Kicker and D/ST are rentals, not draft investments. In a ten-team league, wait until the final endgame picks—140, 141, and 160—then draft one of each and preserve the remaining pick for upside or a verified IR stash.
The draft instruction
Draft exactly one K and one D/ST late. Do not take either in the first thirteen rounds, and do not draft a backup at either position. Ten-team waiver supply makes replacement easy; the bench is more valuable for players whose role can grow.
At 140/141, take the best available kicker and D/ST by the current internal ordering. At 160, take the highest-upside available player who can be placed directly into the separate IR slot, provided ESPN has given him an eligible O/IR designation; otherwise take a contingent-upside bench player. Recheck the designation on draft day—suspended and merely questionable players do not create a free IR roster spot.
Stream the context, not the name
For kicker, prefer expected offense and field-goal opportunity, then accuracy when candidates are similar. The established kicker scoring is 3/4/5/6 points by field-goal distance, 1 for an extra point, and −1 for a missed field goal.
For D/ST, stream away from elite offenses and toward opponents likely to generate sacks, turnovers, and low scoring/yards allowed. The custom points- and yards-allowed brackets make an opponent’s destructive upside especially important.
D/ST modelling caveat
The intermediate D/ST event values—especially sack, interception, and fumble-recovery scoring—have not been documented in the confirmed settings record. Therefore the D/ST projections and rankings are modelled ordering, not numeric forecasts. Use them to choose between late options and weekly streamers, but do not treat a projected point total as authoritative until those settings are captured.
In season
Reassess both spots weekly. A bad D/ST matchup is a reason to drop and stream, not to carry a second defense. The same is true for kicker. Use the freed bench spots for waiver additions; inverse-standings weekly waiver priority means a strong roster should not assume it can always win the most obvious breakout claim.
The six-team playoff begins after Weeks 1–14 and runs Weeks 15–17. Once qualified, favor late-season schedule and matchup context over the D/ST or kicker name you drafted.