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We only have two weeks left in the fantasy football season. That means it’s important that gamers evaluate every position in their starting lineups, including team defenses.
Fantasy football D/STs can really bail you out with a crooked number if several of your regular starters flop. That’s why gamers should make certain they are choosing the best D/ST option that’s available in their leagues.
Several defense streamers that gamers should consider starting in Week 16 are the Buffalo Bills, Cincinnati Bengals, and Arizona Cardinals. There’s a case to be made for each of these team defenses, so let’s break down what to expect from each D/ST unit in Week 16. Good luck!
Should I Start Buffalo Bills D/ST for Fantasy Football?
The Bills' defense isn’t the formidable unit it’s traditionally been in previous years, but they’ve still been very effective in forcing turnovers and rank fifth in the league in takeaways.
The @BuffaloBills THIRD interception goes for a PICK-SIX!#BUFvsMIA on Prime Video
Also streaming on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/lJLnCpwJH4— NFL (@NFL) September 13, 2024
They draw a date with the New England Patriots this week, and while Drake Maye has given the lackluster Patriots offense a shot of adrenaline, he’s still a rookie quarterback. Buffalo has been vulnerable to the run at times this year, but it’s not entirely certain that New England can take advantage of this weakness.
Look for the Bills to shut down the New England running game and force Maye into a few mistakes while securing a resounding victory. Gamers can start the Buffalo DST with confidence this week.
Should I Start Cincinnati Bengals D/ST for Fantasy Football?
Cincinnati's defense has been one of the worst in the league as they rank 29th in defensive DVOA per FTN Fantasy. Normally, it is not a good idea to trust a bad DST in a critical fantasy football matchup, but this week is an exception.
The Bengals face the Cleveland Browns, and Cleveland has benched quarterback Jameis Winston in favor of second-year pro Dorian Thompson-Robinson. It’s a very interesting decision as Winston has elevated the play of Cleveland’s offense while Thompson-Robinson has struggled in limited action. Cincinnati is now an 8.5-point favorite in this game after the switch to Thompson-Robinson, and it’s easy to see why.
If Winston were under center, it would make the Bengals a much riskier DST play because while they would surely score some fantasy points from turnovers, they would be at risk of allowing 30+ points in the actual game. It’s just hard to see Cleveland’s offense putting up such an output with Thompson-Robinson under center. All of this makes Cincinnati a good streaming option for gamers in need of a DST.
Should I Start Arizona Cardinals D/ST for Fantasy Football?
Arizona takes on a Carolina Panthers team that has shown signs of life since Bryce Young was re-inserted as the team’s starting quarterback. With the exception of last week against the Cowboys, Carolina’s offense has looked remarkably better. However, the Panthers still rank just 28th in offensive DVOA and dead last in offensive yards per game.
Arizona is towards the middle of the pack in several defensive metrics, so this could be a spot where Carolina bounces back a bit after last week. Arizona hasn’t been great at forcing turnovers either as they’ve only generated 14 takeaways through 14 games.
This doesn’t mean gamers should actively avoid the Cardinals DST for this matchup, but they might not be as great of a play as some initially thought. Arizona is not an ideal DST streaming candidate for this week, but they can be started if gamers don’t have a better option.
Popular Week 16 Searches - Start/Sit Comparisons
Below are some popular Week 16 searches and comparisons from our Who To Start tool for Bills D/ST, Bengals D/ST, Cardinals D/ST compared to others. You can also use the free Who Should I Start tool to run your own start/sit comparisons, up to four players at once:
Denver Broncos or Buffalo Bills
Denver Broncos or Cincinnati Bengals
Indianapolis Colts or Cincinnati Bengals
Indianapolis Colts or Buffalo Bills
Atlanta Falcons or Buffalo Bills
Green Baypackers or Buffalo Bills
Atlanta Falcons or Arizona Cardinals
Atlanta Falcons or Cincinnati Bengals
Green Baypackers or Cincinnati Bengals
Minnesota Vikings or Buffalo Bills
Detroit Lions or Cincinnati Bengals
Denver Broncos or Arizona Cardinals
Baltimore Ravens or Arizona Cardinals
Indianapolis Colts or Arizona Cardinals
Cincinnati Bengals or Buffalo Bills
Arizona Cardinals or Cincinnati Bengals
Buffalo Bills or Cincinnati Bengals
Houston Texans or Cincinnati Bengals
Cincinnati Bengals or Arizona Cardinals
Baltimore Ravens or Cincinnati Bengals
Kansas Citychiefs or Arizona Cardinals
Dallas Cowboys or Cincinnati Bengals
Los Angeleschargers or Arizona Cardinals
Philadelphia Eagles or Cincinnati Bengals
Houston Texans or Arizona Cardinals
Pittsburgh Steelers or Cincinnati Bengals
Baltimore Ravens or Buffalo Bills
Detroit Lions or Arizona Cardinals
Pittsburgh Steelers or Buffalo Bills
Detroit Lions or Buffalo Bills
Green Baypackers or Arizona Cardinals
Las Vegasraiders or Cincinnati Bengals
Houston Texans or Buffalo Bills
Las Vegasraiders or Arizona Cardinals
Los Angeleschargers or Cincinnati Bengals
Tampa Baybuccaneers or Cincinnati Bengals
Tennessee Titans or Cincinnati Bengals
Cleveland Browns or Cincinnati Bengals
Kansas Citychiefs or Cincinnati Bengals
Miami Dolphins or Arizona Cardinals
Minnesota Vikings or Cincinnati Bengals
New Yorkjets or Arizona Cardinals
Pittsburgh Steelers or Arizona Cardinals
Seattle Seahawks or Buffalo Bills
Arizona Cardinals or Buffalo Bills
Buffalo Bills or Arizona Cardinals
Justin Herbert or Buffalo Bills
Kansas Citychiefs or Buffalo Bills
Los Angeleschargers or Buffalo Bills
Philadelphia Eagles or Buffalo Bills
Tampa Baybuccaneers or Arizona Cardinals
Tennessee Titans or Buffalo Bills
Anthony Richardson or Arizona Cardinals
Austin Hooper or Buffalo Bills
Dallas Cowboys or Arizona Cardinals
Jacksonville Jaguars or Arizona Cardinals
Jacksonville Jaguars or Cincinnati Bengals
Jakobi Meyers or Cincinnati Bengals
Jerome Ford or Cincinnati Bengals
Kaimi Fairbairn or Buffalo Bills
Kendre Miller or Cincinnati Bengals
Los Angelesrams or Arizona Cardinals
Miami Dolphins or Cincinnati Bengals
Minnesota Vikings or Arizona Cardinals
New Englandpatriots or Buffalo Bills
New Yorkgiants or Cincinnati Bengals
New Yorkjets or Cincinnati Bengals
Patrick Taylorjr or Arizona Cardinals
Philadelphia Eagles or Arizona Cardinals
San Francisco49Ers or Buffalo Bills
Seattle Seahawks or Cincinnati Bengals
Tampa Baybuccaneers or Buffalo Bills
Tennessee Titans or Arizona Cardinals
Ty Johnson or Buffalo Bills
Washington Commanders or Arizona Cardinals
Washington Commanders or Buffalo Bills
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