weapon wise and without the play making abilities of Lamar, should be stagnant. Although the Steelers as a whole are not having that great of a season, they still have plenty of star power on the defensive side of the ball; namely T.J. Watt. In their last two games the Steelers have allowed 17 and 16 points respectively and even held a decent Saints’ offense to just ten points a few weeks back. Huntley did throw an interception last week after taking over for Jackson. Being a backup in the NFL is hard enough but having to do it with Watt in your face play-in-and-play-out makes it even harder.
Arizona Cardinals vs. New England Patriots (Owned in 10% of Yahoo and 9.8% of ESPN Leagues)
This one is strictly matchup based and availability based. We don’t have many options in the under 10-percent owned section this week and the Cardinals are the best we have to offer. There was a stretch during the season where the Cardinals’ defense looked competent but have since slid back into their unproductive ways. The Patriots have allowed the seventh most fantasy points to opposing defenses. In four of their last seven games, the Cardinals’ defense has recorded at least three sacks.
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