Week 2 Fantasy Football Rankings: Top Defensive Matchups to Take Advantage of

If you've read much of my fantasy football work here at Bleacher Report, then you know that I'm a big proponent of the "matchup" defense strategy.

It's quite simple really. Rather than spending a middle-round pick on an "elite" defense such as the San Francisco 49ers, you find a defense with a good matchup for the first week or two late, and then switch them out when the matchups dry up. Rinse and repeat as needed.

So, whether you took my advice, were already a proponent of the same philosophy (I like it, I never said I invented it), or you're just looking for team defense with a cherry matchup this week, here's a trifecta of squads that should post good scores in Week 2.

Oakland Raiders (at MIA)

The Oakland Raiders may have lost at home Monday night to the San Diego Chargers, but it certainly wasn't the fault of the Oakland defense, which did a solid job of containing San Diego quarterback Philip Rivers and limiting the Chargers to only one touchdown.

This Sunday, the Raiders travel east to face a Miami Dolphins team that was just throttled by the Houston Texans. Not only do the Raiders have a deep front four more than capable of pressuring rookie quarterback Ryan Tannehill into mistakes, but the Dolphins also don't have the wide receivers or quarterback to challenge Oakland's shaky cornerbacks.

Minnesota Vikings (at IND)

Although the Minnesota Vikings defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars in overtime on Sunday, the defense was something of a letdown from a fantasy perspective, as star defensive end Jared Allen failed to get a sack and the Vikings were able to generate only a single turnover.

However, much like with the Raiders, the Vikings get a tasty matchup against a rookie quarterback in Andrew Luck, who tossed three interceptions last Sunday against the Chicago Bears. I'd say it's a pretty safe bet that Allen isn't going to get blanked two weeks in a row.

First Julius Peppers, now Jared Allen. Welcome to the National Football League Mr. Luck.

San Diego Chargers (at TEN)

The Oakland defense wasn't the only unit that played well on Monday night, and while some of the success that the San Diego Chargers defense enjoyed can likely be laid at the feet of a sputtering Oakland offense the fact remains that the Bolts did an excellent job on containing Raiders running back Darren McFadden, especially on the ground.

It's two sputtering offenses in a row for San Diego this week when they head to Nashville to square off with the Tennessee Titans. If the putrid showing turned in by Tennessee running back Chris Johnson in Week 1 is any indication, it should be another solid outing for the Bolts' defense.

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