In general, fantasy football is all about offensive superstars; dual-threat running backs who can rack up yards both on the ground and through the air are the league-winners. Sometimes, though, defense can be the difference between winning and losing a contest, so picking the right defense is key.
There are several defenses with enticing matchups in Week 3, but the Green Bay Packers (against the Atlanta Falcons), the Seattle Seahawks (against the Washington Commanders), and the Cincinnati Bengals (against the Pittsburgh Steelers) seem the most promising of all.
Below, I’ll break down these three defenses and how their matchups for Week 3.
Results and Usage
Green Bay was pretty mediocre in Week 1, as it allowed 39 points to the Minnesota Vikings despite their losing starting quarterback Kyler Murray in the first quarter with a concussion. However, the Packers bounced back in Week 2, holding the New York Jets to just 17 points and sacking Geno Smith thrice. On paper, Green Bay has a talented defense, boasting a solid cornerback duo in Keisean Nixon and Brandon Cisse in addition to safety trio Evan Williams, Javon Bullard, and Xavier McKinney. Micah Parsons likely won’t be back for at least a few weeks as he continues to recover from the ACL tear he suffered last December, but but Lukas Van Ness and Edgerrin Cooper have both stepped up, already combining for 4.5 sacks.
The Seahawks entered the season as a known quantity after winning the Super Bowl behind the strength of their defense last season. So far, it has been more of the same for Seattle, which limited the New England Patriots to just 10 points in Week 1 in a Super Bowl rematch and held the Arizona Cardinals to seven points in Week 2. Although the Seahawks have only recorded five sacks, they have intercepted four passes, the most of any team, while allowing the ninth-fewest rushing yards and no scores. Despite their shoddy pass rush and quarterback Sam Darnold’s injury, they’ve been a top-10 team on both sides of the ball.
On the other hand, the Bengals had among the worst defenses in the league in 2025, but they look much better so far in 2026. In Week 1, Cincinnati had two defensive touchdowns against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, forcing four turnovers and sacking Baker Mayfield four times. It was even better in Week 2, limiting the Houston Texans to just six points, and although it didn’t force any turnovers in that contest, CJ Stroud took four sacks. All in all, the Bengals are tied for the league lead in sacks and joint-fifth in interceptions, and while they have allowed two scores on the ground, opposing running backs haven’t been particularly efficient. Dexter Lawrence has thus far proven to be a brilliant acquisition, as he’s posted the league’s best interior defense grades.
Future Outlook
Of the three, I’m the least bullish about the Packers’ chances in Week 3. They have a fairly friendly matchup against the Atlanta Falcons, who have somehow scored just 16 points through the first two weeks, but Atlanta still has a pair of ultra-talented playmakers in running back Bijan Robinson and wideout Drake London. Plus, as mediocre as Michael Penix Jr. has been in his first 12 NFL starts, he and Tua Tagovailoa are unequivocally better than Cooper Rush and Jack Strand, who have featured in the Falcons’ first two games. Atlanta has thrown a league-high five interceptions in the first two weeks, but Penix had the lowest interception percentage in the league in 2025 before suffering his season-ending ACL tear.
For the most part, I’m buying Cincinnati’s improvement. Lawrence’s impressive performance isn’t exactly new — he’s a two-time All-Pro Second Teamer and finished in the top three by PFF’s grades on three separate occasions — and DJ Turner II is a solid cornerback. The Bengals have invested heavily in their defense over the last two draft classes, spending the 17th overall pick in 2025 on Shemar Stewart, who had a sack in Week 2 against the Texans. However, despite the fact that Pittsburgh’s offense only put up 23 points in the first two weeks, I trust its offense to improve as long as Jaylen Warren and Michael Pittman Jr. are healthy. Warren gouged this defense in Week 7 last season, totaling 158 yards, and Lawrence aside, I’m not sure Cincinnati’s defense has improved quite enough to contain him completely.
In this case, though, Occam’s Razor holds. Seattle’s defense is a must-start unit against pretty much any team in the league, and the Washington Commanders’ offense doesn’t exactly inspire confidence. Washington is 0-2, and although it has scored a respectable 42 points while boasting the third-best rushing offense in the league so far, just 10 of those points came with Marcus Mariota under center. Mariota’s career 2.6% interception percentage is higher than both the injured Jayden Daniels’ and the NFL average, so the Seahawks should have no trouble getting to them, and both the Commanders’ run game and pass-blocking are pretty poor. Especially if Sam Darnold ends up playing, I’d expect Seattle to run up the score early, forcing Mariota to pass and giving the Seahawks more opportunities to intercept him. Last season, the Seahawks picked up a 38-14 win in Washington with Daniels under center, and Daniels is unequivocally better than Mariota by basically any metric.
