Fantasy Football Defenses To Consider

Baltimore Ravens

Week 1 road matchup in Cincinnati. Of course, we now know that the Ravens posted their first shutout since 2009, notching five sacks and five takeaways while allowing 221 yards of total offense to a Bengals squad with some impressive weapons. Baltimore will have to face a tougher offensive line this week, but there’s still ample cause for optimism heading into a home game against a rookie quarterback Deshone Kizer accounted for two touchdowns and a two-point conversion in his first career start Sunday against the Steelers, but he also took seven sacks and threw an ugly interception. Baltimore’s defense looks much tougher than Pittsburgh’s on paper, and it’s no secret the Ravens have a dominant track record at home. Early lines have Baltimore favored by 7.5 in a game with an over/under of 41, giving the Browns an implied point total of only 16.75.

Cincinnati Bengals

The Bengals defense didn’t have much opportunity for fantasy production in Week 1, facing 17 pass attempts and 42 rushes as the Ravens merely sought to grind away the clock after jumping out to a 17-0 lead by halftime. Likely ticketed for another low-scoring slugfest this week, Cincinnati will have a better chance to come out in front against a Houston team that already has a quarterback controversy. The Texans also have a porous offensive line that surrendered 10 sacks in Week 1, and they’ll likely be playing without their top three tight ends, each of whom suffered a concussion Sunday. Houston is projected to score only 16.75 points, initially listed as a 5-point underdog for a Thursday night game with an over/under of 38.5 — possibly the lowest over/under we’ll see all season.

Oakland Raiders

The Raiders defense was surprisingly competent in a tough week 1 road contest against Tennessee, limiting Marcus Mariota and Company to one touchdown and three field goals on nine drives. It was still a lousy fantasy performance due to the lack of sacks (one) and turnovers (zero), but it at least showed that the Raiders’ defense might have a bit more fight than it did last season. Of course, a home game against the Jets is something we’ll always be happy to target, regardless of whether there’s any reason to believe the D/ST unit is actually decent Josh McCown threw for only 187 yards (and two interceptions) on 39 pass attempts Sunday in Buffalo, essentially confirming that there’s no real hope for the Gang Green offense. The Jets are listed as -14 point underdogs with an implied total of only 15 points.

Some Correlation Plays:

Rodgers- Cobb- Freeman

Ryan – Jones- Montgomery

Bradford- Thielan- Bell

I have posted some lineups on our website www.fantasysportsus.com If you have any questions you can email me at Ian@fantasysportsus.com or reach out on twitter: @fantasysportsus.