NFL teams are beginning summer practices. It’s not long before preseason action begins. Now is the time to prepare for your fantasy football drafts. We’ll have you covered with our Defense (DST) fantasy football draft rankings and Fantasy Football Draft Kit to help you dominate your leagues. And be sure to sync your league to practice with fast and free fantasy football mock drafts. Below we dive into 2024 Defense (DST) fantasy football draft rankings from some of our fantasy football expert community.
- Fantasy Football Draft Kit
- 2025 Fantasy Football Expert Rankings
- Best Fantasy Football Tools
- Fantasy Football Trade Tools
Fantasy Football Draft Rankings: Defenses (DST)
Defense wins championships — and in fantasy football, the right D/ST can rack up serious points with sacks, turnovers, and special teams scores. In 2025, savvy fantasy managers know not to overlook this position (or overvalue the position), especially when elite defensive performances are almost solely tied to favorable matchups.
Simply put….who is playing the New Orleans Saints / New York Giants this week?
We are looking for defenses that can put pressure on opposing quarterbacks, such as the Dallas Cowboys, to create consistent pressure and turnover opportunities. Add in dynamic returner KaVontae Turpin, who remains one of the most explosive special-teams weapons in the NFL, and you have a unit that can score in all phases. Especially with the newer kickoff rules, further incentivizing more returns.
In this article, we break down the top fantasy football D/STs for 2025, including favorable early-season schedules, streaming defenses by matchup, and late-round sleepers that you can draft confidently with your last pick.
Whether you want a set-it-and-forget-it defense or a rotation of matchup-based plays, these rankings will give you the edge.
But keep in mind. If your league doesn’t require you to draft one…don’t! Take another RB/WR instead before Week 1 starts. I guarantee that you will still be able to find a useable DST off waivers even after the draft concludes.
Fantasy Football Draft Rankings: Defenses
Here are our latest Defense (DST) Fantasy Football Draft Rankings from our consensus of fantasy football experts. You can find the latest Defense (DST) rankings here and sync your league for specific advice.
| RK | TIERS | PLAYER NAME | TEAM | BEST | WORST | AVG. | STD.DEV | ECR VS. ADP |
| 1 | 1 | Denver Broncos | DEN | 1 | 4 | 1.2 | 0.5 | 0 |
| 2 | 1 | Philadelphia Eagles | PHI | 1 | 13 | 3.1 | 1.9 | 0 |
| 3 | 1 | Pittsburgh Steelers | PIT | 1 | 15 | 4.2 | 2.4 | 1 |
| 4 | 2 | Baltimore Ravens | BAL | 1 | 11 | 4.4 | 1.8 | -1 |
| 5 | 2 | Minnesota Vikings | MIN | 2 | 11 | 5.2 | 1.7 | 0 |
| 6 | 2 | Houston Texans | HOU | 1 | 11 | 6.3 | 2.1 | 0 |
| 7 | 2 | Buffalo Bills | BUF | 1 | 16 | 7.2 | 2.8 | 0 |
| 8 | 3 | Kansas City Chiefs | KC | 3 | 20 | 9.1 | 3.1 | 1 |
| 9 | 3 | Detroit Lions | DET | 6 | 21 | 9.8 | 2.9 | 1 |
| 10 | 3 | Seattle Seahawks | SEA | 5 | 20 | 11.4 | 3.1 | 3 |
| 11 | 3 | Los Angeles Rams | LAR | 6 | 20 | 12.3 | 3.1 | 12 |
| 12 | 3 | Green Bay Packers | GB | 5 | 23 | 12.9 | 3 | 3 |
| 13 | 3 | Los Angeles Chargers | LAC | 7 | 32 | 12.8 | 4.3 | 5 |
| 14 | 3 | San Francisco 49ers | SF | 6 | 25 | 14.2 | 3.5 | -6 |
| 15 | 4 | New York Jets | NYJ | 7 | 31 | 15.3 | 3.9 | 2 |
| 16 | 4 | Dallas Cowboys | DAL | 5 | 27 | 16.5 | 4.3 | -2 |
| 17 | 4 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | TB | 6 | 29 | 17.8 | 3.2 | -6 |
| 18 | 4 | New England Patriots | NE | 6 | 27 | 18.2 | 4.8 | 3 |
| 19 | 4 | Arizona Cardinals | ARI | 3 | 28 | 18.7 | 4.2 | 1 |
| 20 | 4 | Chicago Bears | CHI | 7 | 28 | 18.8 | 3.4 | -4 |
Fantasy Football Player Notes: Defense (DST)
Denver was the DST1 in fantasy points per game last year, and I don’t see any reason why they can’t repeat that in 2025. Last year, they ranked second in pressure rate and seventh in blitz rate, so sacks should be arriving in bunches again (they led the NFL in sacks last year). Denver will arguably field the best cornerback room in the NFL in 2025.
The Vikings were the DST2 in fantasy points per game last year, and they could be even better in 2025. Last year, they ranked fourth in sacks and sixth in pressure rate. Their secondary is a tad shakey on paper, but their pass rush should help cover some of those worries as quarterbacks run for their lives weekly.
The Rams might have been the DST13 in fantasy points per game overall last year, but that doesn’t tell the entire story. Last season, in Weeks 7-18, they were the DST5 in fantasy points per game. The Rams had the third-highest quarterback hurry rate despite finishing with the 11th-lowest sack total. They are bound to see regression in that category this season if they can get after the quarterback again in 2025.
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