Welcome to the IDP Guys’ weekly IDP game reviews and IDP waiver wire! Our team has broken down each game and the IDP takeaways for the most relevant IDP players and gives you IDP waiver wire pickup suggestions. May the fantasy gods be forever in your favor!
*Please check back frequently for written updates as our writers and editors are all on different schedules. Updates will occur all day throughout the day on Tuesdays & Wednesdays*
*All scoring from the IDP Invitational Charity League
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Check out this week’s IDP waiver wire!
Seattle Seahawks at Dallas Cowboys
By Joseph Harlow (@joelow63)
wpDataTable with provided ID not found!IDP Takeaways Seattle Seahawks
Brooks leaves early
Jordyn Brooks left the game with an ankle sprain and did not return. The sack he got saved managers who started him, but his injury status needs to be monitored.
Both DTs are playable every week
Both Jarran Reed and Leonard Williams recorded a sack while each playing over 75% of snaps. Neither has seen less than 67% of snaps over the past 4 games, giving each a high floor based on playtime alone. In DT leagues, both are a solid play each week.
‘Spoon back in the slot, and Love back to the bench
With Riq Woolen starting (he was benched last week), Devon Witherspoon reclaimed his slot role, while Julian Love played only 20% of snaps. Love appears to be a matchup play at this point and cannot be trusted as a starter.
IDP Waiver Wire Seattle Seahawks
Dre’Mont Jones has been the second edge rusher for two consecutive weeks. In leagues that play DTs, he could be a sneaky add and upside shot.
Devin Bush (remember him?) took over for Jordyn Brooks after his early exit. If Brooks is out for any further time, Bush is the leader to see snaps next to Bobby Wagner.
IDP Takeaways Dallas Cowboys
Hankins stays hot
After a multiple-sack game last week, Johnathan Hankins added another this week. He is still clearly behind Osa Odighizuwa for DT snaps but has separated from the rest of that pack. The sack upside makes him a fine shot to take in DT leagues.
LB1 – Bell???
Markquese Bell ended up out-snapping fellow LB Damone Clark 84% to 71%, potentially claiming the LB1 role. This is the second time in three weeks that Bell has out-snapped Clark, so we will need to monitor for the stretch run.
Kearse’s return
After a one-game hiatus, Jayron Kearse returned to the Cowboys defensive backfield and saw 71% of snaps. These snaps were almost exclusively from the slot/box spot, so he should have a great role still for the rest of the season.
IDP Waiver Wire Dallas Cowboys
Johnathan Hankins is a fine DT pickup in deep leagues, for his sack upside. He is not a safe weekly play, though.
Jayron Kearse returning and seeing a huge amount of box/slot snaps is great for his prospects, even if it was on limited snaps. He and Donovan Wilson are good box safety players to pick up and play in multi-DB/S leagues.
Denver Broncos at Houston Texans
By Steve Tomasin (@DynastySanta)
wpDataTable with provided ID not found!IDP Takeaways Denver Broncos
Zach Allen dominates snaps on the Broncos’ defensive line while giving us extraordinarily mediocre IDP fantasy production. He is a weekly roll of the dice in DT-required leagues. Jonathan Harris stole a sack on just 29% of the snaps played. Don’t bother chasing that production. Of the three-headed monster edge rushing group, Jonathon Cooper bested the bunch with just tackles. Baron Browning saved his day, sort of, with a half-sack, and Nik Bonitto whiffed with just 1 solo tackle.
Alex Singleton has a stranglehold on the LB1/100% of the snaps role in Denver. Josey Jewell is likely dust after this season.
P.J. Locke is filling in admirably for the suspended dinosaur Kareem Jackson. He probably deserves to remain the starter once Jackson is reinstated but we know dinosaur coaches love to play dinosaur vets.
IDP Waiver Wire Denver Broncos
As long as P.J. Locke is starting, he should be rostered in most IDP fantasy leagues. A solid DB3 weekly while he’s got the job.
IDP Takeaways Houston Texans
The Bash Brothers took care of business. Will Anderson Jr. and Jonathan Greenard combined for 3 sacks and were the primary IDP fantasy producers from the defensive line/edge rushing group. DT Sheldon Rankins chipped in with a solid tackle floor day but all of the interior guys are a crap shoot each week.
I went on another rant on the podcast about the Texans’ linebacker corps. If anyone tells you they know what’s going on and what will go on in the future, they are lying. Even with Blake Cashman playing 100% of the snaps, he was still outproduced by Christian Harris and the returning Denzel Perryman who each only played in the 60s. No thanks to this whole group at this point.
We all tried to tell you not to chase a historic production year of a rookie safety on a bad team. Jalen Pitre is still a fine IDP asset, just not someone worth paying up for or reaching for in drafts of any format. We’re still waiting for a monster game from him this year. Jimmie Ward returned healthy to play 95% of the snaps and outproduced Pitre.
Derek Stingley reminds me of Asante Samuel (Sr.), a ballhawk who, for IDP fantasy purposes, will live and die by the big play. I’ll take the non-existent floors to go along with the immense ceilings.
IDP Waiver Wire Houston Texans
Since Blake Cashman is still playing 100% of the snaps, if he is still available, sure grab him. Am I excited to put him into my starting lineup? No.
Jimmie Ward should be quite productive going forward if he stays healthy.
I’d rather start Derek Stingley as a DB3/4 over safeties in that same range.
