Defense/Special Teams
Tier 1: Seattle
Tier 2: San Francisco, Carolina, St. Louis, Cincinnati, Denver, Arizona
Tier 3: New England, Houston, Kansas City, Pittsburgh, New Orleans, Cleveland
Tier 4: Baltimore, Buffalo, Chicago, Green Bay
Tier 5: New York Jets, New York Giants, Miami, Philadelphia, Indianapolis, Detroit, Jacksonville
Analysis:
Seattle tops the D/ST rankings, which should surprise no one. The dropoff between Seattle and the teams in tier 2 is not significant. In terms of strategy, it really comes down to the scoring system in your league, as scoring systems for defenses tend to vary greatly among leagues. Typically you will want to select your defenses late, and as a general guideline, I would make sure that the QB, RB, WR and TE positions are taken care of prior to selecting a D (at least for the QB, RB and WR positions, you should have a solid backup in place as well before selecting a D). But, if your league places a high emphasis on D points, then this plan is subject to change. Know your league’s scoring system well. I would select D over kickers in virtually any league.
- Neema Hodjat is the fantasy sports expert for RealGM. He can be reached via email at nhodjat@gmail.com and followed on twitter at @NeemaHodjat.