Fantasy Football Defense Streaming Pickup & Waiver Wire Advice (Week 1)

We’re mere hours away from the start of a new NFL season, and though a few of you last-minute Charlies still have fantasy football drafts coming up, most of us are done drafting. It’s time to shift from draft mode into managerial mode.

The vast majority of leagues will have a waiver run this week ahead of the Thursday-night opener. Let’s take a look at some of the players who might be worth a buck or two of FAAB money or late-round picks for those that are still drafting. You can find all of my Week 1 waiver wire pickups here.

(Rostership percentage courtesy of Yahoo)

Fantasy Football Week 1 Waiver Wire Advice: Defenses

Defenses

Seattle Seahawks: 14% rostered

The improving Seattle defense gets a Week 1 home game against increasingly interception-prone QB Matthew Stafford and a Rams offense that will be missing Kupp. Yummy.

Green Bay Packers: 35% rostered

A Green Bay defense loaded with former first-round draft picks starts the season against their archrivals, the Bears, in Chicago. Bears QB Justin Fields absorbed a league-high 55 sacks in 15 games last season, and the Packers accounted for three of the 11 interceptions that Fields threw in 2022.

Jacksonville Jaguars: 26% rostered

The Jaguars aren’t expected to have one of the league’s better defenses, but they get a primo Week 1 matchup against the Colts and Richardson. The only concern is that the Colts will be extremely run-heavy with Richardson at the controls. It’s generally a bad idea to start a defense against a run-heavy team since it means fewer opportunities for sacks and interceptions.

New York Giants: 4% rostered

This is strictly an early-bird play for anyone who wants to acquire a defense they can use in Week 2. You won’t want to use the Giants against the Cowboys in Week 1, but the Giants get a fantastic Week 2 matchup against the sad-sack Cardinals.