Fantasy Football: 3 Defensive Streamer Options for Week 7

Every point matters when it comes to winning in season-long fantasy football, meaning you can't afford to leave points on the table. We don't spend top-notch draft capital on D/STs in our fantasy football drafts, but 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 available in most leagues.

Fantasy Football Defenses to Stream for Week 7

All projections via numberFire.

Washington Commanders

Matchup: at New York Giants

numberFire Projection: 9.20 (D/ST1)

The Washington Commanders are back at the top of numberFire's D/ST projections for Week 7 with an incredible matchup queued up against the New York Giants. Washington is fresh off a strong defensive performance against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 6 and carries the top D/ST projection of the week at 9.20 points.

The Commanders' defense hasn't quite lived up to expectations this season -- they rank seventh-worst by numberFire's schedule-adjusted metrics -- but we don't necessarily need them to be a good NFL defense to put up fantasy points. That's where their Week 7 opponents come in.

The Giants have scored the fewest points in the NFL (71) over their six games so far this season, even including teams that have played fewer games (like the Pittsburgh Steelers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers). That alone gives the Commanders a safe floor for Week 7.

It's also critical to point out that no team in the league is taking sacks like the Giants are right now. Between Daniel Jones and Tyrod Taylor, the team's quarterbacks have taken sacks at an absurd -- and league-high -- 14% rate. Each sack they've taken has counted as a fantasy point for their opponents' D/ST, making them arguably the most fantasy-friendly offense to target with D/ST units.

With 19 sacks on the season already, the Commanders' pass-rush is tied for the sixth-most sacks in the league. numberFire's model projects them for a slate-high 4.42 sacks in Week 7, further solidifying Washington as the top streaming option on the week.

Cleveland Browns

Matchup: at Indianapolis Colts

numberFire Projection: 8.16 (D/ST7)

There's a good chance the Cleveland Browns' defense is on your league's waiver wire entering Week 7. If that is the case, you'll probably want to put in a claim on them -- it's not too often you can find the league's best schedule-adjusted defense on the waiver wire.

Their already-elite defense has a juicy Week 7 matchup with the Indianapolis Colts, who have been forced to turn to Gardner Minshew at quarterback in light of starting quarterback Anthony Richardson's shoulder injury. Minshew was close to disastrous in Week 6 and is primed to send the Browns' D/ST back to the top of the leaderboards in Week 7.

Minshew's brand of football favors the short game while still leaving him vulnerable to taking sacks and tossing interceptions -- he had three of each against the Jacksonville Jaguars last week. The Colts will likely start the game out by attempting to establish the run, but the Browns' rushing defense has been lights out all year.

We're trending towards another game of Minshew needing to drop back a lot. If the Colts fall behind on the scoreboard, expect the Browns' D/ST to start piling up fantasy points.

Atlanta Falcons

Matchup: at Tampa Bay Buccaneers

numberFire Projection: 7.52 (D/ST11)

The Atlanta Falcons round out this week's streamer options with a quality matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and it's a matchup that could get even better as the week goes on.

The Bucs could be without starting quarterback Baker Mayfield in Week 7 after his late-game injury in Week 6, which could thrust Kyle Trask into the starting job. If that does happen, there is a good chance the Falcons' defense vaults up higher in numberFire's Week 7 projections.

The Falcons' defense finally hit some regression in the sack department in Week 6. Entering the week, they had the fewest sacks in the league despite strong pressure rate metrics behind the scenes, and they notched five sacks against Commanders quarterback Sam Howell. Their own offense betrayed them, though, putting the Falcons' defense in awful field positions throughout the game and depressing their D/ST's fantasy production. That will hopefully be less of an issue this week.

Even with regression hitting their sack production last week, the Falcons are still prime candidates for fantasy-friendly regression in Week 7. Despite yielding the fifth-fewest yards per play (4.7 yards per play) and generating pressure on opposing quarterbacks at the third-highest rate in the league (29.6% of drop backs), the Falcons have forced only four turnovers all season, the second-fewest in the NFL. If they can start to generate turnovers at a rate closer to what their other defensive metrics imply they can, we could be looking at a strong defense for fantasy over the rest of the season.

Credit where it's due -- first-year Bucs offensive coordinator Dave Canales has Mayfield playing fairly well. But if Mayfield plays and isn't fully healthy, the Falcons' D can take advantage. And if Trask has to start, the outlook improves for the Falcons' D/ST.

Interested in playing NFL DFS? Head over to FanDuel’s daily fantasy football lobby to see all the offerings for this week's slates.

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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.