• FFIDP Instant Reaction & Waivers Week Three (3) “The Monster”

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    This man came to work this week.


    Welcome to "The Monster". Those of you who aren't new here skip down to the "Week (   ) Questions" section for the start of the article, this preamble is for any new people. There are always a few.

    The vast majority of you are already familiar with this article but if you aren't this is where we come every Thursday morning to read a bible length article about every IDP relevant player and their performance, playing time, etc from the previous week of games. We look at things like snaps, role, production, opportunity, injuries, replacements for those injuries (waivers) and real football performance since that can lead to huge changes in all of those factors listed above (see Jaylon Smith).

    If things didn't go how we thought they would we'll try and figure out why that was, if someone we've never heard of went off for a massive week we'll find out if they're worth picking up on waivers or if they're just barely playing and just lucked into a sack or splash play and it likely won't happen again any time soon. We'll follow up on weird or iffy situations with information from beat writers and whatever else I can find to connect the dots. The idea behind this article is that the "why" is just as important as the "what".

    I am most certainly not an analyst, this isn't my job, and while our site does pay it's writers this is just another hobby for me. So I won't be following the standard fantasy football article rules and I will keep this fun.

    I'm just another degenerate like you are. I've been playing IDP fantasy football for the better part of two decades and am working on crossing the 30 championship threshold this season so while I don't call myself a professional I surely do know how to win these leagues and will mix in some of the things I've learned over those years in an effort to further make this article a key piece of your weekly information that helps you take home your titles this season. More qualifications and credentials are available in the author bio at the bottom.

    You'll understand by the end of the article if your bathroom break at work is long enough to get through it. And if you decide this article isn't for you that's cool too, thank you for giving it a try and we hope you'll be able to find what you need elsewhere on the site or with our team.

    We all have the freedom to choose who we trust and follow for our information and really all I can say is the team we have here and the people we work with in the community are the best of the best and our trophy cases back that up. Regardless thanks for giving this article a shot today. Alright let's get into it.


    The week three questions

    We started week three with a snooze fest Thursday night with the Panthers and Texans, the injury grim reaper was out in force claiming both CMC and Jaycee Horn among others, we'll check in on Zach Cunningham and see how that looked this week plus start to figure out who the corners are for the Panthers going forward. Was Brian Burns able to continue his monster start to the season and will Derrick Brown return to last season's form for those of us in defensive tackle specific leagues? Some good answers to be found here.

    The Bills have completely righted the ship and absolutely blew away the Washington football team this week, we'll get another look at Jamin Davis and the Washington linebacker situation as well as check in on Landon Collins and the safety situation there as well. Was Chase Young able to get his season going? And if not how many people will drop him in redraft and allow me to pair him with my tons of Danielle Hunter and Myles Garrett shares to create an IDP defensive end corps that will annihilate all come playoff time? For the Bills I don't think there's a ton we need to check on but we'll make sure and follow up on things like rookie playing time and make sure that Tremaine Edmunds and Levi Wallace were able to go this week after missing portions of their game last week with cramping issues.

    The Browns destroyed the Bears and Myles Garrett showed everyone why we draft those positions of scarcity with such zeal and gusto. His multi sack week won many an IDP manager their matchup and was truly an example of the "haves and the have nots" when it comes to the ridiculous discussion about punting defensive line in favor of the (much more available and deep) linebacker position. We'll also check out the Browns linebacker and safety situation as that's been in flux recently and over in Chicago Khalil Mack (EDGE) was dinged in this one so we'll follow up on that as well and check in on Danny Trevethan's status as well since the end of his short term IR stint is now upon us and a nice waiver wire linebacker could be just over the horizon.

    The Ravens edged out the Lions on an NFL record setting last second field goal and we got some surprising inactives for the Lions defense before this one started plus a week of rumors about Jamie Collins and Trey Flowers and their future in Detroit, we'll see what the fallout from all that was and check in on the Ravens safety corps where there have been some injuries the last couple games and apparently this week as well. Were the Ravens able to generate a pass rush with the rookie Oweh and is Patrick Queen still looking like a much improved player in his sophomore season? Good questions to follow up on in this one.

    The Colts and Titans faced off in a divisional showdown that looked close on the scoreboard but was really only close due to mistakes from the Titans offense, this one was really never in doubt with Lieutenant Wentz at the Helm. For the Titans we'll follow up on the Rashaan Evans shenanigans and find out what the hell happened with Jayon Brown in this one as well. Also there was reportedly a shake up at safety in Tennessee as well so plenty to digest with the Titans IDP this week. For the Colts we'll check up on the usual suspects and make sure everything looks good but beyond a slow start for Leonard and some injury issues at corner I don't think there's much to look at with this Colts defense, we always look the whole thing over though, every week all season, just to be sure.

