Taking a look at the NFL week 4 from a IDP perspective; notes on what our writer @Orangeman3142 saw this weekend.

This is a continuation of my weekly article series that breaks down what we saw this week in IDP fantasy football. What happened and why, what we got right and what we got wrong and more importantly how to move forward and get better this week. We look at possible waivers and trends, snap counts and issues that effect production for your IDP team. We covered the first eight games of week four in parts one and two, let’s keep going.

Miami Dolphins @ New England Patriots

Dolphins: With the news that Reshad Jones (S) was a late scratch for the second week in a row, I was ready this week with Minkah Fitzpatrick (S) sitting on the bench and ready to rock. I figured he was a solid play after last weeks terrific performance and especially against a high octane Patriots offense playing at home.

He did not disappoint with 10 combined tackles, 2 PD and 1 INT on 100% of snaps played. Jones has been injury prone during his career so if you can afford to it’s not a bad idea to keep Fitzpatrick on your bench for situations like this. Keep in mind that when Jones comes back Minkah will go back to playing nickel corner and his stats will plunge back into the spotty category so get it while the gettings good.

Linebackers Kiko Alonso (LB) and Jerome Baker (LB) both had monster games as well. This was expected from Alonso who is on pace for his best season ever but Baker has been a surprise the last couple weeks. Alonso had 12 combined tackles and 1 PD on 100% of snaps while Baker, playing from the traditionally IDP non-relevant strong side linebacker position, put up 10 combined tackles playing 80% of snaps.

Second year player Raekwon McMillan (LB) was supposed to be the surprise linebacker from the Dolphins this season but had yet another blah game with 6 combined tackles on only 67% of defensive snaps played. He’s been disappointing all season while Baker has quietly been improving and is now playing more snaps than McMillan.

Sam from our IDP Guys writing staff wrote an article on Baker this week and lays out the reasons why you should pick him up on waivers, give it a read he goes into far more detail than I can and will here.

Davon Godchaux (DT) has been a favorite of fellow IDP Guys writer Gary Van Dyke (@HBogart27) and has been getting more snaps each week while his production has been steady as well. He was up to 70% of snaps played this week and recorded 5 combined tackles and 0.5 TFL. That’s pretty good production for a guy you can get on pretty much any waiver wire, he hasn’t been a bad DT 2 this season at all.

Former IDP studs Xavien Howard (CB) and Cameron Wake (DE) have been disappointing this season with Howard producing only 1 tackle assist on 99% of snaps played while Wake had 3 combined tackles and 0.5 TFL playing 57% of snaps. Both have been well known IDP producers in previous seasons but have struggled this season and are on my avoid list at the moment.

Patriots: Cornerback Jonathan Jones (CB) led the Patriots in production this week with 8 combined tackles and 1 PD on 86% of snaps played. If I’m playing any Patriots corner it would be Stephon Gilmore (CB) who had only 2 combined tackles playing 100% of snaps this week. While he put up a dud this week he’s been solid in the majority of games he played this season.

I’m not putting a waiver claim on a guy like Jones, who I’ve never heard of, especially when the Patriots defense never looks the same way twice and their snap percentages are constantly changing with the exception of just a couple players.

One of those exceptions is Trey Flowers (DE) who had only 1 solo tackle while playing 57% of snaps this week. He’s not the greatest option for defensive line help but if I’m forced to start any Patriots IDP players I would take him or Gilmore but I wouldn’t be happy about it.

Kyle Van Noy (LB) only had 4 combined tackles this week and his snap percentage took a nose dive to 63% this week from where it was last week in the 90s if I remember correctly. The Patriots are not a great team for IDP production and that’s the bottom line, look elsewhere for help.

