Week 3 continued the craziness we’ve become accustomed to in the 2022 NFL season so far, with a slew of underdogs winning close games and some defensive battles across the league. In fantasy D/ST scoring, Philadelphia led the way with 18 points, followed by a three-way tie of Carolina (an honorable mention last week), Cincinnati, and Denver.
Our Week 3 picks had a decent showing overall, with Chicago and Atlanta putting up six and four points, respectively, while New York put up a goose egg after a good start on Monday Night Football.
Let’s see who are the top defenses to stream in fantasy football Week 4.
NEW YORK GIANTS (11% ROSTERED)
Week 4: vs. Chicago, 1 PM EST
Things looked promising for the Giants in the first half of their MNF quest for 3-0, holding Dallas to just two field goals in the first half. The wheels fell off in the second half though, as Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard combined for 178 yards on the ground and Dallas took over the game late.
Kayvon Thibodeaux was back up front, but New York missed Leonard Williams greatly, getting destroyed in the ground game and failing to get any pressure on Cooper Rush, finishing the game with zero sacks. We’ll see if Leonard can go in Week 4, but either way, a good matchup can work wonders for a defense trying to get it back together.
The Giants will host Chicago in Week 4, who are dead last in the league with just 78.3 passing yards per game through three weeks. The Bears seem hesitant to even allow Justin Fields to throw the ball, and when he has thrown, it’s resulted in a 51.1% completion rate with two TDs and four INTs. He’s also been sacked 10 times, which is top five in the league.
David Montgomery left last week’s game with a leg injury, and although the team has said they received “positive news” early on about his status, he could be out or limited in this one. Plus, Chicago’s pass catchers don’t scare anyone these days, even if their quarterback gets it together.
LAS VEGAS RAIDERS (3%)
Week 4: vs. Denver, 4:25 PM EST
The Raiders are comfortably the leaders in the clubhouse for the biggest disappointment of 2022. After an offseason in which they hired a new defensive coordinator, gave Chandler Jones $51 million to bolster the pass rush, and traded for Davante Adams to reunite him with his college QB… they’re 0-3.
The offense is getting a lot of the flak thus far, and deservedly so, but Vegas’ defense has been consistently mediocre as well, allowing over 23 points in all three games and recording just two turnovers and two sacks.
If the Raiders are going to turn things around at all, it has to start this week at home against the division rival Broncos. Denver squeaked out a win against San Francisco, but it wasn’t pretty. Russell Wilson threw for just 184 yards and heard the boobirds all night.
Denver has scored just 14.3 points per game through three weeks, and their lackluster offense comes into Las Vegas at a time when the Raiders really need a get-right game. With their backs against the wall, I’m looking for a multi-sack game from Jones or Maxx Crosby and a couple turnovers from this Vegas unit.
WASHINGTON COMMANDERS (4%)
Week 4: @ Dallas, 1 PM EST
The Commanders defense managed a much better performance than expected in Week 3 against the red-hot Eagles, allowing 24 points and registering three sacks to finish with five fantasy points as a unit.
Washington’s D is averaging just 3.7 FPPG through three weeks, but they’ve faced three offenses — Jacksonville, Detroit, and now Philly — that are all in the top seven in scoring. Now, they get Dallas, who’s third-to-last in scoring at 15.3 PPG.
Washington’s defense has been underwhelming in the turnover department with just one through three games, but they’ve managed to get to the quarterback with some consistency. They now go up against a Dallas line that’s struggled in pass protection, although they managed to keep Cooper Rush clean in Week 3. Washington is right around the middle of the league in terms of stopping the run, which will be the main piece they need to clean up to slow down Dallas in this one.
OTHERS TO TARGET:
New York Jets (2% owned): The Jets D mustered up a half-decent performance in a loss to Cincinnati, and now have the privilege of facing a Pittsburgh offense in disarray, with a fanbase that’s begging for a change at QB and a head coach who’s having none of it.
Minnesota Vikings (19% rostered): The Vikes have had two poor showings after a 12-point Week 1, but now head to London to face the Saints and Jameis Winston, who — surprise, surprise — is tied for the league lead in INTs. The Saints could also be without Michael Thomas and Jarvis Landry.
Indianapolis Colts (35% rostered): Coming off a shocking upset over the Chiefs, the Colts roll into what should be a snoozefest against Tennessee. Derrick Henry is trending back towards his old self, but Indy is top-three in stopping the run, which should force Ryan Tannehill to make some plays himself. There’s also a chance Darius/Shaq Leonard could return to action.
