Streaming Defenses: D/ST Picks for Week 1

Jerry Donabedian analyzes the top streaming options for Week 1 and discusses his D/ST strategy for the long season ahead, complete with Top-20 Ranks for Week 1, Week 2 and Rest-of-Season.

Updated on September 12, 2026 6:57PM EST

Streaming Defenses: D/ST Picks for Week 1

By:

Jerry Donabedian

Updated on September 12, 2026 6:57PM EST

Streaming Defenses

Every start/sit, every waiver, every trade, plus NBA and NHL all winter. We make the call.

Every start/sit, every waiver, every trade. We make the call.

Welcome back to Streaming Defenses, your weekly guide for managing that pesky D/ST position at the bottom of fantasy rosters. We'll identify the five best streaming plays each week while also providing top-20 rankings for the current week, the following week and the rest of the season.

The week-to-week inconsistency can be frustrating when we cycle through defenses based on matchups, but year-to-year results are surprisingly consistent. I've found that a proactive streaming approach usually yields a cumulative point total in the same range as the 2nd-5th best D/STs in any given season.

Last year, only the Seahawks (10.2 PPG) and Texans (9.6) averaged more than 8.5 fantasy points per game under Yahoo default settings. If you drafted any other defense and stuck with them long term, you were either losing ground or breaking even against proactive, well-informed D/ST streamers (like us!).

Philadelphia's defense, for example, rightfully had a lot of preseason hype and was often the first or second D/ST off the board in fantasy leagues. The Eagles mostly played well in real life, but mediocre takeaway numbers led to an inconsequential seventh-place finish in fantasy scoring (7.9 points per game).

Meanwhile, I averaged 9.1 points by streaming defenses in my Yahoo league with a $400 buy-in and 12 teams. A quick audit of last year's Streaming Defenses shows similar results, with our top picks of the week averaging 9.44 points, while the overall average for all 90 defenses (5 picks x 18 weeks) was 8.31 fantasy points (seen in the bottom-right corner below).

2025 Streaming Defenses Audit (Yahoo Standard Scoring)

Week	No. 1	FP1	No. 2	FP2	No. 3	FP3	No. 4	FP4	No. 5	FP5
1	ARZ	5	WAS	9	CIN	7	JAX	11	LAR	11
2	LAR	8	SF	5	DAL	1	MIA	8	NE	13
3	SEA	22	TB	14	IND	15	ATL	3	WAS	11
4	DET	19	NE	11	LAC	6	MIA	8	WAS	2
5	ARZ	7	NYG	1	IND	17	CLE	7	KC	7
6	LV	16	NE	5	IND	4	DAL	2	JAX	2
7	KC	13	NE	19	SEA	9	CHI	13	MIA	2
8	IND	7	ATL	0	CIN	-4	BUF	17	BAL	4
9	LAR	9	DET	7	BAL	15	JAX	3	SF	2
10	CAR	5	BUF	3	CLE	5	JAX	11	NYJ	19
11	NE	5	BAL	9	ATL	4	GB	7	PIT	21
12	LV	5	NO	11	CLE	16	ATL	16	BUF	6
13	JAX	14	LAC	8	SF	11	MIA	9	ATL	2
14	TB	5	BAL	0	KC	4	MIA	16	GB	3
15	JAX	10	SF	0	CHI	18	DAL	1	CAR	6
16	BUF	8	NO	19	KC	2	SF	12	MIN	11
17	NE	7	JAX	7	TB	3	DET	7	GB	-3
18	BUF	5	MIN	11	JAX	13	KC	11	CIN	12
AVG		9.44		7.72		8.11		9.00		7.28	8.31

We should be able to capture that same magic this year, relying on a mix of betting odds, QB trends and injury reports to identify streaming options with strong projections for sacks, takeaways and defensive TDs.

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Point prevention is also part of the scoring equation on most fantasy platforms, but it frankly doesn't add up to much besides the rare occasions when an opponent scores six or fewer points. The difference between allowing 10 points and 25 points in real life might only amount to a gap of three fantasy points.

ESPN default settings do add an aspect of yardage prevention, so there's slightly less emphasis on sacks/turnovers relative to the rest of the fantasy industry. But even then, it's still the sacks and turnovers that do the real heavy lifting for fantasy scoring.

