Eyes of the Guru IDP Info, Week 8

Arizona Cardinals

Budda Baker was back in action after a stint on IR with a hamstring injury. Unlike many players who see a limited role in their first game back from an extended absence, Baker went right back to his normal workload, playing every snap against the Seahawks. His production returned to normal as well with six solo stops, including one for loss.

The interesting twist with Baker's return is that instead of sliding over to the other safety spot in place of Jalen Thompson, K'Von Wallace went back to the bench and was subsequently released on Tuesday. Andre Chachere took over the spot when Thompson was lost and continued in that role in week seven. Like Baker, Chachere posted a solid six solo stops against Seattle. What is particularly intriguing about this situation is that many league host sites consider Chachere a corner. It is unclear how soon Thompson will return, but until he does, Chachere is a stream candidate, especially if you can play him as a corner.

After starting the first four games, Kei'Trel Clark had his role reduced in weeks five and six. Despite the absence of Antonio Hamilton, Clark was benched altogether in week seven with undrafted rookie Starling Thomas getting the start and Garrett Williams working as the nickel corner.

Josh Woods played 87% of the snaps at inside linebacker against Seattle but could muster just four tackles and two assists against a team that ran the ball 32 times and completed six passes to running backs and tight ends. It would be great if they would put Krys Barnes back in the lineup.

Atlanta Falcons

Kaden Ellis is in a golden situation as the Falcons' only three-down linebacker, but he has not been able to capitalize on the opportunity. Despite playing every defensive snap over the first seven games, Ellis has not recorded more than five solo stops in a game since week two and has no more than eight points in any game since week three. Meanwhile, Nate Landman has double-digit points in three of four games since replacing Troy Andersen, with a low of nine, and has outscored Ellis in all four outings despite playing less than 80% of the snaps in three of those games. Landman was 5-7 with a forced fumble and a season-high 15.75 points against the Buccaneers.

Baltimore Ravens

The Ravens' pass rush got a boost with the return of Jayson Oweh in week seven. Oweh wasted no time making an impact with a sack and forced fumble on just over half of the snaps. He saw 64% of the action in week one before the injury early in week two, so Oweh should see a little more opportunity going forward and is a waiver candidate this week.

Kyle Van Noy had his best game of the season, going 2-3-2 against the Lions. Van Noy is playing almost exclusively on the edge for Baltimore and could have some value going forward for managers who can start him at that position. Unfortunately, most league hosts still have him as an off-ball linebacker.

Arthur Maulet played 80% of the snaps and had a great game (7-1-1) in week seven, but there is probably nothing to see here. Maulet worked as the Ravens' third corner and could have an inconsistent role from week to week.

With six solo stops, an assist, and a tackle for loss, Kyle Hamilton reminded us that he is capable of a big game at any given time. With five or fewer points in four of seven games on the season, we must also remember how inconsistent he is.

Buffalo Bills

The Bills coaching staff has done no favors for IDP managers in handling their weakside linebacker position. In fact, they have kind of stuck it to us two weeks in a row with their wishy-washy approach. They got us in week six when we expected Tyrel Dodson to get the call, but it was Dorian Williams instead. So we scrambled to get Williams back for the week seven bye-magedon. That looked like a great move when Williams was 3-2 after the first 21 plays. Then he was benched again as Dodson came on to go 5-2 on 31 snaps the rest of the game. There is good value to be had at this position, but it looks like we will need to see who has a seat when the music stops before we can take advantage of it.

Jordan Poyer gave us a throw-back game against the Patriots, going 5-5-1 with a forced fumble and almost 18 fantasy points. That's enough to get him back on the radar, but after a poor 2022 and fewer than eight points in five of six games this year, it will take more than one good game to earn our trust.

Instead of seeing his snap count rise after two games back, Von Miller was limited to six plays versus New England. This could be a result of the quality play of A.J. Epenesa, Greg Rosseau, and Leonard Floyd, who all logged 30-32 snaps, but more likely, it was a case of swelling and/or discomfort in his surgically repaired knee. Miller did not practice on Tuesday, but so far, there has been no word of a setback.

