Week 3 of the 2024 NFL season is here, and we know you’re all ready to dig into your NFL DFS research as soon as possible. Week 3 delivers a dozen games on the main slate, but only seven in the early window. Last week there were 10 games going off at 1:00 PM ET and Red Zone delivered the ever-so-rare decabox.

But as always there were some hits and misses with the D/ST’s this past week. That tends to happen with a position of variance. Let’s take a look at our NFL DFS Week 3 D/ST Coach as the final piece of your winning NFL DFS lineups on DraftKings and FanDuel.

 

 

 

NFL DFS Week 3 D/ST Coach For FanDuel & DraftKings Fantasy

I tend to pride myself on admitting my mistakes. I have been dead wrong on the New Orleans Saints so far this year. I thought they’d have the worst offensive line in the league. I thought they would throw out a bottom five offense this year. They’ve done nothing but prove me wrong. So egg on my face, and credit to Klint Kubiak.

This is all to say that last week’s Play of the Week at the D/ST position was a disappointment. And that’s hard to believe given that the Saints played the vaunted Dallas Cowboys defense. But we also had some nice hits as well. The New York Jets were pricy but delivered on double-digit fantasy points. 

Truthfully, I was heaviest on the Chargers and Cardinals. Why? Because I really try to avoid spending up at this position. I will routinely pay down in the mid-and-value tiers so I don’t compromise the integrity of the rest of the build. And both the Bolts and Cards delivered 11 fantasy points at their manageable price tags.

 

 

 

NFL Week 3 Defense/Special Teams

As mentioned at the top, we have another big main slate with 12 games. However, there’s more balance. Last week delivered just a three-game afternoon window with 10 games early on. This week’s NFL DFS Week 3 D/ST Coach gives us seven games early on and five games in the afternoon. I highly recommend playing both slates in addition to the main because there are great contests across the board.

This week’s slate has some great options in the mid-tier including a D/ST that might just get 15% exposure in tournaments as they host a rookie quarterback who has thrown four interceptions in two games. But we do have five games on this slate with implied totals of 40 points or fewer. Let’s dig into the NFL DFS Week 3 D/ST Coach with the top options to lock in your lineups and win big!

 

 

 

NFL DFS D/ST Top Tier Picks For Week 3

Cleveland Browns - DraftKings: $3,800 | FanDuel: $4,900

The Browns are served a layup at home this week. They host the New York Giants and are favored by 6.5 points at home and the Giants have an implied team total of 16 points, one of the lowest on the slate.

Last week we saw the Giants play the best game they’ll play all season. That’s the benefit of playing the Washington Commanders as Daniel Jones even managed to be viable in DFS as a cheap play.

This week is different. Jones is still completing just 54.3% of his pass attempts on the year and he hasn’t thrown for 200+ yards in either of his two games this year. Coincidentally enough, the Browns have yet to allow a quarterback to throw for 200 yards. Surprisingly the Browns have not forced a turnover yet this year, but they’re certainly getting pressure on opposing quarterbacks and should do the same in this matchup.

Los Angeles Chargers - DraftKings: $3,600 | FanDuel: $3,900

This is largely a recommendation on FanDuel because the price tag is outstanding over there. And it feels dirty because I will have a couple Justin Fields/George Pickens stacks in my NFL DFS lineups for Week 3.

But obviously, the Chargers defense has played well through two games so far. They’ve allowed a total of 13 points and 455 total yards to opposing offenses, but it’s worth mentioning they’ve only played the Las Vegas Raiders and Carolina Panthers.

But at the end of the day, they’ve forced four turnovers and collected six sacks. I’m a little nervous about the Chargers playing back-to-back road games on the East coast. And this Steelers offensive line has been playing very well with the additions of their rookie linemen. So, proceed with caution because Justin Fields hasn’t been lighting it up by any means and yet the team has started 2-0.

 

 

 

NFL DFS D/ST Mid-Tier Picks For Week 3

Pittsburgh Steelers - DraftKings: $3,300 | FanDuel: $4,800

The mid-tier this week isn’t great for FanDuel because I prefer these next two plays on DraftKings. And it’s bizarre because I think this game has shootout potential. But in any lineup I’m not getting exposure to the skill position players in this game, I kind of want exposure to a D/ST in tournaments.

After back-to-back road wins, the Steelers finally get a home game. Through two games they’ve allowed opposing offenses to score 16 points and they’ve allowed a total of 521 yards to opposing offenses. Most importantly, they’ve forced five turnovers and collected a pair of sacks. 

Justin Herbert hasn’t really been throwing the ball much. He’s attempted just 46 passes this year and hasn’t eclipsed 150 passing yards yet. Moreover, the Bolts have gone run-heavy early on as we’ve seen a resurgence in the career of J.K. Dobbins. But the Steelers have only given up 153 rushing yards in two games and this isn’t the easiest environment for teams to play in. 

Tampa Bay Buccaneers - DraftKings: $3,000 | FanDuel: $4,700

The Bucs are the fourth-most expensive D/ST on FanDuel. They’re still in play over there, but a better budget play on DraftKings. The Bucs host the Denver Broncos this weekend and that Tampa humidity is quite the inconvenience if you aren’t used to it.

