Week 2 Defense Rankings

If week 1 taught us anything, it's that the Jacksonville Jaguars are still the team to target when looking for a good defensive matchup on a week-to-week basis. But if you are looking for the defense facing them this week, you might not find them on your waiver wire, as the Miami Dolphins, who are owned in 79% of Yahoo leagues, will be facing them. If you are streaming defenses, you may find that your options aren't so cut and dry.

Streaming Defenses of the Week

The top streamer this week should be the Tennessee Titans. They had a great first week against rookie QB Jameis Winston, and Johnny Manziel is no passing wizard. He quickly gives up on plays and relies on his legs way too often. There are very little offensive weapons for him to work with, and in order for Manziel to have success, the Browns will need one of their running backs to step up.

The New Orleans Saints are the second favorite streamer, as they go up against Winston, who threw two interceptions last week. It's hard to trust them, but they are home and the Saints offense should be dictating the pace of the game.

Injury Notes

The most significant loss in week 1 goes to the Baltimore Ravens, who lost 2011 defensive player of the year and team leader Terrell Suggs, for the entire season. If you're an owner of the Ravens defense, it's a cause for concern, but they should still be started in week 2 with their excellent matchup against the Raiders.

Another linebacker with a serious injury is two-time Pro Bowler Luke Kuechly, who suffered a concussion. He is listed as week-to-week, but I would be very surprised if the Panthers start him on Sunday after signing him to a 5-year, $52 million extension last week. The Panthers do have the benefit of playing at home against Ryan Mallett. They will have to do a better job disrupting DeAndre Hopkins in the passing game, as Mallett hit him with a pair of well placed throws in the end zone last week.

Bills Safety Corey Graham also suffered a concussion in week 1, and his status for Sunday is uncertain. Tom Brady and the Patriots may exploit the secondary if he is ruled out, but I still believe the Bills defense should be started after putting up strong numbers against Andrew Luck. It's going to be rowdy in Buffalo, as the fans were chanting "we want Brady" after defeating the Colts. Brady should be under duress against the Bills pass rush.

Final Notes

In recent years, the 49ers defense has been one of the most feared in the league, and they had a great first game against the Vikings. However, I'm still not ready to trust them, as there were too many factors that may have lead to their positive week 1 performance. They were at home on a Monday night against an offense that isn't quite there yet in terms of chemistry. If they have a second straight week of double digit fantasy points, they should probably be in line for a bump, but there would still be skepticism granted that the Steelers are playing without Le'veon Bell and Martavis Bryant.

The Houston Texans had a tough week 1 against the Kansas City Chiefs. In their defense, Alex Smith is a ball protector in general, and would most likely take a sack before throwing an interception. They are ranked highly going against the Carolina Panthers, but if they fail to force any turnovers against their bleak offense, it would be tough to start them going forward. They face the Falcons and Colts in weeks 4 and 5, respectively.

Kam Chancellor will continue his holdout as the Seahawks head to Lambeau Field. This is worth noting after Nick Foles was able to connect with his receivers for some deep passes against the Seattle secondary. If Aaron Rodgers can do the same, which is not out of the realm of possibility, it will give extra leverage for Chancellor in terms of proving his worth. Turnovers saved the Seahawks defense last week, and it would be hard to imagine them repeating that against Rodgers. If there was a week to sit the top ranked defense for 2015, this is it.