Streaming Defenses: Week 5 Options

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Updated on October 6, 2020 6:03PM EST

Week 4 brought another set of high-scoring games that limited D/ST fantasy production across the board. No matter, our streaming picks performed admirably, each scoring five or more points in a week that saw only 16 defenses reach that mark.

Our top choice, the Rams, stood out above the rest with 11 points, third most of any defense. The other four landed between five and eight points, solid but unspectacular.

Unfortunately, Week 5 appears less favorable for streaming, as most of the good matchups belong to defenses that are already rostered in most fantasy leagues. Looking at the Week 5 rankings below, none of the top-7 defenses for the upcoming slate meets our ownership requirement for this streaming article.

Even our top choice, Arizona, is only available in about half of fantasy leagues, so many of us will be looking at a deep dive into sketchy waters for Week 5 streaming. Managed expectations, anyone?

For injury/ranking updates throughout the week, follow me on Twitter (@RotowireNFL_JD).

Note: These recommendations are limited to team defenses that are rostered on less than 60 percent of teams on Yahoo or 45 percent on ESPN. Any references to fantasy points are based on Yahoo standard scoring, which doesn't include yards allowed.

Top Streaming Options for Week 5

1. Arizona Cardinals (at NYJ)

50% rostered on Yahoo, 53% on ESPN

Team implied total: 27

Opponent implied total: 20.5

Upcoming Ranks (Projected) — Week 6: 23rd (at DAL), Week 7: 26th (vs. SEA)

The Arizona

Our top choice, the Rams, stood out above the rest with 11 points, third most of any defense. The other four landed between five and eight points, solid but unspectacular.

Even our top choice, Arizona, is only available in about half of fantasy leagues, so many of us will be looking at a deep dive into sketchy waters for Week 5 streaming. Managed expectations, anyone?

For injury/ranking updates throughout the week, follow me on Twitter (@RotowireNFL_JD).

Top Streaming Options for Week 5

1. Arizona Cardinals (at NYJ)

50% rostered on Yahoo, 53% on ESPN

Team implied total: 27

Opponent implied total: 20.5

Upcoming Ranks (Projected) — Week 6: 23rd (at DAL), Week 7: 26th (vs. SEA)

The Arizona defense looked bad the past two weeks, but it's at least displayed a decent pass rush (11 sacks, t-8th) and hasn't been close to the level of awful we saw last year. Mediocrity should be enough to get the job done against the Jets, who have given up a league-high 11.3 fantasy points per game to D/STs. Sam Darnold is on pace for 48 sacks and 16 interceptions, completing 59.4 percent of his passes for an NFL-worst 5.7 YPA. The Jets may get Le'Veon Bell (hamstring) back in the lineup this week, but their offensive line is still a banged-up mess, and they don't have any reliable receivers besides slot man Jamison Crowder.

(Update: Darnold (shoulder) isn't expected to play, leaving Super Bowl hero Joe Flacco as the likely starter.)

2. Kansas City Chiefs (vs. LVR)

69% Yahoo, 34% ESPN

Team implied total: 34.25

Opponent implied total: 21.75

Upcoming Ranks (Projected) — Week 6: 15th (at BUF), Week 7: 3rd (at DEN)

The Chiefs defense was having a solid season even before Monday's gifts from Brian Hoyer and Jarrett Stidham, scoring five or more fantasy points in each game. Now favored by 12.5 in another home matchup, the Chiefs should be able to nudge the Raiders offense away from Josh Jacobs and toward Derek Carr, leading to some opportunities for sacks and takeaways.

3. Dallas Cowboys (vs. NYG)

26% Yahoo, 21% ESPN

Team implied total: 31.75

Opponent implied total: 22.25

Upcoming Ranks (Projected) — Week 6: 17th (vs. ARZ), Week 7: 10th (at WAS)

This is our proverbial pillow fight, kind of like the NFL equivalent of hand-to-hand combat between two koala bears. The Cowboys have allowed a league-high 36.5 points per game, while the Giants have scored a league-low 11.8. Part of that is due to their respective schedules, but part of it is just being really bad. Daniel Jones is on pace for 56 sacks and 20 interceptions, playing behind an O-line that sits 30th in PFF's pass-blocking grades and 28th in ESPN's pass-block win rate.

4. Cleveland Browns (vs. IND)

12% Yahoo, 16% ESPN

Team implied total: 22.5

Opponent implied total: 25.0

Upcoming Ranks (Projected) — Week 6: 22nd (at PIT), Week 7: 9th (at CIN)

You know it's a tricky week for streaming when our No. 4 pick is a 2.5-point underdog facing an opponent with an implied total in the mid-20s. It's not ideal, but there is some cause for optimism, as the Colts offense has mostly looked mediocre, while DE Myles Garrett has been flat-out dominant in Cleveland. The Browns haven't been good at preventing points, but they do lead the league in takeaways (10) and are tied for eighth in sacks (11).

Myles Garrett has two games this season forcing multiple turnovers from pressure, just the 5th time in the Next Gen Stats era (since 2016) that's happened. The others:
Shaq Barrett (2019)
Aaron Donald (2018)
Von Miller (2018)
Terrell Suggs (2016)
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) October 5, 2020

5. Houston Texans (vs. JAX)

12% Yahoo, 9% ESPN

Team implied total: 30

Opponent implied total: 24

Upcoming Ranks (Projected) — Week 6: 24th (at TEN), Week 7: 25th (vs. GB)

This is another one based strictly on matchup, as the Houston defense has given up 28 or more points in each game this season and still doesn't have a takeaway. Of course, matchups with the Chiefs, Ravens, Steelers and Vikings were far from optimal, while Week 5 brings a home game against a Jacksonville team that's allowed the 10th-most fantasy points to defenses. We've already seen the Jags being generous to some lousy groups, with Miami scoring 12 points in Week 3 and the Bengals putting up five this past weekend.