Carolina Panthers

As the trade deadline approaches, the Panthers could be players. Wide receiver Terrance Marshall has requested a trade, and safety Jeremy Chinn is clearly not in the team's plans for the future. It would make sense for the team to move on from both players since the coaching staff has failed to figure out how to use them. Chinn may be hard to move after landing on IR this week. Brian Burns is reportedly also receiving interest, but it is unclear if the team is willing to let him escape.

Chicago Bears

As many of you may have noticed, being an “expert” doesn't make us immune to the curse. Just like everyone else who plays this game, whenever we call out guys as potential drops, they sometimes blow up the next week. Such is the case with Bears safety Jaquan Brisker, who had done almost nothing until I said last week that this might just be who he is now. Right on cue, he blew up for nine tackles, an assist, and a pass breakup. So the question is, will this be an outlier, or was it the breakout game that signals a return to his outstanding rookie production? I'm not going to guess the answer to that, but I'm looking to pick him up and sit on him this week, just in case.

It would seem that the big game by Brisker came at the expense of T.J. Edwards, who was limited to two tackles against the Raiders. Edwards was in his normal role, playing every snap, so write this one off as a fluke for now.

Kyler Gordon was injured in the opener and returned to the field on a pitch count in week six. In his second game back, Gordon's playing time went from about 60% to 75%. It's unclear if he will displace either Tyrique Stevenson or Jaylon Johnson as a starter, but if that is going to happen, this will likely be the week.

Chicago was in nickel for roughly 83% of the game in week seven. Seeing Gordon settle in as the third corner would not be a shock. He was productive in 2022, recording at least nine fantasy points in 11 of the 15 games he played. This week's matchup with the pass-happy Chargers makes Gordon a stream candidate regardless of where he lines up.

Cleveland Browns

Woo-Hoo, Anthony Walker finally played every snap in a game. He was still light in the tackle columns at 2-6, but a fumble recovery and a pass breakup were enough to boost his point total to 13. Walker remains a high-risk start, but this week's matchup with the Seahawks might be enough to roll the dice on him this week.

After seeing about 80% of the action in weeks four and six (week five was a bye) and putting up his best fantasy production of the year in week six, Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah was relegated to fewer than half of the snaps in week seven. His 34 plays were two more than Tony Fields, who replaced Sione Takitaki (hamstring).

Alex Wright left Sunday's game with a concussion after logging six snaps. He usually sees 15-17 plays per game, so the rest of his snaps were distributed between Za'Darius Smith and Ogbo Okoronkwo. Not that the nine or so extra snaps made all the difference, but coincidentally, Smith had his most productive game of the year to date at 4-0-1 with a forced fumble on a 73% play-share.

Denver Broncos

Barron Browning was back in action in week seven, logging a 45% share of the playing time. His numbers were nothing to get excited about at one assist and a batted pass, but this is a situation to keep an eye on going forward. Jonathon Cooper and Nik Bonitto have become decent options for us, largely due to their extensive playing time. With Randy Gregory and Frank Clark both gone, there was only Ronnie Perkins to share time with. With Browning back on the field, it becomes a four-man rotation again. As a result, both Bonitto and Cooper saw their fewest snaps in a game since week one.

Kareem Jackson was ejected from Sunday's game for yet another bad hit. This time, he drew the ire of the league office to the tune of a four-game suspension, pending appeal, of course. P.J. Locke took over and is in line to be the starter for the next four games.

Damarri Mathis had at least five tackles in each of Denver's first five games. That tends to happen to corners that opponents choose to target often. In week seven, Mathis was benched for performance issues, seeing all of six snaps against the Packers. Fabian Moreau moved up the depth chart for at least that game, though it is unclear if the benching is permanent.

Detroit Lions

How does a team get whooped 38-6 by an opponent that runs the ball well, and the defense is only credited with 34 tackles and 17 assists? It's a rhetorical question, of course.

As many were hoping would happen at some point this year. Jack Campbell appears to have moved past Derrick Barnes, or has he? On the positive side, Campbell was on the field for 90% of the snaps against Baltimore, compared to 68% for Barnes. That's encouraging, but did the blowout loss play a part? Neither player did much in the box scores with Campbell at 1-3 and Barnes at 1-1 on the day.

