What a week it was for the streamable defenses of the week. With some big performances, we moved into the top ten with our weekly middle suggestion and crawled out of the basement with our under 10-percent owned suggestion with a huge performance by the Philadelphia Eagles. We’re still a top five overall DST with our top suggestion. I would have loved for our results from a week ago to be reversed because we would be flirting with DST1 numbers, but I do enjoy a big performance with the under 10-percent owned suggestion. Let’s build off Week 8 with a big Week 9!
If you’re anything like me, you don’t draft a defense, or wait until your very last pick. I always find it more important to use earlier selections on position players as you can find great value on the waiver wire each week for defenses. I will also keep a running total of my top, second and below 10-percent results and provide a ranking of where my results rank according to other defenses throughout the season.
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 Bengals had a surprising loss to the Jets in Week 8. They allowed 34 points to the Mike White led Jets, but did record two interceptions, a fumble recovery and two sacks. The Seahawks’ defense had a good outing going for 13 fantasy points by allowing the Jaguars just seven points with a sack and an interception. The Philadelphia Eagles were the big winners of the week, allowing six points to the Lions while recording six sacks, a fumble recovery and a defensive touchdown. They totalled 21 fantasy points.
Week 8 Results
Cincinnati Bengals at New York Jets - 7 points
Seattle Seahawks vs. Jacksonville Jaguars - 13 points
Philadelphia Eagles at Detroit Lions - 21 points
Overall Results
Top Suggestion - 66 points (DST4)
Middle Suggestion - 56 points (DST9)
Under 10% Owned - 35 points (DST25)
Week 9 Suggestions
Las Vegas Raiders at New York Giants - Owned in 10% of Yahoo and 11% of ESPN leagues
After a week filled with great streaming options, we hit a rough patch here in Week 9. The Raiders’ defense has played a bit inspired since the departure of former head coach Jon Gruden. In the two games without Gruden, the Raiders have victories over the Broncos and Eagles, where they’ve allowed 46 combined points, seven sacks, three interceptions and three fumble recoveries. The Giants are a bit hot after playing the Kansas City Chiefs close, but they still have allowed the 13th most fantasy points to opposing fantasy defenses.
Miami Dolphins vs. Houston Texans - Owned in 14% of Yahoo and 11.6% of ESPN leagues
Man, you know the options are rough when the Dolphins’ make an appearance. The only reason the Dolphins are getting mentioned is because they have the Houston Texans this week, who have allowed the third most fantasy points to opposing defenses. They did just allow 26 points to Josh Allen and the Buffalo Billss but did not record a sack, interception or fumble recovery. I guess it’s promising that they held the Bills in check. They should be able to contain the Davis Mills led Houston Texans in Week 9.
New York Giants vs. Las Vegas Raiders - Owned in 3% of Yahoo and 3.7% of ESPN leagues
Something happened to this New York Giants’ defense recently and I’m not sure what. Anyhow, they allowed just 20 points to the Patrick Mahomes led Kansas City Chiefs on Monday Night Football and held the Carolina Panthers to just three points the week prior. They have a combined eight sacks, two interceptions and a fumble recovery over those two games as well. They will be hosting Derek Carr and the Las Vegas Raiders this week. Let’s hope for our sake they can keep them in check.
Week 1 Results
Carolina Panthers vs. New York Jets - 9 points
Minnesota Vikings at Cincinnati Bengals - 5 points
Jacksonville Jaguars at Houston Texans - -3 points
Week 2 Results
Chicago Bears vs. Cincinnati Bengals - 19 points
New Orleans Saints at Carolina Panthers - 6 points
Arizona Cardinals vs. Minnesota Vikings - 1 point
Week 3 Results
Carolina Panthers at Houston Texans - 8 points
Las Vegas Raiders vs. Miami Dolphins - 4 points
Tennessee Titans vs. Indianapolis Colts - 3 points
Week 4 Results
Cincinnati Bengals vs. Jacksonville Jaguars - 1 point
Tennessee Titans at New York Jets - 3 points
Dallas Cowboys vs. Carolina Panthers - 8 points
Week 5 Results
Minnesota Vikings vs. Detroit Lions - 9 points
Dallas Cowboys vs. New York Giants - 11 points
Atlanta Falcons vs. New York Jets - 5 points
Week 6 Results
Green Bay Packers at Chicago Bears - 7 points
Cincinnati Bengals at Detroit Lions - 7 points
Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Miami Dolphins - 3 points
Week 7 Results
Las Vegas Raiders vs. Philadelphia Eagles - 6 points
Washington Football Team at Green Bay Packers - 7 points
New York Jets at New England Patriots - -3 points