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.

All projections via numberFire.

Fantasy Football Defenses to Stream for Week 8

Atlanta Falcons

Matchup: at Tennessee Titans

numberFire Projection: 9.55 (D/ST2)

The Atlanta Falcons made a point to invest in their defense this offseason, and the early returns on those investments are looking pretty good.

Their 4.8 yards per play allowed has dropped substantially from last year's 5.7 mark, which ranked eighth-worst in the league, and their unit as a whole currently ranks 14th in numberFire's schedule-adjusted power rankings. A little better than average is a huge step forward for a defense that has continuously struggled over the past few seasons.

This week their defense could be in for a stat-padding affair against the Tennessee Titans. Starting quarterback Ryan Tannehill is unlikely to play this week due to an ankle injury, so the Falcons should be facing the softest matchup of the week.

Tennessee was forced to install second-year third-round pick Malik Willis to close out their Week 6 game and the sophomore took 4 sacks on just 9 drop backs in the loss. The Titans' only alternative looks like 2023 second-round pick Will Levis, whose preseason and training camp performances convinced the team to leave him inactive in each game so far this season. If either Willis or Levis get the nod, you'll wish you had Atlanta's D/ST in your fantasy lineups.

Houston Texans

Matchup: at Carolina Panthers

numberFire Projection: 7.89 (D/ST7)

We want Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young to succeed in the NFL. The first overall pick of the 2023 season had an impressive career with the Alabama Crimson Tide and has the hopes and expectations of a franchise on his shoulders. But, until he and his teammates start putting more points on the board, we want to be streaming fantasy D/STs against him.

This week, the Panthers will take on the Houston Texans who have second- and third-overall picks C.J. Stroud and Will Anderson Jr. leading the way. Stroud and Anderson have each already helped transformed what many expected would be one of the worst teams in the NFL this season; Stroud has been playing top-notch football (especially compared to Young), and Anderson has helped buoy one of the 2022 season's worst defenses into an average NFL unit.

So far this year, Young just hasn't put pressure on many opposing defenses. He's averaging just 193.4 passing yards per game (27th-most in the NFL), has 6 touchdowns in 5 games while averaging almost an interception per outing, and is taking sacks at the eighth-highest rate in the league (8.1%). The Panthers' offense is averaging just 17 points per game in Young's starts, meaning even the Texans' average defense shouldn't have much to fear in Week 8.

Behind PFF's 30th-ranked pass-blocking offensive line, Bryce Young and the Panthers have been serving up solid fantasy outing to opposing D/STs all year.

New York Giants

Matchup: vs. New York Jets

numberFire Projection: 7.52 (D/ST11)

The New York Giants' season has already fallen off the rails, but at least their defense looked pretty good in Week 7 against the Washington Commanders.

Despite the team's struggles this year on offense, their defense has actually been surprisingly stout in the face of adversity, ranking as the 13th-best when turning to numberFire's schedule-adjusted power rankings. If the team's offense wasn't constantly giving opposing offenses strong field positions to start drives, we could be talking about the Giants' defense as one of the best in the league.

This week they'll get to take on the New York Jets, who have stuck with third-year quarterback Zach Wilson in the wake of Aaron Rodgers' Week 1 Achilles injury. To Wilson's credit, he does look better this year than he did in the previous two seasons, but contextually, his 2023 campaign still looks like one of the worst quarterbacking performances in the NFL. He ranks dead last in passing success rate with just 35.8% of his passes providing positive EPA, is taking sacks at the sixth-highest rate in the NFL, and has thrown more picks (5) than touchdowns (4).

No game in Week 8 has a lower points total on the FanDuel Sportsbook's Week 8 NFL odds than this one's 36.5-point mark. We're looking at a game with two strong defenses squaring off against two poor offenses. That means that even if the game script gets wonky in either direction, we shouldn't really expect either team to start piling up points against the other.

That gives the Giants' D/ST a high floor for fantasy even if Zach Wilson does an uncharacteristically good job of protecting the football on Sunday.

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.