Note: These recommendations are limited to team defenses that are rostered on less than 60 percent of teams on Yahoo or Sleeper. Any references to fantasy points are based on Yahoo standard scoring, which doesn't include yards allowed.

Top Streaming Options for Week 1

Note: If you haven't drafted yet and plan to stream D/STs all season, I recommend the Jaguars, Chargers or Steelers as endgame picks to get things started. All have highly favorable home matchups Week 1, and the Chargers are also a top play for Week 2.

2026 Opponent Implied Totals for Weeks 1-17 (From Look-Ahead Lines)

1. Los Angeles Chargers (vs. ARZ)

65% Yahoo, 56% Sleeper
Team implied total: 28.5 Opponent implied total: 19.0
Upcoming Ranks (Projected) — Week 2: 3rd (vs. LV), Week 3: 24th (at BUF)

The Chargers are already rostered in a lot of leagues, but they technically meet the requirements for this article and are often available during the final round of fantasy drafts. While Jesse Minter's departure for Baltimore creates schematic questions, the Chargers nonetheless are positioned for a strong start to the season with home games against Arizona and Las Vegas. No team is a larger favorite for Week 1 (-9.5).

2. Tennessee Titans (vs. NYJ)

13% Yahoo, 6% Sleeper
Team implied total: 20.0 Opponent implied total: 18.5
Upcoming Ranks (Projected) — Week 2: 26th (vs. PHI), Week 3: 22nd (at NYG)

I'm mostly targeting the Chargers, Jaguars and Steelers as streaming-minded picks at the end of fantasy drafts. If not one of those three, I might scoop the Eagles if they're still available late.

When all else fails, the Week 1 matchup between Tennessee and Gang Green offers hope for D/ST streaming value, if only on account of offensive incompetence. I'm not so sure the Titans should be favored here, but it's also hard to argue for the Jets being favored on the road against anyone, besides maybe Miami. I don't have a strong opinion on the Titans D/ST vs. the Jets D/ST here, as it seems like an even matchup with high odds for non-offensive TDs. Both teams have impressive return specialists, and neither is assured of competent QB or O-line play.

3. New York Jets (at TEN)

1% Yahoo, 2% Sleeper
Team implied total: 18.5 Opponent implied total: 20.0
Upcoming Ranks (Projected) — Week 2: 25th (vs. GB), Week 3: 32nd (at DET)

There's not much to like about the Jets' defense, but it might not take much to give Cam Ward and his offensive line all kinds of trouble. The Titans sit dead last in RotoWire's O-line rankings, 10 spots behind the Jets. We can argue whether a washed-up Geno Smith or not-there-yet Cam Ward is the better QB right now, but Smith at least seems to have better blocking and better weapons, unless WR Carnell Tate is a superstar from Day 1 (unlikely).

4. Las Vegas Raiders (vs. MIA)

6% Yahoo, 9% Sleeper
Team implied total: 21.25 Opponent implied total: 18.25
Upcoming Ranks (Projected) — Week 2: 30th (at LAC), Week 3: 26th (at NO)

If we just looked at betting odds, the Raiders would probably be ranked higher, favored by 3.5 points over a Miami team with the second-lowest implied total (18) of the week. My concern, relatively speaking, is that the Dolphins will pile up rush attempts rather than passes even if they fall behind.

What we want for D/ST streaming is a QB dropping back repeatedly and taking risks against a defense that's focused on stopping the pass. Maybe that'll happen eventually, but the Dolphins figure to lean on their running game as much as they can. For that reason, the Raiders D/ST is merely a good play, not the excellent one we might assume if just looking at implied totals for Week 1. The Jets-Titans game could be sloppier even if this Raiders-Dolphins matchup proves lower-scoring.

5. Detroit Lions (vs. NO)

51% Yahoo, 60% Sleeper
Team implied total: 28.0 Opponent implied total: 21.5
Upcoming Ranks (Projected) — Week 2: 22nd (at BUF), Week 3: 2nd (vs. NYJ)

This Saints-Lions game has the second-highest over/under (49.5) of Week 1, but it also has the third-largest spread (-6.5), which suggests some potential for a blowout rather than a shootout. Aidan Hutchinson could be in for a big day if the Lions jump out to a lead and force the Saints to abandon the run in the second half.