“It’s the playoffs! If you need a little help continuing your playoff run, we are here to help you out. Let’s get to our NFL Week 16 IDP Sleepers!”
Welcome to Week 16 of the NFL Fantasy season, friends! It’s playoff time, everyone, so here’s when your decisions will really matter. If you are reading this, there is a real chance that you are in the semi-finals, so congratulations on making it this far! But the job isn’t finished yet, is it? With all the injuries going around, you might need a spot start or two. It’s time to look forward to our NFL Week 16 IDP sleepers to help you out!
More Top NFL Fantasy Football IDP Advice!
Week 16 IDP Sleepers
Note: All rankings for this Week 16 IDP Sleepers article are taken from the Week 16 rankings at FantasyPros. As always, let’s start things off by setting some expectations for this article. What this piece will not be doing is hyping up obvious IDP stars — projecting that Aidan Hutchinson or Myles Garrett will have productive outings isn’t exactly breaking news. Instead, we’re focused on uncovering players with sneaky upside who can outperform their rankings.
Ok, enough logistics — let’s dive into our Week 16 IDP Sleepers!
Defensive Line Week 16 Sleepers
Ranks found here
Mike Green – (DL67)
Week 16 Opponent: Hosting the Patriots.
Let’s kick things off with Mike Green! The Rookie is having a decent enough rookie campaign, averaging close to 3 combined tackles a game while notching a total of 3.5 sacks. So why is he in this article? Glad you asked! First off, Green has a wonderful matchup against the New England Patriots and Drake Maye. Maye is the 4th most sacked QB in the league, and Green should have more than enough opportunities to get that all-important splash play.
Being ranked as the DL67, odds are good you aren’t going to play Green anywhere other than the deepest of leagues. As a Rookie, however, there are those of you out there in dynasty leagues who need to be paying attention! Green is a clear stash with plenty of upside as he figures out his sea legs in the NFL. Don’t be surprised Sunday night when you hear Mike Green’s name coming from the announcers!
Chris Jones – (DL39)
Week 16 Opponent: Away at the Titans
Up next, we have the Chiefs’ great Chris Jones. By his lofty standards, Jones is having an off year. He’s only notched 4 sacks on the year and hasn’t been racking up volume tackle stats as he has in the past. He’s still playing 80% of defensive snaps, so the issue is not his playing time! All this negativity, but there is room for optimism in this pivotal Week 16 of the fantasy season!
Jones and the Chiefs get Cam Ward and the Titans this week. Cam Ward is the most sacked QB in the league. Even though the Chiefs have nothing left to play for this year, they still have their honor! I expect the defense to rally around their backup Quarterback and annihilate the Titans, leading to a huge day for our defensive tackle. Play him everywhere where you are DT-required.
Linebacker Sleepers
Ranks found here
Patrick Queen – (LB35)
Week 16 Opponent: Away at the Lions
Our first linebacker on the list is none other than Patrick Queen! Queen has found himself in the article a few times this year, mostly due to his normally being ranked in the mid-30s. This ranking typically indicates that a player has potential, but might not be consistent enough to be ranked higher. This can be exploited by the right matchups, which is where I see Queen in Week 16.
The Steelers get a Lions team that not only will extend drives, but will run the ball a lot. This will lead to a wonderful bevy of tackles for the Steelers’ linebacker, boosting his upside this week. As the LB35, you can safely start Queen as your LB3 this week with hopes for much, much more. For those of you where it’s legal, an over on combined tackles for Queen might be in order as well.
Alex Anzalone – (LB45)
Week 16 Opponent: Hosting the Steelers
Is the next linebacker playing in the same game as the previous linebacker? You bet he is! All the same things I said for Queen apply to Anzalone. The Lions’ linebacker faces a Steelers team that loves to run the ball, which they will need to do a lot to keep the Lions’ offense off the field. This will lead to a healthy floor of tackles for Anzalone, which is pivotal for him to build off his LB45 ranking this week.
Playing nearly 100% of defensive snaps, Anzalone will be in a great position to help you get to your championship game. Go ahead and start him as your LB3 with confidence, as you shouldn’t be surprised when he finishes as an LB2 this week. With Queen also being on the list, you can sit back and watch this game and watch all your linebackers rack up the tackles. Happy holidays indeed!
Defensive Back Sleepers
Ranks found here
Amani Hooker – (DB35)
Week 16 Opponent: Hosting the Chiefs
Amani Hooker is a savvy veteran of the game and has a pretty choice matchup in Week 16! Hooker has seen his playing time dip a little bit in 2025, only playing 91% of defensive snaps. This is easily still enough to be IDP-relevant. In fact, Hooker is on pace for the highest tackling-producing year of his career this year, so he’s more than just relevant! So why is he being ranked as the DB35 this week?
Earnestly, it beats me. The Titans will be facing a Gardner Minshew-led Chiefs team that has just been kicked out of playoff contention. While we don’t know much about how this team will look with Minshew instead of Patrick Mahomes, what we do know is that Minshew is more likely to turn the ball over, but will also extend drives just long enough for Hooker to get his volume stats. Hoker can be trusted as your DB2 with hopes for more this week!
Calen Bullock – (DB58)
Week 16 Opponent: Hosting the Raiders
Let’s wrap up this article with Calen Bullock! Bullock is having a great year, averaging around 4 combined tackles a game on the year. Why he’s on this list is two-fold. First off, his production has increased over the second half of the year, not only increasing his tackle numbers but also racking up four interceptions, all the while playing 98% of defensive snaps.
Second, and more importantly, Bullock is facing a Raiders team that just loves to turn the ball over. The Texans’ defensive line will wreak havoc on the Raiders’ QBs, leaving plenty of opportunities for splash plays for Bullock. Being ranked as the DB58, he is nothing more than a desperation play in deeper leagues. But hey, we all have leagues like that. Play him accordingly as your DB3/FLEX!
Thank you for reading my Week 16 IDP Sleepers article! I’ll be coming to you every week to discuss my favorite IDP sleepers to help you win your fantasy championship. Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter @mrecord21 and follow @IDP_Plus! Check out other articles here!