Los Angeles Chargers at New England Patriots
wpDataTable with provided ID not found!IDP Takeaways Los Angeles Chargers
IDP Waiver Wire Los Angeles Chargers
IDP Takeaways New England Patriots
IDP Waiver Wire New England Patriots
Detroit Lions at New Orleans Saints
wpDataTable with provided ID not found!IDP Takeaways Detroit Lions
IDP Waiver Wire Detroit Lions
IDP Takeaways New Orleans Saints
IDP Waiver Wire New Orleans Saints
Atlanta Falcons at New York Jets
By Steve Tomasin (@DynastySanta)
wpDataTable with provided ID not found!IDP Takeaways Atlanta Falcons
Nathan Landman‘s snaps are decreasing, and we’re not entirely sure why. He is now living off of an unsustainable production-to-snaps ratio. And he’s not losing the snaps to another particular linebacker/player. It seems the Falcons are doing more of a Cowboys/Seahawks deal with utilizing three safeties more often. Proceed with caution for the rest of the IDP fantasy season.
Safety DeMarcco Hellams continues to see significant time on the field for two weeks in a row now. His snap share increased from 54% in Week 12 to 74% this week in Week 13. Richie Grant hasn’t appeared to have lost his job completely, either. He has managed 75% and 78% these past two weeks.
IDP Waiver Wire Atlanta Falcons
Don’t chase Bud Dupree. It was his best game of the season in what will be his best IDP fantasy matchup of the season.
DeMarcco Hellams is free and should see more IDP fantasy production heading his way once the Falcons face more competent offenses.
IDP Takeaways New York Jets
The Jermaine Johnson breakout continued in a major way this week. He is still a plus-matchup play but you have to be extremely pleased with performances like this. Especially if you are a dynasty manager.
Quincy Williams bounced back a little bit with a decent enough game. When C.J. Mosley is giving you only 1 solo tackle, you know the opportunities cupboard was a bit bare in this game. Both will see brighter days for the remainder of the season.
IDP Waiver Wire New York Jets
Tony Adams has the second safety position locked down, as the Jets released Adrian Amos.
Arizona Cardinals at Pittsburgh Steelers
By Shawn Teague (@shawn8386)
wpDataTable with provided ID not found!IDP Takeaways Arizona Cardinals
Josh Woods produced a lot better in his second game since taking over as the top linebacker for Arizona. Even after all of the long weather delays, he put together 11 tackles and a tackle for loss while playing nearly every defensive snap. Krys Barnes has fully taken over as the LB2 for Arizona, but he isn’t much of an option outside of the truly desperate managers in deep leagues. Woods should continue to produce well in Kyzir White’s absence moving forward.
Both Budda Baker and Jalen Thompson produced well in this one. Baker put up eight total tackles and added two tackles for a loss. Thompson manages seven tackles and a QB hit while breaking his two-game interception streak. Both are viable options for the fantasy playoffs, but they will be on their bye this week along with Washington.
BJ Ojulari is seeing his playing time hold steady for the fourth straight week. He didn’t produce any sacks this week, but he did manage three tackles, one pass deflection, and one QB hit. Expect his production to remain the same once the Cardinals return in Week 15 after their bye.
IDP Waiver Wire Arizona Cardinals
The Cardinals are on their bye next week and they don’t have much to offer on the waiver wire. Budda Baker and Jalen Thompson are very good additions for shallow leagues if someone drops them.
Josh Woods is a solid linebacker option for the playoffs. He isn’t exactly Kyzir White, but you could do far worse at the position.
No cornerbacks or edge rushers are consistent enough to trust from this team. BJ Ojulari is a fun edge rusher to start in deeper leagues.
IDP Takeaways Pittsburgh Steelers
Elandon Roberts suffered a groin injury that would end his day “early”, this game saw multiple long delays due to the weather. His injury status will need to be monitored throughout the week. Already thin at linebacker, the Steelers will turn to Mykal Walker for an increased role. Walker put up a very respectable 10 tackles as the Cardinals just tried to run out the clock. Converted safety Mark Robinson received the other linebacker snaps once Roberts left. Walker is the top option should Roberts miss next week.
After last week’s huge dud, Alex Highsmith exploded for a season-high eight tackles against the Cardinals. He added two tackles for a loss, two QB hits, and 1.5 sacks in a weird game that was full of disruptions from the weather and injuries. T.J. Watt scared fantasy managers with an ankle injury but he did return. Next week will be a very nice matchup for these two as they take on the Patriots who just gave up five sacks to the Chargers. Fire them both up.
Minkah Fitzpatrick made his return this week and managed a pedestrian five total tackles. He did play every defensive snap, so there appear to be no injury concerns. If Elandon Roberts misses the New England game, we may see Minkah get more tackle opportunities behind a subpar group of linebackers. We still haven’t seen him make any splash plays this season, but New England’s terrible offense could rectify that.
IDP Waiver Wire Pittsburgh Steelers
Mykal Walker is the next man up if Elandon Roberts misses any games going forward. He isn’t special, but we have seen him rack up plenty of tackles in the past.
It’s probably best to stay away from Mark Robinson as the other linebacker option. Both Blake Martinez and Myles Jack lurk in the shadows and they could potentially see some rotational playing time. Only in the deepest, most desperate degenerate leagues should any of these guys be considered as options right now.
Indianapolis Colts at Tennessee Titans
By Joseph Harlow (@joelow63)
