• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • In-Season Rankings
    • Standard
    • PPR
  • Waiver Wire
  • Members Only
    • DFS LU TOOL
    • Player Tracker
    • Forum
    • Cheat Sheets
    • Log In
  • Join
Fantasy Knuckleheads

Fantasy Knuckleheads

Fantasy sports news, rankings, sleepers, cheat sheets, stats and tools.

2009 Fantasy Football Team Defense ~ 1st Qtr Update

October 7, 2009 by Kurt Turner

The Steelers 'D' has fantasy owners feeling like clowns

With one quarter of the 2009 fantasy season behind us, it seemed like a good idea to take a fresh look at Team Defenses. This time we will rank them according to actual performance to date, rather than mere speculation. The biggest surprise so far is the complete fantasy collapse of the Pittsburgh Steelers vaunted defense. While they are still getting the job done on the field, they have been a lame duck through four games for fantasy owners who drafted them as the first defense in almost all leagues, and almost always several rounds too early. This proves a prime example of why fantasy "experts" recommend waiting till later rounds and grabbing a defense with upside, rather than reaching early for the top defenses from the previous season.

On the flipside, one of the biggest first quarter surprises is that of the Cincinnati Bengals defense. After watching them play in the preseason, I moved them up in the defensive rankings from 30th to 24th, yet here they are heading into week 5 tied for 5th with the Chicago Bears and N.Y. Giants in fantasy points. Defensive lineman, Antwan Odom is leading the team with 8 sacks, which is tied for tops in the league, with Denver's Elvis Dumervil. The best part for Cincy is they are doing it as a team. Besides Odom, none of the other Bengals defenders even rank in the top 15 at their respective positions. Only time will tell if they can keep it up, and a week 5 match-up against the Baltimore Ravens will put them to the test, but they're making me a believer as a plug and play option based on match up each week.

Equally surprising is the leap from 27th to 3rd for the San Francisco 49ers defense. New coach Mike Singletary has his team focused and headed in the right direction on both sides of the ball. Only the Denver Broncos have allowed less than the 49ers 13.25 points per game to opposing offenses.

Saints Defensive Swagger

Another huge surprise has been the play of the New Orleans Saints defense. They were ranked 28th prior to the preseason when they surrendered only 9.5 points per game. I moved them up to 21st. They have launched themselves to first in overall fantasy points, and second in fantasy points per game at 10.5. I don't see this as a fluke. They have now played 8 straight games of solid defense (preseason included). They lead the league with 10 interceptions and 3 defensive touchdowns. Right now they are an every week play.

However, the biggest upset surprise through the first four weeks of play goes to the Josh McDaniels' coached Denver Broncos. They have surrendered only 26 points to opposing offenses and they have 6 interception. They also are second in the league to the Vikings with 15 sacks, 8 of which are Elvis Dumervil's, the defensive lineman turned linebacker.

The one team who truly illustrates the difference between real life and fantasy production is the New York Jets defense. I had them ranked 4th headed into the regular season and that's exactly where they are, with only 57 points allowed. However, this has not translated to fantasy production. In fantasy they are ranked 27th, with only 4 sacks,  4 interceptions and no defensive or special teams TDs. This should improve, but it's a sign that no matter how good they are in reality, they are not going to be bountiful fantasy producers.

Here are the full statistical rankings through four weeks of play. Note that while New Orleans has more points, the Philadelphia Eagles have only played three games and thus have a higher points per game average.

