Week 1 of the 2024 NFL season did not disappoint. The main slate was a bit ugly, but if you played the Bears D/ST at under 10% ownership in your Tournament contests, you were sittin’ pretty. 

The NFL DFS Week 2 D/ST coach will break down this week’s 13-game slate on DraftKings and FanDuel. We have 26 options for the Sunday main slate, and we will once again look to navigate the player pool to deliver the top options for this week’s cash game and tournament contests!

 

 

 

NFL DFS Week 2 D/ST Coach For FanDuel & DraftKings Fantasy

Following Week 1 there were some big hits and some misses. But if you’ve read the NFL DFS D/ST Coach in the past, you’ll know I tend to beat a dead horse with the phrase “position of variance.”

The Cincinnati Bengals disappointed as a pay-up option with just four fantasy points. Likewise, the value play of the Carolina Panthers returned a negative point. I still believe the New Orleans Saints will be a terrible offense this year, but man the Panthers looked bad.

On the bright side of things, we did have the Chicago Bears D/ST listed as a mid-tier play and they were the optimal D/ST on the board so the new additions to that defense quickly paid dividends since the Chicago offense looked less-than-stellar. 

 

 

 

NFL Week 2 Defense/Special Teams

As we begin to dig into the NFL DFS Week 2 D/ST coach we quickly notice that there are three games on the Sunday main slate with totals at or under 39 points. Those are the kinds of games we want to target when building out our NFL DFS lineups on DraftKings and FanDuel.

However, we may also find some lower-owned options in a few other games. If we expand the sample size to implied totals of 42 points, then we have seven games that meet the criteria. But we can’t expect all the teams that performed poorly to once again play bad in Week 2. 

There should be more positive regression for a few offenses, but overall Vegas is leading the way towards a few defenses to consider this weekend.

 

 

 

NFL DFS D/ST Top-Tier Picks For Week 2

New York Jets - DraftKings: $3,800 | FanDuel: $5,000

I don’t love playing teams on short weeks especially when it’s an edge to their opponent. However, I make an exception for the best secondary in the game.The Jets couldn’t really stop the San Francisco 49ers on Monday night. Very few teams can. It’s almost like you need them to go to overtime in the biggest of the year and have them forget the rules or something…

Anyway, we saw the Chicago Bears sack Will Levis thrice last week and they also forced three turnovers as well as two D/ST touchdowns as well. The Bears did a great job making adjustments and holding the Titans to zero points in the second half. Let’s not forget that the Jets allowed the fewest fantasy points to wide receivers in 2023, so this is a spot for Sauce Gardner, Michael Carter II, and D.J. Reed to really shut down the Titans.

Baltimore Ravens - DraftKings: $3,700 | FanDuel: $4,800

I struggled with this one to be honest. In last week’s Thursday Night Football Showdown Playbook, I detailed the personnel and coaching changes for this Ravens defense. They weren’t terrible against the Chiefs. Overall, it was a sloppy game, but the defense wasn’t stellar by any means.

But for this home matchup against the Las Vegas Raiders, they are well rested. Vegas likes this game script for Baltimore a good amount. The over/under is currently set at 41.5 points and the Ravens are 8.5-point favorites at home. That puts the Raiders implied total at about 16.5 points.

The Raiders gave up four sacks last week and lost three turnovers to the Los Angeles Chargers. Now they have to play on the road for a second straight week against a team that’s getting a few extra days of rest. I may not like the personnel turnover Baltimore saw in the offseason, but I can get on board with their D/ST for this matchup.

 

 

 

NFL DFS D/ST Mid-Tier Picks For Week 2

Los Angeles Chargers - DraftKings: $3,400 | FanDuel: $4,400

We’re trying not to chase last week’s productivity. And honestly, I’m not a fan of the Bolts traveling cross country for a 1:00pm ET game, but that’s the hand we’re dealt. But overall this defense looked really good against the Las Vegas Raiders last week. Three turnovers forced? Nice. Four sacks? Awesome. Just 10 points and under 300 yards allowed on offense? Check please!

The Carolina Panthers offense looked horrible in Week 1. And maybe this is a trap spot. It wouldn’t surprise me. The Carolina offensive line is still bad, and I don’t think defenses have any reason to respect this run game until Jonathan Brooks comes off IR. Vegas has the Chargers favored by six points and the over/under is at 39 points giving the Panthers offense a 16.5-point implied total.

