2012 Fantasy Football Week 3: Team Defense Rankings and Projections

What looked like a few challenging matchups on paper didn’t seem to phase the 49ers in defeating the Packers and Lions. Now San Francisco heads back on the road to take on a floundering Vikings team.

Christian Ponder will struggle and we can only hope he’s able to make it through the game healthy. Perhaps Minnesota would be wise to take a chapter from the Lions' book last week and just concede the game by running the football with regularity.

I don’t care if Adrian Peterson is taking the handoffs—San Francisco will shut the running game down like they do against every team.

Maybe I was a little hard on the Lions by saying they gave up last week, because it’s understandable that you don’t want to become one dimensional on offense, against a defense like this. Any way you slice it up this is going to be a long day for the Vikings' offense and San Francisco is the top fantasy defense this week.

What Did We Learn From Week 2?

- Perhaps we should just admit that the Jets have the Bills number and move on. Buffalo looked much better as a team and didn't give up a touchdown until garbage time in the fourth quarter. Heading back on the road to play the Browns, we should feel good about their odds of giving us start-worthy production.

- Keep an eye on the Cowboys injury report because their defense was crushed in Seattle. Expect a high-scoring game as the Cowboys head back home to face a revamped Buccaneers offense. Until this defense is healthy again, they are a risky play against respectable offenses.

Sean’s Week 3 Watch List

- Que up Rob Schneider, Raider fans, because your team sucks again! Born and raised in the Bay Area, I hate to admit that but this team needs to have a rallying cry effort with the Steelers coming to town. Dysfunctional on both sides of the football, bet against Oakland to win and the Steelers defense being a great start in fantasy leagues.

- The Seahawks are a different team when they play in Seattle. Unfortunately, they face the Packers this week. It's probably best to keep them on the bench, but I will be interested to see how this game unfolds. It should be a good one.

1	49ers	@ Vikings
2	Steelers	@ Raiders
3	Eagles	@ Cardinals
4	Lions	@ Titans
5	Bills	@ Browns
6	Jets	@ Dolphins
7	Packers	@ Seahawks
8	Bears	Rams
9	Ravens	Patriots
10	Cardinals	Eagles
11	Texans	@ Broncos
12	Seahawks	Packers
13	Patriots	@ Ravens
14	Redskins	Bengals
15	Dolphins	Jets
16	Rams	@ Bears

Week 3 Standard Rankings – QB | RB | WR | TE | Flex |