Fantasy Football Week 7 Kicker and D/ST Streamers: Which Weak Units are Worth Targeting?

Now that every team has played at least five games, we are getting a feel for who has the worst offenses and defenses. So much randomness goes into the first few weeks, including who a team plays, so it takes a month or so before we really get a grasp on what a team will be.

That doesn't mean everything is now settled; there's still a long way to go. I feel pretty good about who we want to attack on offense and defense, though, particularly from those teams that have been among the worst.

Let's look at two kickers and two D/ST groups with great matchups in Week 7 that are widely available in fantasy leagues. Most stats are from NFL.com, and fantasy points and rankings are from FantasyPros.

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Kickers

Chris Boswell, Pittsburgh Steelers @ New Orleans Saints (in Paris)

The kickers in this game would generally get the benefit of playing indoors in New Orleans since it's a Saints' home game, but this one is being played in Paris, both putting the game outdoors and bringing the uncertainty of a non-NFL playing surface. Even so, I like the idea of targeting New Orleans' defense (as long as the weather doesn't get too bad).

The Saints are tied for the most points and points per game allowed through six weeks (we'll get to the team they are tied with soon). At nearly 30 points per game, New Orleans is letting opposing teams get into scoring position often and giving up fantasy points to opposing players at all positions.

Boswell is tied for K6 in fantasy. He hasn't been an ace this season, missing four field goals, but they all came from over 40 yards, and two of them were from at least 50. In a small sample, we can give him some benefit of the doubt, especially coming off a game in which he made 4-of-5 field goal attempts. He also hasn't missed an extra point.

Pittsburgh's offense isn't going to be among the best, but they have done well enough to get their kicker into position to score. With a great matchup this week, Boswell is a strong streaming kicker.

Wil Lutz, Denver Broncos @ Arizona Cardinals

This might not be the slam-dunk option it seemed before Week 6 because the Broncos struggled hard to move the ball on offense, and the Cardinals were far better defensively against the Rams than they had been all season. Still, I'm willing to trust the larger numbers and go after this matchup against Arizona.

Remember when I said the Saints were tied for the most points and points per game allowed? Well, the Cardinals are the team they are tied with, and even after the surprisingly tepid Rams struggled to move the ball efficiently, I want to go after Arizona with fantasy players at all positions.

Lutz is just 9-of-12 on field goals, not getting a ton of opportunities and missing a few of those. He only has one season in his career in which he made less than 82% of his kicks, though, so I'm willing to trust that he will get back on track with more opportunities. It just comes down to his team playing better offensively to get him those chances.

While playing in Denver would give him the benefit of the thin air a mile above sea level, this one takes place indoors in Arizona, so the conditions will be perfect. The Broncos are likely to perform better than they have with a nicer matchup, especially since they've played some tough defenses to this point, like the Chiefs, Rams, 49ers, and Seahawks.

There is some risk that Lutz won't get enough chances for a big game, but I'm willing to trust Denver to have a better day against the Cardinals. Lutz is a fine streamer in Week 7.

Defense/Special Teams

Cleveland Browns @ Tennessee Titans

The Titans finally won a game! The previously 0-5 team visited a faltering Indianapolis Colts squad and walked away with a 26-20 victory. The offense wasn't the catalyst, though, as Cam Ward has just 102 passing yards on 4.6 per attempt, and the team averaged only 3.7 yards per rush.

Tennessee had four field goals and scored a touchdown on a blocked punt; only two of their scoring drives gained even 30 yards. The Titans are tied with Miami for the fewest points per game scored, and they have gained by far the fewest offensive yards per game: Tennessee's 236.3 net yards per game are nearly 16 less than the Broncos, who are second worst.

They don't turn the ball over a ton, and Ward has only been sacked 10 times in six games, but Tennessee's offense is as bad as any other team in the league, and they set a nice fantasy floor for opposing D/ST groups.

Cleveland has been successful on defense, tied for the seventh-fewest points allowed per game. They just held the Ravens to 10 points on Sunday, and though Lamar Jackson wasn't playing, the Browns have given up 20 points only twice in six games. Cleveland sits in the middle of the league in interceptions (four) but has the second-most sacks (19), making plays that score fantasy points.

More than the defense in question, I'm just always interested in targeting the Titans. They have proven to be maybe the worst offense in the NFL, and fantasy owners generally don't have to worry about their D/ST losing points, even if they don't put up a huge score.

New York Jets vs. Miami Dolphins

I just said above that the Dolphins are tied for the fewest points per game scored, so why not target them next? They have gained the fifth-fewest yards per game, and since they have had their bye, Miami ranks dead last in total points, total yards, and passing yards.

Malik Willis hasn't turned it over a ton, throwing just four interceptions, but he is tied for seventh in most sacks taken, and everyone above him has at least 19 more pass attempts. It's not a surprise that Miami is struggling; they were projected to be one of the worst teams in football. We can take advantage by targeting them often in fantasy.

The Jets have looked strong on defense. They are tied with Cleveland and Seattle for the seventh-fewest points per game allowed, and while they have still struggled to force turnovers (just one interception after not recording any last season), New York is tied for the fourth-most sacks.

Like with Tennessee, I'm more worried about Miami here than the team they are facing. I believe the Jets will have a very good defensive day, but it's as much about the Dolphins as it is New York's own prowess. We'll keep coming back to this well until it dries up (which might not be until the end of the season).