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D/ST Wins Championships - Week 8

Jabaal SheardStarting the same D/ST every week is one of the worst moves a fantasy owner can make. It’s much safer to bet against a bad offense than it is to bet on a good defense. The notion of a ‘great’ D/ST is flawed; you can get top-level production by streaming defenses based on matchups. Check out this column every week to find out which D/STs you can and should pick up off of the waiver wire.

The Rules: Each week, I’ll highlight three easily-acquired D/ST’s that are worthy of a start in 12-team formats. The D/STs that I pick must be owned in less than 40 percent of leagues so that each unit is likely available in your own league. To establish credibility over the course of the season, I’ll review how my picks from last week did.

Last Week’s Picks: Last week’s column hit two out of its three selections, naming a couple of top 12 units during Week 7. The piece advised picking up either the Browns, Titans or Bears D/ST. In a 12-team league, both the Browns and the Titans would have been reasonable starts. The Browns and Titans’ D/STs ranked eighth and 12th, respectively, in the league in Week 7. The Browns D/ST was actually very good for most of the game against Jacksonville but collapsed in the fourth quarter. As for the Titans, a quarterback change in the middle of the game for the Redskins made matters complicated, but Tennessee still managed to be relevant. Interestingly enough, only four out of the top 12 scoring D/STs in Week 7 were owned in more than 40 percent of leagues, showing that the future of fantasy football is in streaming your defenses.

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