    The Chargers and Chiefs had a classic back and forth shootout that ended in a surprise Chargers win, there's a ton to look at here. Where the hell was Kenneth Murray? What's going on with Joey Bosa? They said he was good to go but then he was in only every few snaps from what I saw, clearly the injury is effecting him so we'll investigate further. Is Asante Samuel Jr the next great streaming corner for IDP? We also could get Willie Gay back as soon as next week so we'll look at some beat writers and find out what's going on there as well as with Frank Clark, who missed this week with injury. There's some chatter that Daniel Sorensen could, or should, get yanked for poor play so we'll see just how poor it's been and see if he's in the "sudden benching or massive reduction in playing time" danger zone. Plenty to look at here.

    The Saints continue to be one of the most erratic teams on this planet but we did get another huge week from both Malcolm Jenkins and DeMario Davis so that was excellent, was Marshon Lattimore just as good in his return to play this week? Where has Cameron Jordan been? Is Chauncey Gardner Johnson back in business? And for the Patriots why the sudden cooling with Kyle Dugger after such a hot start? Who's the inside linebacker to roll out weekly here? Stephon Gilmore is also getting somewhat close to being able to return from IR as well, how will that effect our streaming options here? Plenty to investigate with this matchup.

    The Falcons and Giants played a game this week reportedly, there was a Grady Jarret sighting and also some rumblings from Gerbil Peppers before the game, a beat writer in New York reporting he threw a temper tantrum before the game, not even kidding. We'll see what that's all about. We'll also check in on Leonard Williams (DE) and see if he's gotten his season started yet and find out how bad the Blake Martinez injury is, initial reports were not good at all, it's been a few days so we'll follow up and if it is the worst news see who the likely replacement is as well.

    The Bengals crushed the Steelers this week and it's been exactly one week since a Steelers fan shit his pants at a game, we may have already witnessed the high point of the season back in week two, well for me anyways. There are about a million Steelers injuries to check on and as for Cincy we'll see if Jessie Bates was able to get back to his normal productive ways and we'll follow up on rumors their defensive line had ANOTHER multi sack week, this must be the twilight zone. Logan Wilson apparently had a monster week so we'll make sure the playing time still looks good there and he'll be able to do this consistently all season for his shareholders.

    Down in Jacksonville the Jaguars got out to a quick lead then slowly got crushed into paste over the remainder of the game, for the Jags IDP corps we'll check out the safety situation like every week and also make sure Josh Allen (DE) is still playing enough and this weeks disappointing week stat line was just a result of normal defensive line production style and not something more worrying. For the Cardinals this is another opportunity to check out their linebacker situation and to see if JJ Watt has gotten his season going yet as well.

    In Denver this week we got exactly what we thought we'd get, another Broncos win over a massively inferior team where they dominated every statistical category and their defense barely touched the playing field. Were the usual suspects, Johnson, Simmons and company, able to produce this week against a Jets offense that put up zero points and only 162 total yards and 11 first downs the entire game? Were they able to produce only seeing the field for 24 minutes as their offense dominated time of possession for the third game in a row? Will anyone even consider these things or will they just look at guys like AJ Johnson and Justin Simmons and assume they all of a sudden stink now? We'll talk after they play a real offense in Baltimore in week four, I'd be shocked if we're still looking at underwhelming stat lines from those guys after they play a team that can actually sustain offensive drives. For the Jets side of things was it still Quincy Williams at inside linebacker next to CJ Mosley and was Quinnen Williams able to get his season started finally? Plenty of good answers here.

    The Raiders edged out the Dolphins in overtime and we got another look at that linebacker unit as well plus will check in on Maxx Crosby who had a super hot start to the season but has cooled down since then, is it something with his playing time or just the nature of his position? We shall see. For the Dolphins that defense is an always fluctuating shit show so we'll do our best to figure it out as always but honestly the less time we spend on them the better.

    Out in Los Angeles we didn't quite get the competitive affair we were hoping for with the Bucs and Rams but we did get a ton of points and offense, and where there's a ton of points and offense we get tackles, passes defended, sacks and picks, the good stuff. We can't have one without the other (see Jets/Denver if you think I'm kidding). We'll check in on the Rams linebacker situation which seems unsettled so far this season plus see if we can figure out which safety is the one to start there as well. The Bucs defense is pretty set in stone but we'll give it a once over as well just to make sure we don't miss anything important.