Cleveland Browns @ Oakland Raiders

Browns: Even with the return of Christian Kirksey (LB) this week it was still the Joe Schobert (LB) show as he again led the Browns in IDP production. Kirksey underwhelmed in his first game back from a multi-week injury putting up only 5 combined tackles while playing 90% of snaps. I am certainly willing to give him more than one shot, in fact I’ll give him several because I know how good he can be when he’s healthy and playing his full compliment of snaps.

Schobert continues to impress with 14 combined tackles, 1 sack and 1 TFL on 100% of snaps. He is a tier one producer now that amateur financial analyst Mychal Kendricks (LB) is off the team and the middle linebacker job is completely his.

Myles Garrett (DE) continues his awesome pace with another monster game including 9 combined tackles, 0.5 sacks and 1.5 TFL while playing 95% of snaps. He has made the leap to tier one producer in his second year and remains a weekly automatic start. Larry Ogunjobi (DT) has been the other star on the Cleveland defensive line but had a bit of a down game this week with 3 solo tackles and 1 TFL on 86% of snaps.

The nature of defensive tackle in IDP means there will be weeks where he doesn’t go crazy for you and this was one of them. As far as duds go 3 solo tackles and 1 TFL isn’t bad at all. He remains an auto start weekly.

Rookie Denzel Ward (CB) had his first dud week as well with 3 combined tackles on 100% of snaps played. This is his first “bad” week and the other three games were monsters, he has the playing time and he is way ahead of the curve as far as solid games to clunkers. Continue to start him weekly with confidence.

Of course we have to talk about the safeties. Mainly because everyone keeps waiting for Jabril Peppers (S) to break out or to at least be used effectively. Well that’s a big no go on either so far this year. He had another awful week with 0 tackles on only 40% of snaps played. He actually did not even get a single tackle and his playing time dropped yet again, abandon ship, all hands to the escape pods.

Damarious Randal (S) continues to be the safety in Cleveland that is actually playable week to week. He had another solid week with 6 solo tackles, 1 TFL, 2 PD and 1 INT on 90% of snaps played. He’s been pretty consistent this year and would not be a bad option if available and you need help at safety.

Raiders: While the Raiders IDP production hasn’t been so hot this year there are a couple guys I’ve had faith in knowing they would eventually do some damage and be worth a start. Tahir Whitehead (LB) is the leader of that pack and had 12 combined tackles on 100% of snaps played. Realistically he’s the only guy I’m totally confident in on this team for IDP production.

Maurice Hurst (DT) is another guy that we at IDP Guys, and others in the IDP community, have felt like is a good talent and will eventually figure it out. This week he put it all together with 4 combined tackles, 1 sack, 1 TFL and 1 PD on 61% of snaps played. He’s more of a dynasty option in my book, you can find better redraft options for this year, he could be a star defensive tackle for IDP purposes in the near future.

Marquel Lee (LB) and Rashaan Melvin (CB) both had really nice days with Lee recording 10 combined tackles and 2 PD while playing 79% of snaps while Melvin had 9 solo tackles and 2 PD playing 88% of snaps. While those are both solid performances it is the first time I’ve mentioned either name this year and the Raiders IDP output in general has been really crappy so I would steer clear.

Marcus Gilchrist (S) and Reggie Nelson (S) both had serviceable days at safety with Gilchrist recording 4 combined tackles and 0.5 TFL on 82% of snaps while Nelson had 3 combined tackles, 1 PD and 1 INT playing 67% of snaps. Neither has been particularly impressive this season and neither plays even close to enough for me to consider as a starting safety for IDP. Safeties are a dime a dozen in IDP and you can find better guys out there than these two.

Seattle Seahawks @ Arizona Cardinals

Seahawks: As much as things change some things always stay the same and one of those is seeing Bobby Wagner‘s (LB) name at the top of the defensive box score for the Seahawks. He led Seattle in IDP production the second week in a row after returning from injury and had 7 combined tackles and 1 PD while playing 100% of snaps.

He’s a tier one linebacker and a set and forget player, never bench him unless injured. Cornerback Tre Flowers (CB) had the next best day with 6 solo tackles on 98% of snaps played. He has been a nice option at corner this year and has had more good weeks than bad.

