IDP Upgrades: Week 9

This article immediately highlights defensive players whose production was significantly better or worse than normally expected for the prior week of games. Note there is sometimes limited information available when this article is written, but I will try to give everyone an early look at players who are moving up or down in value among IDP circles. It isn’t easy to give waiver advice for IDPs since there is such a wide variety of lineups and scoring systems, but hopefully, the information provided can help inform your waiver, trade, and upcoming lineup decisions. I'm also going to try and group edge rushers together with the understanding that classification as a defensive end or linebacker will depend on your league setup/host. If you have any questions about specific players or situations, please email me or reach out via Twitter.

Email: rudnicki@footballguys.com
Twitter: @a_rudnicki

UPGRADES

DEFENSIVE LINEMEN/EDGE RUSHERS

DT Javon Hargrave, PHI (6 solos, 2 asst, 2 sacks, 1 TFL, 2 QH, 1 FF on 61% of snaps)
Hargrave posted eight sacks last year, which looked like an outlier compared to the rest of his career. While he hadn’t come close to putting up similar numbers this year, he looked quite dominant this week with eight tackles and a pair of sacks and has a favorable schedule over the next few weeks.

DT Derrick Brown, CAR (5 solos, 7 asst, .5 sack, 1 TFL, 1 QH on 90% of snaps)
Brown continued his breakout season with a huge performance this week. He added 12 tackles and a partial sack in an overtime loss to Atlanta. Perhaps most impressive was the fact he remained effective despite playing a season-high 90% of the snaps.

DT Vita Vea, TB (4 solos, 1 sack, 1 TFL, 1 QH on 63% of snaps)
Vea has been one of the best run-stopping defensive tackles in the league but he appears to be adding a new dimension to his game. Through eight games this year, he has registered at least a partial sack in five games. His tackle numbers are still quite low, but he’s also posted three sacks over his last four games.

DL Leonard Williams, NYG (5 solos, 3 asst, 1 sack, 1 TFL, 5 QH on 92% of snaps)
While the Giants have enjoyed success on the field, it had been a mostly forgettable start to the year for one of their best players. Williams came into this week with zero sacks in four games played and a questionable tag due to an elbow injury, but he came through with eight tackles, five quarterback hits, and his first sack of the year while playing 92% of the snaps.

DE Payton Turner, NO (2 solos, 2 asst, 2 sacks, 2 TFL, 2 QH on 57% of snaps)
Turner missed the last three games and had been ineffective in limited snaps before that, but he woke up against the Raiders this week with a pair of sacks while playing a season-high 57% of the snaps. That ranked ahead of Marcus Davenport, who has not played very well this year.

DE Josh Paschal, DET (2 asst on 91% of snaps)
While the counting stats for Paschal this week were not impressive and won’t get him noticed, his playing time was. In just his second game as a pro, he ranked sixth among all Lions defenders with 91% of the snaps and even played four more snaps than Aidan Hutchinson.

EDGE ZaDarius Smith, MIN (7 solos, 3 sacks, 4 TFL, 3 QH, 1 PD on 69% of snaps)
Smith has been one of the most underrated free-agent pickups this year as he added three more sacks in a win over the Cardinals this week. He now has five sacks in his last two games and 8.5 on the year.

EDGE Uchenna Nwosu, SEA (5 solos, 1 asst, 2 sacks, 2 TFL, 2 QH, 1 FF on 80% of snaps)
The resurgence of the Seahawks defense has been led by the play of their secondary, but Nwosu has also played a role. With a pair of sacks this week, he’s already up to five on the season and has seen consistent playing time with 50+ snaps in all but one game this season.

EDGE Leonard Floyd, LAR (4 solos, 5 asst, 2 sacks, 2 TFL, 3 QH on 83% of snaps)
Floyd came into the week with just 10 solo tackles, 10 assists, and 0 sacks through 6 games but he showed up against the 49ers this week with 9 combined tackles and a pair of sacks. May be tough to build on this momentum in a game against Tampa Bay next week.

EDGE Dante Fowler, DAL (5 solos, 1 sack, 2 TFL, 1 QH, 1 PD on 47% of snaps)
Fowler never really lived up to his potential in Atlanta the past two years, but he joined a deep group of pass rushers in Dallas. He has not seen his extensive playing time in most games but has been effective as a pass-rush specialist with four sacks on 180 snaps.

EDGE Tomon Fox, NYG (6 solos, 2 asst, 2 TFL on 42% of snaps)
Fox is an undrafted rookie who saw a big increase in playing time this week as part of the team’s dime package. He played 42% of the snaps and likely earned himself more playing time.

LINEBACKERS

LB Nicholas Morrow, CHI (5 solos, 1 TFL on 100% of snaps)
The Bears traded Roquan Smith to Baltimore on Monday, which will leave a huge opening in the middle of their defense. Morrow has already been a full-time player, but he will likely pick up most of the vacated tackles. Meanwhile, there isn’t a clear replacement for the other vacated snaps, but rookie Jack Sanborn is likely a player to watch.