Team

G

Sacks

FR

INT

Def TD

PA

Pass

YPG

Rush

YPG

Safety

Kick TD

Fantasy Points

1. Philadelphia Eagles

3

10

3

6

1

72

156.0

106.0

1

1

33.0

2. New Orleans Saints

4

11

3

10

3

66

210.5

84.8

0

0

42.0

3. San Francisco 49ers

4

11

2

5

3

53

210.3

73.8

0

0

36.0

4. Minnesota Vikings

4

16

3

5

0

80

211.3

89.5

1

1

32.0

5. New York Giants

4

8

3

5

2

64

115.0

117.3

0

0

28.0

6. Cincinnati Bengals

4

12

2

2

2

76

242.3

103.0

0

0

28.0

7. Chicago Bears

4

14

3

3

0

78

226.0

93.5

1

1

28.0

8. Buffalo Bills

4

11

1

3

2

110

226.5

150.5

0

0

27.0

9. Green Bay Packers

4

5

3

7

2

93

223.0

112.3

0

0

27.0

10. San Diego Chargers

4

6

4

4

2

102

214.8

151.0

0

0

26.0

11. Denver Broncos

4

15

4

6

0

26

162.5

77.3

0

0

25.0

12. Houston Texans

4

3

5

2

1

92

203.8

164.8

1

1

24.0

13. Baltimore Ravens

4

10

1

6

1

80

232.3

59.5

0

0

23.0

14. Miami Dolphins

4

11

1

3

1

79

238.5

61.0

0

0

21.0

15. Detroit Lions

4

7

3

2

1

134

240.3

121.3

0

0

18.0

16. Indianapolis Colts

4

12

3

3

0

62

201.8

106.5

0

0

18.0

17. Arizona Cardinals

3

8

3

2

0

68

280.3

79.7

0

0

13.0

18. Cleveland Browns

4

7

3

1

0

118

226.5

176.8

0

1

17.0

19. Dallas Cowboys

4

6

2

2

1

78

256.3

115.0

0

0

16.0

20. Oakland Raiders

4

9

3

4

0

86

210.5

146.3

0

0

16.0

21. Tennessee Titans

4

9

3

3

0

108

282.3

79.8

0

0

15.0

22. Atlanta Falcons

3

5

4

2

0

53

245.3

136.0

0

0

11.0

23. New England Patriots

4

8

4

1

0

71

192.3

95.3

0

0

13.0

24. Seattle Seahawks

4

9

2

2

0

82

219.8

124.0

0

0

13.0

25. Washington Redskins

4

7

3

2

0

62

173.5

128.0

0

0

12.0

26. Jacksonville Jaguars

4

3

5

4

0

86

282.3

98.8

0

0

12.0

27. New York Jets

4

4

4

4

0

57

177.5

100.3

0

0

12.0

28. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

4

6

2

4

0

107

221.8

171.8

0

0

12.0

29. St. Louis Rams

4

7

2

2

0

108

224.5

135.0

0

0

11.0

30. Carolina Panthers

3

4

2

2

0

87

179.7

182.7

0

0

8.0

31. Pittsburgh Steelers

4

7

2

1

0

78

218.5

61.3

0

0

10.0

32. Kansas City Chiefs

4

5

2

2

0

112

250.5

128.5

0

0

9.0

See previous rankings:

August Rankings

September Rankings

What was on the CD player while I wrote this article:

Category - Fantasy Football News and Analysis - 2009 Fantasy Football Team Defense ~ 1st Qtr Update

Dominate Your League

About Kurt Turner

Kurt's fantasy advice is featured on USA Today Sports, Bleacher Reports, SiriusXM and Fox Sports. He is the owner of FantasyKnuckleheads.com and has been butchering topics here for over 15 years. Follow him on Twitter

Primary Sidebar

Recent Articles

  • Fantasy Football Draft Psychology: How To Outsmart Your League Mates

    Fantasy Football Draft Psychology: How To Outsmart Your League Mates

  • Which Quarterback Should You Draft in 2021?

    Which Quarterback Should You Draft in 2021?

  • Team Defense Committee vs Streaming Draft Strategy

    Team Defense Committee vs Streaming Draft Strategy

  • Week 16 Waiver Wire Pickups

    Week 16 Waiver Wire Pickups

  • Week 15 Waiver Wire Pickups

    Week 15 Waiver Wire Pickups

Need To Know

  • Fantasy Football Rankings
  • Average Draft Position (ADP) Report
  • Fantasy Football Draft Projections
  • The Best Waiver Wire Picks
  • Best Optimal Lineup Tool
  • ESPN Insider Coupon Code
  • Premium Fantasy Football Draft Guide
  • Fantasy Football Projections Video Series

Footer

ABOUT US

Established in the summer of 2009, Fantasy Knuckleheads is devoted to providing quality fantasy football news, advice, cheat sheets, tools and services. We’re not a mega-sports-site that churns out content by the pound. We’re simply a small, tight knit group of fantasy experts turned writers that love what we do, especially when we’re right. We strive to tell you something you don’t already know that’s actionable and at the very least, informative.

Fantasy Blog Network

Get This <a href="https://fantasyknuckleheads.com" title="Fantasy Football Rankings"><b>Fantasy Football for all you knuckleheads</b></a>

INFORMATION

  • Staff
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Write For Us
  • Fantasy Sports Widget

Copyright © 2023 · Fantasy Knuckleheads ·

Copyright © 2023 · Magazine Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in