As the fantasy season quickly approaches and we are all working on our draft strategies, an often overlooked position is the Defense/Special Teams (DST).  DST’s are often one of the final few picks for each fantasy player as skill position players and fantasy benches are certainly more important.  In general, there really is no secret strategy when it comes to picking a DST, but over the next couple of paragraphs I will give you an idea of the top defenses to target and what is important to look for when deciding which defense to draft.

The Elite

Historically speaking teams like the Seahawks and Cardinals have been among the top defenses to come off the board in recent seasons due to their ability to create turnovers and get to the quarterback which are two of the main scoring components of a fantasy defense.  The ability to create these turnovers also create opportunities for defensive touchdowns which can turn a solid fantasy day into a great fantasy day. 

The Seahawks and Cardinals also benefit from playing in a relatively weak offensive division with teams like the Rams and 49ers failing to impress on the offensive side of the football.  The Rams are going with rookie QB Jared Goff while the 49ers will be choosing between embattled QB Colin Kaepernick and former first round bust Blaine Gabbert who do not figure to challenge either defense in a significant way. 

These two teams also benefit from having a relatively favorable out of conference schedule this season as they get the AFC East and NFC South. The Cardinals will open the season against a Patriots team without Tom Brady and will really have a stacked first few weeks of the season where they face the Buccaneers, Bills, Rams, 49ers and Jets. The Seahawks will open the year with a home game against the Dolphins and will face the Rams, 49ers, Jets for the first four weeks before coming out of a Week 5 bye with a home game against the Falcons in Week 6.  Ideally these matchups should rank among the top two or three each week and give their owners an advantage over the field.

Some of the other top defenses that could easily find their way into the elite fantasy category this upcoming season could be last year’s No.1 and No.2 ranked teams in the Broncos and Chiefs, who saw some key departures to their core units but also offer the upside to put up some fantasy points.

The Field

The majority of the fantasy world will wait until their final few picks to draft a defense with the idea that ultimately they will go with the plug-and-play strategy which sees fantasy owners scouring the waiver wire each week for the best possible matchup.  With this method the research is fairly simple: Draft the team with the easiest schedule.  The majority of these defenses will typically rank in the middle of team defense but a favorable schedule can elevate their fantasy production and vault them towards the top 10 in points scored.

A defense that fits this mold would be the Houston Texans who have home games in four of the first six weeks and include matchups against the Bears, Chiefs and a Patriots team without Tom Brady over the first three weeks.  The Texans defense is led by reigning Defensive Player of the Year J.J. Watt along with Brian Cushing, Vince Wilfork and Jadeveon Clowney in the front seven.  Another team worth taking a look at is the New England Patriots who open the season with four of their first six games at home and are coming off a season where they finished second in the league with 49 sacks and tied for the league lead with 22 forced fumbles.  This defense boasts plenty of name players and is anchored by Malcolm Butler at corner and a combo of Dont’a Hightower and Jamie Collins at linebacker.

The Strategy

So at this point you might be wondering what exactly the strategy is when it comes to picking a defense, and the reality of the situation is that it’s all about personal preference.  For me personally, I like to go with a set it and forget it approach with my defense and therefore I will usually be the one grabbing a defense a round or two before everybody else just so when it comes to in-season management I do not have to waste time trying to figure out what waiver wire defense is less likely to cost me the week.  If you find that there happens to be a defense with a strong first half of the schedule and another with a solid second half of the schedule you can go ahead and draft two defenses and just mix and match. 

My final words of advice would be to just pay attention to your draft. If you see a run of defenses going then don’t be afraid to grab one yourself as in fantasy every point counts and the difference between rostering a good defense or just a mediocre one can be the difference between winning and losing a week.