Best Fantasy Football D/ST Streaming Options for Week 1: Vikings, Seahawks, Buccaneers

The NFL season, and with it fantasy football, is finally here! Heading into Week 1, you may already find yourself looking to the wavier wire for a streaming defensive option. Maybe you drafted early and decided to stash an extra player, forgoing rostering a defense until the last possible moment. Maybe you drafted an elite unit with a bad matchup in Week 1, like the Jets. Or maybe you just didn’t look ahead enough when selecting your defense on draft night and now have no good options.

It is harder to stream defenses in Week 1, as many of the teams with juicy matchups have been touted all offseason and were drafted early as a result. But never fear! We can still find some sneaky options with great matchups to help you start your fantasy season strong. Let’s dive in!

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Week 1 Fantasy Football Defense Streaming Options

Minnesota Vikings @ New York Giants (71.6% Available)

If you were a regular reader of this column last year, you know that one trick to streaming defenses is to chase sacks. While interceptions, fumbles, and even points and yards allowed can be influenced by luck or game script, a handful of sacks provides a solid, predictable floor to a fantasy defense. 

Enter the New York Football Giants. In 2023, the Giants’ quarterbacks were sacked a combined 85 times, an absurd 20 more than the next team. It is true that a lot of those sacks can be blamed on Tommy DeVito’s league-leading 37.4% pressure-to-sack rate, but Daniel Jones was second-worst in the league at 31.6%. With that in mind, it's not surprising that our Week 1 DST Projections have the Vikings as the second-best option.

This play is not without risk. The Giants did attempt to bolster their O-line this offseason, adding Jermaine Eluemunor, Greg Van Roten, and Jon Runyan. And the Vikings’ defense is one of the worst in the league. But it’s more important to target a bad offense than to have a good defense, and the Giants are set up to have one of the league’s worst offenses in 2024.

Seattle Seahawks vs. Denver Broncos (55.8% Available)

Bo Nix may have looked good in preseason, but he is still a rookie quarterback and was by no means a perfect prospect. After all, it wasn’t until recently that the Broncos confirmed he was going to start over Jarrett Stidham, of all people. 

It is worth noting that the Seahawks were very bad defensively in 2023, ranking in the bottom 10 in points, total yards, and yards per play allowed. However, Mike Macdonald was hired to turn this unit around. More importantly, we go back to the number-one rule: Target offenses that don't scare you. With a rookie QB making his debut and lackluster weapons, the Broncos’ offense isn’t scary, which makes Seattle a viable streaming choice. 

Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Washington Commanders (89.5% Available)

The first two picks were meant to take advantage of a sack-happy QB and a rookie QB with limited weapons; this pick takes advantage of both. Daniels posted a 20% pressure-to-sack ratio in his final season at LSU and averaged a 24.5% mark over his five-year college career. Meanwhile, the Commanders have the league’s 27th-best O-line (according to PFF) and a thoroughly mediocre set of weapons. In fact, every single one of their skill position starters is below-average for their role across the league (before you mention Terry McLaurin, he would have to be a top-16 WR in the league to be an above-average WR1 ... he’s not). 

For their part, Tampa Bay quietly gave up the seventh-fewest points in the league in 2023. They also blitzed on over 40% of plays, the third-highest rate in the league, which is sure to cause a mistake or two from the 2023 Heisman winner. 

This will be a fast-paced game with Kliff Kingsbury involved, so there is some risk. But Kingsbury’s up-tempo offense will also lead to more chances for Tampa Bay to rack up sacks and turnovers, giving them a very high ceiling in Week 1. 

Other Options To Consider

• Atlanta Falcons vs. Pittsburgh Steelers (82.5% Available): Russell Wilson is bad. The Broncos’ offense line is terrible. Arthur Smith’s system relies on an elite running game and a quarterback good at play-action passing over the middle, neither of which he has in Denver. The Falcons, who allowed the seventh-lowest yards per play in 2023, should take advantage at home in Week 1.

• Los Angeles Chargers vs. Las Vegas Raiders (85.2% Available): After putting on perhaps the saddest QB competition of all time throughout the preseason, the Raiders are going to be rolling out Gardner Minshew in Week 1. Minshew was passable last season for the Colts, but Vegas’ supporting cast is not as good as the one he left behind in Indianapolis. The Chargers' defense isn't great, but they should provide a solid floor against an uninspiring Raiders offense.