It probably isn't your favorite topic but you have to start a DST every week so it is an important position that has decided many fantasy matchups over the years. From a season-long perspective, the top defenses average around 5 more points per week than the middling defenses. By just paying attention to a position that your competition may be ignoring you can create a weekly advantage that might be the difference between heartache and glory.

This article is focused on the full season outlook for the DST position, but the reality is that most of us will be streaming on a week-to-week basis. To help with that, I'll be writing a weekly column during the season looking at the top DST streaming options each week so be sure to check that out when you need waiver wire guidance.

For Fantasy LIfe's full, sortable DST rankings (and to sync them to your league's scoring rules), click here. And as a bonus, if you want to grab a one-year subscription to FL+, use code RKFD for 20% off. 

Before we dive into the DST tiers for this article, I also want to highlight one rule change that may have an impact on DST scoring this year. Touchbacks on kickoffs will be placed on the 35 yard line this year which will probably incentivize teams to keep more kickoffs in play to try to pin offenses deeper. That will translate to more opportunities for the best kick returners in the NFL. It's not a huge boost, but teams like Dallas, Buffalo, Baltimore, and Houston with proven kick return specialists have the potential to add to their DST scoring through kick return TDs more than in recent seasons.

DST Rankings and Tiers for 2025 Fantasy Football

Tier 1: The Elite Defenses

These are the teams who are going to cause problems for opposing offenses. It is a tier of only three DSTs so most teams in your league won't have one of them.

I'm a strong proponent of not taking a defense until one of the final few rounds of your draft. If you follow that advice you may not get the chance to select one from this group but it is still worth knowing which teams are in the top tier just in case they fall to you or end up on waivers at some point during the season.

The Broncos in particular are worth highlighting. They were the highest scoring fantasy defense last year and they added a first round CB in the NFL Draft while also signing Dre Greenlaw and Talanoa Hufanga in free agency. They recorded nine more sacks than any other defense last year and look to be even stronger on paper in 2025. Denver also gets to start the season against the Titans and rookie QB Cam Ward in his first start and then the Colts in Week 2. Those are two very favorable matchups so if you really want to pay up for an elite defense they are your best bet.

Tier 2: Priority Streaming Options

Tier 2 consists of defenses with a lot of talent who you should be comfortable starting in most matchups. A couple of these teams may elevate themselves into the elite tier over the course of the season, and I would put my money on the Texans to be the most likely to make that leap.

Houston returns pretty much all of their defense from last year that ranked fourth in sacks, fifth in turnovers forced, and fifth in total fantasy points. They even added depth to their secondary, bringing in Chauncey Gardner-Johnson in free agency and drafting Jaylin Smith in the third round. The only downside is that they don't have any stretches with multiples games against weak opponents so you may have to start them against good offenses if you want to hold them on your roster.

My biggest takeaway from this tier is that I will likely be fading the Eagles if they are the highest drafted team in this group which the ADP in the far right column indicates. In fact, drafters are taking them as the second defense off the board, ahead of two teams in our elite tier.

Philly's defense was elite at limiting other team's offensive production but they only ranked in the middle of the pack for sacks and interceptions. As a result, they only ranked seventh in fantasy points per game last season. I'm not surprised that drafters are overvaluing the reigning Super Bowl champs, but I'm happy to let someone else take them–especially with their opening two matchups against Dallas and Kansas City.

Tier 3: Matchup-Based Streaming Options

This is a massive tier because the reality is that the projections for most DSTs depend heavily on who their opponent is. If the opposing team is turnover prone, most NFL defenses have enough talent to make them pay for those mistakes.

A few things that stand out to me from this tier:

The Arizona Cardinals are one of the best defenses to target if you wait until the last round and the rest of your league takes all the top options. The Cardinals don't appear to have one of the most talented defenses, but they did spend six of their seven draft picks on that side of the ball so if they hit on multiple of those players they could outperform expectations. More importantly, their opening schedule is among the best in the league. Their opponents for the first six weeks include:

• Week 1 - New Orleans Saints
• Week 2 - Carolina Panthers
• Week 3 - San Francisco 49ers
• Week 4 - Seattle Seahawks
• Week 5 - Tennessee Titans
• Week 6 - Indianapolis Colts

I would definitely feel confident starting them in four of those matchups and you could probably get away with using them in all six games if you just don't want to worry about streaming a defense to start the year.

Two other DSTs on this list that I am monitoring are the New York Giants and New England Patriots. The Giants have one of the best defensive lines in the NFL which will give them a high weekly ceiling, particularly in games against teams with poor offensive lines like New Orleans and Las Vegas who are both on their schedule this year. Keep them in mind as a streaming option.

For the Patriots, there are reports they have inquired about Trey Hendrickson. This would be another big addition for a unit that spent a lot of money in free agency to add talent. It's just speculation at this point but Hendrickson is a premier pass rusher so any team that adds him should receive a decent boost to their weekly projection.

Tier 4: Avoid If You Can

The bottom tier of team defenses, these are the units you will want to avoid starting in almost every circumstance. If anything, the only reason to know this tier is because you want to target them when making start/sit decisions for the rest of your lineup. Unless we end up being really wrong about the talent of one of these teams they are unlikely to feature as weekly streaming options on a regular basis.