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Projections last updated: Sep 10, 2023 Defense Fantasy
Rank Player Team Bye Int FR Sck TD PtsA FPts Value
1 Dallas Cowboys DAL 7 14.1 12.9 45.7 2.9 21.2 132.3 9.8
2 San Francisco 49ers SF 9 14.7 9.7 41.6 2.9 19.3 130.6 9.0
3 Philadelphia Eagles PHI 10 13.1 9.3 53.2 2.7 21.0 130.2 8.8
4 Baltimore Ravens BAL 13 12.4 10.5 47.0 2.8 20.7 126.8 7.1
5 New England Patriots NE 11 14.5 9.3 48.8 2.8 22.5 123.2 5.3
6 Buffalo Bills BUF 13 13.5 9.7 42.1 2.7 20.9 121.1 4.2
7 Carolina Panthers CAR 7 14.5 8.6 43.7 2.7 21.8 118.9 3.1
8 Kansas City Chiefs KC 10 12.7 9.4 45.8 2.3 21.5 117.8 2.6
9 Cleveland Browns CLE 5 14.1 8.9 41.3 2.6 21.4 117.3 2.3
10 New York Giants NYG 13 11.0 10.3 43.8 2.6 21.4 116.4 1.9
10 Jacksonville Jaguars JAC 9 14.0 9.5 39.2 2.7 21.5 116.4 1.9
12 Cincinnati Bengals CIN 7 14.0 9.8 38.2 2.7 21.5 116.0 1.7
13 New York Jets NYJ 7 13.3 8.7 40.0 2.7 21.2 115.4 1.4
14 New Orleans Saints NO 11 11.0 9.4 43.6 2.6 21.2 115.2 1.3
15 Pittsburgh Steelers PIT 6 14.7 7.3 38.9 2.7 21.2 114.3 0.8
16 Seattle Seahawks SEA 5 12.1 10.0 45.5 2.7 23.8 110.7 -1.9
17 Indianapolis Colts IND 11 14.2 8.8 37.6 2.6 22.9 107.6 -5.0
18 Detroit Lions DET 9 13.5 10.2 38.9 2.7 23.8 107.3 -5.3
19 Los Angeles Chargers LAC 5 12.9 9.2 36.9 2.8 22.7 107.1 -5.5
20 Tampa Bay Buccaneers TB 5 12.8 9.5 39.8 2.7 23.5 106.6 -6.0
21 Minnesota Vikings MIN 13 13.5 10.9 36.5 2.8 24.1 105.7 -6.9
22 Green Bay Packers GB 6 13.4 9.0 37.1 2.5 22.9 105.3 -7.3
23 Denver Broncos DEN 9 14.2 8.3 34.6 2.5 22.8 103.4 -9.2
24 Washington Commanders WAS 14 13.2 8.8 38.9 2.7 24.1 102.7 -9.9
25 Tennessee Titans TEN 7 13.2 7.8 36.6 2.6 23.5 100.2 -12.4
26 Miami Dolphins MIA 10 11.9 8.0 36.8 2.4 22.8 99.8 -12.8
27 Atlanta Falcons ATL 11 12.6 8.3 32.7 2.4 22.4 99.3 -13.3
28 Houston Texans HOU 7 12.4 7.9 37.6 2.5 24.6 94.8 -17.8
29 Los Angeles Rams LAR 10 13.6 8.3 34.6 2.6 25.1 93.6 -19.0
30 Arizona Cardinals ARI 14 12.5 8.9 34.3 2.5 25.5 90.1 -22.5
31 Chicago Bears CHI 13 13.3 7.3 32.0 2.3 24.4 89.4 -23.2
32 Las Vegas Raiders LV 13 10.8 8.2 34.1 2.2 24.9 85.7 -26.9

Fantasy Football Defense Rankings 2023

Our Fantasy Football Defense rankings for the 2023 NFL season are based on points allowed, turnovers, sacks, and touchdowns projected. 

Fantasy Football Team Defense Rankings are Harder to Predict

We put out these fantasy football defense rankings, but remember: this is perhaps the toughest position to predict. Because it is harder to predict, you should be less confident in your selection in a draft, and not use early picks (or even mid-round picks) on defense. 

Depending on your scoring sytem, Philadelphia was the best defense a year ago, and they were being drafted outside the top 12. Dallas or New England were the two top fantasy defenses in 2021. Dallas was not being drafted in the top 12 at the position, and New England was 9th. In 2020, Pittsburgh led the way and were being drafted 4th. The New England Patriots were the highest-scoring defense in 2019. They were being drafted 10th among defenses entering the year. The year before that? The Bears finished at No. 1. They were being drafted 11th. And the year before that, it was Jacksonville emerging as the surprise No. 1 finisher. They were not being drafted in the Top 12. 

So in the last five years, only one of the defensive leaders by the end of the year was being drafted in the top 8 at the position.

The lesson here is to not go overboard trying to get the best defense. Because knowing who that is can be difficult. 

Look for Late Round Values in the Fantasy Football Defense Rankings

The best fantasy football draft strategy at a less predictable position like defense is to wait and look for values. It almost certainly means you won’t be drafting the first few teams on the fantasy football defense rankings. But if you can wait, and look at early matchups to find teams you might want for the start of the season, you can get as many points as your opponents without investing an earlier pick.