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.
**Buffalo and Dallas are assumed to be rostered**
Week 10 Results
Tampa Bay (at Washington) - 5 sacks, 1 fumble recovery
Not bad considering that the Bucs were behind for basically the entire game. Washington is still an offense we want to pick on with D/ST matchups
A Look Ahead: NYG @ATL @IND - The Giants are too and we should expect a bounceback game for Tom Brady
Baltimore (vs Miami) **Thursday** - 4 sacks
We had the wrong side of this one as Greg Roman could not figure out how to slow down the Dolphins blitz-based attack
A Look Ahead: @CHI CLE @PIT - The Ravens D/ST hasn’t hit yet this year, so we shouldn’t expect that to change this week.
Tennessee (vs New Orleans) - 4 sacks, 1 fumble recovery
The Titans D/ST cooled off after a three-game fantasy production streak, but we’ll take it.
A Look Ahead: HOU @NE BYE - This is why you played the Titans in Week 10
Cleveland (at New England) - 2 sacks
We had the wrong side of this one as the Patriots defense smothered the Browns once they switched to a pass heavy approach
A Look Ahead: DET @BAL BYE - That’s ok because we were really looking at Week 11 when we chose the Browns last week.
Dallas (vs Atlanta) - 2 sacks, 3 INT, 1 ST TD, 3 pts allowed
The #1 D/ST of the week rounded back into form right down to the Trevon Diggs interception
A Look Ahead: @KC LV @NO - It’s the Chiefs on the road, but the Cowboys D/ST have been a top 2-3 D/ST and they are difficult to drop
Denver (vs Philadelphia) - 1 sack, 1 INT
Another matchup that we had the wrong side of the Broncos woke up from their great Week 9 dream to the reality of the mediocre team that they really are
A Look Ahead: BYE LAC @KC - Bye Bye
Shoulda, Coulda, Woulda
Miami (vs Baltimore) - 4 sacks, 1 fumble recovery, 1 INT, 1 DEF TD
Xavien Howard’s fumble return helped make the Dolphins D/ST night as they returned to their aggressive ways
San Francisco (vs Los Angeles Rams) - 2 sacks, 2 INT, 1 DEF TD
When in doubt, remember that Kyle Shanahan owns Sean McVay. Matthew Stafford’s pick six was really on Tyler Higbee, but Stafford didn’t play well by any measure.
Green Bay (vs Seattle) - 3 sacks, 2 INT, 0 pts allowed
When in doubt, remember that Russell Wilson has never won in Green Bay
Philadelphia (at Denver) - 1 sack, 1 fumble recovery, 1 DEF TD
It wasn’t a banner day for the Eagles defense in sacks or takeaways, but Darius Slay fumble return for a score as Teddy Bridgewater looked on won’t be forgotten any time soon.
Week 11 Candidates
**Buffalo and Dallas are assumed to be rostered**
Miami (at New York Jets)
After the Dolphins unleashed the blitzes against the Ravens, it will be fun to see what they do to Zach Wilson or Mike White.
A Look Ahead: CAR NYG BYE - We probably don’t want to pick on Cam Newton, but if the Dolphins stay hot this week, we’ll consider it.
Carolina (vs Washington)
Taylor Heinicke and the Football Team won a matchup with the defending Super Bowl champs, but they might have more trouble with a Panthers team that was revived by the addition of Cam Newton.
A Look Ahead: @MIA BYE ATL - We will stick with the Panthers D/ST as long as they do us right this week
New England (at Atlanta) **Thursday**
These two teams could not be going in more different directions heading into a Thursday night reprisal of one of the most memorable Super Bowls ever.
A Look Ahead: TEN @BUF BYE - We won’t come back to the Patriots until they face Jacksonville in Week 17
San Francisco (at Jacksonville)
The 49ers defense boxed in the Rams and had their best game since Week 1 and they get Trevor Lawrence this week
A Look Ahead: MIN @SEA @CIN - Probably nothing more to mine here until Week 15 against Atlanta and Week 17 against Houston.
Cleveland (vs Detroit)
The Lions will start a hurt Jared Goff or David Blough, so that’s a good enough reason to consider the Browns coming off of a beatdown at the hands of the Patriots
A Look Ahead: @BAL BYE BAL - We’ll dodge the Lamar double dip unless the Bears also frustrate him this week in much the same way the Dolphins did last week
Los Angeles Chargers (vs Pittsburgh)
Ben Roethlisberger could start if he gets out covid protocol, but for now we should pencil in Mason Rudolph, which is enticing when choosing your D/ST, even though this unit is ice cold.
A Look Ahead: @DEN @CIN NYG - If they come through for us this week, sticking with the Chargers against the Broncos will be a consideration
Tampa Bay (vs New York Giants)
The Bucs pass rush still did enough in a loss to Washington to be a solid fantasy play, so there’s no reason to go away from them against Daniel Jones and Jason Garrett.
A Look Ahead: @IND @ATL BUF - We may come back to them in Week 13 when they travel to Atlanta
Week 12 Preemptive Pickups
Chicago (vs Detroit) **Thanksgiving**