Bruno Boys Fantasy Football

In years past, the logic has been to select one good defense in your fantasy football draft and stick with that unit for the rest of the season. As you will see below, the traditional defensive powers did not have the same kind of success in 2009 that we are accustomed to. As a result, many of you were forced to play the waiver wire with defenses this season, benefiting from the plethora of bad offenses in the NFL giving up big weeks to mediocre defensive units on a weekly basis. Many times those terrible offenses allowed a defense to be not only a top scorer in all of fantasy for that given week, but the difference between a fantasy win and a loss. Picking a defense late has never been a bad strategy and as you will see, 2009 was a prime example.

In the Bruno Boys’ latest installment of a three week long series titled “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly,” in which we’ll take a look back at the 2009 regular season and evaluate “the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly” at each position, Greg Warnock takes a look at THE GOOD defenses that got the job done in 2009.

1. San Francisco 49ers D/ST — In the pre-season, we talked about the 49ers as a unit that could possibly be a strong candidate for a sleeper type defense, making a solid starter against weaker opponents. Well, San Francisco certainly exceeded our expectations as well as everyone else who ranked this defense in the bottom half of the league. In standard scoring leagues, San Francisco was the best D/ST in fantasy football in 2009 with 167 points. Most of those points did come against bad teams as expected, with 75 points coming against the Detroit Lions and St. Louis Rams (twice).

This season, San Francisco’s defense gave up 326.4 yards and 17.6 points per game with 44 sacks and 33 turnovers. Those numbers were drastic improvements under first year head coach Mike Singletary, who applied discipline to a young defensive core. With many of their guys coming back next season and having a lot of room to grow, don’t be surprised to see the 49ers defense be a top-5 pick in 2010.

2. New York Jets D/ST — Coming into the season, we knew the Jets’ defense was going to be good. We weren’t sure though if the signings of linebacker Bart Scott and safety Jim Leonhard plus defensive minded head coach Rex Ryan getting his hands on the defense would make an incredible difference. Now, though, we know that was the case. New York’s 161 fantasy points were the 2nd best in fantasy football, and the unit was one of the few you could trust week in and week out to have a solid game.

On the year, the Jets’ defense allowed a league low 252.3 yards and 14.8 points per game while adding 32 sacks and 31 turnovers. Their success was thanks to a number of blitz packages that gave opposing quarterbacks problems and solid one on one defenders (see: Darrelle Revis) that allowed New York to take a lot of chances. There is a good chance the Jets defense is one of the first taken in your fantasy football draft this coming fall.

3. New Orleans Saints D/ST — Coming into 2009, the way the Saints won games was by scoring a lot of points and hope at the end of the day, they would have more points on the scoreboard than their opponent. Little did the team know that their defense would be the key to getting them out of jams, scoring touchdowns and forcing key turnovers. New Orleans ended up scoring 158 points as a fantasy defense and was a hot pick-up after their great start.

This past season, the Saints’ defense gave up 357.8 yards and 21.3 points per game while totaling 35 sacks and 39 turnovers. The addition of some key players (see: Darren Sharper) plus a change to Gregg Williams’ defensive system helped New Orleans be a defense that could be relied on for the first time in years. Keep an eye out on the off-season moves for the Saints, as they may not return the same guys who made them so good in 2009. 

4. Philadelphia Eagles D/ST — The death of defensive coordinator Jim Johnson left a dark cloud over what had been one of the most consistent defenses in all of football to start the season. A soft schedule in the beginning of the year helped put Philadelphia near the top of the ranks among other defenses in the NFL. The thing is, the Eagles continued to put up solid games when their schedule got tougher, resulting in a year end 158 fantasy points.

On the year, Philadelphia’s defense allowed 321.1 yards and 21.1 points per game with 44 sacks and 38 turnovers. With the Eagles’ defense once again showing that even when times get tough they can put up consistent point totals, they will likely be a top-5 pick in your next fantasy football draft no matter who is on the team next season. Playing in one of the best divisions in football has not slowed down Philadelphia’s defense from producing, and it’s doubtful that will change in 2010.

5. Green Bay Packers D/ST — One simple switch to a 3-4 defense was all it took for the Packers unit to be valuable in 2009. With the blitz schemes drawn up by new defensive coordinator Dom Capers, Green Bay was able to be aggressive and make some big plays. That’s what propelled this middle of the road defense to the top-10 with 152 fantasy points.

This past season, the Green Bay defense gave up 284.4 yards and 18.6 points per game while adding 37 sacks and 40 turnovers. Although the end of the season did not look favorable on the Packers defense (especially their postseason game against the Arizona Cardinals), they were a solid unit that could easily get better in 2010. Have no fear in drafting the Green Bay defense, as another year in Capers’ defensive system could mean an added sack total with just as many turnovers if not more.

6. Baltimore Ravens D/ST — After losing so many pieces to their solid unit of 2008 (including their defensive coordinator), some wondered if Baltimore’s defense would take a step back in 2009. Instead, the Ravens were able to continue their success even with some of their key players missing games due to injury. Once again in 2009, Baltimore was able to finish in the top-5 among other defenses in the NFL with 153 fantasy points.

On the year, the Ravens’ defense allowed 300.5 yards and 16.3 points per game while totaling 32 sacks and 32 turnovers. While Baltimore should always have a good defense, you will want to keep an eye out on the retirement status of star safety Ed Reed (right now he is said to be 50-50). While the Ravens did have success in 2009 without him at times, you will want to be careful not to overrate this unit if he retires. Then again, if he does so and others pass on the Ravens in your draft, Baltimore should still be able to finish in the top-10 in 2010 while making for a solid value pick.

Missing The Cut: Denver Broncos D/ST, Minnesota Vikings D/ST, Arizona Cardinals D/ST, Cincinnati Bengals D/ST

2009 The Good:  QB  |  RB  |  WR  |  TE  |  K  |  DEF

2009 The Bad:  QB  |  RB  |  WR  |  TE  |  K  |  DEF

2009 The Ugly:  QB  |  RB  |  WR  |  TE  |  K |  DEF

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