Unless most of the teams in your league carry a backup defense, more than half of the league should be available to you every week. Perhaps instead of playing one above average defense every week, regardless of matchup, we should instead target the widely available waiver wire defenses with the best matchups in any particular week? You can always make exceptions if your rent-a-defense gets hot - heck, you might find a team worth starting all year by accident. Even if you don't, good matchups will continue to get greater in number as more QBs get injured or yanked as the season goes on. You can steal some points from bad weather come December. Each week I'll list the startable fantasy defenses on most waiver wires and rank them.
Week 8 Results
Philadelphia (vs Dallas) - 1 safety, 4 sacks, 2 fumble recoveries, 1 DEF TD
Sometimes they go just the way we expect them to. Well, kind of. Ben Dinucci was overwhelmed, but he didn’t make any huge mistakes. He was steamrolled for a sack/fumble that was controversially called a touchdown even though another Eagle possibly recovered it while he was down.
A Look Ahead: BYE @NYG @CLE - The Eagles should be a better team in the second half of the year than they were in the first. In deeper leagues, they might be worth holding through the bye for the matchup with the Giants and they’ll be a viable desperation play in any given week.
Los Angeles Chargers (at Denver) - 2 sacks, 1 INT
This one was proceeding perfectly with the Chargers up 24-3 and then everything fell apart and Drew Lock found himself, leading an improbable comeback that included a touchdown on the last play of the game.
A Look Ahead: LV @MIA NYJ - The Chargers defense isn’t playing well enough to justify holding them through the Raiders and Dolphins matchup to get to feast on the Jets in Week 11, but that can change if Tua bombs in Arizona.
New England (at Buffalo) - 1 sack, 1 INT
Sometimes wind games are good for defenses, sometimes the opponent just runs successfully all day and they are bad for defenses.
A Look Ahead: @NYJ BAL @HOU - Consolation prize: A reason to watch Monday Night Football.
Green Bay (vs Minnesota) - 1 sack
The Packers defense couldn’t get off of the field vs. Dalvin Cook
A Look Ahead: @SF IND @JAX - Facing Nick Mullens on the road is still potentially attractive, but it could also blow up in our faces if the 49ers running game gets on track
Los Angeles Rams (at Miami) - 1 sack, 2 fumble recoveries
Sometimes in rent-a-defense, we have the wrong side of a game. This was one of the most glaring examples I can remember. Aaron Donald introduced himself to Tua Tagovailoa early in the game to the tune of a sack fumble, and then the well basically ran dry for the rest of the game.
A Look Ahead: BYE SEA @TB - Bye Bye.
New Orleans (at Chicago) - 5 sacks, 1 INT
Nick Foles is not good, but the Bears keep finding ways to stay in and even win games. The Saints D/ST did enough to be a modest fantasy success this week.
A Look Ahead: @TB SF ATL - We’ll come back to the Saints later this season.
Tennessee (at Cincinnati) - Nada. Zilch. Bupkis.
The Titans defense couldn’t sack Joe Burrow once despite facing four backup linemen who couldn’t play ahead of one of the worst offensive lines in the league. The Titans are tired.
A Look Ahead: CHI IND @BAL - Nick Foles is a good target for rent-a-defenses, but it’s difficult to have faith in the Titans D/ST right now.
Coulda, Shoulda, Woulda
Miami (vs Los Angeles Rams) - 2 sacks, 2 fumble recoveries, 2 INT, 1 DEF TD, 1 ST TD
Miami dared Jared Goff to beat them, and he didn’t come close. This should be the blueprint going forward and we might try to harness the strategy again when the Rams face aggressive-minded defenses on the other side of the bye. The Dolphins D/ST put up good results against the Jets, 49ers, and Jaguars, so this shouldn’t have been a complete surprise.
Dallas (at Philadelphia) - 4 sacks, 2 fumble recoveries, 2 INT
The Cowboys have a defense? They still lost by 14 despite this performance. They doubled their total takeaways on the year in one game and equalled their season high in sacks. This was probably a fluke, but also a reminder that playing a D/ST facing Carson Wentz can bear fruit.
Indianapolis (at Detroit) - 5 sacks, 1 fumble recovery, 1 INT, 1 DEF TD
The Colts D/ST has been excellent against poor opponents, but we didn’t consider the Lions a target for rent-a-defenses because of Matthew Stafford’s solid play. Stafford threw a pick six, the 22nd of his career, and the Colts talented front seven got pressure on him all day. The Colts D/ST is right up there with the Steelers for top D/ST of the season to date, depending on your scoring system.
Week 9 Candidates
**Pittsburgh, Baltimore, and Kansas City have great matchups but are assumed to be rostered**
Indianapolis (vs Baltimore)
The Colts have earned everyweek starting D/ST status until further notice. The Ravens may look like a bad D/ST matchup at first glance, but Lamar Jackson can be turnover prone when he’s under pressure.
A Look Ahead: @TEN GB TEN - It’s not the most promising schedule, but if the Colts harass Lamar Jackson into a good D/ST fantasy line this week, we’ll likely stick with them.
Miami (at Arizona)
The Dolphins defense broke out against the Rams and they have been a good D/ST four of the last five weeks. We’ll give them the benefit of the doubt against the Cardinals because that will fully establish them as an everyweek D/ST play.
A Look Ahead: LAC @DEN @NYJ - If the Dolphins are good this week, we’ll keep playing them until they let us down.
Seattle (at Buffalo)
Did you know: The Seahawks have multiple takeaways in six of seven games this year. Jamal Adams is back this week. Josh Allen is prone to turnover binges when he is playing from behind.
A Look Ahead: @LAR ARI @PHI - The Seahawks have set it and forget it potential if Adams return lights the fuse and Carlos Dunlap injects life into the pass rush.
Arizona (vs Miami)
Tua Tagovailoa got off to a rough start, then started making some throws, then barely threw the ball at all once the Dolphins opened up a lead. It’s possible that the Cardinals will expose his inexperience in this one if they can play from ahead. The Cardinals defense also came into the bye hot with at least two sacks and three takeaways in each of their last two games.
A Look Ahead: BUF @SEA @NE - If Josh Allen falters against Seattle, we could stick with Arizona next week
New England (at New York Jets)
The Patriots defense has been faltering as of late and the Chiefs D/ST didn’t give us a great D/ST line against the Jets last week, so this isn’t a slam dunk, but it’s still a very good choice.
A Look Ahead: BAL @HOU ARI - Probably moving on after this week.
Green Bay (at San Francisco) **Thursday**
The Packers have only forced one turnover in the last four games and notched only four sacks in the last three games. The 49ers owned them twice last year so there’s still a chance of the Packers being a dud on the road, but Nick Mullens will start, George Kittle is out, and the 49ers are down to two healthy running backs out of five.
A Look Ahead: JAX @IND CHI - The main reason to try the Packers this week is to get Jake Luton or Mike Glennon at Lambeau next week.
Washington (at New York Giants)
The Football Team defense has had great outings in two of their three NFC East games. While the one dud was against the Giants, Daniel Jones can always be counted on for a few miscues a game, and the Giants are going to be tired and beat up after a tight Monday night game vs. Tampa.
A Look Ahead: @DET CIN @DAL - If Washington’s pass rush heats up this week, we may stick with them against the Lions
Week 10 Preemptive Pickups
Philadelphia (at New York Giants)
New Orleans (vs San Francisco)
Green Bay (vs Jacksonville)
