Every point matters when it comes to winning in season-long fantasy football, meaning you can't afford to leave points on the table. While we don't spend top-notch draft capital on D/STs in our fantasy football drafts, ignoring them during the season can cost you dearly.

Streaming defenses throughout the year is a great way to ensure you get the most out of your D/ST slot. Even the best defenses draw tough weekly matchups, and even the worst defenses are capable of strong fantasy outings in the right situations.

This article is here to help you parse through all of those situations and to present you with three streamers that are available in most leagues.

All NFL projections via our numbers at FanDuel Research, and NFL odds references are to FanDuel Sportsbook.

Fantasy Football D/ST to Stream for Week 9

New Orleans Saints

Matchup: at Carolina

The New Orleans Saints D/ST has felt like a roulette at times, producing five top-15 weekly finishes and three fantasy scores outside of the top 20. Thanks to inconsistency, New Orleans' unit is available in about 67% of leagues. Week 9 brings a very favorable matchup against the Carolina Panthers, who ranked as the fourth-worst schedule-adjusted offense prior to Week 8.

Carolina's offense has a long list of problems, including the seventh-fewest yards per play and the fourth-fewest points and yards per contest. Bryce Young made his first start since Week 2 and tossed two touchdowns for the third time over his challenging career thus far, but he still threw two interceptions. The second-year quarterback is trending toward another start due to Andy Dalton's thumb injury.

This means good news for the Saints D/ST, for the unit logged the fourth-most fantasy points in Week 1 when it faced Young and the Panthers. Over Young's three starts this season, all three opposing D/STs finished among the top seven in weekly finishes.

Carolina is averaging the fourth-most turnovers per game while New Orleans is forcing the eighth-most turnovers per contest. Young also has five picks over three starts this season. There's a lot to like about the Saints D/ST in Week 9.

Cincinnati Bengals

Matchup: vs. Raiders

Week 8 featured the Cincinnati Bengals being shredded for 37 points and 397 yards by the Philadelphia Eagles. The Cincinnati D/ST is carrying the worst weekly finish at -4.0 fantasy points prior to MNF. You may be asking, are you sure about this play?

First off, the Bengals produced back-to-back top-10 finishes before Week 8. Sunday also brings a favorable matchup against the Las Vegas Raiders, who had the third-worst adjusted offense before Week 8 and average the seventh-fewest PPG and the fifth-fewest yards per game and yards per play.

Additionally, Las Vegas averages the second-most turnovers across the NFL. Cincy averaged 1.5 takeaways and 3.0 sacks per game over its two top-10 weekly finishes. This matchup continues to favor the Bengals' defense as the Raiders also hold the 11th-highest quarterback sack rate allowed.

According to Pro Football Focus, Cincinnati carries the 9th-best run defense grade and 11th-worst coverage grade. Defending the pass is an obvious concern, but Vegas total the eighth-fewest yards per passing attempt while Gardner Minshew has surpassed 200 passing yards in only one of his past four appearances.

The Bengals D/ST performs when it faces bad offenses, as we saw in Week 6 and Week 7 against the New York Giants and Cleveland Browns. With a 31% roster percentage, Cincinnati's defense could earn some stripes in Week 9.

Washington Commanders

Matchup: at Giants

Before Week 8, the Washington Commanders held the sixth-worst adjusted overall defense and pass defense. Yet, the Commanders' D/ST has been a consistent producer over the last month, finishing among the top 11 units for fantasy points in three of the last four.

A portion of this has been thanks to forcing turnovers, for the Commanders logged a measly 0.5 takeaways per game over the first four games compared to 1.3 takeaways per contest over the previous four. Washington's nose for the ball should carry over to Week 9 as the New York Giants always feel like a vulnerable offense due to Daniel Jones' turnover woes throughout his career.

Averaging 3.3 sacks per game over the last month has also played a huge role for the Commanders D/ST. The unit was logging only 2.0 sacks per game over the first four games. Of course, New York's pass protection has experienced a big drop off with left tackle Andrew Thomas (foot) out for the season. Plus, the Giants are already in the bottom half of PFF's pass blocking grade.

As usual, Washington's concern will be stopping the pass with the sixth-worst adjusted pass defense prior to Week 8. New York logs the fifth-fewest yards per passing attempt paired with the eighth-worst adjusted pass defense before Week 8. The Commanders are getting an ideal matchup, and paired with their increase in sacks and takeaways, Washington is a quality streaming option if you're in a tight pinch.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.