LB Tremaine Edmunds, BUF (13 solos, 3 asst, 1 PD on 100% of snaps)
Edmunds is in the last year of his contract, and the Bills will need to decide if he’s going to be a core part of their future, given the cap constraints they have. He’s an elite coverage linebacker who still has room to improve as a run defender, but he took advantage of the Packers running the ball 31 times despite playing from behind and collected 16 tackles on 66 snaps.

LB T.J. Edwards, PHI (9 solos, 4 asst, 1 QH, 2 PD on 99% of snaps)
It is relatively rare for a linebacker on an elite team to be this so productive, but Edwards continues to impress. He added 13 more tackles this week and now has been credited with 27 combined tackles in his last two games combined.

LB Malcolm Rodriguez, DET (5 solos, 2 asst, 1 sack, 1 TFL, 1 QH, 1 PD, 1 FR on 68% of snaps)
The Lions defense remains a weakness, but Rodriguez is one of the few bright spots. The rookie registered his first career sack on the opening drive of the game and followed it up with a fumble recovery a few plays later. He only played 68% of the snaps, though, which was the lowest workload he’s seen since Week 1.

LB Isaiah Simmons, ARI (5 solos, 1 sack, 1 FF, 1 FR on 80% of snaps)
After a very disappointing start to the year, Simmons seems to be acclimating well to his new role. He’s a big-play threat who had a pick-six last week and then added a strip-sack and fumble recovery this week, but his tackle numbers have also improved of late.

LB Christian Harris, HOU (5 solos, 2 asst on 100%)
Only three Texans defenders played all 58 snaps this week, and the rookie linebacker was one of them. Christian Kirksey saw his playing time drop to 83%, so it looks like Harris is going to get a great chance to show what he can do in the second half of the season.

LB Micah McFadden, NYG (3 solos, 1 asst, 1 sack, 1 TFL, 1 QH on 42% of snaps)
The rookie was benched earlier this year but was given another opportunity this week and seemed to make the most of it. He added four tackles plus a sack on 27 snaps at inside linebacker, while Tae Crowder saw his playing time drop to a season-low 34% of the snaps. Jaylon Smith handled 84% of the snaps but had an underwhelming two solos with five assists.

LB Oren Burks, SF (4 solos, 3 asst, 1 TFL, 1 PD on 100% of snaps)
Dre Greenlaw sat out this week with a calf injury, which created an opening for Burks. The former Packer wound up playing all 58 snaps, while Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles didn’t play any after seeing 36 a week ago.

DEFENSIVE BACKS

S Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, PHI (7 solos, 1 asst, 1 sack, 1 TFL, 1 QH, 1 INT, 2 PD on 100% of snaps)
With four interceptions and a sack in his last three games, Gardner-Johnson has quickly become one of the highest-scoring safeties in the league. Even more impressive is that he’s added 20 solo tackles during that same span, which suggests he should be considered a top-10 safety going forward.

S Eddie Jackson, CHI (7 solos, 4 asst, 1 INT, 1 PD on 100% of snaps)
S Jaquan Brisker, CHI (7 solos, 2 asst, 1 sack, 1 TFL, 1 QH on 100% of snaps)
Jackson continues to post elite numbers as he collected his fourth interception in eight games while also averaging five solos per game. The rookie Brisker isn’t far behind in terms of tackles and has generated big plays of his own with three sacks and an interception in the last five games. With Roquan Smith traded to Baltimore, expect both safeties to see plenty of tackle opportunities each week.

S Jevon Holland, MIA (10 solos, 2 asst, 1 PD on 100% of snaps)
Holland set a new career-high with 12 combined tackles this week, including 10 solo stops while also adding a pass deflection. Holland continues to look like one of the main IDP standouts in Miami this year and could see more time near the line of scrimmage following the season-ending injury to Brandon Jones.

S Kerby Joseph, DET (5 solos, 1 asst, 1 FF on 100% of snaps)
S JuJu Hughes, DET (5 solos, 1 asst, 1 sack, 2 TFL, 1 QH on 99% of snaps)
The Lions appear very comfortable with rookie safety Kerby Joseph as this was the 4^th game in a row where he played every defensive snap. He continues to show improvement and registered a forced fumble for the second week in a row. Juju Hughes got the start at free safety in place of an injured DeShon Elliott and filled out the stat sheet with 6 tackles plus a sack.

CB Rasul Douglas, GB (6 solos, 1 sack, 1 QH, 1 INT, 1 PD on 80% of snaps)
The Packers have an excellent pair of corners outside, which has often forced Douglas to line up in the slot. That tends to be a more inviting target for opposing quarterbacks, so he’s likely to remain very active in most weeks. He was credited with 10 tackles and three passes defensed last week and followed that up with a huge game against the Bills on Sunday night that saw him collect a sack and an interception.

DOWNGRADES

DEFENSIVE LINEMEN/EDGE RUSHERS

DT Quinton Jefferson, SEA (1 QH on 58% of snaps)
Jefferson had a two-game sack streak coming into this week, but he was held off the stat sheet despite playing 38 snaps against a favorable matchup.