Charles Harris was a healthy scratch versus the Ravens, making room for Josh Paschal to work as the third man in the four-man rotation, including Romeo Okwara. John Cominsky got the start opposite Aiden Hutchinson. We need to remember that the Lions expected Paschal to start when he was drafted in round two last spring. Injuries have been a big issue in his young career to date, but those expectations have not changed.

With Jerry Jacobs sidelined by a sore knee and the team paper thin at corner. Brian Branch shifted outside for much of the game against Baltimore, with Will Harris working in the slot again. A look at the score tells us all we need to know about how that went.

Green Bay Packers

Darnell Savage has been battling a calf strain since week five. After going down with the same injury against Denver, Savage landed on IR this week. That puts Jonathan Owens in the lineup for at least the next four games.

Green Bay also lost corner Eric Stokes, who aggravated his sore hamstring and tackle Devonte Wyatt, who left with a knee injury. With Jaire Alexander also nursing an injury, it's looking like Rasul Douglas and Carrington Valentine on the outside with Keisean Nixon in the slot this week in a plus matchup for corners against the Vikings.

Indianapolis Colts

JuJu Brents lasted 21 snaps in week seven before leaving with a quad injury. As of late Tuesday, there has been no update on his status, but the fact he could not return likely means Brents will miss at least one game. With Brents out, Darrell Baker Jr or Jaylon Jones would get the call opposite Kenny Moore.

Jacksonville Jaguars

The Jaguars missed Dawuane Smoot early in the season. He was back on the field in week six and returned to his normal role with 47 snaps against the Saints, resulting in a 2-0-1 with a forced fumble. He's not likely to land a bigger role, but Smoot's versatility to line up outside or inside and his ability to get to the quarterback from either position could make him a decent option as depth in leagues that designate him as a tackle.

Andre Cisco missed a significant number of snaps in week seven while dealing with cramps. That said, the 61 plays he participated in should have been plenty to produce more than two combined stops. His value is too dependent on big plays for my taste.

Kansas City Chiefs

Nick Bolton is expected to miss up to eight weeks with a dislocated wrist. That all but ends his season for IDP managers. It also makes Drue Tranquill a potential top-12 linebacker the rest of the way. With both players available, Tranquill was poaching just enough snaps to keep Bolton from being the elite player we all thought he would be. With Bolton sidelined, Tranquill is set to be a 100% participant, and there is no question of his production potential. He was the fantasy game's ninth-ranked linebacker while with the Chargers last season.

Charles Omenihu returned after serving his six-game suspension and made an immediate impact. He jumped over Malik Herring and Felix Anudike-Uzomah to assume the role of the third man in the rotation and was 2-0-1 with a batted pass on just over half of the snaps. Since the Chiefs only use three players in their main rotation, Omenihu could be roster-worthy in deeper leagues.

Las Vegas Raiders

Divine Deablo went 4-0 on 18 plays against the Bears before leaving with an ankle injury. As of late Tuesday, there has been no update on the severity of the injury or his status for week eight. If Deablo cannot go, look for Luke Masterson to get the call with undrafted rookie Kana'I Mauga possibly in the mix as well.

It took seven games but rookie Tyree Wilson finally landed his first sack as a pro. Maybe that will trigger an increase in playing time. Wilson has not been on the field for more than 28 snaps since week two.

Los Angeles Chargers

Joey Bosa is trying to play through a broken toe, and it shows. He has a great matchup with the Bears this week, but after watching him struggle in his last two games, I have no confidence that he can take advantage of it. As well as rookie Tuli Tuipulotu has played, the Chargers might be better off shutting Bosa down for a while and rolling with the rookie. On that note, this is a good week to start Tuipulotu and Khalil Mack. The Bears are giving up four sacks per game and currently rank second in points allowed to edge defenders.

Dean Marlow exploded for eleven tackles, including ten solo, versus the Chiefs. While that is eye-catching, fantasy managers should not get caught up in chasing the stats. This was a perfect storm for Marlow who is a solid NFL backup. Not to mention that Alohi Gillman could be back by the time Los Angeles gets past poor matchups with the Bears and Jets in the next two weeks.

