Through Sunday’s action, no fantasy defense in Week 8 has scored more than the Detroit Lions, who put up 19 points via a sack and four turnovers in a 52-14 beatdown of the Tennessee Titans. The Lions were one of my favorite streaming options last week, and they were a popular pick, starting the week at a 15% roster rate on Sleeper and currently sitting at 69%.
Our other favorites were the Chiefs (nine points against LV) and Packers (six points against JAX), so all of our Week 8 picks put up decent performances on the day.
Looking at Week 9, we have the return of bye weeks, as Pittsburgh and San Francisco will be idle after playing primetime home games in Week 8. We also have some great matchups on deck, including Denver, the No. 1 scoring D/ST through eight weeks, traveling to play Baltimore, the team that’s given up the fewest points to fantasy defenses in 2024.
And with that, let’s take a look at our picks for the best fantasy football Week 9 defense streamers (D/ST).
TEAMS TO AVOID IN WEEK 9
BYE WEEKS
As mentioned, the 49ers and Steelers will be idle in Week 9. Both are top five defenses and definitely should be stashed through the bye week wherever possible. The Steelers have a gauntlet of a remaining schedule with Washington, Kansas City, and all six of their division games still upcoming, but they’ve performed too well to be dropped, and late-season AFC North games are typically lucrative for fantasy defenses.
San Francisco has a slightly easier road ahead and should only continue to improve as they gear up for the postseason.
MATCHUP-BASED
Denver Broncos (86% rostered on Sleeper): Forget being the #1 D/ST — the Broncos are ranked 45th in fantasy scoring out of all players in 2024. They’ve been incredible, but it’s come against a relatively easy schedule, and this next stretch of Baltimore/Kansas City/Atlanta should let us know if they’re legit or just schedule merchants. Either way, I’m hesitant to start them against Baltimore, but not cutting ties just yet.
Green Bay Packers (50%): The Packers have been almost as good as Denver, currently ranked 3rd in D/ST scoring, but have the Lions this week followed by a bye week. Their late-season schedule isn’t too daunting, so they’re a stash candidate if possible.
FANTASY FOOTBALL WEEK 9 DEFENSE STREAMERS (DST)
HOUSTON TEXANS (44% ROSTERED ON SLEEPER)
@ New York Jets | TNF
The Texans are 12th in D/ST scoring through the first half of the year, but have looked much better lately. After topping four points just once in their first five games, they’ve scored over 11 points per game over their last three against New England, Green Bay, and Indianapolis. Not the strongest offenses the league has to offer, sure, but neither is their Week 9 opponent.
Aaron Rodgers‘ former teammate sums it up pretty well there. The Jets can change coaches or acquire All-Pro receivers who give rousing speeches all they want, but they’re still the Jets. They’ve given up the fifth-most points to fantasy defenses over the past four weeks and this week’s loss to New England didn’t provide much hope that they’re going to turn things around any time soon.
The Jets are a bottom ten team in total offense, bottom three in rushing, and scoring less than 19 points per game. Rodgers has also thrown seven interceptions, tied for the sixth-most in the league, and has been sacked 18 times.
Over their last three games, the Texans have averaged four sacks and almost three turnovers per game, including five interceptions. I’m expecting them to stay hot and stifle New York’s offense as they strengthen their grip on the AFC South lead.
CHICAGO BEARS (39%)
@ Arizona Cardinals | 4:05 PM
The Bears are coming off a heartbreaking loss to the Commanders on a last-second Hail Mary, but all is not lost yet. They’re currently 4-3 and have two winnable games against Arizona and New England coming up before a tough stretch that will test their ability to stay in the NFC playoff picture.
Defensively, the Bears put up four points on Sunday against Washington, but had averaged 12 points per game in the three games prior to their Week 7 bye. They’re ranked seventh in fantasy scoring and will face off against the first place Arizona Cardinals.
Arizona isn’t typically the type of offense that I like to target with streaming picks. They’ve given up just four points to fantasy defenses over the past two weeks, have a top ten rushing attack, and don’t throw a lot of interceptions or give up a lot of sacks. This pick is really more indicative of an expected rebound from Chicago, who should be motivated to make up for their collapse on the final play against Washington.
Now, there are definitely weak spots to exploit in Arizona’s attack — their six fumbles lost is tied for third-most in the league and they’ve thrown for less than 200 yards per game. The key for Chicago will be slowing down the run game behind James Conner and Kyler Murray that’s ranked seventh in football. Miami managed to do this on Sunday, holding Murray to 19 yards on five attempts and limiting Conner to 2.7 yards per carry, and they were able to stick around and almost steal the game on the road.
NEW ORLEANS SAINTS (21%)
@ Carolina Panthers | 1 PM
New Orleans is going through a slew of injuries on the offensive side of the ball, but their defense is managing to hold up and is currently ranked tenth in fantasy scoring. However, after logging ten interceptions through their first six games, they’re pick-less over their last two. Perfect timing for a matchup with Bryce Young and the Carolina Panthers.
Payton is brutal, but he isn’t wrong. Carolina seemed poised to potentially turn things around when Bryce Young was benched for Andy Dalton, but Dalton quickly regressed, then got hurt, and now the Panthers are back where they started. They’re in the bottom five in the league in total offense, passing offense, and points scored, and lead the NFL with 11 interceptions thrown.
Carolina’s one saving grace is their run game, which could spell trouble for the Saints and their 28th-ranked run defense. But knowing that the Panthers are unlikely to torch them through the air should allow for New Orleans to account for this rushing attack and end drives early. They aren’t my favorite pick of the week by any means, but the Saints should make light work of Carolina in this one.
HONORABLE MENTIONS
New England Patriots (4%): New England put up just two points in a win over the Jets this week and now will head to Nashville to face the Titans. It’s not often that a Titans opponent isn’t in the top three streamer picks of the week, but the Patriots haven’t earned that kind of respect yet.
Cincinnati Bengals (24%): The Bengals were torched by Philadelphia this week but should bounce back in an easy matchup with Las Vegas at home.
Washington Commanders (21%): Washington put up five points in a big win over Chicago, and will now hit the road to face the struggling Giants.
