This article is part of our IDP Analysis series.
With rosters of all shapes and sizes, IDP advice can be a bit tricky, so the purpose of this article is to point out players whose value is elevated for the upcoming week. Some of these players will be superstars while others will be players found on many waiver wires. Whether you're streaming IDPs each week or have a stocked roster, this, "one size fits" all approach will hopefully help most everyone find a weekly edge.
Linebackers
Darius Leonard, Anthony Walker and Najee Goode – Colts: The Jaguars are tentatively expected to welcome back Leonard Fournette, and with that, they'll be able to return to their offensive philosophy of pounding the rock as the foundation of their offense. Even without Fournette for most of the season, the Jags allow 22 tackles and more than a sack per game to linebackers, and the Colts' run-stoppers will likely take on all the work they can handle. In a game that the Jags should be able to either keep competitive or play with a lead, they won't likely need to throw the ball frequently, so fire up your Colts LBs.
Darron Lee, Avery Williamson, Jeremiah Attaochu and Jordan Jenkins – Jets: Playing on their home field, the Jets will likely be in position to employ a conservative offensive approach, but, more importantly, that should allow the Bills to follow suit by putting the ball in the hands of their RBs. Despite facing many negative game scripts, the Bills have
With rosters of all shapes and sizes, IDP advice can be a bit tricky, so the purpose of this article is to point out players whose value is elevated for the upcoming week. Some of these players will be superstars while others will be players found on many waiver wires. Whether you're streaming IDPs each week or have a stocked roster, this, "one size fits" all approach will hopefully help most everyone find a weekly edge.
Linebackers
Darius Leonard, Anthony Walker and Najee Goode – Colts: The Jaguars are tentatively expected to welcome back Leonard Fournette, and with that, they'll be able to return to their offensive philosophy of pounding the rock as the foundation of their offense. Even without Fournette for most of the season, the Jags allow 22 tackles and more than a sack per game to linebackers, and the Colts' run-stoppers will likely take on all the work they can handle. In a game that the Jags should be able to either keep competitive or play with a lead, they won't likely need to throw the ball frequently, so fire up your Colts LBs.
Darron Lee, Avery Williamson, Jeremiah Attaochu and Jordan Jenkins – Jets: Playing on their home field, the Jets will likely be in position to employ a conservative offensive approach, but, more importantly, that should allow the Bills to follow suit by putting the ball in the hands of their RBs. Despite facing many negative game scripts, the Bills have given up about 24 tackles and over two sacks per contest. Look for this game to provide elevated opportunities for the Jets linebackers in this sweet spot for production.
Matt Milano, Tremaine Edmunds (concussion) and Lorenzo Alexander – Bills: Due to negative game script in many of their games, the Jets have been forced to throw the ball more than they'd like with their young QB. However, this could be one of the games in which they aren't playing with a big deficit, as they'll face a division rival that should also employ a conservative offensive attack. This is looking like a week in which the Bills LBs could see a spike in performance.
Tahir Whitehead, Marquel Lee and Kyle Wilber – Raiders: Based on them being a team a rushing attack as their foundation, the Chargers cede about 22 tackles against linebackers on a per-game basis. In a home game against a struggling Oakland offense, this is certainly looking like a game that Los Angeles can control, and they should be able to run the ball a ton, especially in the second half, making this a great week to lean on the L.A. linebackers.
Pass rushers
Mike Daniels, Kenny Clark, Nick Perry and Clay Matthews – Packers: Even though the Dolphins give up just about two sacks per contest, they've had the good fortune of being in positive game script in many of their contests. In addition, in some of their early-season home games, the heat was so oppressive that opposing defenses were wilting in the second half. Now that we're in November, and Miami is facing a potent Green Bay offense, there's an excellent chance that the Packers can play with a lead, and that should lead to an excellent scenario in which they'll be able to bring the heat at Brock Osweiler. Not only should they be able to pressure him, but that also could lead to a takeaway or two.
Brandon Graham, Michael Bennett, Fletcher Cox and Nigel Bradham – Eagles: With the Eagles having one of the best run-stopping units in the league, it's very likely that Ezekiel Elliott has limited success running the ball in this divisional road game. In addition, coming off their bye week, Carson Wentz should have the offense running at full capacity. Between those positive factors, the Cowboys will likely have to throw more than they'd like, and despite their reputation, they're coughing up about three sacks per game, so the Eagles' pass rush is looking great.
Chris Jones, Dee Ford and Justin Houston (hamstring) – Chiefs: With one of the biggest home field advantages in the NFL, the Chiefs should be able to lay a beat down on the Cardinals defense. In a game in which they should be playing with a lead, the KC pass rushers should have a great opportunity to attack an Arizona offensive line that's dealing with more than its share of injuries. Also, this will be a really tough spot for rookie Josh Rosen, who could find himself making mistakes and holding the ball too long, leading to a great opportunity for this pass rush.
Trey Flowers, Adrian Clayborn, Kyle Van Noy and Dont'a Hightower – Patriots:
The Titans love to run the football, but against the Pats, they may be forced to abandon that game plan much more quickly than they'd like. Even with plenty of optimal game script situations during the season, Tennessee has given up roughly three sacks per game behind an inconsistent offensive line. Sure, the Pats have a pretty anemic pass rush, but if there was a good week to back them, this spot is looking solid.
Defensive backs
Joe Haden, Mike Hilton, Artie Burns and Sean Davis – Steelers: We all know that the Steelers can pile up the points on their home field, and although they have great name recognition, there's nothing scary about the 2018 version of the Panthers defense. Once the Steelers start rolling, the Panthers will likely need to throw the ball more than they'd like, which should lead to a busy day for the Pittsburgh defensive backs. Also, with Cam Newton on the road, he certainly could throw a pick or two, especially if he finds himself pressing.
Marshon Lattimore, Eli Apple, P.J. Williams and Marcus Williams – Saints: Although the Saints don't typically put up the same elite offensive levels away from the Superdome, there's no reason to think that they won't be able to force a shootout against the Bengals. In addition, with one of the best run defenses in the league, Cinci will be plenty motivated to throw the ball against the weak secondary of New Orleans. Even without these factors, Cincinnati gives up about 25 tackles per game to opposing secondaries, which should give the DBs a solid floor while also having significant upside.
Patrick Peterson, Bene Benwikere, Jamar Taylor and Antoine Bethea – Cardinals: The Cardinals still have a pretty solid run defense, and playing at home, the Chiefs should have no issue putting this game in Patrick Mahomes' hands to challenge the Arizona secondary. Although they're likely to get roasted by this passing attack, the fact that there could be more passes thrown by Mahomes than usual should give these DBs upside against a team that allows about 25 tackles per game to defensive backs.
Malcolm Butler, Logan Ryan, Adoree' Jackson and Kevin Byard – Titans: With the Titans boasting a solid front-seven, this could be one of those weeks that the Pats don't mess around with running the ball often. Also, not many teams give up more than the 28 tackles to defensive backs per game than the Pats, so there's already a pretty significant floor in place for the Tennessee DBs. In the event we get Brady throwing the ball more than 40 times, this could be one of the better weeks for piling up solid tackle totals, but don't expect much in the way of INTs, as Brady rarely throws those.
