Fantasy Football: Week 5 Kicker and Defense Rankings

MIAMI, Oct. 5 (UPI) -- Week 5 is a great time to stream defenses. Some of the top ranked units for the week were likely undrafted.

By looking at how a defense/special teams unit has played so far this season and how the opposing offense has faired against previous competition, you can find extra points for your weekly fantasy football lineup.

Here are my top 20 defense/special teams units and top 15 kickers this week. You can also view my add/drops for the week and more positional rankings in the links below.

TOP SHELF

The New England Patriots are going to obliterate the Cleveland Browns in Tom Brady's DeflateGate return. Brady is coming back for his first game of the season and Bill Belichick has had a week to think about being shutout in Foxborough. I expect a gaudy amount of touchdown passes from Brady and an even more insane fantasy point output from the future Hall of Famer gunslinger. All of that likely means the Cleveland Browns will be play catch-up. The Browns need to get the ball to Terrelle Pryor to be successful. I can see Belichick putting the clamps on Pryor with his best cornerback, leaving Cody Kessler at the whim of the Patriots' pass rush.

Mason Crosby should have another solid day kicking for the Green Bay Packers in a home battle against the New York Giants. I am leaning toward a blowout in this match up, with the Giants' running game suffering and Odell Beckham Jr. not yet finding his mojo. Eli Manning looked rattled in a Week 4 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. The Packers' defensive line will get after him for several sacks if the Giants are in catch-up mode, putting Crosby in great field position.

SNEAKY PLAYS

The Philadelphia Eagles are trying to go 4-0 this season after facing the Detroit Lions on the road. In Week 3, the Eagles held Ben Roethlisberger, Antonio Brown, and the Pittsburgh Steelers to 3 points. I see the Lions secondary struggling against breakout rookie Carson Wentz and the Eagles posting another solid defensive performance.

Carolina Panthers kicker Graham Gano should be a benefactor of his team's struggling offense. If Cam Newton is ruled out of the contest against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, I expect Gano to play an even bigger role in the Monday Night Football battle.

LONGSHOTS

As noted previously, the Packers should put up some points at home against the Giants. I don't see the struggling Giants keeping up the pace. The Packers should have plenty of chances to get after Eli Manning and capitalize on the Giants' mistakes.

San Diego Chargers kicker Josh Lambo faces the Oakland Raiders. Lambo has five field goals and five extra points in his last two contests. There should be no shortage of scoring in this AFC West battle. I see another double-digit fantasy point performance from Lambo in Week 5.