One of the most important roles on the field is the player with the “Green Dot” on their helmet because they call the plays for the defense. This article will call out those players, since they will get the most opportunity to make a play on the field.
You might just be starting out in IDP or individual defensive player fantasy football, and hearing Green Dot Linebacker for the first time. That’s ok, thats what IDP+ is here for! The Green Dot Linebacker is referring to the player on defense that has a headset in their helmet so they can communicate with the coaches while on the field. The NFL is a step up in technology from College Football where players have to run to the sidelines, or they use hand signals, and sometimes even use massive cards with symbols on them to tell the players on the field what to do. This is all handled by a single player with a headset that can go into the huddle and call the plays.
So why is this significant? Well the NFL has money, but apparently not that much money, because they only put this headset in one helmet on each side of the ball. The offensive Green Dot is always the quarterback, they enter the huddle and communicate with the staff and then call the plays. Seems simple enough. So on defense, they give this helmet to the player who will remain on the field the longest. This is usually a linebacker, and usually the most trusted player. Availability is opportunity in the NFL, and being on the field and calling plays means that they have the best shot of being a consistent producer of stats for fantasy football!
So let’s take a look at each team’s projected Green Dot Linebacker after training camp and preseason week 2:
Thanks for reading, you can follow me on X at @NateCheat and reach out to me in the IDP+ Discord for any questions!
