Fantasy Football Rankings: Five Must-Start Defenses For Week 3 Of Season
Still think fantasy football defenses are an afterthought?
Several defenses once again posted strong showings in Week 2, with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers leading the charge by racking up 20 fantasy points against the Chicago Bears in Yahoo! standard-scoring leagues.
If the lightly-owned Bucs can post the highest point total in the league, who are biggest candidates to bust out in Week 3? As always, it depends on matchups, and there’s a clear crop of defenses — some more elite than others — that are pretty safe bets to rack up the points this weekend.
Here are our top five fantasy defense plays for Week 3.
New England Patriots (vs. Houston Texans)
Here’s a fun fact: Opposing rookie quarterbacks are 0-8 at Gillette Stadium since 2001 with just five touchdown passes and 16 interceptions. Good luck to Deshaun Watson and a Texans offensive line that’s allowed 13 sacks through two games.
Denver Broncos (at Buffalo Bills)
The Broncos’ D wreaked havoc against Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott last week, and while they’re much better at home than on the road, they’re still a safe play against a Bills offense that mustered just 176 yards of total offense in Week 2.
Philadelphia Eagles (vs. New York Giants)
The Giants haven’t scored more than 20 points in a game since November of last season. Their lack of offensive line depth is a major issue, and Philly leads the NFC with eight sacks through two games. Even in a divisional matchup, the Eagles are the strongest waiver wire add of the week (41 percent owned in Yahoo! leagues).
Baltimore Ravens (at Jacksonville Jaguars)
We’ll keep putting the Ravens on this list until they prove us otherwise. The highest-scoring fantasy defense through two weeks gets yet another juicy matchup against Blake Bortles and the Jags, who coughed up the ball three times (two interceptions, one fumble) last Sunday.
Green Bay Packers (vs. Cincinnati Bengals)
Don’t be deterred by last week’s tough showing against the Atlanta Falcons. The Packers are a much better defensive team at home — they’ve allowed 16 or fewer points in six of their last 10 games at Lambeau Field — and face an offense in the Bengals that literally hasn’t scored a touchdown this season.
Click for our top Week 3 waiver wire pickups at each position >>
Thumbnail photo via Derick E. Hingle/USA TODAY Sports Images
