John Norton ("The Guru") and Gary Davenport ("The Godfather of IDP") are two of the most experienced and knowledgeable IDP analysts in the fantasy football industry. Every week during the 2024 season here at Footballguys, The Guru and the Godfather will come together to answer five of that week's most pressing questions.
We're one week into the 2024 season. And as is always the case, Week 1 has rattled many an IDP manager. They watched stars disappoint as waiver options exploded. They got beat. They are not happy.
Sometimes, every ship just needs a steady hand—so The Guru and the Godfather have come together to help keep seasons off the rocks by guiding fantasy managers to a Week 2 win—and keeping them from making the oldest mistake in IDP.
Week 1 Surprises
As it always does, Week 1 of the season featured no shortage of surprises. Which one were you happiest to see? Can that player keep it up, or was it a one-week stand? What about Week 1's biggest IDP disappointment? Time to worry or just a bad day?
GURU: The one that made me smile was Gregory Rousseau of the Buffalo Bills going 6-0-3 with a forced fumble. I would have been even happier if I had more shares of him across my leagues, but I'll take the win because I called it. Leading up to week one, I wrote that Rousseau has the talent and potential to be an elite IDP and NFL edge. The problem has been insufficient playing time because the Bills used so many players in their rotation.
I mentioned that some of those guys were gone, so the lack of depth could force the team to leave Rousseau on the field more. He was one snap short of playing 80% and is the #1 edge heading into week two. He'll never keep up such a pace, but I do not see Rousseau as a one-week wonder.
The biggest disappointment for me was Bobby Okereke going 2-1 in the tackle columns. Granted, the fumble recovery saved him from being a total bust, but he fell way short of expectations. He played every snap in the same role that made him a stud last year, so I'm not concerned about a long-term issue with Okereke. He'll have a lot more games with double-digit tackles this year than with fewer than five.
GODFATHER: I don't know how happy it really made the Godfather, but there wasn't a bigger surprise in all of IDP than Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Zack Baun exploding in Brazil for 15 total tackles, 11 solos and two sacks. Not only was Baun's massive stat line a stunner, but he played every defensive snap for the Eagles.
Baun isn't going to post monster lines every week. But the productivity he showed in his first game as a full-time linebacker cannot be ignored. I'll confess I had my doubts about Baun's viability as an off-ball linebacker. Philly defensive coordinator Vif Fangio apparently does not share those reservations. Might be a reason he makes slightly more money than I do.
The biggest disappointment for me in Week 1 wasn't stat lines—it was snap counts. Jack Campbell of the Detroit Lions was talked up all summer as a full-time player and potential defensive signal-caller, but his usage against the Rams looked a lot like 2023.
And while Foyesade Oluokun and Devin Lloyd both had decent numbers against the Miami Dolphins, neither was on the field for more than 85 percent of Jacksonville's snaps. It's not big-red-button time for Oluokun managers, but it's a situation to monitor moving forward.
Week 2 Defensive Line Calls
We're on to Week 2. On the defensive line, what player is going to pull a Van Ginkel in Week 2? Who is most in danger of producing the dreaded IDP Donut?
GURU: There is a cheat code for defensive linemen every year. This year it is the Panthers or Giants. If you have a good edge defender with either of these matchups, put him in your lineup. With that in mind, Khalil Mack of the Los Angeles Chargers is my “Van Ginkel of the Week” candidate.
On the other side of the ledger, we don't want our pass-rushers facing the game's best blockers. I was shocked to see Jonathan Greenard of the Minnesota Vikings turn in a goose egg last week. He'll find tough sledding in week two as well, versus Trent Williams. That said, if he is shut out twice in a row there will be a mad rush of managers cutting him. The slump is not going to last all year so don't hesitate to take advantage of a league mate's lack of patience.
GODFATHER: You're going to notice a theme with my defensive linemen recommendations this year—one that features a miserable offensive line for the Giants that averaged five sacks a game allowed last year. I don't give interior linemen a ton of run in this column, but New York is the team that creates exceptions to the rule. Washington has one of the best tackle duos in the league in Jonathan Allen and Daron Payne, and I think the former gets to Daniel “We paid him how much?” Jones in Week 2.
On the flip side of that coin, the Kansas City Chiefs have long been a poor fantasy matchup for just about every position in IDP. Patrick Mahomes II just doesn't get sacked a lot. Trey Hendrickson of the Cincinnati Bengals could easily be another edge-rusher who will be a candidate for panic-drops in Week 3. Be ready to pounce.