Welcome to the Stream Team. You’re here because not only did you pick actual players instead of a defense in your fantasy draft, but you also love hunting the right defensive matchups … If you’re here for any other reason, there’s an X in the top right corner of the screen. Get out.
In Week 1, we went after the Raiders, the Jets, and the Bills. Those defenses finished as DST5, DST10, and DST14. That’s pretty good compared to the people who used real draft picks to get the Texans, Rams, and Broncos, who finished as DST32, DST25, and DST21. Again, we’re all smart, and they’re all dumb.
I’m looking at defenses that are rostered in less than 25 percent of leagues on Yahoo! Fantasy. I list the defense, who and where they’re playing, the offense’s team total (per DraftKings), and their roster percentage. These are the four defenses you should be targeting in Week 2.Â
Carolina Panthers
- at Atlanta Falcons
- Falcons TT O/U: 21.5 (12th lowest)
- Rostered in 2% of leagues
The Panthers defense is not bad. Sure, they just let up 59 points, but that was to a brutalizing Bears offense. We’re not going to let a freakish performance like that scare us away. This week, they get an infinitely easier matchup against the Falcons.Â
Last week, Atlanta started Cooper Rush at quarterback, and he couldn’t push the ball downfield … and it looks like he’s going to get the start again in Week 2. We’d prefer it was Tua, but that’s really just picking nits because they’re both terrible.
Rush took four sacks and threw two interceptions (one was a pick-six) against the Steelers last week, and Pittsburgh ended up being DST1. We have the opportunity to chase that dragon with a defense that we’re picking up off waivers.Â
If you can get the Panthers, they play the Browns in Week 3 … So you can hang on to them for another week, and we’ll see you again in Week 4.
San Francisco 49ers
- vs. Miami Dolphins
- Dolphins TT O/U: 16.5 (second lowest)
- Rostered in 30% of leagues
No one picked the 49ers in a draft because their first game was against the Rams, and we also didn’t know how healthy their playmakers were going to be.
In Week 2, they’re playing the most talent-poor offenses in the NFL, and we know that both Fred Warner and Nick Bosa look just as healthy as they ever have. This is super easy: if you have priority on waivers (in a week that’s not super strong waiver-wise), this should be your target.
Not much else needs to be said about this. We’re fading the Dolphins every single week. Maybe we’ll get burned at some point, but probably not.Â
The 49ers play the Cardinals in Week 3. If you don’t have Trey McBride on your team, you’re probably good to hold onto them for another week as well.
Green Bay Packers
- at New York Jets
- Jets TT O/U: 19.5 (eighth lowest)
- Rostered in 17% of leagues
The Packers defense definitely stinks without Micah Parsons; there’s no doubt about that … But they’re not as bad as the 39 points they allowed would make you think. If you didn’t watch that game, the Vikings had three scoring drives that were a combined 43 yards.Â
One was after a 68-yard kick return. One was because a Jordan Love interception got returned to the 14-yard line. The other one was because Jordan Love got strip-sacked and Andrew Van Ginkle somehow returned it to the one-yard line. It’s not really fair to put those 21 points completely on the defense.Â
As for the Jets: their offense was functional in Week 1, which is the first time that you’ve been able to say that since Week 1 last year. However, they were also playing a terrible Titans defense that wasn’t able to affect the offense with any sort of consistency.Â
The Packers play the Falcons in Week 3, so unless Michael Penix gets the green light, you’ll be solid for another week.Â
Kansas City Chiefs
- vs. Indianapolis ColtsÂ
- Colts TT O/U: 20.5 (ninth lowest)
- Rostered in 19% of leagues
This one is a little scary, and I totally understand if you want to stay away. The Broncos offense was unbelievably terrible in Week 1, and most of their problems really felt like they were self-inflicted … But the Chiefs defense did some pretty good things, and they were things that should translate to Week 2.Â
There’s no doubt that the Colts offense has a big upside, especially with Jonathan Taylor’s addiction to scoring multiple touchdowns every game … which he just did to the Ravens in Week 1. However, Baltimore was playing without Nnamdi Madubuike, their studly defensive tackle who makes the defense really effective … and that defense ended up allowingÂ
What you’re banking on here is that Daniel Jones continues to look like Daniel Jones, and that he doesn’t end up looking like Indiana Jones. The Chiefs should have an easier time disrupting the run game than Baltimore did, and Spagnuolo’s weirdo blitzes should lead to Jones making bad decisions.Â
… But if you want to stay away from Jonathan Taylor, no one is going to blame you. Just remember, the Chiefs are playing the Dolphins in Week 3, so you’ll be set for a couple of weeks.
One last thing:
Keep an eye out for teams who are dropping the Texans. They had a rough showing against the Bills in Week 1, and they get to play the Bengals in Week 2. If someone is a big enough ding-dong to draft them, they’ll be a big enough ding-dong to drop them. The same goes for the Broncos and the Patriots.
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