This article is part of our IDP Analysis series.
RISING
Sean Weatherspoon, (3-4) ILB, ARZ
Few players have had worse injury luck than Weatherspoon, and that fact quickly points out the low floor he has as an IDP asset. But he's currently healthy, and if that should remain the case, he'll be in position to serve as Arizona's clear top inside linebacker. Weatherspoon is a great athlete with a versatile skill set when healthy, showing the ability to pile up stats in the tackle, sack, and coverage categories. In a 29-game span from 2011 to 2012, Weatherspoon posted 210 tackles, seven sacks and an interception (12 passes defended), numbers that project to roughly 116 tackles and four sacks over a 16-game span. There should be at least LB2 upside with Weatherspoon if he stays healthy.
Dominique Easley, DT, NE
Easley is at or near the top of any reasonably constructed short list of breakout candidates among defensive linemen. The 2014 first-round pick predictably had a quiet rookie season as he recovered from a 2013 ACL tear, but he's at full health at this point and is poised to show off the explosiveness and disruptiveness that once made him look like a potential top-10 pick. Playing in a New England defense that should display a strong pass rush, the versatile Easley should spend about as much time in opposing backfields as any defensive tackles, at least on a per-snap basis.
Duke Ihenacho, S, WAS
Ihenacho was a cheap source of DB2 production back when he started at
RISING
Sean Weatherspoon, (3-4) ILB, ARZ
Few players have had worse injury luck than Weatherspoon, and that fact quickly points out the low floor he has as an IDP asset. But he's currently healthy, and if that should remain the case, he'll be in position to serve as Arizona's clear top inside linebacker. Weatherspoon is a great athlete with a versatile skill set when healthy, showing the ability to pile up stats in the tackle, sack, and coverage categories. In a 29-game span from 2011 to 2012, Weatherspoon posted 210 tackles, seven sacks and an interception (12 passes defended), numbers that project to roughly 116 tackles and four sacks over a 16-game span. There should be at least LB2 upside with Weatherspoon if he stays healthy.
Dominique Easley, DT, NE
Easley is at or near the top of any reasonably constructed short list of breakout candidates among defensive linemen. The 2014 first-round pick predictably had a quiet rookie season as he recovered from a 2013 ACL tear, but he's at full health at this point and is poised to show off the explosiveness and disruptiveness that once made him look like a potential top-10 pick. Playing in a New England defense that should display a strong pass rush, the versatile Easley should spend about as much time in opposing backfields as any defensive tackles, at least on a per-snap basis.
Duke Ihenacho, S, WAS
Ihenacho was a cheap source of DB2 production back when he started at safety for the Broncos in 2013, and now he's poised to serve the same function after earning the starting strong safety role in Washington's perennially bad secondary. Ihenacho's surrounding circumstances imply a favorable IDP setting – the Washington pass rush should be good enough to create turnover opportunities, but the Washington cornerbacks are just bad enough to leave a bunch of cleanup tackles for Ihenacho after the catch. Injuries eventually derailed his 2013 season for the most part, but Ihenacho showed the ability to start fast that year, posting 47 tackles in his first seven games.
Dion Bailey, S, SEA
If Kam Chancellor's holdout persists through the first week – something Chancellor seems committed to doing if the Seahawks don't meet his contract demands – then Bailey would be the likely starting safety next to Earl Thomas. Bailey isn't a great athlete but is more versatile than your average strong safety type, and he's earned good reviews throughout training camp. He'll be on the DB3 radar at worst for whatever number of games he might replace Chancellor in the starting lineup.
Quintin Demps, S, HOU
Demps secured the starting safety spot opposite Rahim Moore, an opening created when Houston cut 2014 starter D.J. Swearinger this offseason. The 30-year-old Demps has never been a full-time starter in his seven-year NFL career, but he has back-to-back four-interception seasons as an off-the-bench player for Kansas City (2013) and the Giants (2014), so he has an intriguing background as an interception source. Demps is mostly just worth monitoring outside of deep IDP formats, as he might rotate with players like Eddie Pleasant or Andre Hal, but he'll get on the mainstream IDP radar if he can hold on to a three-down role.
Jadeveon Clowney, (3-4) OLB, Houston
Clowney is in for Week 1, and while he won't be worth immediate investment in most leagues as he attempts to return from microfracture knee surgery, Clowney will be worth monitoring as he settles in as a pass rusher in Houston's J.J. Watt-led front seven. In leagues that give a lot of points for sack production, Clowney should have at least LB3 upside if he can get just a little traction at the season's start.
FALLING
Daryl Washington, (3-4) ILB, ARZ
This one will be brief: Washington is still suspended indefinitely and no one seems to know whether there's any hypothetical timetable within which he might get reinstated. Suspended for all of 2014, it looks like Washington might make it a second year straight.
Sio Moore, LB, IND
Traded from Oakland to Indianapolis, the super athletic Moore leaves a situation where he might have competed for a three-down role to a team where he's doomed to a backup spot. Moore is a player to hold on to in dynasty formats in case the Colts move on from D'Qwell Jackson in the offseason, but it's hard to find a reason why Moore would be worth owning in redraft scenarios.
Eric Kendricks, LB, MIN
Like Moore, Kendricks is a talented player who should surface as a three-down linebacker eventually. In the meantime, however, Kendricks might be reduced to a backup role, as Gerald Hodges will open the season ahead of Kendricks on the depth chart, starting alongside Anthony Barr and Chad Greenway. Greenway's career is on its last legs, so Kendricks should take a starting role for himself no later than the start of 2016. Kendricks has the athleticism and instincts to profile as a standout IDP once he reaches that point.
