With six teams on bye and multiple stud defenses drawing tough matchups, staying on top of your D/ST position this week will be more important than ever. Our Week 7 fantasy defense rankings will assess the choppy waters and help navigate your team's ship to smoother sailing.
What's the only position for which the majority of fantasy owners don't carry a backup? D/ST. If you don't read our waiver wire watchlist each week, you probably aren't looking ahead to the following week to proactively cover your bases with bye weeks and poor matchups. But have no fear — that's why we're here.
Those who reached a bit for the 49ers, Bills, and Browns are probably loving life right now — these defenses are basically set-it-and-forget-it at this point. However, if you drafted the Patriots or Eagles, you've likely been underwhelmed through six weeks. New England has averaged 4.5 D/ST points per game, while Philadelphia has reached double-digit D/ST points just twice.
WEEK 7 STANDARD RANKINGS:
QBs | RBs | WRs | TEs | Kickers
This is a prime example of why we must divorce ourselves from our draft-day decisions. Regardless of how good teams were on the defensive side of the ball last season — or how highly they were ranked in the preseason — sometimes the best decision is to stream for a higher ceiling rather than holding onto a fake floor.
Read on below to see the thought process behind our rankings, and to 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! Here's our Week 7 fantasy defense rankings.
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Which fantasy defenses are on bye in Week 7?
The Cowboys, Jets, Bengals, Texans, Titans, and Panthers all have Week 7 off. Dallas, 98-percent rostered, has scored 80 points in standard leagues — so Cowboys owners will have a very difficult time replacing that production.
New York had elite defensive back duo Sauce Gardner and D.J. Reed out last week, so Gang Green will probably relish this week of rest. Cincinnati has scored 28 points over the past two weeks, and Houston has put up 39 points over its past four games, so both these D/STs will be missed, too.
WEEK 7 PPR RANKINGS:
QBs | RBs | WRs | TEs | Kickers
Who are the best fantasy defenses in Week 7?
Stop me if you've heard this before, but the 49ers (@ Vikings in Week 7), Bills (@ Patriots), and Browns (@ Colts) sit among the cream of the crop this week. San Francisco remains elite at every level and plays a Minnesota team with no Justin Jefferson and a limited running attack. Buffalo faces a New England team that has looked lost most of the season. Cleveland stifled the Niners last week and now gets to put Gardner Minshew in its crosshairs.
You can also trust the Saints (vs. Jaguars) in what could very well be another sloppy Thursday Night Football game. Jacksonville has started to heat up a little, but Trevor Lawrence (knee) got dinged up against Indianapolis and the Jags have allowed a total of eight sacks and three turnovers over their past two games.
We also like the Lions (@ Ravens) despite a tough road matchup. Aiden Hutchinson and this defense have been incredible against the run this season, and Baltimore has struggled to get much going outside of Lamar Jackson. We don't like Dan Campbell's squad enough on the road to rank it top five, but we also don't expect the Lions to fall out of the top eight. The Lions held Baker Mayfield and the Bucs to six points on 251 total yards last week, with Tampa moving the chains on just 2-of-12 third-down tries.
WEEK 7 FANTASY ADVICE:
Sleepers | Busts | Projections | Start 'em, sit 'em
Who are the best fantasy defense sleepers, waiver pickups in Week 7?
The biggest D/ST riser this week: the Commanders (@ Giants), who should unleash their strong front-seven on Daniel Jones (neck), Tyrod Taylor, or whoever stands behind New York's feeble line. We also like the Seahawks (vs. Cardinals) at home in a divisional matchup after losing a tough one in Cincinnati last week. Seattle has allowed just 10 points per game since its wakeup-call win over the Panthers in Week 3.
Don't sleep on the Buccaneers (vs. Falcons) either. Even when Atlanta moves the ball, Desmond Ridder and company make plenty of mistakes. Ridder took three sacks and got intercepted three times last week against the aforementioned Commanders, and now he must stare down a Bucs defense led by Devin White and Lavonte David.
Fantasy owners of the Ravens (vs. Lions), Steelers (@ Rams), Patriots (vs. Bills), and Eagles (vs. Dolphins) have every right to be nervous. We're streaming a handful of teams over these four squads we usually view as must-start D/STs, including the Packers (@ Broncos), Falcons (@ Buccaneers), Colts (vs. Browns), Giants (vs. Commanders), and Rams (vs. Steelers). We're looking for upside units against suspect passing games, and each of those four matchups offers us both.
Be sure to check in throughout the week for updates and tweaks. Good luck and have fun in Week 7!
WEEK 7 DFS:
DK lineup | FD lineup | Best values | Best stacks
Fantasy Defense Rankings Week 7: Who to start, sit at D/ST
Rank Player
1 San Francisco 49ers @ Vikings
2 Buffalo Bills @ Patriots
3 Cleveland Browns @ Colts
4 Washington Commanders @ Giants
5 New Orleans Saints vs. Jaguars
6 Seattle Seahawks vs. Cardinals
7 Detroit Lions @ Ravens
8 Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Falcons
9 Green Bay Packers @ Broncos
10 Atlanta Falcons @ Buccaneers
11 Indianapolis Colts vs. Browns
12 Los Angeles Rams vs. Steelers
13 Baltimore Ravens vs. Lions
14 Las Vegas Raiders @ Bears
15 Pittsburgh Steelers @ Rams
16 New York Giants vs. Commanders
17 Jacksonville Jaguars @ Saints
18 Chicago Bears vs. Raiders
19 Arizona Cardinals @ Seahawks
20 Miami Dolphins @ Eagles
21 New England Patriots vs. Bills
22 Kansas City Chiefs vs. Chargers
23 Philadelphia Eagles vs. Dolphins
24 Denver Broncos vs. Packers
25 Los Angeles Chargers @ Chiefs
26 Minnesota Vikings vs. 49ers
Week 7 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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