Are there too many IDP starting lineup decisions for you this week? Can’t decide which linebacker or edge rusher to start? Which safety gets the nod this week?”
This will not be the typical ‘obvious starters’ type of article. Always start your studs like Brian Burns, Jordyn Brooks, and Tykee Smith. What needs to be shared is who we start and sit out, as well as the not-so-obvious players. You will not see many of the top-10 players listed in these articles because we are all already familiar with starting these players.
Week 10 Byes include four teams again this week: the Cincinnati Bengals, Dallas Cowboys, Tennessee Titans, and Kansas City Chiefs.
***Please note that all rankings are pulled from FantasyPros.com’s current weekly rankings for DL, LB, and DB.
More NFL Week 10 Fantasy Football Advice From IDP+
- NFL Week 10 IDP Fantasy Football Sleepers – 2025 – IDP+
- Top Fantasy Football Week 10 Streaming Defenses – IDP+
- IDP+ Team Survey For The Best IDP Insight! – IDP+
Week 10 – DL/Edge Starters
Montez Sweat – Chicago Bears
The #10-ranked DL deserves to be ranked even higher. Sweat has had a sack in each of his last three games. He has added 13 tackles (9 solo), 4 tackles for a loss, 4 QB hits, 1 forced fumble, and 2 passes defended. Sweat is playing over 70% of the defensive snaps and now gets to play the Giants, who happen to be the 28th-worst team in the league in points given up to opposing DE/Edge players. Make sure he is in your starting lineup for this prime matchup. He will be a Top 3 scorer, just like he has been over the last three weeks.
Alex Highsmith – Pittsburgh Steelers
Highsmith is actually ranked the #8 DL for this week as he faces the Chargers. They rank at the bottom in protecting their QB and now have lost both starting offensive tackles for the season. Highsmith had his best game of the season last week with 4 tackles (3 solo), 3 tackles for a loss, 1 QB hit, 2 sacks, 1 forced fumble, and 1 pass defended. There should be more of that delivered this week, so make sure he is in your starting lineup.
YaYa Diaby – Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The #43-ranked DL this week gets the Patriots this week who ranked near the bottom in points allowed to opposing DE/Edge players. Diaby has played 70% or more of the defensive snaps in every game this year except one. Diaby has four sacks for the year, with three of them coming in the last three games. He also has four tackles for a loss and a pass defended over the past three games.
Diaby had just one tackle in his last game against the Saints, who are ranked #11 overall in points allowed to opposing DE/Edge players. This means that all of his stats came against the #14-Lions and the #22-49ers. The #29-Patriots will set him up for success and a Top-10 finish for Week 10.
Week 10 – DL/Edge Sits
Bradley Chubb – Miami Dolphins
Chubb has been in a very rough stretch over the past four games. His best game was 5 tackles (3 solo), 1 tackle for a loss, and 1 QB hit. His other 3 games have produced a combined 6 tackles (2 solo), 0 tackles for a loss, 2 QB hits, and 0 sacks. The Week 10 schedule has him playing against the third stingiest team in points allowed to opposing DE/Edge players. Josh Allen is the 10th least-sacked QB in the NFL, and Week 10 should not bring any different results. Sit Chubb this week as he will have a hard time even attaining the #36 ranking for Week 10.
Harold Landry – New England Patriots
From the start list to the sit list. Landry has also hit a tough stretch here, as he has just 2 solo tackles, 2 assisted tackles, 0 tackles for a loss, 0 QB hits, and 0 sacks combined over his last 2 games. Week 10 has the Buccaneers on the schedule, who are not very kind to opposing DE/Edge players, as they allow the 6th least amount of points. Baker Mayfield is tied with Allen for the 10th fewest sacks allowed. Landry’s downturn over the past two weeks will continue for at least one more week, and the #22 ranking for this week will not be attained.
Week 10 – LB Starts
Jamien Sherwood – New York Jets
Sherwood gets to play the worst team in the NFL when it comes to giving up points to opposing LBs. He has played 100% of the defensive snaps except for the first quarter of their last game due to an apparent disciplinary action. 100% of the defensive snaps should return this week against Dillon Gabriel and the Browns. Quincy Williams has been benched, and during the four games Williams missed, he averaged 10 tackles per game. Look for double-digit tackles and a scoring rank well above his #18 Week 10 ranking.