DE Darrell Taylor, SEA (0 tackles on 5% of snaps)
Taylor has been a productive pass rusher for Seattle this year despite some struggles against the run. Unfortunately, he lasted just 3 snaps on Sunday before suffering a hip injury that kept him out of the game. Bruce Irvin saw an increased workload as a result but was not able to capitalize on it.

DE Denico Autry, TEN (2 QH on 72% of snaps)
Autry played a healthy workload again this week and generated a pair of quarterback hits, but he was otherwise kept off the stat sheet. He had 5 sacks in 5 games coming into this week but was also shut out back in week 3 against the Raiders and has a difficult matchup against the Chiefs next week.

DE Marcus Davenport, NO (2 solos, 2 TFL on 43% of snaps)
Davenport was in the starting lineup this week but wound up playing a season-low 43% of the defensive snaps. Meanwhile, Payton Turner had a strong game and played 57%, so Davenport may be in danger of losing his role in a year where he has just half of a sack through 8 games.

EDGE Brandon Graham, PHI (0 tackles on 17% of snaps)
With the addition of Robert Quinn to the lineup this week, Graham saw the biggest drop in playing time as he played a season-low 13 snaps out of 76. Much of that could be due to the hamstring injury he was playing through, but the deeper rotation could wind up hurting multiple players here.

LINEBACKERS

LB Patrick Queen, BAL (4 solos on 94% of snaps)
Queen has shown improvement this year and was on his way to the best season of his young career, thanks primarily to his big play production. The trade for Roquan Smith will likely push Queen down the depth chart soon, however, and the resulting drop in playing time will make it even more difficult for Queen to provide much value to fantasy managers.

LB Tae Crowder, NYG (2 solos on 34% of snaps)
Crowder got another start at middle linebacker this week but wound up playing just 34% of the snaps. He appeared to lose time to rookie Micah McFadden, however, and has likely not played well enough to hold onto the job for much longer.

LB Devin Bush, PIT (2 asst on 74% of snaps)
Bush has been a disappointment and no longer seems like a long-term starter for Pittsburgh. He has been a serviceable source of tackles in most weeks but otherwise offers limited value to fantasy managers. Despite playing most of the game this week, he was very quiet and finished with just two assisted tackles this week.

LB DeVondre Campbell, GB (2 solos, 1 asst on 39% of snaps)
Campbell left the game early with a knee injury, which decimated the Packers' linebacker group after Quay Walker was ejected for pushing an opponent on the sideline. While his status appears to be in doubt for next week, early reports indicated that Campbell may not have to miss much time.

LB Devin Lloyd, JAX (5 asst, 1 QH on 100% of snaps)
Lloyd was one of the highest-scoring IDPs in the league over the first month of the season, but he’s gone cold of late. He has been involved in 12 tackles over the past two weeks, but only two of them have been solo stops, while Foye Oluokun has been much more productive with 14 solos and 7 assists over the same period.

LB Christian Kirksey, HOU (4 solos, 2 asst on 83% of snaps)
Kirksey saw his playing time drop to 83% this week, which isn’t too concerning on its own, but it also came against a very run-heavy matchup in the Texans. Rookie Christian Harris played every snap and could quickly become the focal point of this defense if he proves up to the task. Neither player looked impressive this week, however, as Derrick Henry ran for over 200 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

DEFENSIVE BACKS

S Eric Rowe, MIA (DNP)
Rowe was surprisingly left inactive this week following the recent loss of Brandon Jones to a torn ACL. He was expected to reclaim his former starting role, but instead, it was Verone McKinley, an undrafted free agent rookie, who was elevated from the practice squad and made his first career start.

S Marcus Maye, NO (1 asst on 100% of snaps)
Maye had a very quiet game this week with just one assist and has not been able to match his strong output from week 1. The Saints defense has played very well and shut out the Raiders this week, which left many of their IDPs with limited tackle opportunities.

S Amani Hooker, TEN (1 solo on 41% of snaps)
A week after collecting nine solo tackles against the Colts, Hooker held to just one solo this week. He was forced to leave the game early with a shoulder injury, which could potentially hurt his chances to face the Chiefs this week.

S Jonathan Owens, HOU (1 solo, 1 asst on 31% of snaps)
Owens had nine solos a week ago and had yet to miss even a single snap all season, but he appeared to be benched in the second half this week. Eric Murray and M.J. Stewart both saw an increase in playing time as a result.

CB Marlon Humphrey, BAL (1 PD on 75% of snaps)
This year has not gone very well for Humphrey as he was considered one of the elite players at his position but has continued to produce like an average player. Over his past four starts, he has been credited with just six solo tackles and three assists and also left the game early this week with a hamstring injury. Marcus Peters hasn’t fared much better, with just five solos and one assist over his last three games.

CB Anthony Brown, DAL (0 tackles on 92% of snaps)
Brown was shut out this week in a tough matchup where the Bears offense only completed 18 of 24 passes. He has seen a drop in production over the past month as well, though, and now has just nine solo tackles and five assists in his last five games combined. After a bye this week, the schedule also doesn’t seem likely to get much better for him.