Getty Jamie Collins of the New England Patriots
Welcome to Fantasy Football Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em Defense Edition for Week 15 of the NFL season. This week we feature two of the league’s very best units looking to get back to their dominant ways.
* 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.
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DEF: Start ‘Em
Start of the Week: Patriots DEF at CIN
The only reason we are taking time to discuss this is because New England’s defense has scored eight fantasy points or fewer in three consecutive weeks. Expect them to reclaim their elite fantasy standing in Week 15. The Bengals have surrendered an average of 15 fantasy points to opposing defenses over four of their last five games. While Cincinnati has improved with Andy Dalton back under center, they still managed to allow 11 fantasy points to the Browns defense a week ago.
Ravens DEF vs. NYJ
Since Week 6, the Ravens defense has averaged 13.9 fantasy points, the most in football over that span. No offense in the NFL allows more fantasy points to opposing defenses than that of the New York Jets, with an average of 11.3 ppg.
49ers DEF vs. ATL
Everyone wants to talk about the 49ers’ victory over the Saints a week ago and how amazing it was. Yet, no one wants to discuss the fact that arguably the league’s best defense just surrendered 46 offensive points. Over the last two weeks, the 49ers D has totaled just 2.0 fantasy points. I’d give them one more week to prove they’re still the top-notch unit most of us perceive them as. Atlanta has allowed 16 fantasy points to opposing D/STs in two of their last three games.
Sleeper: Buccaneers DEF at DET
Tampa Bay’s defense has been pretty terrible for the majority of the season. However, Detroit QB David Blough isn’t much better. The Bucs defense has actually averaged 19.5 fantasy points over two of their last three games. The Lions, on the other hand, have surrendered an average of 17 fantasy points to D/STs over two of their last three games.
DEF: Sit ‘Em
Sit of the Week: Jets DEF at BAL
New York’s run as a viable starting defense has seemed to come to a screeching halt over the last few weeks, averaging just 3.0 fantasy points over their last two games. If Lamar Jackson is healthy and available on Thursday, you do not, under any circumstance, play the Jets D/ST. Defenses to face off against the Ravens this season averaged just 2.92 fantasy points.
Falcons DEF at SF
Atlanta’s defense has scored 10+ fantasy points in three of their last five games. However, only one team has scored more than seven fantasy points against the 49ers over their last 10 games. San Fran doesn’t make many mistakes, and has now scored 30+ offensive points in three of their last four games.
Colts DEF at NO
Don’t be blinded by the fact that the Colts defense has scored 10+ fantasy points in three of their last four games. We all witnessed what New Orleans’ offense did to the 49ers defense a week ago. Indianapolis shouldn’t stand a chance. Three of the last four defenses to face off against the Saints have scored zero fantasy points or fewer.
Buyers Beware: Rams DEF at DAL
The Rams defense has averaged 15 fantasy points over six of their seven games since acquiring Jalen Ramsey. The Cowboys have also been dreadful of late. It seems like LA would be a must-start, right? Not quite. Opposing defenses average just 3.69 fantasy points against Dallas this year. The Cowboys are in must-win territory, plus, even if they struggle, they tend to rack up yardage in garbage time.
- *Check out our other Week 15 Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Ems to further optimize your lineups
- Start-Sit [ QBs | RBs | WRs | TEs | DEF | Ks]
READ NEXT: Fantasy: Defense Rankings Week 15