Fantasy Football 2010 Rankings – Defense & Special Teams

In our preview of the Defense and Special Team units we discussed the importance (or lack there of) that is placed on the D/ST. The defense and special teams are an integral part of any team hoping to make Super Bowl run.

They are also an important aspect of your fantasy team. How important they are can be debated but Fantasy Championships are usually won with a top end D/ST unit.

Fantasy Football Defense & Special Teams – Get Defensive!

There’s nothing wrong with getting defensive – if the time is right. Timing the selection of your D/ST unit properly is a key to fantasy success. For the purpose of this discussion we are talking about the defense and special teams as a combined unit without any individual scoring.

There are a lot of aspects to the D/ST units and that makes it difficult to get an accurate read on which ones are better than the other. Take a look at the 2009 D/ST units and it all becomes as clear as mud.

The New Orleans Saints posted 95 fantasy points in 2008 and were left on the table in the vast majority of 2009 fantasy drafts. All they did in 2009 was post 164 fantasy points and finish as the top overall D/ST unit.

The Pittsburgh Steelers posted the third best point total at 141 in 2008 but slumped to 111 in 2009 which was good for 21st overall at the position.

Defense And Special Teams – All You Need To Know

All you really need to remember when it comes to selecting your D/ST is that you shouldn’t reach for one early and you should always fill out your skill position starters and back ups first. That should bring you to the 15th round or so and you will still get decent value from your D/ST selection.

The D/ST units can be like a roller coaster ride with all the ups and downs. Exactly half the teams posted better and half the teams posted worse numbers in 2009 over 2008. That is a very quirky stat for what is a very quirky category.

Top Ten Fantasy Football Defense & Special Teams Rankings