After a pretty dull slate in Week 7, Week 8 gave us a return to the chaos we know and love.
Two games in the early window went to overtime, with 145 total points between them, and four other teams in the early games scored 33+ points. Tampa Bay won a game with 0 passing yards, Lamar Jackson left with a thumb injury on the first play of the game immediately upon returning from a three-game absence, and the Lions handed Minnesota their first loss of the year.
The afternoon games weren’t as exciting, but Miami played the Patriots closer than many expected, and the Chiefs/Broncos battle for first place came down to a goal line stand for Denver.
To make things even more exciting, our streamer picks had a great day, averaging over 12 points between them. Jacksonville did a lot of the heavy lifting for that average, dropping 20 points in a blowout win over the Colts via four sacks, three turnovers (including a pick six), and just seven points allowed. However, the Raiders (nine points on two sacks and a turnover) and Bengals (eight points on two sacks and two turnovers) held their own despite allowing 33 and 36 points, respectively.
Looking ahead to Week 9, we have just two teams on byes, but they are two defenses that combined for 30 points this past week in the Steelers (21 against Cleveland) and Titans (nine against Cincinnati). You also may be hesitant to start the DST1 Vikings in primetime against the Bills, or the 87% rostered Patriots against Green Bay.
So who should you look to replace these top options? I thought you’d never ask. Let’s take a look at the best fantasy football Week 9 defense streamers (D/ST) that you should be claiming on this week’s waiver wire.
FANTASY FOOTBALL WEEK 9 DEFENSE STREAMERS (D/ST)
SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS (28% ROSTERED)
The Niners got the bye week ownership decrease in Week 8, falling from a 62% roster rate to their current 28%. The bye came at a great time for San Francisco after they dropped their first game of the year to the Falcons. After racking up nine sacks over their previous two games, the 49ers failed to take down Michael Penix once and didn’t accumulate any turnovers, either.
The result was a goose egg in fantasy scoring, their worst showing of the year so far. The Niners are the DST13 on the year but are top 10 in all major categories, coming in fourth in total yards, tenth against the pass, fifth against the run, and sixth in scoring defense.
SF’s bye was also well-timed in that it gives an extra week of recovery to Nick Bosa, who as of today is questionable to come back for this contest after missing the last five games with a calf injury. The 49ers also traded for DeForest Buckner during their off week, so their defensive line could look a lot different in this one assuming both guys are active.
While I generally like to target matchups with poor offenses for my streaming picks, the 49ers have the Las Vegas Raiders this week, who have been surprisingly competent this year. Kirk Cousins has the Raiders ranked fourth in the league in passing and sixth in scoring, while Brock Bowers just passed Trey McBride to lead all tight ends in receiving despite starting his season in Week 3.
The Raiders have actually allowed one of the lowest point totals to opposing defenses this year, most recently sticking the Jets with -2 in Week 8. So why target them with a streamer?
First, with Bosa potentially returning and Buckner coming back to join an already loaded defense, this is a rare opportunity to pick up a defense that’s as good as San Francisco is. Fred Warner is having a fantastic year, currently on pace for a career-high 175 tackles, and Dre Greenlaw‘s tackle pace is approaching his own career highs as well.
I’m also looking at San Francisco’s schedule with this selection. They have a few tougher matchups upcoming with Las Vegas and Dallas, but will follow that up with the Vikings, Seahawks, Giants, Rams, and Chargers — five straight offense that are in the top half of the league in points allowed to fantasy defenses, including the Chargers, number one in that stat, to kick off the fantasy postseason. For the remainder of the fantasy playoffs, they have the Chiefs in Week 16 followed by the struggling Eagles in Week 17.
So this pick is two-fold; yes, I think San Francisco is a solid play this week and should have a good day, but I’m also looking ahead to a defense that’s getting healthier and has a great stretch of schedule to finish out the season.
NEW ORLEANS SAINTS (3%)
Like San Francisco, New Orleans was also idle this past week, but it didn’t impact their roster rate as much, as they were at just 8% owned a week ago.
After scoring three or fewer points in three of their first four games, the Saints blew up for 28 points in Weeks 5 and 6 against the Vikings and Giants. They followed it up with just four points against the Steelers heading into the bye, and currently rank as the DST18 on the season so far.
