Defense (DST) Streamers For Week 5 Fantasy Football: The Bengals Should Tee Off Against Miami

We are on to Week 5, which means the bye weeks are here. Thankfully, we only have two teams, the Chiefs and Panthers, off this week, but it is only going to ramp up from here, which means there will be even more competition to stream defenses in your leagues as managers are forced to the waiver wire.

As a quick recap of last week's streaming DST performances, the Bills, Bucs, and Jets all delivered fine fantasy scores in a week where only one DST scored in double digits. Most notably, the Jets did end their 20-game streak without an interception.

DST Streamers Strategy For Week 5 Fantasy Football

When figuring out which defense I want to start in any given week, I am primarily looking for DSTs with the ability to create sacks and turnovers rather than minimizing points allowed to the other team, although those two things are correlated. I think this is one of the bigger mistakes fantasy managers make when thinking about fantasy defenses. As you will see in this article, I am generally focused on three things: offensive line play, QB turnover rates, and game script.

For this article, I will only consider DSTs that are rostered in fewer than 50% of leagues on Yahoo. When selecting a streaming defense, the upcoming week is by far the most important, but I will also point out when there are favorable upcoming schedules that will allow you to roster the same defense for a few weeks.

Before we dive in, I want to mention the Chicago Bears defense. They are rostered in 59% of leagues, so they don't qualify for this article, but they have been playing great recently and should be a priority add if they are available in your league.

Week 5 Defense (DST) Streamers To Add In Fantasy Football

Cincinnati Bengals - 23% rostered

The Cincinnati defense continues to play solid football, recording 14 sacks through their first four games this season. They are in the top half of the league by most efficiency metrics and are respectable against both the run and the pass.

The Bengals get to face the Miami Dolphins, who have failed to score more than 13 points in any of their games so far this season. Malik Willis also has a turnover in three of the first four games this season and has taken 11 sacks in four games, tied for seventh most among all QBs. As expected, Miami is one of the least competent offenses in the NFL, which makes them a good target to stream a DST against.

Cincinnati is favored by 7 points in a game with a 41.5-point game total, which doesn't leave many projected points for the Dolphins, so the expected game script is also exactly what we like to see. The only thing that isn't ideal is that Cincinnati is on a bye in Week 6 and faces Baltimore in Week 7, so this is only a one-week play.

San Francisco 49ers - 35% rostered

The 49ers are one of the final three undefeated teams in the NFL. While the offense gets most of the credit, their defense has done its part, giving up just 64 points so far, the third fewest in the league. From a fantasy standpoint, they have been up and down, with two good performances and two bad performances. Up next, the 49ers face the Seahawks, Commanders, and Falcons over their next three games.

After finishing third in the league in interceptions last year, Sam Darnold has three interceptions in three games this year (really fewer, since he got hurt so early in Week 1). In his last 20 regular-season starts, Darnold has thrown 17 interceptions, not ideal for the Seahawks, but not bad if you're playing a DST against him. After that, San Francisco gets the Commanders, who were down to their third-string QB in Week 4. There is a good chance Jayden Daniels returns, but he will be coming off of injury and wasn't overly impressive before he got hurt. Follow that up with a game against the Falcons, and you might be able to get three games out of this defense, which is a nice bonus.

Indianapolis Colts - 4% rostered

The Colts DST is flying under the radar because they had two tough matchups to start the season against the Ravens and Chiefs. In softer matchups against the Texans and Commanders, the Colts defense has put up respectable fantasy scores of four and eight points. Their run of decent matchups continues for the next three weeks with games against the Steelers, Titans, and Vikings. None of those offenses are particularly scary, so this could be a multi-week starting option if they continue to play well.

For Week 5, Aaron Rodgers is tied for the most sacks taken and the fourth-most interceptions thrown so far this season. While he has been effective at moving the ball, he has also been a fantasy-friendly opponent for DSTs. The Colts do not rank well in pass rush win rate, which knocks them down my priority list, but with a stretch of games against QBs who put the ball in harm's way, they are a decent option that is available in nearly every league.

Dallas Cowboys - 16% rostered

The Dallas defense has not scored more than three fantasy points in any week this season, but they are a good streaming option for Week 5 against Tampa Bay. Unsurprisingly, the Bucs offense struggled with UDFA rookie Jalon Daniels at the helm. The rookie has three interceptions on 30 pass attempts this season and has taken three sacks. The Dallas defense is not particularly good, but the short week to Thursday Night Football probably favors them over a rookie making his second start.