With draft season in full swing, it’s time to take a look at the often over looked position of Defense.

If you are not in position to land one of the stout units such as Ohio State, Boise State, Nebraska, North Carolina, or the like, your best bet might be to snag two of the following defenses that should perform on the same level as the upper echelon D’s.

This article is written assuming a league with limited waiver wire pickups. If your league allows unlimited transactions, there are plenty of weekly match ups that can be had. Listed below are six teams that could be used in a platoon situation for this season.
 

• Ole Miss
  The Rebels have some talent and have a soft schedule to boot.
   
• Penn State
  The Nittany Lions have some nice matchups with Youngstown State, Alabama, and Kent State in Weeks 1-3. They pretty much go all season long without playing any offensive juggernauts.
   
• Connecticut
  The Huskies have some juicy games against Texas Southern, Buffalo, and Vandy within the first 5 weeks of the season.
   
• Rutgers
  The Scarlet Knights have five key match ups in which they should dominate their opponent.
   
• LSU
  The Tigers may not be as dominant as they have been in the past, but games with Vanderbilt, Mississippi State, McNee State, and Louisiana Monroe should be nice options.
   
• USC
  While the Trojans may be on probation, they should still field a nasty defense and have some attractive games against Virginia, Minnesota, Washington State, and Arizona State to name a few.

These six teams could be used in a number of platoon situations, but a couple really look intriguing. I’ll take this time to delve into those possibilities even further.

Ole Miss/Rutgers Platoon

Week 1: Norfolk State @ Rutgers
Week 2: Rutgers @ Florida International
Week 3: Vanderbilt @ Ole Miss
Week 4: North Carolina @ Rutgers
Week 5: Tulane @ Rutgers
Week 6: Uconn @ Rutgers
Week 7: Army @ Rutgers
Week 8: Rutgers @ Pitt
Week 9: Auburn @ Ole Miss
Week 10: Louisiana @ Ole Miss
Week 11: Syracuse @ Rutgers
Week 12: Ole Miss @ LSU
Week 13: Mississippi State @ Ole Miss

With this platoon strategy, the only week with a questionable matchup is the ninth week with Ole Miss playing Auburn.

Uconn/LSU Platoon

Week 1: North Carolina @ LSU
Week 2: Texas Southern @ Uconn
Week 3: Mississippi State @ LSU
Week 4: Buffalo @ Uconn
Week 5: Vanderbilt @ Uconn
Week 6: Uconn @ Rutgers
Week 7: McNee State @ LSU
Week 8: Uconn @ Louisville
Week 9: West Virginia @ Uconn
Week 10: Alabama @ LSU
Week 11: UL Monroe @ LSU
Week 12: Uconn @ Syracuse
Week 13: Cincinnati @ Uconn

The Week 13 games are not great options for either club so a waiver wire addition could be made should your team still be alive in the playoffs.

Penn State/USC Platoon

Week 1: Youngstown State @ Penn State
Week 2: Virginia @ USC
Week 3: Kent State @ Penn State
Week 4: USC @ Washington State
Week 5: Penn State @ Iowa
Week 6: Illinois @ Penn State
Week 7: Cal @ USC
Week 8: Penn State @ Minnesota
Week 9: Michigan @ Penn State
Week 10: Arizona State @ USC\
Week 11: Penn State @ Ohio State
Week 12: Indiana @ Penn State
Week 13: Michigan State @ Penn State

This platoon offers tantalizing match ups in Weeks 1 through 6. The other weeks are solid with low scoring games a strong possibility.