Their turnover numbers are low and yardage numbers are high, but their 18 sacks were just three off the league lead heading into Week 8, which has kept them relevant from a fantasy perspective despite other shortcomings.
Chase Young is on a tear so far in 2026 with seven sacks in seven games, which has him on pace to destroy the career-high mark of ten he set last year, while Carl Granderson has 5.5 sacks on the year and is also on heading for a career year.
After a week of rest, Young, Granderson, and the rest of New Orleans’ defensive front will have fresh legs and be chomping at the bit to get after another QB. And they couldn’t have a better matchup for it.
Despite an impressive 5-3 start that had them in first place until a loss to Pittsburgh in Week 8, the Browns have an issue keeping Deshaun Watson off the turf. Even in their wins, Watson has generally struggled for the first 75% of the game and done just enough in the fourth quarter to win games with the help of a very good defense.
Watson threw for 324 yards against the Steelers, but did so on almost 40 attempts as Cleveland was trailing for virtually the entire game. He also took eight sacks, increasing his season total to 33, far and away the highest mark in the league.
Given their next matchup, I don’t see Cleveland righting the ship this week when it comes to limiting the sacks they’re letting up. Young, Granderson, and company should be in for another big day, and the Saints should put up a lofty point total as a result.
CHICAGO BEARS (19%)
Heading into a Monday Night matchup with Seattle in Week 8, the Bears have had a surprisingly strong start to the year defensively. They’re currently the DST11 on the year, scoring over seven points per game and accumulating at least two sacks in every contest so far.
Chicago was the DST13 last year despite allowing the fourth-most yards in the league and finishing T-22nd in sacks as they led the league in both interceptions (23) and total turnovers (33), scoring two touchdowns on the year as well. This year has been very different, however — Chicago has just four INTs and seven total turnovers through seven games, but their 19 sacks has them on pace for 46, which would’ve given them a top ten finish a season ago.
Besides getting more pressure on opposing QBs, Chicago’s main year-over-year improvement has come against the run. After finishing 27th in run defense a season ago with over 134 yards allowed per game, they’ve improved to the third-ranked run defense so far in 2026 with under 88 yards allowed per game.
Chicago also made a huge addition this week that should strengthen that run defense even more, acquiring Jeffery Simmons from the Titans along with a fifth round pick in exchange for two first rounders and a 2027 fourth. Simmons has been one of the best interior run defenders since entering the league, and his presence immediately makes Chicago’s defense even more formidable.
While their run defense is stout, Chicago has been below-average against the pass, ranking 18th on the year despite a nice sack total. However, in this week’s matchup, that may not matter very much.
Baker Mayfield returned from a throwing hand injury two weeks ago, and in the two games he’s played since coming back, his total stat line looks like a decent first quarter for most NFL QBs.
You could argue Week 8 was a major outlier, as Tampa Bay faced the Falcons in a monsoon and Mayfield didn’t complete any of his three pass attempts. However, Michael Penix attempted 24 passes in the same conditions. Sure, it didn’t work out for him — he completed eight passes to his own team and four to Bucs defenders — but he still made an effort to move the ball through the air, which is more than can be said for Mayfield.
It’s unclear if Baker’s hand is fully healed based on his usage since returning to the field, but it hasn’t mattered much for the Bucs, who have racked up 582 rush yards over those two contests, both wins against division rivals. However, 258 of those yards came against Carolina’s 30th-ranked rush defense, while the other 324 came in the aforementioned downpour against Atlanta, who has actually been solid against the run this year.
Regardless, Chicago’s run defense is great and just got better, and after working out any potential kinks against Seattle, they should be ready to go in this game. If Mayfield still isn’t 100% and still refuses to play like an actual NFL QB, Tampa could be in trouble, and the Bears could be in for a big day.
The Bears are on a bye following this game and don’t have an amazing schedule coming out of that week off, so they’re likely a one-week pickup, but I like them a lot in this one.
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Cleveland Browns (43%): The Browns have regressed to the mean in recent weeks with just two sacks and 11 fantasy points over their last two contests. They’ll stay on the road this week to face the Saints.
Detroit Lions (18%): After scoring six points in two straight wins over division rivals, Detroit will hit the road to face the 1-6 Dolphins this week.
New York Giants (3%): New York was idle in Week 8 after scoring just three fantasy points over their last two games. They’ll be on the road this week against the injury-riddled Eagles.
