The streaming defense/special team realm can be a rocky landscape to navigate at times. Week 12 was a perfect example of that as teams with juicy matchups underperformed such as Philadelphia and Cincinnati while other bottom dwelling units had big performances.
The Giants, Dolphins, and Titans all rank outside the top 20 in scoring this season and finished as top-10 units last week. That’s one of the main reasons that keeping up with recent trends, injuries, and matchups is so important.
A Giants defense with both Jason Pierre-Paul and Olivier Vernon is a much different animal than the unit they’ve played with for most of 2017. Let’s keep that in mind with a Week 14 date with the Cowboys for the G-Men (that’s called foreshadowing). Not so much this week as the Giants head out west to Oakland.
Also keep in mind that turnover-dependent defenses that may have scored plenty of defensive touchdowns are a dangerous play this time of year especially if they lack a consistent pass rush. That’s why the Detroit Lions have been a no show in this piece recently as the boom/bust potential leans too heavily in the bust department as they struggle to get to the quarterback.
Let’s take a look at the Week 12 streaming DST options.
Los Angeles Chargers (vs. Cleveland)
This is the streaming play of the week. The Chargers defense just throttled the Cowboys, holding them to under 250 total yards while posting two interceptions and two sacks. The Rams returned one of the interceptions for a score and now have a pair of defensive touchdowns over their past three games. The Chargers have also racked up six interceptions and nine interceptions in that time. The Browns will be unable to keep Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram from getting to the quarterback leading to a lot of big-play opportunities. The Bengals failed to feast on their matchup with Cleveland and the Chargers will not.
Baltimore Ravens (vs. Detroit)
The Lions running game continues to struggle, managing only 53 yards on the ground in the loss to Minnesota last week. Having to move the ball via the passing game, Detroit also struggles to protect the quarterback, which often leaves quarterback Matthew Stafford battered and bruised. He was visibly hobbled toward the end of the Thanksgiving day game after being sacked three times and hit another four times. Look for Terrell Suggs and Matthew Judon to roll up nice sack total while forcing an untimely turnover or two by Stafford.
Washington Redskins (at Dallas)
The Washington defense is coming off a nice performance on Thanksgiving, having put up four sacks and an interception in the win over New York. Over the past three games Washington has picked off four passes and notched six sacks. The Cowboys offense continues to putter without Ezekiel Elliott and has been a top-five matchup for allowing points to opposing defense/special teams. In that time, they have given up 13 sacks while turning the ball over six times and allowed a defensive score.
Los Angeles Rams (at Arizona)
The Rams defense managed to sack Drew Brees three times last week, which is no easy feat as the Saints have allowed just 13 on the season. The Cardinals on the other hand have allowed five sacks in the last three weeks while also turning the ball over five times and allowing a defensive touchdown. When these teams met back in Week 7 Los Angeles racked up three sacks as well as a pair of interceptions. The Cardinals have announced that it will be Blaine Gabbert under center once again this week and he will be under siege by the dominant Rams defensive front.
Tennessee Titans (vs. Houston)
This is the stretch in the season where riding the hot hand can pay off handsomely, and the Titans defense is coming off a very productive fantasy performance. The Titans put up eight sacks against the Colts last week and added a fumble recovery. They were also credited with 16 quarterback hurries and seem to have found their pass rush at a very opportune time. Forget the Week 4 matchup in which the Titans managed just two sacks and an interception as Deshaun Watson was still the quarterback for Houston. In the three weeks since Watson has been out, the Texans have allowed five sacks and turned the ball over seven times. Without Watson look for the Titans to force Houston into a few untimely turnovers.
Miami Dolphins (vs. Denver)
Just as it appeared that the sun was setting on defensive end Cameron Wake’s effectiveness, he led a resurgent pass rush last week in the Dolphins’ loss to the Patriots last week. Wake recorded a sack of Tom Brady and was credited with four quarterback hits. The Dolphins managed just the one sack but had seven hits on the day. That pressure will be too much for a Broncos offense that continues to flounder with subpar quarterback play and will be starting Trevor Siemian again. In the last two games, Denver has allowed eight sacks and turned the ball over three times. Miami also managed to post their second defensive score of the season against the Patriots last week which bodes well against a struggling offense.
New England Patriots (at Buffalo)
The Patriots defense/special teams has come on over the last three games, posting fantasy totals that land them in the top five in most scoring formats. The Patriots have managed to produce big plays defensively, racking up eight sacks and seven turnovers after posting just nine turnovers in their first nine games. Speedy Dion Lewis has also become a weapon on special teams and returned a kickoff for a touchdown in Week 10. The Bills are a tougher matchup for defenses without Nathan Peterman tossing five interceptions, but the Patriots offense tends to put teams in catchup mode. That allows a resurgent pass rush (seven sacks a week ago) to get after the quarterback. Keep an eye on defensive end Trey Flowers’ (ribs) availability for the Patriots as he’s the main edge-rushing threat.
Philadelphia Eagles (at Seattle)
Let’s continue to ride the high-flying Eagles defense even after a so-so performance against the Bears last week. Philadelphia finished with just a pair of sacks and two interceptions in their blowout victory. Of course, the blowout could also account for the fact that no Eagles defensive lineman played more than 35 of 55 defensive snaps. In the week’s premier matchups, the Eagles will undoubtedly need their edge rushers to bring their A game that wasn’t really needed against Chicago. The Seahawks continue to struggle to protect Russell Wilson, having allowed 10 sacks in the past three games while Wilson has thrown three interceptions. Only one team (the Chargers) has more interceptions than Philadelphia’s seven over that time.
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