Finally, a body of work to use for basing Week 2 expectations on! Week 1 is always difficult because, for the most part, your fantasy decisions are based upon 2015 results and 2016 projections. Really, some of Week 2’s decisions are still based on those things, but we learned quite a lot about some teams’ defenses after Week 1.
Fantasy football rankings, Week 2: Defense/Special Teams
The SB Nation fantasy team reveals which defense/special teams rank in the top 25 heading into Week 2.
Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports
Only one team scored a D/ST touchdown in Week 1, the Minnesota Vikings - though they did it twice. Los Angeles and Kansas City were pretty underwhelming, while San Francisco, Miami and the Vikings all punched pretty well above their weight.
Week 2 provides a decent amount of streaming options, with Green Bay, Baltimore and Philadelphia all facing favorable matchups, albeit on the road, at Minnesota, Cleveland and Chicago, respectively. The Steelers, who received reassuring news on Ryan Shazier, also have a favorable home matchup against Cincinnati in a rematch of last season’s wild AFC Wild Card clash.
Defense/Special Teams, Week 2
(ZS: Zach Senvisky, JM: Jason Marcum, AP: Adam Patrick, SK: Scott Kaliska, JG: Jeff Goldberg, KB: Kyle Bennett, DG: Derek Gordon)
| Rk | Consensus | Opp. | ZS | JM | AP | SK | JG | KB | DG |
| 1 | Carolina Panthers | vs. SF | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 2 | Seattle Seahawks | at LA | 2 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 3 | Denver Broncos | vs. IND | 3 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| 4 | Baltimore Ravens | at CLE | 5 | 9 | 4 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 12 |
| 5 | Green Bay Packers | at MIN | 4 | 3 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 11 |
| 6 | Houston Texans | vs. KC | 8 | 5 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 5 |
| 7 | New England Patriots | vs. MIA | 6 | 20 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 10 |
| 8 | Kansas City Chiefs | at HOU | 17 | 6 | 3 | 10 | 6 | 5 | 9 |
| 9 | Arizona Cardinals | vs. TB | 7 | 18 | 11 | 5 | 10 | 10 | 4 |
| 10 | Minnesota Vikings | vs. GB | 9 | 4 | 9 | 15 | 11 | 11 | 7 |
| 11 | New York Jets | at BUF | 10 | 12 | 12 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 15 |
| 12 | Buffalo Bills | vs. NYJ | 19 | 10 | 20 | 16 | 13 | 13 | 3 |
| 13 | Oakland Raiders | vs. ATL | 11 | 17 | 17 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 14 |
| 14 | Detroit Lions | vs. TEN | 16 | 11 | 7 | 18 | 14 | 14 | 17 |
| 15 | Cincinnati Bengals | at PIT | 18 | 16 | 16 | 17 | 16 | 15 | 8 |
| 16 | Philadelphia Eagles | at CHI | 14 | 7 | -- | 11 | 18 | 17 | -- |
| 17 | Pittsburgh Steelers | vs. CIN | 21 | 19 | 18 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 22 |
| 18 | Los Angeles Rams | vs. SEA | 13 | 22 | 25 | 12 | 19 | 19 | 16 |
| 19 | Jacksonville Jaguars | at SD | 12 | -- | 23 | 19 | 24 | 23 | 13 |
| 19 | Washington | vs. DAL | 24 | 21 | 14 | 21 | 17 | 18 | 25 |
| 21 | San Diego Chargers | vs. JAC | 22 | 13 | 15 | 23 | 22 | 21 | -- |
| 22 | Chicago Bears | vs. PHI | 15 | 24 | 13 | 22 | 20 | 22 | -- |
| 23 | Miami Dolphins | at NE | 20 | 25 | 24 | 20 | 21 | 20 | 18 |
| 24 | San Francisco 49ers | at CAR | 23 | 14 | 21 | -- | -- | -- | 23 |
| 25 | Tennessee Titans | at DET | -- | 23 | 22 | -- | 23 | 24 | 21 |
| 25 | Dallas Cowboys | at WAS | -- | 15 | -- | 25 | 25 | 25 | -- |
| -- | Atlanta Falcons | at OAK | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 19 |
| -- | Indianapolis Colts | at DEN | -- | -- | 19 | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| -- | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | at ARI | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 20 |
| -- | New York Giants | vs. NO | 25 | -- | -- | 24 | -- | -- | 24 |
