Top Fantasy Football D/ST Rankings (Weeks 2, 3, 4, 5) - Defense Streamers and Starts (2025)

Joey's best fantasy football defense streamers and D/ST rankings for Weeks 2, 3, 4, 5 in 2025. NFL team defense streamers and starts based on strength of schedule.

Welcome, RotoBallers, to our fantasy football D/ST streamers and starts for Weeks 2, 3, 4, and 5 of the 2025 season. Every week of the fantasy football season, we will go through the best defensive streaming options that fantasy managers have to consider picking up weeks in advance. 

Stashing the right defenses in advance could be the difference between a win and a loss. What every fantasy manager should be doing at this point in the season is lining up their defenses to ensure they are set each of the next four weeks.

In this article, we will look at several defense targets for the next four weeks of the fantasy season (Weeks 2, 3, 4, 5). If you want our D/ST fantasy football draft rankings, be sure to check out that link. So, let's dive in and analyze the best defensive streamers and starts for the coming weeks.

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D/ST Strength of Schedule: Weeks 2-5

This weekly series will focus on defenses fantasy managers should consider picking up. The defenses on this list will consider defensive rating, opponents, pressure rate, sacks, and turnovers. While things can change suddenly, targeting offenses that are either starting a young quarterback or have a poor offensive line tend to usually work out for fantasy purposes.

So, we will break down the best defensive streamers into four categories (Temporary, Part-Time, Recruit, and Fool's Gold) in this article below. You can see the description of each of those streamer types down below. Since this is a streamer D/ST article, we will only look at defenses that are rostered in under 50% of ESPN leagues.

• “Temporary” Streamer: D/ST with a good matchup in Week 2
• “Part-Time” Streamer: D/ST with multiple nice matchups in a row
• “Recruit” Streamer: D/ST with an easy upcoming schedule that you pick up earlier to stash on your bench
• “Fool’s Gold” Streamer: D/ST that on paper looks like a good option, but should be avoided 

Week 2 D/ST Streamers

Green Bay Packers D/ST (Recruit Streamer)

• Week 2 Opponent: Washington Commanders
• ESPN Rostership: 37.5%
• Over-Under: N/A
• Opponent’s Implied Total Points: N/A

This is a strong possibility that this is the last time the Packers defense will be rostered in under 50% of ESPN leagues this season. This unit had a strong performance against the Lions in Week 1, in which it totaled four sacks and forced one interception. With Micah Parsons coming over from Dallas, this D/ST has a higher fantasy ceiling each week.

So, make sure to pick up this defense now before your league mates do. While you won't use this defense in Week 2 against the Commanders, the Packers defense will be a smash start in Week 3 against the Cleveland Browns. To ensure you get them for next week, though, pick them up one week early.

Devonte Wyatt! @Packers' defense is having a game ‼️

DETvsGB on CBS/Paramount+https://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/XCI0Dn1YuX

— NFL (@NFL) September 7, 2025

Green Bay will arguably be the top fantasy defense in Week 3 and could eventually emerge as a set-it-and-forget-it defense moving forward. However, it might be best to just use them in that matchup against the Browns before committing to them every week. The Packers will play a very good Cowboys offense in Week 4, and then the team goes on a bye in Week 5.

San Francisco 49ers D/ST (Temporary/Part-Time Streamer)

• Week 2 Opponent: New Orleans Saints
• ESPN Rostership: 18.9%
• Over-Under: 43.5 points 
• Opponent’s Implied Total Points: 18.25

The 49ers were on this exact list last week as a part-time streamer. In Week 1, this unit did its job against the Seahawks by scoring nine fantasy points. San Francisco held Seattle to just 13 offensive points while forcing two fumbles and sacking Sam Darnold once. Ahead of Week 2, this D/ST is still a must-add in most formats.

This defense will go up against the Saints in Week 2, which makes it a smash start in fantasy. Spencer Rattler was pressured in 2.5 seconds or less 13 different times to open the season, and New Orleans only scored 13 points in its home opener. As a result, the 49ers' defense should feast in this game. San Francisco's D/ST is easily a top-5 play this week.

