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 11 Results
Minnesota (vs Denver) - 2 sacks, 1 INT
Brandon Allen and the Broncos actually built a 20-0 lead in this one
A Look Ahead: BYE @SEA DET @LAC GB - Maybe Week 15 if Philip Rivers is still spray interceptions all over the field
Dallas (at Detroit) - 3 sacks
Jeff Driskel and the Lions put up more of a fight than expected
A Look Ahead: @NE BUF @CHI LAR @PHI - Week 14 will be worth a look, and perhaps Week 15 if Week 14 goes well
Oakland (vs Cincinnati) - 5 sacks, 1 fumble recovery, 1 INT
Ryan Finley looked like the 32nd best starting quarterback in the league, but it didn’t result in an avalanche of turnovers because the game was surprisingly close throughout. Still a successful result
A Look Ahead: @NYJ @KC TEN JAX @LAC - Two good weeks in a row? Let’s try for three
New York Jets (at Washington) - 6 sacks, 1 INT
The Jets played with a lead and posted solid D/ST numbers for the second straight week
A Look Ahead: OAK @CIN MIA @BAL PIT - The Raiders are mostly safe on offense, but the Jets have good matchups in Weeks 13 and 14, so perhaps they’re worth a look
Buffalo (at Miami) - 7 sacks, 1 fumble recovery
Ryan Fitzpatrick will keep swinging no matter how long the odds are. The Bills pass rush took care of the rest
A Look Ahead: DEN @DAL BAL @PIT @NE - Brandon Allen might not be the worst starting quarterback in the league, but this is still a safe D/ST play
Shoulda, Coulda, Woulda
Atlanta (at Carolina) - 5 sacks, 4 INT, 1 fumble recovery, 3 points allowed
Just keep the Falcons on the road in the division with Raheem Morris and Jeff Ulbrich calling the defense and they’ll be fine
New Orleans (at Tampa Bay) - 2 sacks, 4 INT, 1 DEF TD
Even without Marshon Lattimore, the Saints defense was able to feast on Jameis Winston’s passes while he was playing from behind, in part thanks to OJ Howard
Cleveland (vs Pittsburgh) - 4 sacks, 4 INT
This one came at a cost, as Myles Garrett is suspended indefinitely. Mason Rudolph could be target against tougher defenses going forward
Kansas City (vs Los Angeles Chargers - Mexico City) - 2 sacks, 4 INT
Philip Rivers is paying off for D/ST’s like a rigged slot machine
Week 12 Candidates
**San Francisco, New England, Los Angeles Rams, Pittsburgh and Baltimore are assumed to be rostered**
New Orleans (vs Carolina)
The Saints defense came roaring back last week even without Marshon Lattimore. Kyle Allen’s confidence is shot and the Superdome crowd would love to push him over the edge this week
A Look Ahead: @ATL SF IND @TEN - No obvious plays here after the Falcons came back from the dead
Atlanta (vs Tampa Bay)
Speaking of those Falcons, Jameis Winston is deteriorating again and their defense has become unstoppable. When a D/ST strings together two good weeks in a row on the road and faces Winston next, you don’t ask questions.
A Look Ahead: NO CAR @SF JAX - If they keep posting good results, we’ll keep playing them
Oakland (at New York Jets)
The Raiders defense is rubbing two sticks together at some positions, but Maxx Crosby is the magnifying glass creating laser focus and they face the Jets this week. Worth a shot coming off of their two best weeks of the year despite the early game travel across the country east coast bias
A Look Ahead: @KC TEN JAX @LAC - We may come back to them in Week 16 if Philip Rivers hasn’t settled down in the INT column
Cleveland (vs Miami)
No Myles Garrett, but Cleveland is at home, coming off of their best defensive performance of the year and facing Ryan Fitzpatrick, that’s enough to draw interest
A Look Ahead: @PIT CIN @ARI BAL - If the Browns D/ST stays hot it will tempting to play them vs. Rudolph for Round 2 to get them for Week 14 against Cincinnati
Buffalo (vs Denver)
The Bills D/ST hasn’t had any huge outbursts this year, but they have come through against weak competition most of the time. Brandon Allen qualifies as weak, even if he outperformed Mason Rudolph and Kyle Allen in Week 11.
A Look Ahead: @DAL BAL @PIT @NE - There’s Mason Rudolph… and that’s the only matchup we’ll consider
Tennessee (vs Jacksonville)
The Titans have been a solid play most of the season on the strength of an active pass rush and only one game without a takeaway. This week they get a sometimes too aggressive Nick Foles and Jaguars run defense that must be cowering at the prospect of stopping Derrick Henry, which could create a perfect game script for their D/ST.
A Look Ahead: @IND @OAK HOU NO - We’ll move on after this week
Chicago (vs New York Giants)
How the mighty have fallen. The Bears D/ST is only a rent-a-defense, although one deserving consideration against a rookie quarterback. They haven’t been a strong play since Week 4, but they have also had either a D/ST touchdown or at least two sacks+takeaways in every game this year
A Look Ahead: @DET DAL @GB KC - Jeff Driskel is quickly fading off of our quarterback to target list and we won’t play Bears in the fantasy playoffs
Detroit (at Washington)
The Lions defense has been defanged, but they are also facing Dwayne Haskins at home.
A Look Ahead: CHI @MIN TB @DEN - This is actually a favorable schedule if the defense can heat up and Matthew Stafford comes back
Week 13/Playoffs Preemptive Pickups
Carolina (vs Washington)
New York Jets (at Cincinnati)
Philadelphia (at Miami)
Jacksonville (vs Tampa Bay)
Dallas (vs Buffalo)
Week 14
Cleveland (vs Cincinnati)
Green Bay (vs Washington)
New York Jets (vs Miami)
Houston (vs Denver)
Dallas (at Chicago)
Week 15
Philadelphia (at Washington)
Kansas City (vs Denver)
Green Bay (vs Chicago)
New York Giants (vs Miami)
Week 16
Kansas City (at Chicago)
Houston (at Tampa Bay)
New York Giants (at Washington)