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Fantasy football rankings - updated defense (DST) Week 13 rankings for 2025. Read the top-accuracy fantasy football DEF rankings for NFL team defenses.
Hopefully, you don't find yourself in a big hole after the start of the Week 13 slate, but either way, we're here to help. Use our updated Week 13 fantasy football defense (DST) rankings for 2025 to pinpoint the best team defense for your lineups. In the rankings below, you will see where the Houston Texans, Jacksonville Jaguars, Atlanta Falcons, Miami Dolphins, Cleveland Browns, San Francisco 49ers, and more defenses stand, among all other D/STs.
Our defense fantasy football rankings for Week 13 are put together by Nick Mariano. Below the rankings, you will also find key fantasy football outlooks from our RotoBaller staff, as well as the "Who to Start?" tool. Also, be sure to check our fantasy football news for this week. There are always key injuries and developments to keep track of, so check back throughout the week for updates.
Be sure to bookmark our fantasy football rankings portal and check back regularly for updates. Most importantly, our free mobile app is a must-have - download it and configure your push notifications. We deliver all the top NFL news, injuries, and fantasy analysis 24x7 with our free push notification alerts... all for free!
Editor's Note: Stay on top of your draft prep with RotoBaller’s fantasy football rankings, featuring expert analysis, ADPs, and draft insights for both PPR and non-PPR leagues.
Week 13 Defense (DST) Rankings for Fantasy Football
Bookmark our PPR rankings, Half-PPR rankings, and standard (non-PPR) rankings
| D/ST Tier | D/ST Rank | D/ST Name | Pos. |
| 1 | 1 | Seattle Seahawks | DST |
| 1 | 2 | Los Angeles Chargers | DST |
| 1 | 3 | Los Angeles Rams | DST |
| 1 | 4 | Denver Broncos | DST |
| 2 | 5 | Jacksonville Jaguars | DST |
| 2 | 6 | San Francisco 49ers | DST |
| 3 | 7 | Miami Dolphins | DST |
| 3 | 8 | Atlanta Falcons | DST |
| 3 | 9 | Philadelphia Eagles | DST |
| 3 | 10 | Houston Texans | DST |
| 4 | 11 | New England Patriots | DST |
| 4 | 12 | Baltimore Ravens | DST |
| 4 | 13 | Detroit Lions | DST |
| 4 | 14 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | DST |
| 5 | 15 | Arizona Cardinals | DST |
| 5 | 16 | Indianapolis Colts | DST |
| 5 | 17 | Cleveland Browns | DST |
| 5 | 18 | New Orleans Saints | DST |
| 5 | 19 | Pittsburgh Steelers | DST |
| 5 | 20 | Kansas City Chiefs | DST |
| 6 | 21 | Buffalo Bills | DST |
| 6 | 22 | Green Bay Packers | DST |
| 6 | 23 | New York Giants | DST |
| 6 | 24 | Las Vegas Raiders | DST |
| 6 | 25 | Dallas Cowboys | DST |
| 7 | 26 | Tennessee Titans | DST |
| 7 | 27 | Minnesota Vikings | DST |
| 7 | 28 | Chicago Bears | DST |
| 7 | 29 | New York Jets | DST |
| 8 | 30 | Washington Commanders | DST |
| 8 | 31 | Carolina Panthers | DST |
| 8 | 32 | Cincinnati Bengals | DST |
Week 13 Defense (DST) Rankings Outlooks
San Francisco 49ers D/ST
The San Francisco 49ers' D/ST has been hard to trust in 2025. Injuries have taken a significant toll on the unit and continue to do so. Nick Bosa (knee) was placed on injured reserve in September, followed by linebacker Fred Warner (ankle) in October, and linemen Yetur Gross-Matos (knee) and Mykel Williams (knee) in early November. Even the fill-in players aren't safe, with lineman Sam Okuayinonu (ankle) and linebacker Tatum Bethune (ankle) both out for this Sunday's game against the Browns.
