Defensive rankings this week

[Challie]

I've had a couple of great seasons from my defenses by picking a new one up each week - whoever is playing ARIZ or CHI should do nicely, or playing against a team with a new QB (going against MIN or JAX) or just against a team that's circling the drain (SD).

Just like in wagering, I've found that betting against the worst works out better than betting on the best.

[dalej]

Remember, the ranking is based solely on numbers...what the teams have put up so far and the quality of their opposition. It should be used as a starting point. You should move teams up slightly or down slightly depending on your opinion of their matchup.

As for Carolina, they probably will put up numbers. However, because they haven't so far, they are not on the board.

[Brokentusks9]

I know some of you guys liked Hector & Victor last year so here's how they rank the Defenses this week. (In order from 1st-28th)

Denver - Harrington has thrown picks of late
Green Bay - Facing Kordell Stewart is a nice pick-me-up game
Kansas City - Fantasy's No. 3 defense faces a rookie QB
St. Louis - Cards rank No. 3 in points allowed to Ds
San Francisco - Fantasy's No. 2 defense can blanket Frerotte
Pittsburgh - Aggressive style makes them a top D
Buffalo - Philly has allowed the most FFL points to Ds
Cleveland - Played well Weeks 1 and 3
Carolina - No Vick makes a difference
Philadelphia - Lost talent in the offseason
Minnesota - Create turnovers when playing with leads
Indianapolis - Top 10 defense so far
New Orleans - Middle of the road so far
Dallas - Pass rush key to making Vinny throw picks
Tennessee - Not a big scorer yet
Detroit - Three of their top four cornerbacks are on IR (Andre Goodman, Chris Watson, Chris Cash)
Jacksonville - Houston not allowing sacks as in past
Washington - New England has made fewer turnovers since Week 1
Baltimore - Heavyweight fight: Ray Lewis vs. Priest Holmes
Houston - No big plays yet
Arizona - Not a big scoring D
New York - Hasn't given up more than 23 points yet
New England - Broken bone epidemic hurts: Ted Johnson, Roosevelt Colvin and Ted Washington
Atlanta - Flying low after last year's top 5 fantasy ranking
Oakland - Struggling secondary hurts fantasy stats
Chicago - Not worth a play even against the struggling Favre
Cincinnati - Must get to the QB
San Diego - Not a very good fantasy defense with just three turnovers

[Guest]

I hear you Challie, we have similar scoring and you'd be surprised how many times a team that is beaten like a red headed stepchild by every "skill" position because they're fluke 49ers or Redskins Defense puts up 35 points out of nowhere. Defense is crazy important if you play CBS.Sportsline style scoring. I keep a solid unit all year, ex: Ravens and then use a bench spot to get a new defense whenever the matchup is super favorable. Works great, my D's have scored 13, 29, adn 25 points the first three weeks. Im 3-0 even though guys like Portis, Moss, and Moulds on my team havent done a hell of a lot yet. Doesnt change the fact thats its more luck than skill picking what Def. will score the most fantasy points.

[dgroundhog_ffc]

I agree Carolina needs to be up there, but it's true they haven't generated alot of points by most scoring systems.

Still, it is clear they and the Bucs are the top 2 defenses in the league. D's scoring can be a fluke thing from week to week, but Carolina's blocked kicks, and their bad-ass D IS going to create points. This is a prime week for them to have a big game. They actually have a pretty easy schedule. When it's all said and done, a defense as good as them HAS to put up siolid fantasy points.

KC and Seattle are the top D's in my league so far. I don't belive either has improved THAT much from last year. KC has Dante Hall and that is a threat, but I don't see them being a top unit all year long. Seattle I have my doubts on as well. They have easy schedules is the best thing going for them. Their value I think is too TD related for me to want to depend on either unit week in and week out. The Bills look like they've improved alot.

Miami struggled in the first 2 games before getting it back together last week. They should be solid after the bye and start rising. Tampa, Carolina, Miami, and Philly were touted as the top 4 elite D's, no-one else was that close in pre-season rankings. Philly can probably be removed from that list. Tampa and Carolina are the real thing.

3 blocked kicks in a game and you get no points for it? How unfair is that??? That was a huge in that game. I see it giving them a whole new level of confidence. I think they stole some from the Bucs in that game. The Bucs won't miss it, but Carolina had to leave that game a better unit.