Getty DeForest Buckner of the San Francisco 49ers
Welcome to Fantasy Football Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em for Week 6 of the NFL season. Our defense edition this week features a defense trending towards becoming the best unit in all of football, however, a tough matchup might make them a tough play.
* Reminder: Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em is intended to present you with the non-obvious choices for your fantasy lineup. We dig deep into player matchups, scoring trends, and other factors to best help you with your fantasy decisions. Be sure to also check out our weekly fantasy football defense rankings to better gauge where these start-sit options compare to the rest of the options at the position.
Start-Sit [ QBs | RBs | WRs | TEs | DEF | K]
Follow the Heavy on Fantasy & Betting for all the latest betting news, odds, and picks
DEF: Start ‘Em
Start of the Week: Chargers DEF vs. PIT
Last week our start of the week was the Philadelphia Eagles defense prepping to face off with a backup quarterback. All Philly did was put up a monstrous 35 fantasy points in Week 5. The Chargers may not reach that high of an output in Week 6, but they are still in prime position to succeed. The Bolts have averaged 12.5 points over the past two weeks, while racking up eight sacks and three turnovers. Los Angeles will be licking their chops when the Devlin Hodges-led Steelers offense takes the field on Sunday night.
Ravens DEF vs. CIN
The once-vaunted Ravens defense has been non-serviceable in fantasy land for the majority of the season. Baltimore’s D has averaged a grand total of two points over their last four contests. The Bengals coming to town this week should be a welcomed sight for Ravens defenders and their fantasy owners. Cincinnati gives up the seventh-most fantasy points to defenses this season with more than 10+ points per game. Three out of their five matchups this season have seen their opponents defense rack up an average of 14.0 fantasy points.
Sleeper: Dolphins DEF vs. WAS
It pains me to dare say this, but Miami’s defense may be worth a flyer in Week 6. Case Keenum is back at the helm in Washington. The quarterback has accounted for six turnovers in his last two starts. The ‘Skins allow an average of 12.2 fantasy points to opposing defenses this season, the third-most in football.
DEF: Sit ‘Em
Sit of the Week: Texans DEF vs. KC
Houston has averaged a respectable 9.25 points over their past four contests. Kansas City is coming off a performance where they allowed the Colts defense to score double-digit fantasy points. Texans D/ST must be a solid play this week, right? Think again. KC still surrenders a league-low 2.8 fantasy points to opposing defenses this season. Patrick Mahomes and company are pissed and ready to show the league their dominance once again. Oh, and they might be getting Tyreek Hill back in time for this contest.
Browns DEF vs. SEA
There’s not much to like about the Browns on the surface right now. However, their defense in terms of fantasy value has performed decently well these past few weeks. Don’t expect that to be the case in Week 6. Russell Wilson is playing at an MVP level, and their offense has turned the ball over just once over their past two games. Four of Seattle’s five D/ST opponents in 2019 have averaged just 4.75 points against them.
Buyers Beware: 49ers DEF at LAR
The 49ers defense put on a show last Monday night for the entire world to see. While they are certainly “for real” you can’t expect a 19 point outing on a weekly basis. This may be one of those weeks where we see their fantasy production take a dip. The Rams rank sixth in offensive points per game on the season. They’ve also allowed just one defense to score more than nine fantasy points against them this season.
READ NEXT: Fantasy: Defense Rankings Week 6