After this matchup against the Saints, San Francisco could still be used if there are no better options on the waiver wire. The 49ers will take on the Arizona Cardinals in Week 3 and the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 4. Kyler Murray was sacked five times in Week 1, and Trevor Lawrence didn't show a ton of great things to open the year.

Dallas Cowboys D/ST (Temporary Streamer)

• Week 2 Opponent: New York Giants
• ESPN Rostership: 3.7%
• Over-Under: 44.5 points 
• Opponent’s Implied Total Points: 20

Seeing the Cowboys on this list might confuse some fantasy managers. After all, this defense just lost one of the best pass rushers in the NFL in Parsons. However, this unit held its own against one of the best offensive lines in football in the Philadelphia Eagles last week. Dallas ranked second among all defenses in pressure rate in Week 1.

Now, this defense will face a Giants offense that looked all out of sorts in the season opener. New York scored just six points last week and failed to get into the end zone. That makes this Dallas D/ST a top-10 play in Week 2, especially since its run defense appears to be intact with the addition of Kenny Clark.

Whether we keep this Cowboys defense or not after that Week 2 game will likely depend on how it fares against the Giants. This unit could be used against the Bears in Week 3, the Jets in Week 5, and the Panthers in Week 6. Those three matchups could potentially make this Dallas defense a must-start D/ST in four of the next five games.

Los Angeles Rams D/ST (Part-Time Streamer)

• Week 2 Opponent: Tennessee Titans
• ESPN Rostership: 7.2%
• Over-Under: 42.5 points
• Opponent’s Implied Total Points: 18.5

The Rams showed out defensively in Week 1 against the Houston Texans. This defense sacked C.J. Stroud three times, forced two turnovers (one interception and one fumble), and held a good Houston offense to just nine offensive points. Los Angeles also had a 41% pressure rate against Stroud last week.

Defense came to play. 😤 pic.twitter.com/1Yc4mRePVw

— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) September 8, 2025

Therefore, the Rams D/ST needs to be added in every league ahead of Week 2. Not only did this defense play well in the season opener, but Los Angeles has a fantastic matchup against the Tennessee Titans in Week 2. The Titans will be rolling with rookie quarterback Cam Ward, who is set to make his second career start. In his first start, Ward was sacked six times.

Although the Rams can't be used in Week 3 against the Eagles, this defense will be a solid start against the Colts in Week 4. That makes this unit a part-time streamer, considering fantasy managers can start them in two of the next three weeks.

Recruit Streamers

If you have Week 2 already figured out, let's look ahead at some defensive options that you could start in Week 3:

• Indianapolis Colts (32.2% rostership) - Week 3 opponent: Tennessee Titans
• Washington Commanders (25.4% rostership) - Week 3 opponent: Las Vegas Raiders
• Kansas City Chiefs (16.5% rostership) - Week 3 opponent: New York Giants

Fool’s Gold Streamers

New England Patriots D/ST vs. Miami Dolphins

• Week 2 Opponent: Miami Dolphins
• ESPN Rostership: 70.5%

Most fantasy managers will likely be content playing the Patriots D/ST in Week 2. This defense played solid for the most part last week, and the Dolphins struggled offensively in their matchup against the Colts. However, this New England defense isn't exactly a smash start this week against Miami.

This Patriots defense is still learning to play with each other under new defensive coordinator Terrell Williams, and New England might have a hard time generating sacks in this game. Despite the rough offensive performance in Week 1, Tua Tagovailoa wasn't pressured a ton. He was pressured on his throws just 22% of the time.

Given how quickly Tagovailoa gets the ball out, this Patriots defense is fool's gold in Week 2. There are better defenses to roll with this week, including both the 49ers and Rams. Both units are rostered in under 50% of ESPN leagues.

D/ST Streaming Action Plan

Planning out your fantasy D/ST might require some work, but it might be necessary to target the best matchups every single week. Here is how I would line up my defensive streams across the first four weeks

• Week 2: Stream the 49ers versus the Saints
• Week 3: Stream the Packers versus the Browns
• Week 4: Stream the Chargers versus the Giants
• Week 5: Stream the Giants versus the Saints

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