I've been pretty hard on Kenneth Murray Jr. thus far in his career, but giving credit where it is due, he is playing and producing much better in year four. The light seems to have come on for Murray, who has at least 13 points in four of his last five games. He is making tackles, with 30 solos and 10 assists over those five games, and is contributing in the big play columns as well, with a pair of sacks and an interception. Maybe the most telling numbers are the 100% participation we have seen from Murray in all five of those games, while Eric Kendricks hasn't seen 90% of the action in a game since week one.

Los Angeles Rams

Michael Hoecht is one of a handful of edge defenders who consistently see a 90% play-share. He finished last season on a roll with 34 tackles and 4.5 sacks in seven games, but the numbers were slow to come this year. Hoecht's tackle totals have been decent, but he was sitting with just half of a sack going into week seven. All he did against the Steelers was go 4-3-2 with a forced fumble. We'll have to see if this was a breakout game he can build on or simply an outlier. For those already looking ahead to the playoffs, taking a risk on this guy could pay off big. The Rams face Washington in week 15 and the Giants in week 17.

Ernest Jones has been rock solid for us, reaching double-digit points in each of the first six games before falling on his face in week seven. His 1-3 versus the Steelers is undoubtedly a fluke. That said, we need to keep an eye on one development. After participating on every snap over the first five games, Jones has been at about 80% over the last two.

Miami Dolphins

Jerome Baker is inconsistent and will give us some duds, but now and then, he has a game like the one against Philadelphia, where he was 6-5 with a pick-six. Again, I'll mention not chasing the points. In the first meeting with the Patriots, Baker was 3-3.

David Long and Javon Holland are in concussion protocol after colliding on a play. Holland was cleared and returned to the game but showed symptoms on Monday. Both are at risk of missing this week's game. Brandon Jones would start at safety and Duke Riley at linebacker if Holland and Long miss time.

Bradley Chubb is quietly having a great season. He got off to a slow start with six or fewer points in three of the first four games. Since that time, Chubb has had twelve or more points in four of six games, including each of the last three. He totaled 18 or more in three contests, including a season-high 25 last week when he went 5-2-2 with a forced fumble.

New England Patriots

With the rash of injuries to Patriots' edge defenders, Anfernee Jennings and Deatrich Wise Jr both played 96% of the snaps in their upset over Buffalo. Jennings is still looking for his first sack of the season but is 13-4 with a pair of tackles for loss over the last three games. Wise has been quiet outside of two good games in weeks four and five. Neither of these guys project well this week, but the Patriots face Washington in week nine and the Giants in week twelve.

New Orleans Saints

Cameron Jordon says he will not retire after this year and plans to play for at least two more seasons. If he doesn't start producing, he may not have that option. Jordan is on pace for what would be, by far, the lowest production of his career across the board, while Carl Granderson has been the team's best pass-rush threat.

New York Giants

There are some players we put in our lineups no matter who they are playing, but we should never ignore matchups. For example, the Giants had five sacks on the season entering week seven, when they added six more against the Commanders. This week's matchup with the Jets is not as juicy as facing Washington, but New York has allowed at least three sacks in five of six games and no fewer than two in any contest so far. If you picked up Leonard Williams, Dexter Lawrence, or Kayvon Thibodeaux to feast on last week's matchup, play them again this week.

New York Jets

Last week, I called out the game between the Commanders and Giants as a sack-fest. Those teams responded with ten sacks between them. This week's encore will be the battle of New York between cross-town rivals. If you have Quinnen Williams, Jermaine Johnson, or maybe even John Franklin-Myers, Bryce Huff, or Quinton Jefferson, this is the week to play them.

Philadelphia Eagles

Philadelphia and Tennessee have done their part to get the trade market going. The Eagles sent Terrell Edmunds to the Titans for Kevin Byard. Breaking down this trade from the Eagles' perspective, Reed Blankenship is dealing with sore ribs. He is expected back soon but could miss another game or two. With Justin Evans on IR and not expected back anytime soon, the team was left with Terrell Edmunds and Sydney Brown as their starters. Both guys are good players, but they are better suited to play strong safety. This trade fills the Eagles' free safety need with one of the best playmakers in the game and allows Brown to play strong safety until Blankenship returns.