Blake Cashman – Minnesota Vikings
Cashman returned to the Vikings lineup three games ago after missing six games with a hamstring injury. Cashman has been a tackling machine over the last 2 games with a combined 25 tackles (12 solo), 2 tackles for a loss, and 1 forced fumble. Those numbers were against two of the bottom three teams in points allowed to opposing LBs. Week 10 brings a game against the Ravens, who are also very friendly in points allowed to opposing LBs with their #26 ranking. His #9 ranking this week does not sound high enough.
Drake Thomas – Seattle Seahawks
Thomas started playing a 40-50% role in Week 3 and then took over the majority of snaps in Week 6 from Tyrice Knight. He has flourished in his role to the tune of 20+ points in each of the three games he has played since gaining his current spot. Now, he gets the 24th-ranked Cardinals in points allowed to opposing LBs. In these 3 games combined, he has produced 22 tackles (10 solo), 4 tackles for a loss, 3 QB hits, 2 sacks, and 5 passes defended. His #23 ranking for this week is much too low, as he will likely post his first double-digit tackle week.
Week 10 – LB Sits
Dee Winters – San Francisco
Winters has been playing nearly every defensive snap all season long and still has only posted a double-digit tackle week in two games. Four of his last five games have resulted in single-digit scoring. He plays the third toughest team in the Rams in points allowed to opposing LBs. His recent performances and his tough matchup have him coming up way short of his #39 ranking for this week.
Kaden Elliss – Atlanta Falcons
Elliss has missed one defensive snap all season long. He has just one double-digit tackle week to show for it. Last year, Elliss had 151 tackles, and this year, he is on pace to barely break 100 tackles. This is not the week to throw him into your lineup as he faces the #2 Colts in points allowed to opposing LBs. He will be lucky to be a Top 40 LB, let alone the #19 that he is ranked for this week.
Week 10 – DB Starts
Quick Tip – When having a hard time deciding on a DB to start, and a rookie CB is one of those players, always choose the rookie CB if they are going against a pass-heavy team.
Jessie Bates – Atlanta Falcons
On the other hand, the Colts are horrible in points allowed to opposing Safeties. Enter Bates into your starting lineup with confidence this week. The #12-ranked DB for Week 10 should not have any trouble in producing 7+ tackles and maybe a splash play. Bates has posted five or more tackles in six of his eight games this year. The lack of tackles by the LBs will give Bates a lot of opportunities to increase points for your IDP squad. Double-digit points in every game this year except Week 2.
Justin Reid – New Orleans Saints
Reid has missed just two defensive snaps in the last four games. He just posted his season-high tackles last week against the #15-ranked Rams in points allowed to opposing Safeties. His matchup is much more friendly this week against the #31-ranked Panthers. He could match his season high total of 13 tackles in one game. His second-best outing was two weeks ago against the Buccaneers. The nice little streak should continue this week and far outproduce his #33 ranking for Week 10.
Riley Moss – Denver Broncos
Patrick Surtain is out again this week, and Moss will get a lot of passes thrown his way. Moss and the Broncos welcome the Raiders to Denver on Thursday night. The Raiders are the third-worst team in points allowed to opposing CBs. When Geno Smith isn’t getting sacked (21 sacks), he is throwing interceptions with a league-leading 11 thrown this year. Moss has 43 tackles (31 solo), 1 tackle for a loss, and 10 passes defended for the season in nine games. The Raiders should be trailing during the game, so the opportunities for Moss should be plentiful for the #50-ranked DB this week.
Week 10 – DB Sits
Coby Bryant – Seattle Seahawks
Bryant has had a quiet last couple of games and now faces the #2 Cardinals in points allowed to opposing Safeties. In the previous game against the Cardinals in Week 4, Bryant was held to zero tackles. He saved a goose egg by producing an interception in that game. That was against Kyler Murray, and this week he faces Jacob Brissett, who has played rather well lately. He will likely not even reach his #53 ranking for Week 10 in scoring this week.
Isaiah Rodgers – Minnesota Vikings
Rodgers has had some huge weeks and plays, which have inflated his ranking in season-to-date scores. He has played nearly all the defensive snaps this year and is the #55-ranked DB in scoring this year. However, 38% of those points were from Week 3 against the Bengals. This means he is averaging just over 11 points per game. He also gets the pleasure of playing the #1 ranked Ravens in points allowed to opposing CBs. You can sit Rodgers with great confidence this week.
Thank you for checking out my Week 10 IDP Start/Sit Advice article! You can read all of my articles on my IDP+ author page. Be sure to follow me on X at @OldMan_FF and @IDP_Plus (we have offense, too), and please consider becoming a subscriber. Week 4 IDP Start Sit