Denver Broncos - DraftKings: $2,800 | FanDuel: $3,400

The Broncos are actually fairly affordable. Most weeks, at this price tag, they’d make the next section. But I also have a couple punts in the value picks section so for the NFL DFS Week 2 D/ST coach, I’m qualifying Denver as a mid-tier play.

Pat Surtain II shadowed DK Metcalf in Week 1 and arguably won the matchup as Metcalf was limited to just three receptions on 29 yards. Most expect Surtain to shadow George Pickens in this matchup, and while that is likely, it was bizarre that Pickens ran a route on just 76% of Justin Fields’ drop backs last week.

Either way, this is a home game at elevation for Denver. They’re 2.5-point underdogs but the implied total is at just 36.5 points, one of the lowest on the slate. As someone who was at the Steelers vs. Falcons game in Week 1, I’ll say that the offense looked okay in a controlled environment. They put up 18 points on six field goals from Chris Boswell. But Denver gets the edge at elevation this week and unfortunately, it’s another travel week for the Steelers.

 

 

 

NFL Week 2 DFS D/ST Value Picks

Tennessee Titans - DraftKings: $2,700 | FanDuel: $3,300

Honestly, this isn’t a terrible price tag for the Tennessee Titans and there are a few things to like about this matchup. For starters, they host the New York Jets, who are coming off a short week of preparation having lost to the San Francisco 49ers (on the road) on Monday Night Football. For the NFL DFS Week 2 D/ST coach, we have an intriguing opportunity with the Titans.

The New York Jets primarily feed two players on offense: Breece Hall and Garrett Wilson. Sure, Allen Lazard scored twice on Monday night but one of those touchdowns was the most garbage of garbage time scores these eyes have ever seen.

Tennessee boasts one of the best run defenses in the league and overall, this defense allowed just 148 yards of total offense to the Chicago Bears last week. If the Titans utilize newly acquired L’Jarius Sneed properly, he could shadow Garrett Wilson. I’m not saying Sneed is a lockdown defender, but he did well shadowing other elite wideouts last year while with the Kansas City Chiefs.

Arizona Cardinals - DraftKings: $2,300 | FanDuel: $3,600

Over on FanDuel, the Titans might be the preferred play. But on DraftKings, the Cards are the cheapest option on the slate and there’s intrigue here following the injury to Puka Nacua that placed him on IR. The Los Angeles Rams are likely to throw the ball plenty. 

And from a pure matchup perspective, the Rams receivers (Cooper Kupp, Demarcus Robinson, and Tyler Johnson) have an edge over the questionable secondary of Arizona. But the Rams offensive line is hurting. The Detroit Lions may have only collected a pair of sacks during Sunday Night Football, but on 51 of Stafford’s drop backs he was hit 11 times.

He was forced to get the ball out quickly with just 2.59 seconds of average time to throw. This game does have an implied total of 48.5 points but the Cardinals are one-point favorites at home. For the cheapest option on the board on DraftKings, we could certainly do much worse.

 

 

 

NFL DFS D/ST Fades For Week 2

Cincinnati Bengals - DraftKings: $2,600 | FanDuel: $3,100

This is a value play that nobody is going to play. And typically, I’m against grasping at the low hanging fruit. But this matchup is so bad for a defense that, at home, couldn’t prevent the New England Patriots ground game from rushing for 170 yards.

And now they have to visit the Kansas City Chiefs. The Chiefs will have a few extra days of rest and they played at home in Week 1 so they haven’t had a requirement to travel. The Chiefs have a very good offensive line and the best quarterback in the game. Sure, the Bengals are cheap, but there are other paydown options we can consider this week.

NFL DFS Week 2 D/ST Play Of The Week

Dallas Cowboys - DraftKings: $4,000 | FanDuel: $4,600

The Cowboys might be a better play on FanDuel as the fifth-most expensive option over there. I think sportsbooks setting the implied total at 47 points is rather reactionary to what New Orleans did last week against Carolina. 

But I’m not buying it and still believe the Saints have a bad offense. They just thrived against a very bad D/ST last week. Dallas ranked first in pressure rate in 2023, and they absolutely dominated the Cleveland Browns offensive line last week. 

On the road in Cleveland, the Cowboys had six sacks, two interceptions, and their D/ST scored a touchdown for 17 fantasy points. The fantasy football industry collectively graded the Saints out as having one of the worst offensive lines heading into 2024 so I’m optimistic the Cowboys give Derek Carr and Co. fits all day.

 

 

 

NFL DFS Week 2 Defense/Special Teams Projections