Mychal Kendricks (LB) continues to fill in for the injured KJ Wright (LB) and has been doing a great job despite not playing as many snaps as I would like from a starting linebacker. Kendricks had 6 combined tackles and 2 TFL playing 80% of snaps this week. He is a good option for a waiver wire pick as long as KJ Wright is injured and out, but when he gets healthy expect the financial analyst to disappear.*Writers note: Mychal Kendricks suspended indefinitely, have KJ Wright ready to roll.

Jarran Reed (DT) had a nice week with 5 combined tackles, 1 sack and 2 TFL playing 82% of snaps. This is the first time I’ve ever seen that name in my life so I wouldn’t make any rash moves when it comes to defensive tackle help and Mr. Reed.

Bradley McDougald (S) had a bit of a down game this week but was still serviceable with 4 combined tackles and 1 PD on 100% of snaps played. That is his only “down” game this year so far and was still pretty decent. He remains a weekly start for me. Shaq Griffin (CB) has been pretty good this year also and had 4 combined tackles and 1 TFL while playing 98% of snaps.

He’s a decent option for corner help but the matchup would be the deciding factor for me, I’m not playing him unless it’s against a team that throws a lot. With him being in the NFC West he’ll get the Rams twice and also has games coming up against Detroit, Chargers, Packers, Vikings and the Chiefs. Those are all matchups I would not hesitate to play him.

Cardinals: I may have to eat my words in regards to Tre Boston (S) when I said that even with the three safety look the Cardinals have been using as their base defense he wouldn’t be able to maintain the solid production he’s had so far this season. Well this week he went nuts with 11 solo tackles on 100% of snaps played. He’s getting the playing time and he’s getting the results, I have no problem admitting when I’m wrong and I definitely screwed this one up.

If he’s out there he can be a great candidate for safety help, especially when considering the struggling Arizona offense and rookie quarterback at the helm. There will be a good amount of mistakes, three and outs and stalled drives that will all contribute to extra defensive snaps for this IDP unit so maybe they can support three safeties and their production.

Antoine Bethea (S) and Budda Baker (S) are the other two safeties in the base defense and both had solid games as well. Bethea played 100% of snaps while Baker was in for 98%. Antoine recorded 7 combined tackles and Baker had 5 solo tackles. Both of those are lower totals for these guys so could be considered “dud” games even though both scores were serviceable.

All three of these safeties should be weekly starts from here on out until either something changes or their production starts to falter.

Deone Buchanon (LB) was back in the lineup this week playing 73% of snaps and recording 6 solo tackles. That’s not bad at all but this guy was in the single digits when it came to snap percentage just a week or two ago, he’s been all over the place and we really don’t know how much he’ll play each week so I would advise steering clear of this headache.

Patrick Peterson (CB) had a nice week with 5 solo tackles on 98% of snaps played, despite being a “shutdown” corner he is athletic enough and knowledgeable enough to make plays even when he isn’t being targeted nearly as much as other corners on the team. He is playable but I’d rather have a guy that is considered a weak link in the secondary and will be targeted a ton and as a result gets a lot of easy tackles and the occasional pass defense or two, a guy like Kendall Fuller (CB) of the Chiefs.

Josh Bynes (LB) had an OK day with 5 solo tackles while playing 100% of snaps. Despite the lower production this week he’s still the middle linebacker in a 4,3 defense on a team with a crappy offense. That’s a recipe for production, keep playing him.

Chandler Jones (DE) and Robert Nkemdiche (DT) are the IDP assets on the Cardinals defensive line. Jones had 3 solo tackles, 1 sack and 1 TFL on 92% of snaps this week. He was the league leader in sacks last year and has been doing better the last couple games so I keep starting him unless you have a better option.

