3 Fantasy Football Defensive Streaming Options for Week 5

Hey, it's your friendly neighborhood D/ST streaming specialist, here again, giving you weekly streaming recommendations. A reminder that lines are courtesy of the FanDuel Sportsbook, and roster percentages and scores are according to ESPN's fantasy platform. Assume that the listed order is the preferred order.

In a down week for D/ST scoring, this article hit at a decent rate. Both sides of the New York Jets-Denver Broncos Trash Bowl proved feasible options, while the Los Angeles Rams had the third-best score of the week. The Kansas City Chiefs saw a massive upgrade when Brian Hoyer ended up playing with Cam Newton's unfortunate COVID-19 diagnosis, and KC parlayed that into the top D/ST score of the week.

Hang On To:

Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Los Angeles Rams

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers look to be one of the stronger units in the league and face a reasonable Chicago Bears matchup. Although Nick Foles doesn't take many sacks, he does throw interceptions, and the Bucs are 5.5-point favorites. The Los Angeles Rams face the Washington Football Team, who are playing better than expected but are still one of the better stream against options. Hopefully, you can carry over someone, because otherwise, this isn't a great streaming week.

Kansas City Chiefs

vs. Las Vegas Raiders
Spread: Chiefs -11.5
Implied Points Allowed: Not Yet Posted
Roster Percentage: 29%

Cheating, as the Chiefs should technically be in the "hang on to" section, but like I said, there's not a lot of options this week. The Las Vegas Raiders aren't an ideal D/ST opponent; Derek Carr doesn't take many sacks, the Raiders have a respectable offense, and when the over/under is posted, the Raiders will likely be projected for more than 20 points.

The secret is that I'm cheating again -- the Chiefs aren't really a streamer; you can play them most weeks. Their defense is a little better than hearsay would suggest, but the bigger factor is Patrick Mahomes. Teams are almost always in catch-up mode against the Chiefs. Catch-up mode equals D/ST fantasy points.

Arizona Cardinals

at New York Jets
Spread: Cardinals -6.5
Implied Points Allowed: 20.5
Roster Percentage: 42%

The Arizona Cardinals were lackluster a week ago, but this is the Jets. Sometimes this is simple.

Houston Texans

at Jacksonville Jaguars
Spread: Texans -6
Implied Points Allowed: 24.5
Roster Percentage: 8%

It isn't always simple. By the way, who are the 8% of teams who still have the Houston Texans defense rostered? This isn't a "the Texans are secretly good at defense" take. They're not.

This game profiles as a shootout more than anything, and while the jury is still out on Gardner Minshew, he does tend to take sacks and throw interceptions. Getting that player into a shootout isn't necessarily a bad thing. The Texans will allow some points but also have a chance to make up for that.

In a week when most of the top options are already rostered, the Texans are worth a look.