INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 06: Xavier McKinney #29 of the Green Bay Packers celebrates with … [+]
For most fantasy football leagues, week 14 is the last week of the regular season. Once we get to week 15, it’s time for the fantasy playoffs which means the stakes hit an all time high. You may not be paying attention to your defense in the regular season, but in the playoffs every point counts.
With that in mind I’m going to help you get ahead of your league mates by looking at the best defenses to own for week 15. By dropping that bench player that will never play for you, that gets your team ahead of the curve before a bidding war starts next week. For this exercise we’re only going to be looking at Defenses who are rostered in less than 60% of ESPN leagues.
1. Green Bay Packers Vs. Seattle
(32.5% Rostered)
Going up against the Seattle Seahawks in week 15, the Green Bay Packers are my number one defensive priority. According to FantasyPros, the Seattle Seahawks have allowed 9.7 PPG to opposing D/ST’s which is 5th in the NFL. Geno Smith has the 2nd most interceptions in the NFL this year with 12 and that’s extremely important for fantasy football.
Not only have the Seahawks been making these defenses look great, but the Packers have produced all season. FantasyPros has the Packers averaging 8.8 PPG as of week 13, which is 5th in the NFL. It’s always a question about trying to find a team going against a horrible offense, or finding a defense that has proven fantasy production. The Packers check both boxes for week 15.
SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA – NOVEMBER 07: Budda Baker #3 of the Arizona Cardinals celebrates with … [+]
2. Arizona Cardinals Vs. New England
(18.8% Rostered)
The Arizona Cardinals defense is the lowest-rostered defense on this list, so there’s a very high chance you can grab them. In week 15, the Cardinals take on rookie quarterback Drake Maye and the New England Patriots. So far this year, the Patriots have allowed the 6th most PPG (9.0) to opposing defenses, ranking 6th in the league. To be fair, Maye has only started in eight games, but in that span, he’s thrown eight interceptions.
In terms of full-season production, the Cardinals have been a good play regardless, scoring 7.7 PPG, good for 10th in the NFL. With the Cardinals coming off of four straight games over nine points, I love this week 15 matchup.
3. Baltimore Ravens Vs. New York Giants
(54.7% Rostered)
The Baltimore Ravens are the most difficult defense to get on this list and they’re not even better than the other two we’ve mentioned. The matchup is fantastic for the Ravens, though, as they take on the New York Giants in week 15. Up to this point, the Giants have allowed 10.4 PPG, which is 3rd in the NFL.
The reason why I don’t have the Ravens higher though is because they’ve put up very poor production numbers this year. The Ravens are only averaging 5.2 PPG on the year which ranks 24th in the NFL. I would still be trying to grab the Ravens but there’s a bit more risk due to their lack of production.