At least the matchup favors the 49ers, as Cleveland's offense has been managing just 15.8 points per game (fourth-worst in the NFL) and will feature rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders in his second career start. Sanders had a 55% completion rate and put up an interception (his second this season) against the Raiders in Week 12. Poor weather should help keep scoring in check and make San Francisco's D/ST stream-worthy in Week 13.
Houston Texans D/ST
The Houston Texans D/ST has proven to be a strong enough unit to be a starting option even in tough matchups like this week's on the road in Indianapolis against the Colts. The Texans held Josh Allen and the Bills to only 19 points last Thursday night, while racking up eight sacks to go with two interceptions and a fumble recovery.
The Texans have only allowed more than 20 points twice this season, while amassing 33 sacks in 11 games to go with 19 takeaways and two defensive touchdowns. The Colts have been one of the toughest matchups in the league for opposing D/ST this season, but because the Texans have been so good at getting pressure on the quarterback, they're still a starting option, checking in at No. 10 in RotoBaller's Week 13 rankings.
Miami Dolphins D/ST
The Miami Dolphins D/ST has been vulnerable throughout the season, but they're in a great matchup in Week 13 against the Saints. The Dolphins are the No. 7 DST in RotoBaller's Week 13 rankings against rookie QB Tyler Shough and fill-in rookie running back Devin Neal, who will take over after Alvin Kamara (knee) was ruled out.
The Dolphins have allowed under 14 points in three of the last four weeks, including their most recent game, which was before their bye week against the Commanders in Spain. They had two takeaways and a sack in that game, bringing their total to 21 sacks and 12 takeaways in 11 games. They haven't scored a defensive touchdown yet, but they should be in a strong enough matchup to be a strong streaming option in Week 13.
Cleveland Browns D/ST
The Cleveland Browns have been dominant on defense of late, including an impressive 10-sack performance in a Week 12 win over the Las Vegas Raiders. They will look to keep it going in Week 13's home matchup against the San Francisco 49ers.
The 49ers have been much more competent on offense than the Raiders have this season, allowing just the 19th-most fantasy points per game to opposing D/STs in fantasy. The Browns' defense has been excellent, led by Myles Garrett and his 18 sacks in 11 games, but San Francisco does pose a tough matchup, leaving the unit outside of the top-12 fantasy options at the D/ST position this weekend.
Who Should I Start Tool
Not sure who to start? Check out the Who Should I Start tool:
Compare up to four players and we'll tell you who to start...
Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some common Week 13 fantasy football lineup decisions are regarding defense options like the Houston Texans, Jacksonville Jaguars, Atlanta Falcons, Miami Dolphins, Cleveland Browns, San Francisco 49ers. But not to worry, we are here to help make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 13.
Week 13 Player Decisions. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 13 of the 2025 NFL season. Our free Who Should I Start? tool will help make your fantasy football lineup decisions. Compare up to four NFL players, and we tell you who to start... all free! Get your winning lineups set, and make the right decisions.
Using The Tool. This is a simple tool but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player's name. In the second box, search for the second player's name. Compare up to four NFL players at once, and then click the Who To Start? button to see who the recommended starts are based on weekly fantasy football matchups.
Improvements For Who Should I Start? You may have noticed, we've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win your fantasy football matchups each week. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, enhanced search results with data to compare, and a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!
How It Works. Each week, our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football rankings and projections based on their research. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players who are ranked. If someone is out for the week, they will not appear in the search results.
Scoring Formats. Fantasy football managers play in various types of leagues, and this tool allows you to choose whether it's PPR scoring, Half-PPR scoring, or Standard (Non-PPR) scoring. The second thing you want to do is to select the scoring format. There are three small radio buttons (small circles), so click on the scoring format you prefer. The results may vary based on the scoring format you select.
Popular Week 13 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 13 (2025)? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Start? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at this week. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
Popular Week 13 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular Week 13 searches and comparisons from our 'Who To Start' tool:
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