    Out in Minnesota the Vikings were able to get their first win of the season at the expense of the Seahawks and we got another look at Nick Vigil as he continues to fill in for the injured Anthony Barr plus we'll see if Dalvin Tomlinson was able to get it going yet this season as well. As for the Seahawks there was an injury to Jordyn Brooks so we'll follow up on that and see if Jamal Adams has finally returned on his investment this season as well. The pass rush situation there has been confusing to start the season so we'll see if that's settled yet additionally.

    Sunday night we got the Niners and Packers and we found out if our Azeez Al Shaair investment paid off against a better offense than the Eagles and got to check in on Javon Kinlaw and the other young talent on that defense, some of whom have started slow and panicked IDP shareholders across the world. As for the Packers we get another game to help figure out if it's DeVondre Campbell or Krys Barnes as the long term answer at linebacker for IDP purposes and we'll check and see if Darnell Savage has decided to start playing football this season or not.

    We ended the week with the Cowboys and Eagles and got another look at the defensive end issue in Dallas which in turn is really messing with the linebacker situation there as well, cascade effect if you will. We'll get another chance to see if the safety situation there has settled yet as well. For the Eagles we'll get to see if there's been any additional information that helps us figure out if it's Eric Wilson or Alex Singleton as the best linebacker option there and we get our first look at that pass rush without Brandon Graham, did Josh Sweat or Derek Barnett see a bump in playing time and therefore production, if not now then down the line? Some good answers to be found in this one.

    All that and more in this week's edition of the monster. Buckle your seatbelts and tell your boss that you ate Chipotle last night and you're going to need an extra long bathroom break because you can feel your internal organs trying to escape through your butt. Use that time wisely and find out not just the "what" but also, and equally important, the "why" in regards to all things IDP this past week. Let's roll.


    The week three answers

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    With Gruger-Hill inactive we were automatically safe(er) starting Zach this week, was he able to play every snap and return to form at all?

    Panthers @ Texans

    Carolina Panthers

    Produced as expected: Shaq Thompson (LB) Donte Jackson (CB) Jeremy Chinn (S) *somewhat* Brian Burns (DE) Haasan Redick (OLB)

    Flash in the pan: Morgan Fox (DE) and Frankie Luvu (LB) played 56% and 24% of snaps respectively this week, and while our own IDPGuys Joey The Tooth is a fan of Morgan Fox in deeper leagues I'm probably still a little on the fence with such a small sample size, still in those crazy deep degenerate leagues he is playing more than half the snaps and has been pretty productive so far this season, you could do worse for defensive end help. As for Luvu he's not even playing a quarter of the snaps, lucky outlier sack and nothing more. Pass.

    Possible waivers: Rashaan Melvin (CB) was only in for 53% of snaps this week but with the injury to Jaycee Horn (CB), who broke is foot reportedly and will not be back until the end of this season if at all, it looks like Melvin could be the next man up to be the corners to stream here along with Donte Jackson week to week. I'd like to see it first, just in case they pull the rug out from under us and slot someone else in there, but if you are in a crazy deep league and need a full time or close to it corner this looks like a decent move. CJ Henderson (CB) was also just traded here from the Jags, he could end up being that second option as well, the prudent move is to see what happens this next week or two and adjust from there.

    Misc notes: Jeremy Chinn (S) played every snap as usual and had a better game this week with five combined tackles, part of this is certainly the defense he plays on. It's not on the field as much as others. He's lining up all over the place and has a nice amount of box snaps as well so no concern there, to me this is just a matchup thing so far. They've played the Jets, (crappy offense, lost time of possession battle badly) the Saints (bipolar team that was on the down swing of that spectrum and also lost the time of possession battle badly) and now the Texans, (crappy offense led by backup quarterback this week, also lost the time of possession battle 36 minutes to 24 minutes) the Panthers defense only spent 24 minutes on the field this week, they can't score points from the bench. Play the matchups in your IDP decisions, I stopped playing guys like Shaq Thompson, Justin Simmons and even Jeremy Chinn in shallower leagues where I could go with an option with a better matchup, in those deeper leagues it is what it is. But expecting excellent production against a team with a backup quarterback that wasn't able to sustain drives all game long is crazy, never going to happen. You need to be in the right situation to produce IDP points in the first place, after that guys like Chinn have everything else we want, (talent, role, playing time as part of the defense) the last piece of the puzzle is playing against a real team and not the Texans. He'll be fine when the Panthers play a real offense. Hint, the Cowboys this week are a real offense. Start him.

