3 FanDuel Defenses to Target in Week 16

New England Patriots

FanDuel Price: $5,000
Projections: 18.93 points allowed, 2.30 sacks, 1.86 turnovers, 0.26 touchdowns

Despite being ranked 11th in our projections this week, the New England D/ST is one of the top FanDuel options at the position in Week 16. Hosting the Jets this weekend, the Patriots are favored by 16.5 points for Saturday’s game.

With a game total of just 44 points, that means the Jets will have one of the lowest implied team totals we’ve seen all season at 13.75 points. Our projections are far more optimistic -- for the Jets -- than Vegas, as we project the Patriots to allow 18.93 points this weekend.

In addition to the love from Vegas, history is on the Pats’ side, too. Over the last three seasons, when a defense is favored by 14 or more points, they’ve averaged 11.3 FanDuel points per game. In simpler terms, these defenses have averaged two times their salary in these situations, which is insane for this position. During that same time span, when the opposing team has a team total of 14 points or less, the D/ST also reaches cash-game value 83 percent of the time.

New England has really picked it up on defense over the last four weeks as they’re averaging 11.3 FanDuel points per game since Week 12. They should continue that dominance this week. The Jets have the look of a squad that has already checked out on the 2016 season -- since their Week 11 bye, opposing defenses have averaged 12.5 FanDuel points per game against them.

The New England D/ST has a solid floor and huge upside on Saturday, making them a great play in all formats.