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Fantasy championship week has officially arrived for most leagues. Finding those edges and streaming the proper defense could be the difference between raising the championship trophy or finishing in second place. It's time to set that league-winning lineup with our NFL team's Week 17 fantasy football defense (D/ST) rankings.
The Raiders DST continues to wreak havoc in the NFL and has scored four defensive touchdowns over the last two weeks. Las Vegas will look to extend its touchdown streak in a favorable matchup against the Colts. The Eagles' DST has been a disappointment much of the season but should bounce back in a plus matchup against the Arizona Cardinals at home. Below, you'll find where the Raiders, Eagles, and other key defenses, such as the Rams, Jaguars, Seahawks, Bears, 49ers, Bills, and Buccaneers rank in Week 17.
Our Week 17 defense (DST) fantasy football rankings are put together by Nick Mariano. In addition to our staff rankings, below you will also find a summary of this week's important fantasy football injury news.
Editor's Note: Our incredible team of writers won two writing awards and received 12 award nominations by the Fantasy Sports Writers Association. A big congrats to our very own Byron Lindeque (Golf) and Jordan McAbee (NASCAR) for both winning Writer Of The Year awards! Be sure to follow RotoBaller's analysis and advice all year long, and win more. Win More With RotoBaller!
Week 17 Defense (D/ST) Fantasy Football News
- Seattle DST Carries Little Fantasy Appeal
- San Francisco's DST An Excellent Play In Week 17
- Shaq Leonard Has Growing Role In Eagles Defense
- Arizona Cardinals Defense Not Playable In Week 17
- Ji'Ayir Brown Ruled Out For Week 17
- Jonathan Greenard Ruled Out Against Titans
- Shaq Barrett Ruled Out Against Saints
- Darius Slay Out For Week 17
- Bills Defense A Top Week 17 Option
- Steelers DST Should Be Avoided In Week 17
Week 17 Fantasy Football DST Outlooks and Rankings Analysis
A new feature has been added to our weekly fantasy football rankings article. Below, you will find our fantasy football outlooks for key options in Week 16, which gives readers a matchup preview of that player and advice on whether to start or avoid for the upcoming week. We provide outlooks for all 32 NFL teams, which can be found on our player profile pages and our fantasy football news desk.
San Francisco 49ers DST
Week 17 Defense Rank: 3
The San Francisco 49ers D/ST allowed 33 points, tallied two sacks, and got no turnovers in Week 16's Christmas night home loss to the Baltimore Ravens. Fantasy managers should get a better yield this week on the road versus the Washington Commanders. Washington turns the ball over the fifth-most often in the league and is third in interceptions thrown.
They've also been sacked four times per game, which ranks second-worst. San Francisco's defense is slightly banged up with DE Arik Armstead (foot, knee) still out and CB Ambry Thomas (knee, hand) questionable, but the 49ers should still feast. They're third-best in points allowed, fifth in takeaways, and eighth in sacks. Play the 49ers D/ST if you have them in championship week.
Buffalo Bills DST
Week 17 Defense Rank: 2
The Buffalo Bills defense sacked quarterback Easton Stick five times in Week 16, allowing 22 points with no takeaways. The final line for fantasy purposes was lackluster, considering the Bills were taking on an unproven backup QB with 57 lifetime passing attempts entering play. Nevertheless, Buffalo gets another crack at an inexperienced field general in New England Patriots QB Bailey Zappe on Sunday.
Zappe has shown some competence but still owns a rough 6.3 yards per attempt, 6:4 TD: INT, 83.1 passer rating, and 35.2 QBR covering his 156 attempts. That's not to mention that the Pats reside in the basement with an NFL-worst 14.1 points per game. Buffalo's D remains one of the NFL's most depleted units, but they will get a boost in the back end when ball-hawking safety Micah Hyde (neck) returns, and also up front with run-plugging nose tackle DaQuan Jones (pectoral) likely coming off injured reserve in Week 17.
Pittsburgh Steelers DST
Week 17 Defense Rank: 22
The Pittsburgh Steelers surrendered 11 points while recording three sacks, a forced fumble, and three interceptions in a Week 16 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals. It was an excellent showing for Pittsburgh's defense, but the team will be tested in Seattle against the Seahawks on Sunday.
The Seahawks are scoring over 22 points per contest at home this season and have limited both giveaways and sacks allowed. With Seattle fighting for a spot in the NFC playoffs, fantasy managers should be able to find a safer option than the Steelers D/ST this weekend.
Week 17 Fantasy Football Defense (D/ST) Rankings
Rankings are updated until kick-off. Be sure to bookmark our weekly PPR rankings, Half-PPR rankings, Standard rankings.
| D/ST Tier | D/ST Rank | D/ST Name | Position |
| 1 | 1 | Cleveland Browns | DST |
| 1 | 2 | Buffalo Bills | DST |
| 1 | 3 | San Francisco 49ers | DST |
| 1 | 4 | Chicago Bears | DST |
| 2 | 5 | New York Jets | DST |
| 2 | 6 | Kansas City Chiefs | DST |
| 3 | 7 | Denver Broncos | DST |
| 3 | 8 | Philadelphia Eagles | DST |
| 3 | 9 | Indianapolis Colts | DST |
| 3 | 10 | Los Angeles Rams | DST |
| 4 | 11 | Jacksonville Jaguars | DST |
| 4 | 12 | Houston Texans | DST |
| 4 | 13 | Las Vegas Raiders | DST |
| 4 | 14 | Baltimore Ravens | DST |
| 4 | 15 | Green Bay Packers | DST |
| 5 | 16 | Seattle Seahawks | DST |
| 5 | 17 | Dallas Cowboys | DST |
| 5 | 18 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | DST |
| 5 | 19 | Atlanta Falcons | DST |
| 5 | 20 | New England Patriots | DST |
| 5 | 21 | New Orleans Saints | DST |
| 6 | 22 | Pittsburgh Steelers | DST |
| 6 | 23 | Los Angeles Chargers | DST |
| 6 | 24 | Minnesota Vikings | DST |
| 6 | 25 | Cincinnati Bengals | DST |
| 6 | 26 | Detroit Lions | DST |
| 6 | 27 | Miami Dolphins | DST |
| 6 | 28 | Tennessee Titans | DST |
| 6 | 29 | Carolina Panthers | DST |
| 6 | 30 | New York Giants | DST |
| 6 | 31 | Arizona Cardinals | DST |
| 6 | 32 | Washington Commanders | DST |
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