The playoffs are just around the corner. You don’t want to slip up and lose because your DST costs you points. Some of you might have already qualified for the playoffs, if you’re one of those teams congrats to you, and maybe you’re best off looking beyond Week 13 to find a defense that can perform for you in the postseason.
Week 13 is a brutal week for byes. Teams off this week are the Bears, Bills, Giants, Raiders, Ravens and Vikings. The teams below will be available in 50% or more Fantrax Leagues.
Week 13 DST Streamers
Atlanta Falcons
What a wonderful streaming option we have here. The Atlanta Falcons defense is the reason behind their success season and now they face off against a New York Jets team that could be starting either Tim Boyle or Zach Wilson at quarterback. It’s a match between a defense that has played well of late, scoring eight or more points in three of their last five contests with an offense in shambles. The Falcons need to be the top streaming defense option in all leagues.
Los Angeles Rams
Another super-friendly matchup for a DST that has been playing much better Football these last couple of weeks. The Rams have put up seven or more points in three straight with those two most recent games against the Seattle Seahawks and the Arizona Cardinals with Kyler Murray. They have a far easier matchup this week against the Cleveland Browns, who have struggled offensively since Deshaun Watson‘s latest injury. As a plus to the Rams, they might get Joe Flacco and an abbreviated playbook this week.
Houston Texans
Time for my weekly soapbox speech where I tell you that the Houston Texans DST is worth starting in Fantasy Football. Last week was a rare miss for the Houston Texans. Jacksonville was a tougher opponent than they had seen lately. However, they still came away with zero sacks after 15 over the prior four weeks. Still, this is a great opportunity to bounce back against the Denver Broncos offense that’s been better, but still friendly towards DSTs. I like the above teams better still because the matchup is extremely friendly, but you can still get by starting to Houston Texans this week.
Indianapolis Colts
Wow, what a run the Colts DST has been on these last three weeks. After posting a -6 against a hot and cold New Orleans Saints offense, the Colts have scored a combined 53 points in their last three games. Absolutely bonkers numbers. They’ve got the Tennessee Titans in Week 13, a team that hasn’t looked like the explosive offense we expected to see when Will Levis made his debut a couple of weeks ago. The rookie quarterback has had a hard time, putting it all together since his debut and the Colts defense continues to play at a high level, that turnaround might not come this week
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
This is a desperation play because after this it gets ugly. Tampa has been hot and cold this season, especially of late. They recently put up a dozen points against the previously mentioned Tennessee Titans three weeks ago; that’s a positive. However, the issue is that’s where the positives seem to end for Tampa Bay’s defensively. In their two games before and two after that contest, they have put up a combined five points or just north of 1 ppg. So why am I telling you that you should stream them this week?
It all comes down to the matchups. The Carolina Panthers face the Buccaneers DST this Sunday and boy have they been downright awful of late. As I mentioned last week their offense lacks any and all explosiveness. Since then they fired their head coach only 11 games into his tenure. It’s ugly in Carolina. It’s going to take a long time to fix, especially without a first round pick. Maybe they get an interim coach boost from Chris Tabor. The Raiders have gotten one from Antonio Pierce. However, I’m not feeling that vibe coming from Carolina like I did Las Vegas. Remember this is a bet against Carolina, not so much against Tampa Bay. Still think Carolina is bad enough you can trust Tampa if needed.
Week 13 Fantasy Football Rankings: Quarterback | Running Back | Wide Receiver | Tight End | Half-PPR by Position | Flex Rankings | Positional Ranks w/ K & DST | Dynasty | Superflex Dynasty