“Grab your ticket and your suitcase. Thunder’s rolling down this track. Well, you don’t know where you’re going now. But you know you won’t be back.”
- “Land of Hope and Dreams,” Bruce Springsteen
You’re one of us now. Streaming DSTs weekly to find the best matchups against the worst the NFL has to offer. It’s not for everyone, but we’re glad you’re here with us.
We got off to a great start with our streaming DSTs in Week 2. Of the seven units I recommended (pending MNF), only Jacksonville didn’t come through with at least 6.50 points in Yahoo standard scoring. Five defenses (Houston, LA Chargers, Seattle, Chicago, and Denver) all finished inside the top 20 at the position. Houston and LA were both top seven options. That’s a solid return for someone you scooped off the wire.
Week 3 offers some delectable choices for low-owned DSTs we plug and play.
(Teams owned in less than 50% of Yahoo leagues)
Drake’s Top DST Adds
- Tampa Bay vs DEN
- Seattle vs MIA
- Las Vegas vs CAR
- Indianapolis vs CHI
- Green Bay @ TEN
Higher Owned Options
Seattle Seahawks (41%) vs. MIA – I’m a fan of this Mike Macdonald squad. They’ve created five sacks in two weeks, which isn’t Earth-shattering, but they play well enough on the backend to allow Leonard Williams to wreak havoc on opposing QBs. Against the Patriots in Week 2, Williams was a problem. He registered four quarterback hurries and got home with 1.5 sacks. This week, he and his teammates get the Skylar Thompson project. There is no planet on which I think Thompson and this Miami offense produce at a high level. For that, I’m all in on Seattle if they are available on your waiver wire.
Top-Tier Adds
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (5%) vs. DEN – Have you seen Bo Nix play quarterback? He’s thrown a pair of interceptions in both starts. There are zero weapons on the outside to throw to. Even if there were, this Bucs defense would erase them. The fantasy community has slept on this Tampa Bay team all season. That ends today in this column. DST’s are averaging 12.4 points per week against Denver. Fire up Todd Bowles’ boys in a smash spot.
Green Bay Packers (16%) @ TEN – You’ve got to be pleased with the performance Green Bay showed versus Anthony Richardson in Week 2. Allowing just 10 points and collecting three interceptions might be child’s play compared to what they’ll do to Will Levis and this Titans offense. On the season, Tennessee has allowed 27.2 and 13.3 fantasy points to opposing DSTs. Will Levis is almost guaranteed to make the worst play you’ve ever seen. I have full confidence that the Packers will be a top-10 unit for Week 3.
Las Vegas Raiders (8%) vs CAR — This isn’t as obvious a call as it would have been if Dave Canales didn’t do the right thing — bench Bryce Young for Andy Dalton. But Dalton could be rusty, and the Panthers aren’t exactly loaded with weapons. Bonus: if you add the Raiders for Week 3, you could hold them for a few weeks as they play Cleveland in Week 4 and Denver in Week 5.
Going Deeper
Indianapolis Colts (4%) vs. CHI - It’s rough watching the Bears to play offense. Whoever thought offensive coordinator Shane Waldron was “that guy” after his stint in Seattle needs their head examined. The Bears' offensive line is a complete joke (stop me if you’ve heard that before); the Chicago line just allowed 11 hurries and seven sacks to Houston. Happy feet Caleb Williams will be sped up and throw a pick (or two). The one issue is the Colts' run defense, which allowed 159 yards to Joe Mixon and 151 to Josh Jacobs. We don’t need to worry about D’Andre Swift doing anything close to that.
Looking ahead to Week 4
Cincinnati @ MIA
Arizona vs WAS
Las Vegas vs CLE
LA Rams @ CHI
Chicago vs LAR
