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.
**Indianapolis, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco, New England, and Tampa Bay have great matchups but assumed to be rostered**
Week 4 Results
Tampa Bay (vs Los Angeles Chargers) - 2 sacks, 1 fumble recovery, 1 INT
Justin Herbert surrounded by a bunch of UDFAs just throws touchdowns to all of them. The Bucs still did fine by Week 4’s low D/ST scoring standards, but we were hoping for more.
A Look Ahead: @CHI GB @LV - The Bucs D has done enough this year to merit a start against Nick Foles on Thursday.
Los Angeles Rams (vs New York Giants) - 5 sacks, 1 INT, 9 pts allowed
This qualifies as a hit by Week 4 standards. The Rams kept harassing Daniel Jones in a familiar scene for Giants fans this year.
A Look Ahead: @WAS @SF CHI - The Rams D/ST is a top pick this week with Dwayne Haskins up on the schedule.
Denver (at New York Jets) - 6 sacks
You’ll take it, but it was the Jets - Pierre Desir really - that were the play from this Trashball Thursday matchup.
A Look Ahead: @NE MIA KC - If Jarrett Stidham is starting - and he should - then we’ll take a longer look at this one.
Green Bay (vs Atlanta) - 4 sacks
The Packers dominated this game but they didn’t force any turnovers as they cruised to victory
A Look Ahead: BYE @TB @HOU - We’ll come back to them in a few weeks.
Seattle (at Miami) - 1 sack, 2 INT
This was more of a nip and tuck affair than the score implied. Ryan Fitzpatrick did throw a couple of picks and fail to finish drives with touchdowns, opening up the possibility of Tua Tagovailoa starting sooner than later.
A Look Ahead: MIN BYE @ARI - If the Seahawks can jump out to a lead at home, the turnovers could come in bunches. Consider sticking with them despite the so-so performance in Miami.
Houston (vs Minnesota) - 3 sacks
Minnesota was a slightly better play in this matchup with 3 sacks and a fumble recovery. The Texans run defense is so poor that it will be difficult for them to have a big defensive game.
A Look Ahead: JAX @TEN GB - No thanks.
Arizona (at Carolina) - 1 INT
The Cardinals looked like one of the NFC’s little sisters in this thorough beating at Carolina. The good defensive game vs. Washington is looking like the exception not the rule.
A Look Ahead: @NYJ @DAL SEA - Do we start a slumping defense because they are facing Joe Flacco?
Coulda, Shoulda, Woulda
Kansas City (vs New England) - 2 sacks, 1 fumble recovery, 3 INT, 1 DEF TD
This was both an easy and hard call after Cam Newton was declared out with covid. The Patriots offense was going to a vulnerable backup quarterback, but if the game was postponed, then you’d be left with a zero.
Philadelphia (at San Francisco) - 5 sacks, 1 fumble recovery, 2 INT, 1 DEF TD
Nick Mullens went from a backup playing like a starter (thanks Giants defense) to a backup playing like a backup that needed to get benched.
New York Jets (vs Denver) - 3 INT, 1 DEF TD
Pierre Desir had a pick six and he had a touchdown bounce off of his face. Adam Gase is still the Jets head coach.
Week 5 Candidates
**Indianapolis, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco, New England, and Tampa Bay have great matchups but assumed to be rostered**
Kansas City (vs Las Vegas)
The Chiefs D/ST was a consistent, but modest producer heading into a great matchup against Brian Hoyer and Jarrett Stidham. Derek Carr is a much better passer than either of them, but he had two picks in each of the blowout losses to the Chiefs last year, and this defense is arguably better.
A Look Ahead: @BUF @DEN NYJ - The Josh Allen matchup could be a good one if they get him out of his comfort zone and then you get Denver and the Jets. We’re riding the Chiefs for a while.
Seattle (vs Minnesota)
The hope here is that the Seahawks can establish a big lead on the Vikings and force Kirk Cousins to flail. That could create a shootout and Seattle is definitely risky in leagues with points and yards allowed scoring, but they could also have a good week playing with a lead at home like they did against Dallas in Week 3.
A Look Ahead: BYE @ARI SF - You’ll have to look elsewhere next week, but we could come back to the Seahawks later this year.
Arizona (at New York Jets)
Whoever said we won’t have Joe Flacco to kick around anymore was wrong. It looks like he’s in line to start against the Cardinals this week. Arizona’s defense was feeble against the Panthers last week, but there’s something irresistible about starting the defense facing Flacco the Jet.
A Look Ahead: SEA BYE MIA - This could be the last time we consider the Cardinals this year.
Dallas (vs New York Giants)
The Cowboys defense is horrible, yes, yes, but they have sack artists on the edge and they are facing Daniel Jones, who is doing his best pinata impression this year. If Dallas can actually stake their defense to a lead, then we might see a lot of candy and treats for teams that try their D/ST out for a spin this week.
A Look Ahead: ARI @WAS @PHI - If Kyler Murray is still slumping and the Cowboys offense plays mostly mistake free football this week, the Cowboys might have some legs.
Cleveland (vs Indianapolis)
The Browns have actually been a Top 10 D/ST this year with multiple sacks and at least one takeaway in every game, and at least three sacks and three takeaways in each of the last two. If the Colts can play with a lead, they won’t expose Philip Rivers and they might play a clean offensive game, but just the possibility of Rivers throwing with reckless abandon makes this an exciting play.
A Look Ahead: @PIT @CIN LV - If the Browns are good this week we might absorb the Pittsburgh matchup to get the Bengals and Raiders.
Week 6 Preemptive Pickups
It's thin, y'all
Los Angeles Chargers (vs New York Jets)
Tennessee (vs Houston)
New York Giants (vs Washington)