We have reached the point in the fantasy football season when Living the Stream can sink your postseason hopes like an overturned kayak. Or shoot the rapids and propel your IDP squad one step closer to the playoffs.

The waters have become that much more treacherous. It’s not bad enough that injuries continue to fell players. Others continue to disappoint. And a green-dot linebacker was not only benched but released outright (only to be claimed by another team) last week.

For many fantasy managers, the margin left for error this season has dwindled to just about zero. There are a lot of 5-5 and 4-6 teams for whom one more loss could be it. Kiss the playoffs (and an excuse to put off putting up Christmas lights) bye-bye.

So not only is there a gap in the troops that needs filling in, but pick Gomer Pyle instead of Alvin York, and that’s that. Hand me the extension cords.

Oh, that’s right. We’re in this together now. So, let’s get it right.

IDP Matchup Play: EDGE Rashan Gary, Green Bay (at Chicago)

There were some IDP analysts who thought Gary would be an excellent value pick over the summer—we won’t get into who because it isn’t really all that important. Let’s not play the blame game. As Brian Sampson wrote for Dairyland Express, it isn’t easy to pinpoint why Gary has been so quiet in the box score this season.

“Gary, on paper, has every tool needed to be a game-changer for the Packers,” he wrote. “His motor never stops, and his combination of raw strength, speed, and explosiveness off the edge should make him one of the most disruptive pass rushers in the league. He also boasts a refined arsenal of pass-rushing moves and technical ability to win one-on-one battles.”

There’s no sugar-coating it—Gary has been a major disappointment for both the Packers and IDP managers. But coming out of the off week, the Packers face a Chicago Bears team that just surrendered nine sacks to the New England Patriots and has surrendered the seventh-most fantasy points per game to defensive ends this season.

IDP Matchup Play: EDGE Chase Young, New Orleans (vs. Cleveland)

Young’s career hasn’t gone according to plan—the former second-overall pick is on his third team in as many years after injuries derailed a career that started with Defensive Rookie of the Year honors in 2020. But earlier this season, former Saints head coach Dennis Allen told reporters that Young had been everything the team asked when he inked a one-year deal in the offseason.

"I would say he's exceeded my expectations to this point, just in terms of, I didn't really know the player. I knew of him coming out of Ohio State, the talent that he was, and saw him play in our league. But I didn't really know him personally. "Just the way that he's gone about his business, the way that he has come to work every day – he's done everything we've asked him to do, the way we've asked him to do it, never has there been any sort of kickback on anything.”

Young’s third sack of the season last week hasn’t told the whole story with Young this year—his pressure and win rate numbers are significantly better than his stats. The biggest story, however, is facing the Cleveland Browns—the Browns have surrendered a whopping 43 sacks in 2024—easily the most in the league.

IDP Matchup Play: LB Mohamoud Diabate, Cleveland (at New Orleans)

The Browns have had about as much success keeping linebackers healthy this season as they have with, well, everything else. Those injuries have thrust second-year pro Mohamoud Diabate into an every-down role for the team, and the youngster told reporters recently that he’s just doing his best to play his game and enjoy the ride.

"I feel like there's a night and day difference," Diabate said. "I'm very grateful for that. My coaches have invested a lot in me, and I've invested a lot of time as well to perfect my craft and get better. I just play ball. I'm going to go out there and get the calls and let it ride. I'm going to go out there and play hard every play, get done with one play and get ready for the next."

It appears that the Browns will get at least one linebacker back in Week 11—Jordan Hicks is expected to return after missing significant time with an elbow injury. If Hicks is back, he should resume making the defensive play calls, but that shouldn’t stop Diabate from seeing significant snaps Sunday against a Saints offense leaning hard on running back Alvin Kamara.

IDP Matchup Play: LB Jack Gibbens, Tennessee (vs. Minnesota)

When the Tennessee Titans flipped linebacker Ernest Jones IV to the Seattle Seahawks for Jerome Baker and a pick, the presumption was that Baker would acclimate to his new team and then take over the LB2 job opposite Kenneth Murray Jr. Someone forgot to tell Gibbens, and given how well he has performed, head coach Brian Callahan told reporters he’s not inclined to fix things that aren’t broken.

"He's where he's supposed to be. He knows what to do. He knows how to do it, and he finds ways to continue to perform," Callahan said. "They're the guys that you look at on paper and a lot of times you think that we can find bigger, faster, stronger, better, etc. But I mean, you don't take into account that they're just incredibly smart football players and they know what to do and they're consistent and they're reliable, and those things oftentimes are much more important than your height, your weight and your speed. They keep showing up."

Is Gibbens an elite talent? No. He’s a capable NFL reserve who happens to be on one heck of a rip that includes 15 total tackles and 10 solos last week against the Los Angeles Chargers. The ride is going to end—but not this week against a Vikings team that now leads the NFL in fantasy points per game allowed to linebackers.

IDP Matchup Play: S Tony Adams, NY Jets (vs. Indianapolis)

Adams is a semi-regular to Living the Stream—especially over the past couple of years. He’s also a great story—he wasn’t a highly-touted high schooler. Or a collegiate star. Or drafted. Now, he finds himself a capable starter in the NFL—but Adams told the team’s website that his goals are quite a bit higher than that.

“(I want to be an) All-Pro,” he said. “Some people will say it's crazy, and other people will say it'll never happen for him. Nobody ever thought I was going to get here. The world won't believe in you until you believe in yourself and do it. So, All-Pro and help this team get to a Super Bowl. Win a Super Bowl. That's the only thing that matters.”

The Jets winning the Super Bowl. Apparently, he also aspires to be a comedian.

Adams will probably never be a Pro Bowler. But he’s a decent safety who has shown he can post a line—including 10 tackles a week ago in a loss to the Arizona Cardinals. This week, Adams draws a Colts team giving up the second-most fantasy points per game to safeties this season.

IDP Matchup Play: S Coby Bryant, Seattle (at San Francisco)

Like Rashan Gary, Seahawks safety Coby Bryant is coming off his bye and may well be on the waiver wire in many IDP leagues. Unlike Gary, Bryant has actually been productive this season. Bryant has been one of Seattle’s more pleasant defensive surprises since entering the starting lineup, although head coach Mike Macdonald told reporters he isn’t surprised that the third-year pro has had the success he has.

“I'm not surprised," Macdonald remarked. "Again, this guy just keeps playing at a high level. It's a slow form. He just sees how plays progress. He just seems like he's in the right spot all the time on these overthrows and patrolling the deep area of the field. In the run game and support and stuff like that.”

Since becoming a full-time starter for the Seahawks a month ago, Bryant quietly ranks among the top 15 defensive backs in fantasy football in fantasy points per game. Add to that a favorable IDP matchup for his position, and Bryant should come out of the bye strong.

It’s a kayak worth hopping into.

Gary Davenport (“The Godfather of IDP”) is a two-time Fantasy Sports Writers Association Football Writer of the Year. Follow him on Twitter (Can’t make him call it X) at @IDPSharks.