The bye weeks are coming! The bye weeks are coming! It's not exactly "Paul Revere's Ride," but you get the gist. Streaming season is upon us, and we're not talking about Netflix-and-chillin'. We're talking about finding temporary subs to step into your lineup on bye weeks — and since most fantasy football owners don't carry backup defenses, D/ST perennially serves as one of the most streamed positions in fantasy. Our Week 5 fantasy defense rankings will help you greet streaming season with confidence, like my sister in pumpkin spice season.
We had quite the unpredictable Week 4, but we got plenty of things right in our rankings. Unlike most of our colleagues who listed the Eagles at No. 1 against the Commanders, we faded Philly and listed the NFC champs at No. 8. We correctly ranked three of the top seven defenses, including the Cowboys, Ravens, and Broncos.
This is the best part — and the reason you should not only keep reading but also keep coming back week after week — we also nailed multiple teams in our sleeper section. We wrote:"You could do worse than the Vikings (@ Panthers), Seahawks (@ Giants), or Titans (vs. Bengals). In deep leagues, we might even consider the Texans (vs. Steelers). All present upside thanks to shaky and/or injured QBs."
WEEK 5 PPR RANKINGS:
QBs | RBs | WRs | TEs | Kickers
The Vikings finished as DST3 through Sunday's early games, and the Texans and Titans tied for DST9. Bing bang boom — we nailed it better than StateFarm sticking Jake in the Eagles' luxury box with America's mom Donna Kelce.
WEEK 5 STANDARD RANKINGS:
QBs | RBs | WRs | TEs | Kickers
So, let's keep rolling with some more studs and sleepers for Week 5 because byes always create some tough roster decisions. If you've been following our weekly Waiver Wire Watchlist, you're probably already prepared to stream if your D has a tough matchup coming up, but it still makes sense to check back here early and often to stay on top of the latest rankings and developments.
Read on below to see our mentality behind our Week 5 defense rankings, and see how you stack up against your opponent in the ever-important D/ST spot. No position left behind here! Championship-caliber teams dominate from top to bottom — now let's get it!
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Which fantasy defenses are on bye in Week 5?
Four teams are idle in Week 5: the Browns, Buccaneers, Chargers, and Seahawks. Myles Garrett and the Browns will be sorely missed by fantasy owners, but it's probably for the best that Cleveland gets a week off to regroup after the 28-3 beating it took last week.
The Bucs have been good and they're owned in 40 percent of leagues, so plenty of owners will be looking to stream to replace them, too. The Chargers and Seahawks, while not weekly starts, were streamed by many in Week 4 thanks to L.A.'s meeting with backup Raider QB Aidan O'Connell and Seattle's Monday Night Football showdown with Daniel Jones and the Giants.
WEEK 5 FANTASY ADVICE:
Sleepers | Busts | Projections | Start 'em, sit 'em
Who are the best fantasy defenses in Week 5?
Hell hath no fury like a Belichick defense scorned, so the Patriots (vs. Saints in Week 5) lead the list despite Matthew Judon (biceps) getting banged up in New England's Week 5 drubbing at the hands of Dallas. The Saints make a lot of mistakes, regardless of who starts under center. Derek Carr and company committed three turnovers, took three sacks, and averaged just 3.2 yards per play in a 26-9 loss to the Buccaneers. That was at home, too — good luck in Foxboro, boys.
Speaking of good luck, both offenses might need to say a prayer in the Cowboys-49ers game. These defenses have both looked amazing through four weeks, and both Dak Prescott and Brock Purdy will be put to the test against strong opposing pass-rushes. The Steelers (vs. Ravens) have a strong pass-rush, too, and Pittsburgh always gets up for divisional rivalries at home. We also like Baltimore in that game, even if Kenny Pickett (knee) plays. The Steelers rank in the bottom-third of the league in scoring offense and total yards per game.
Denver's redemption tour continues, as the Broncos (vs. Jets) look to head back to the altitude for their second straight highly favorable matchup. Something tells us Sean Payton just shredded the film of the 70-point beatdown in Miami. The Eagles (@ Rams) should be more prepared than they looked against Washington, so Matthew Stafford could have a long Sunday.
It probably won't be longer than the Sundays we will see from Josh Dobbs and Mac Jones when staring down the Bengals (@ Cardinals) and Saints (@ Patriots). Home field can only help you so much — it doesn't make poor quarterbacks good.
WEEK 5 DFS:
DK lineup | FD lineup | Best values | Best stacks
Who are the best fantasy defense sleepers, waiver pickups in Week 5?
The Jets (@ Broncos) have been dropped by far too many fantasy owners, but it's important to note that their defense remains good even though their offense has become doggy doodoo. Russell Wilson's first half against the lowly Bears last week should serve as a reminder that Denver can be a defense's best friend on any given Sunday. Both the Jets and the Patriots (vs. Saints) can be found on the waivers in over 40 percent of Yahoo leagues.
The Lions (vs. Panthers) and Dolphins (vs. Giants) serve as more honest-to-goodness sleepers, as they're not even owned in 60 percent of leaguescombined. Detroit looked stellar against the 2-1 Packers last week, with second-year breakout pass-rusher Aidan Hutchinson leading the charge. As for Miami, things get a lot easier this week as they go from a stud Bills team in Buffalo to an inconsistent, turnover-prone Giants team in South Beach. We all know what happened last time the Fish fried in Miami.
The Commanders (vs. Bears) have not looked great defensively this season, but Justin Fields and this Chicago offense can cure what ails a D. It could be especially ugly on the road during a short week (and that goes for the reverse in that game, too). Similarly, both sides of the Colts vs. Titans game should do well. Indy will pick on Ryan Tannehill, while Tennessee should eat up rookie QB Anthony Richardson and whoever is in the backfield with him. As we said with our hit parade of a Week 4 sleepers column, "you could do worse."
We'll be updating these D/ST rankings throughout the remainder of the week, so check back for the latest player movement and analysis.
Fantasy Defense Rankings Week 5: Who to start, sit at D/ST
Rank Player
1 New England Patriots vs. Saints
2 San Francisco 49ers vs. Cowboys
3 Dallas Cowboys @ 49ers
4 Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Ravens
5 Denver Broncos vs. Jets
6 Baltimore Ravens @ Steelers
7 Philadelphia Eagles @ Rams
8 Cincinnati Bengals @ Cardinals
9 New Orleans Saints @ Patriots
10 Buffalo Bills vs. Jaguars
11 New York Jets @ Broncos
12 Detroit Lions vs. Panthers
13 Miami Dolphins vs. Giants
14 Washington Commanders vs. Bears
15 Indianapolis Colts vs. Titans
16 Kansas City Chiefs @ Vikings
17 Tennessee Titans @ Colts
18 Atlanta Falcons vs. Texans
19 Las Vegas Raiders vs. Packers
20 Minnesota Vikings vs. Chiefs
21 Houston Texans @ Falcons
22 Chicago Bears @ Commanders
23 Green Bay Packers @ Raiders
24 Los Angeles Rams vs. Eagles
25 Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Bills
26 Carolina Panthers @ Lions
27 Arizona Cardinals vs. Bengals
28 New York Giants @ Dolphins
Week 5 D/ST fantasy projections, rankings from Draft Sharks
Draft Sharks projections for the new week will update every Tuesday and be constantly adjusted throughout the week
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