Top 12 Fantasy Football Defense Rankings for Week 6

Max Staley
Top 12 fantasy football defense rankings for Week 6.
Top 12 fantasy football defense rankings for Week 6. / Michael Reaves/GettyImages
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More than any other position, starting the right defense in fantasy football is about identifying the right matchup. For example, the below-average Tennessee Titans' defense (13 points) was always going to be a great start against the disaster that is the Jacksonville Jaguars.

But sometimes, a unit is so good that it becomes matchup proof. And that's exactly what we're seeing with the Buffalo Bills. Buffalo entered Week 5 as the No. 1 defense in fantasy, outscoring the second-place Arizona Cardinals by 21 points. The Bills backed it up and then some against the Kansas City Chiefs, scoring slate-high 17 points (pending Monday Night Football).

If you have the Bills, you're starting them. But if you need some help sorting through the rest of this weeks' matchups, here are our top-12 defense rankings for Week 6.

Fantasy Football Defense Rankings Week 5

12. Minnesota Vikings (vs CAR)

11. Carolina Panthers (vs MIN)

10. Green Bay Packers (at CHI)

9. Las Vegas Raiders (at DEN)

8. Seattle Seahawks (at PIT)

7. Indianapolis Colts (vs HOU)

6. Dallas Cowboys (at NE)

Mac Jones came into the league with a reputation for being a fantastic game manager. But he's been playing behind a patchwork offensive line in recent weeks, and Jones has really struggled to take care of the ball. He's thrown at least 1 interception in three straight games, totaling 5 INTs and 7 sacks over his last three. He'll now face one of the most opportunistic defenses in the league. The Dallas Cowboys are generating turnovers at the second-highest rate in the NFL (21.8%) and have racked up a league-best 10 INTs. Mac should be able to move the ball decently enough, but expect the rookie to make a few mistakes on Sunday.

5. Los Angeles Rams (at NYG)

4. Miami Dolphins (at JAX)

3. Buffalo Bills (at TEN)

The Tennessee Titans are not a good matchup. But neither were the Kansas City Chiefs, and it just didn't matter. The 21-point gap between Buffalo and the second-place Cardinals is one point larger than the one between the No. 2 and No. 13 defense. The Bills are giving up just 12.8 points per game and have yet to give up more than 23. Even in a tough spot, this defense is playing too well to fade.

2. Cincinnati Bengals (at DET)

1. Pittsburgh Steelers (vs SEA)

The fearsome Pittsburgh Steelers' front seven now gets to tee off against the Geno Smith-led Seattle Seahawks. Geno may have impressed when thrown into the game last week, but it's tough to see a repeat happening. Pittsburgh has generated 47 pressures thus far (T-No. 7 in the NFL). That should be a matchup nightmare for Seahawks' defense that allows the fifth-highest sack rate in the league (8.4%). Smith also has more career INTs (37) than TDs (30). That gap might be a whole lot wider come Sunday night.


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Max Staley is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Max Staley also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username mstaley1212. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.

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