Week 5 Fantasy Football Defense Rankings: Minnesota At The Top Of The List

Michael Fabiano | Oct 2, 2025

The Minnesota Vikings defense has a favorable fantasy matchup against the Cleveland Browns in Week 5. / Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

The fifth week of the fantasy football season is here, and with it come the first batch of byes. In fact, nine of the next 10 weeks on the league’s slate will include at least two bye-week teams. This week, the Bears, Falcons Packers, and Steelers are all off the board, so countless managers will need some lineup replacements.

The Week 5 defense rankings will have a few new members among the top 10, including the Cardinals and Browns, who both have great matchups. I also have the Colts and Rams listed as fantasy starters and viable streaming options.  

On the flip side, defenses like the Commanders, Jaguars and Broncos have slipped a bit this week, based on either a bad matchup, poor play or a combination of both scenarios. The same goes for the Patriots and Buccaneers.

With that said, here are my complete fantasy football defense rankings for the fifth week of the NFL season.

Be sure to check back all week for daily updates!

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Week 5 Fantasy DST Rankings

RK	Player	TM	Opponent
1	Vikings	MIN	at CLE
2	Cardinals	ARI	vs. TEN
3	Lions	DET	at CIN
4	Rams	LAR	vs. SF
5	Browns	CLE	vs. MIN
6	Colts	IND	vs. LV
7	Texans	HOU	at BAL
8	Bills	BUF	vs. NE
9	Seahawks	SEA	vs. TB
10	Saints	NO	vs. NYG
11	Giants	NYG	at NO
12	Chiefs	KC	at JAC
13	Eagles	PHI	vs. DEN
14	Dolphins	MIA	at CAR
15	Cowboys	DAL	at NYJ
16	Chargers	LAC	vs. WAS
17	Ravens	BAL	vs. HOU
18	Jets	NYJ	vs. DAL
19	Broncos	DEN	at PHI
20	Panthers	CAR	vs. MIA
21	Buccaneers	TB	at SEA
22	49ers	SF	at LAR
23	Jaguars	JAC	vs. KC
24	Titans	TEN	at ARI
25	Commanders	WAS	at LAC
26	Raiders	LV	at IND
27	Patriots	NE	at BUF
28	Bengals	CIN	vs. DET