If you read my article on playing the waiver wire game, you know that it is an essential part of winning your fantasy football league. If you haven’t read it, what are you waiting for? I just told you it’s a necessary part of winning your fantasy football league! Why do you hate winning? One of the best ways to maximize your weekly scoring is to stream defenses. This strategy is simple: we aren’t as concerned with strong defenses as we are with finding defenses that play terrible offenses. Bad offenses are more likely to keep playing badly because if they knew how to be good, they would already be good. Based on this flawless logic, I will highlight the best streaming options each week.
Kansas City Chiefs DEF (61% owned) @ Los Angeles Chargers
The nuts matchup for defensive streamers is whoever is playing the Los Angeles Chargers. The Chargers have the most turnovers, second-most sacks, and the third-fewest points scored. Oh, and they are giving up the most fantasy points to opposing defenses. Always bet on bad. They are also the number one defense in my model by a significant margin.
New York Giants DEF (16% owned) @New Orleans Saints
Unfortunately for 39% of you, the Kansas City Chiefs will not be available. That means you have two underwhelming options. The New York Giants have the slight edge for me based on the last couple of weeks of Saints football. The Saints are giving up the ninth-most sacks, have the second-most turnovers, and are giving up the ninth-most fantasy points to opposing defenses. The Giants, on the other hand, are the DST9 on the season, with the fifth-most turnovers and ninth-fewest points allowed. The big thing for me with this one is the Saints offensive line is decimated and the Giants have horses on that line, even without Brian Burns. This is the number four matchup based on my model.
New York Jets DEF (9% owned) @ New England Patriots
Over the last couple of weeks, the New England Patriots have been slightly better at football, but I am still not 100% convinced. They still have the second-most turnovers and are giving up the eighth-most fantasy points to opposing defenses. The Jets are surprisingly the DST9 of the season, with the third-most sacks and fifth-fewest points allowed. This is a tougher week, so between the final two options, I would take the one that will piss you off the least. This one is the eighth-best option on my model, but what concerns me is that the Patriots (85% rostered) are ranked sixth.. Basically, bet the under.