We'll have to see how this move affects the players from the IDP perspective. That said, I don't think Blankenship's value will change much. Once he is healthy, I expect top-12 production from him. I'm a little pessimistic when it comes to Byard, though. It's been a bit since Philadelphia gave us a highly productive free safety, and I always get nervous when a player goes from a situation where he is a proven commodity to an unknown one. I'll keep Byard on the bench until we see how this works.

Nakobe Dean returned to action in week seven, but there were no fireworks. Dean was rather disappointing with just three solo stops. A closer look reveals that his playing time was limited to about 60% as he works back from the injury. Dean came through without a setback and should be a full go against Washington.

Zach Cunningham continues to play at or near 100% of the snaps but is not getting it done on the stat sheet. He had a big game against Washington in week four but has no more than two solo tackles and three assists in four of the last five games. If you need some good news about Cunnigham, He was 9-4 versus Washington in week four so there is hope for him in the rematch.

Seattle Seahawks

When Jamal Adams played every snap in week six and Julian Love was limited to a 44% share, a lot of managers dumped Love. Hopefully, if you read this column, you weren't one of those managers. I've said all along that Love is too good a player for the Seahawks not to have him on the field. In week seven, Love was back to over 90% participation as the Seahawks deployed all three safeties on 60 of 66 snaps. As a result, both Adams and Love posted identical lines of 5-1 with a pass breakup. Love may have some games where his snap count is down, so his stock takes a little hit, but he's not waiver fodder at this point.

Seattle lost Uchenna Nwosu, who landed on IR with a torn pectoral on Tuesday. He was the only Seattle edge defender consistently seeing more than 70% of the playing time. With Nwosu's early exit, Boye Mafe took over the lead role with almost 80% participation. Darrell Taylor's playing time got a significant boost as well, to almost 60%.

Mafe has a sack in four consecutive games, but his tackle totals have been almost nil. The increased role and early down action should go a long way toward fixing that problem. If you need help at the position, it will be hard to find a better option to add at this stage of the season.

San Francisco 49ers

Oren Burks has at least nine fantasy points in three straight games. That has a lot of managers picking him up. Unless you are desperate, leave him for someone else. Burks had a season-best of almost 14 points in week five, but that was only because he had a pick to go with his marginal tackle total. He went 4-4 in week six when he played every snap because Dre Greenlaw was out. Burks managed six solo stops against the Vikings but did it on just 28 snaps, which is not sustainable over the long haul. The only way Burks can be trusted in your lineup is if Greenlaw or Fred Warner miss time.

Tennessee Titans

At the other end of the safety swap, the move was a little harder to comprehend from the Titans' perspective. Behind Kevin Byard and Amani Hooker, the rest of the teams' safeties have 51 snaps between them this season. Other than veteran Dane Cruikshank, who is a career backup, Tennessee has a collection of young, former undrafted free agents at the position. That points to Edmunds being a starter. Do they plug him in at free safety, or will they shift Hooker to free and play Edmunds at strong? My money is on the latter. Hooker has shown plenty of splash play potential, which is what the Titans have come to expect from the free safety position with Byard there. With most teams, free safety is less desirable for IDP managers. With Byard there, Tennessee has been the rare exception. We'll have to see if either Edmunds or Hooker can step up here.

Washington Commanders

In 2022, Jamin Davis was not involved in all the sub-packages until Cole Holcomb was injured. This season, it was the same story with Coby Barton in the full-time role. Barton left Sunday's game after eight snaps with a high ankle sprain that could keep him out for a few weeks. As a result, Davis played 67 of 68 snaps. David Mayo took over for Barton and had a productive day. He totaled 9-2 in the tackle columns, but the key number is 60%, which is the share of playing time Mayo got. Khaleke Hudson picked up the other 26 snaps. There is no guarantee that Davis will play full-time after the team has a week to adjust, but the odds are in his favor.

That's going to do it for this week. Best of luck as we come out of turn two and head down the backstretch of the season.

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