Nkemdiche has emerged lately as a solid defensive tackle option for IDP purposes and had 4 solo tackles and 1 TFL on 77% of snaps this week. He’s been trending up lately and would be a pretty good option on the waiver wire if you need defensive tackle help.

New Orleans Saints @ New York Giants

Saints: Despite playing only 71% of snaps this week it was DeMario Davis (LB) who once again led the Saints in IDP production this week with 11 combined tackles, 2 sacks and 2 TFL. His snap percentage has been a lot higher every other game this year and I haven’t heard anything about an injury so it must have been a game flow thing, he’ll be fine keep playing him.

Ken Crawley (CB) was the next best producer with 8 combined tackles and 1 PD on 100% of snaps played. It’s my first time mentioning his name this year so until we see some consistency I would steer clear.

PJ Williams (CB) also had a nice game with 7 combined tackles and 1 TFL playing 79% of snaps, same story here I’m all set until I’ve seen this guys name at the top of a box score more than once in four weeks. Alex Anzalone (LB) had a solid game as well with 6 combined tackles but only played 53% of snaps and that’s not sustainable with that little playing time so no thanks.

Vonn Bell (S) and Marshon Lattimore (CB) did well with Bell putting up 6 combined tackles and 1 PD on 79% of snaps played while Lattimore had 4 solo tackles playing 100% of snaps. Both of those guys are known IDP producers but Vonn Bell loses snaps to Kurt Coleman (S) and Lattimore is a “shutdown” corner that isn’t targeted as much as he was in his rookie year last season.

Sheldon Rankins (DT) and Marcus Williams (S) have both been solid this year but both had clunkers this week with Rankins putting up 0 tackles on 56% of snaps while Williams had 1 solo tackle on 100% of snaps played. Williams should be fine it’s just a bad week for him, the playing time and the talent are there.

Rankins has been solid most of this season but putting up a donut in the stat box is not ideal even with him being a defensive tackle and down weeks being part of the program. I might sit him next week, depends on what your other options are at defensive tackle.

Giants: Both Alec Ogletree (LB) and Landon Collins (S) have been productive all year but we’ve been waiting on a monster game from either. Wait no longer. Ogletree ended up with 12 combined tackles and 2,5 TFL on 100% of snaps while Collins put up 14 combined tackles, 0.5 TFL and 1 PD also on 100% of snaps played. Both are weekly automatic starts and hopefully more monster weeks like this one are in store for the very near future.

Damon Snacks Harrison (DT) had a slow week with 2 combined tackles and 1 TFL on 53% of snaps played but remains a tier one defensive tackle and a must start each week, he’ll be fine. Linebacker Ray Ray Armstrong (LB) was the third best producer on the day with 7 combined tackles on 81% of snaps played.

He was a solid fill in guy last year on the 49ers when Ruben Foster got in trouble, now on the Giants he may be able to establish himself as the number two linebacker next to Ogletree but I would wait and see before making any moves here.

Janoris Jenkins (CB) is a great IDP cornerback and had another solid game this week with 6 combined tackles on 100% of snaps played. This guy is pretty much matchup proof and has a great floor, him and Kendall Fuller or Chidobe Awuzie are my starting corners in nearly all my IDP leagues this year, just those three guys.

That should tell you what you need to know about Jenkins, I have a lot of faith in him. No one else really had decent production in this game the numbers really take a nose dive after Jenkins. All of the guys I mentioned above, with the exception of Ray Ray Armstrong, I consider to be tier one options and weekly automatic starts.

Make sure you catch parts one and two of this article and keep an eye out for part four and my start or sit article dropping Saturday. My bad habit of going too far into detail means this article is in multiple parts instead of one novel. If you have any questions or need some advice feel free to hit me up on Twitter (@OrangeMan3142) or use the “Contact Us” box on our website (idpguys.org) to reach us.

Keep an eye out for our other articles and info all week and my start em sit em article dropping Saturday morning. Good luck in your matchups this week!

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