Top Fantasy Football Defense Streamers For Week 8 (D/ST)

It's always a good week to stream a defense.

If you used our streaming picks to survive a Bills or Eagles bye week in Week 7, you were probably in pretty good shape. Arizona got us off to a hot start with three INTs (two for touchdowns) on Thursday to finish with 17 points, and the Dolphins (12) and Jets (seven) had strong performances as well. Our secondary options also included Tennessee with 19 points and Las Vegas with 10.

Week 8 only brings a bye week for two teams — Kansas City and the Chargers. Not a killer week for fantasy defenses, but maybe you’re fed up with Tampa’s unit and don’t want to start them against Lamar Jackson and Baltimore, or you don’t trust Green Bay to slow down Josh Allen and the Bills off a bye week. Whatever your reason is, let’s see who our top streaming options are for Week 8.

BEST Defenses (DST) to STREAM off the Fantasy Football Week 8 Waiver Wire

TENNESSEE TITANS (41% ROSTERED)

Week 8: @ Houston, 4:05 PM EST

The Titans are coming off a shutdown of Indy’s offense last week in a 19-10 win that moved them into first place in the AFC South at 4-2. Tennessee picked off Matt Ryan twice (once for a touchdown), sacked him three times, and forced a game-sealing fumble on Michael Pittman, Jr. in the fourth quarter. They also held the Colts to 65 yards on the ground and remain one of just four teams that have allowed less than 100 rushing yards per game in 2022. This stout run defense will come in handy against a Texans team that relies on Dameon Pierce to pace their offense.

Similar to Tennessee’s game last week, I’m anticipating another low-scoring divisional battle heavily featuring the ground game for both teams. Houston continues to sit near the bottom of the league in scoring, and I don’t see them being able to generate much against this Tennessee front.

WASHINGTON COMMANDERS (5%)

Week 8: @ Indianapolis, 4:25 PM EST

Despite pulling out a win 23-21 over Green Bay in Week 7, Washington’s defense finished with a measly three points as they failed to record a sack and generated just one turnover. Even with last week’s goose egg in the sack department, the Commanders are still tied for sixth with 19 sacks on the year, and will now face a Colts team that’s allowed 24 sacks, just one behind Cincinnati for the league lead.

With a bottom-five scoring offense and 14 giveaways on the year, it’s no wonder Indianapolis has yielded the second-most fantasy points to opposing defenses. They announced this week they’re benching Matt Ryan in favor of Sam Ehlinger, and while that may be the right long-term move for the franchise, Ehlinger has yet to attempt a pass in the regular season in his career and may be in for a tough first start against Jonathan Allen and Washington’s fearsome defensive front.

ATLANTA FALCONS (2%)

Week 8: vs. Carolina, 1 PM EST

The Falcons were a bettor’s dream to start the season with a 6-0 record against the spread before their Week 7 loss to the Bengals. Atlanta got torched by Joe Burrow and Cincinnati’s talented receiver group to the tune of 481 passing yards and 35 points, finishing with -1 fantasy points on the day. The fantasy production for Atlanta’s defense has been decent but inconsistent — they have two 13+ point showings but haven’t topped six points in any of their other games. Luckily for the Falcons, they have a matchup with Carolina on deck to right the ship.

The Panthers pulled off an incredible upset over the Buccaneers last week, but it was more due to Tampa’s lackluster offensive performance than anything Carolina did. In their first game without Christian McCaffrey, Carolina leaned heavily on D’Onta Foreman and Chuba Hubbard, who combined for 181 yards on over 7.5 yards per carry. Unlike Tampa Bay, Atlanta boasts a fifth-ranked rushing defense that should force PJ Walker to make plays to beat them. I’m not sure if he can do that, and I like Atlanta to bounce back this week.

OTHERS TO TARGET

Jacksonville Jaguars (27%): Jacksonville struggled to slow down the Giants’ rushing attack last week, as both Saquon Barkley and Daniel Jones rushed for over 100 yards. The Jags look to bounce back against a Denver team that’s last in the league in scoring. Denver should get Russell Wilson back for this matchup, but it remains to be seen if that’s even a good thing.

Indianapolis Colts (34%): Indy’s defense put up eight points last week in a loss to the Titans, and will face a Washington team that’s allowed the 2nd-most sacks in the league. Indy should get plenty of pressure on Taylor Heinicke and force some mistakes in this one.

Las Vegas Raiders (32%): The Raiders travel to New Orleans this week after putting up 10 fantasy points on Houston a week ago. Arizona feasted on the Saints’ injured offense to the tune of 17 points in Week 7, and Vegas could have similar luck, especially if Michael Thomas and Jarvis Landry remain sidelined.

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