The Bucs are currently 6.5-point favorites, and the Broncos have an implied team total of about 16.75 points. As much as the Broncos may have loved Bo Nix in this year’s draft, it’s looking like trading up to select him 12th overall was a drastic reach. 

Nix does have 60 rushing yards through two games and a touchdown on the ground. Not to mention he’s attempted 77 passes in that sample size. So the volume is good, right? In the words of Lee Corso, “Not so fast!” The production has been atrocious for Nix as he’s thrown two interceptions in each of his first two games with 384 passing yards and zero touchdowns.

Malik Willis has more passing touchdowns this year than Bo Nix, Caleb Williams, and Jayden Daniels. So, it’s been rough for this incoming rookie class of quarterbacks, and I don’t think it gets any easier against the Bucs, who just picked off Jared Goff twice last week.

 

 

 

NFL Week 3 DFS D/ST Value Picks

Tennessee Titans - DraftKings: $2,700 | FanDuel: $3,700

The Titans were a slight bust for us last week. The problem is that they just haven’t forced many turnovers. Through two games they’re only on the hook for 413 total yards of offense. But they only have four sacks to show for it and just one forced turnover.

They do get a second consecutive home game and it’s against a familiar face. Malik Willis will start for Green Bay and he started his career in Tennessee, and I actually gained a lot of respect for him given his answer on this being a ‘revenge’ game.

But Willis only attempted 14 passes last week and the low volume should be the case again this week. Expect a run-heavy attack on the part of the Green Bay Packers. Fortunately for the Titans they still do have a pretty good defensive line that limits the run having allowed just 185 total rushing yards.

Josh Jacobs and Willis will have volume on their side but they’re two-point underdogs on the road to Tennessee and the over/under is sitting at 38 points as of Wednesday night.

Minnesota Vikings - DraftKings: $2,400 | FanDuel: $4,100

I wouldn’t play Minnesota on FanDuel because it’s just a risky price tag given the matchup. The Vikings host the Texans in Week 3 and this offense is absolutely rolling and Nico Collins looks like an absolute superstar at the wide receiver position.

The Vikings have been outstanding on defense. Sure, they surrendered 639 total yards of offense, but only 23 total points. That’s a “bend but don’t break” defensive approach we can tolerate.

They’ve forced 11 sacks and four turnovers through two games and put up 22 fantasy points against the Giants in Week 1 and 13 points against the San Francisco 49ers. They are slight underdogs at home and this game does have some shootout potential. But if you’re asking me how cheap I’m willing to go at D/ST for tournaments this week? The answer is the Minnesota Vikings.

 

 

 

NFL DFS D/ST Fades For Week 3

Las Vegas Raiders - DraftKings: $3,700 | FanDuel: $5,000

This week’s fade is going to be the Las Vegas Raiders. On paper, they do check all the boxes just a bit. They’re at home and they’re favored. Not to mention, the over/under for this game is currently at 40 points. So why the fade?

Pricing came out before the news was announced that Bryce Young would be benched by the Carolina Panthers for Andy Dalton. Warren Sharp pointed out that Young was just 1-for-20 on third down passing attempts and 44% of those completions fall squarely on his inaccuracy.

Andy Dalton steps in and brings plenty of veteran experience. Dalton got the start in Week 3 last year against the Seattle Seahawks (on the road) and completed 34-of-58 pass attempts for 361 yards and a pair of touchdowns. It’s hard to view this as a downgrade for the Carolina offense and now Dave Canales can (hopefully) get his offense rolling with Dalton.

If the Raiders were in the mid-tier, I likely wouldn’t list them as the NFL DFS D/ST Fade for Week 3. But given the pricing on both DraftKings and FanDuel, I’ll take my money elsewhere.

 

 

 

NFL DFS Week 3 D/ST Play Of The Week

San Francisco 49ers - DraftKings: $3,500 | FanDuel: $4,400

I love the pricing for the 49ers on both sites. The over/under is not great at 44.5 points, but the 49ers are favored by a touchdown on the road. The Rams have an implied total of about 18.75 points. This is also a defense that was pretty much embarrassed by the Minnesota Vikings last week and the pressure rate was almost non-existent.

I expect that to change in Week 3. The Los Angeles Rams are beat up almost everywhere. They won’t have Puka Nacua for this game as he’s still on IR and while Cooper Kupp won’t be placed on IR, it sounds like it’s quite the longshot that he’ll play this weekend.

Most importantly, we’re looking at one of the worst offensive lines in the league. The 49ers likely won’t have the same struggles last week that they did against Minnesota’s offensive line. Alaric Jackson is returning this week and that is an upgrade for the offensive line, but the injuries are mounting.

Both teams are coming off a loss, but the 49ers just have too much to offer up on defense. Sean McVay might draw up some quicker passes out of 11 personnel to avoid taking sacks. But the 49ers have forced multiple turnovers in each of the first two games and the price tag is very manageable for this matchup.

 

 

 

NFL DFS Week 3 Defense/Special Teams Projections