    Derrick Brown (DT) was in for 65% of snaps this week, same deal as Chinn, no fluctuations in playing time or role there just wasn't much to eat here this week. Jermaine Carter (LB) though appears to be fluctuating all over the place, 75% of snaps this week after like 30% last week and 95% in week one, he's all over the map. We can't trust this at all, start looking for a backup plan here, he's going to be wildly inconsistent with fluctuating playing time and therefore production as the defensive game plan shifts week to week.

    Justin Burris (S/CB) and Sean Chandler (S) appear to also be stuck in this loop along with Carter, they played 65% and 80% of snaps respectively this week and also appear to be fluctuating randomly as part of the game plan for whatever opposing offense is in town that week. We can't rely on that, this kind of thing is why the Miami, New England and last year's Detroit defenses were incredibly frustrating. It's hard enough to find good IDP options as it is, once you're not even sure how much they'll be involved in their own teams defense week to week it becomes an entire other problem and level of crap to deal with. So I don't. I'll be finding other options for my teams that have Carter or Burris shares, I never boarded the Chandler train so I won't need to depart it. Everything else here looked good, the Panthers get the Cowboys in week four, now THAT counts as a real offense. I would bet the farm most of these guys people have been worried about have a real nice bounce back week against the Cowboys next week, side note the Broncos get the Ravens next week so same deal there, Simmons, Alexander Johnson and company should have plenty to eat in that matchup also.

    Houston Texans:

    Produced as expected: Zach Cunningham (LB) Christian Kirksey (LB) Vernon Hargreaves (CB) Lonnie Johnson (CB/S) Whitney Mercilus (OLB)

    Flash in the pan: Jonathan Greenard (DE) and Ross Blacklock (DT) played 55% and 34% of snaps respectively this week, that could be enough for Greenard in much deeper leagues but until we saw this more than once it's just an outlier in my mind, as for Blacklock not enough playing time and I don't think I've ever mentioned his name ever so we can pass on that.

    Tremon Smith (CB) only saw playing time due to Terrence Mitchell (CB) being injured and out this week, ignore that trap, nothing special anyways just a handful of combined tackles, no passes defended or anything like that.

    Possible waivers: No new producers this week.

    Misc notes: Zach Cunningham (LB) was all systems go this week, with late news that Kamu Gruger Hill (LB) was injured and out before kickoff I felt comfortable enough to start him in a couple shallower leagues where he's been riding the bench while I search for trade partners to take him off my hands. This could be that window to do so if you're familiar with his situation, if not check the last two weeks of this article, Texans section, to catch up. We talked about this last season as well, there are red flags everywhere for this guy. This was his best week for PFF grade as well, he sits at 36.3 overall for the season but this was his best week with most of his grades in the sixties. It's still a mess but he saw every snap this week and racked up fourteen combined tackles, he's safe as long as Gruger Hill is dinged I think and it's only a matter of time before Christian Kirksey gets hurt as well, I hate to say it but we've seen that season after season, so he may end up being OK simply due to having a pulse and being available plus they already paid him, but for dynasty purposes Cunningham is still grading terribly and has other issues including disciplinary and tardiness or no shows in the preseason, it doesn't paint a great picture if this is your linebacker one. I'm using this week to try and sell high(er) and get something in return, you do whatever you feel is correct. We'll continue to monitor and update this situation weekly.

    Desmond King (CB) did not see a bump in playing time even with Terrence Mitchell (CB) injured and out for this one, we can totally abandon ship I think, if he was going to be relevant again this was the opportunity. Just 49% of snaps this week and was behind such well known corner options such as Tremon Smith (CB) and Lonnie Johnson (CB/S), that's sarcasm. He used to be thing, no longer. Not much else here to discuss, not many options here in the first place, those we trust weekly produced for us against the Panthers and there were no dangerous playing time fluctuations so we can keep it moving.

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    Cole Holcomb apparently remains the best linebacker option in Washington

    Football Team @ Bills

    Washington Football Team

    Produced as expected: Cole Holcomb (LB) Kendall Fuller (CB) Benjamin St. Juste (CB)

    Flash in the pan: Kamren Curl (S) and Landon Collins (S) played 78% and 58% of snaps respectively this week, Bobby McCain (S) was also in there for 70% of snaps as well, so this safety corps obviously still is very much in flux week to week. The ideal production for both Curl and Collins had far more to do with the Bills putting up an ungodly amount of total offense this week, 359 yards passing and another 122 yards on the ground, than it had to do with Collins or Kurl playing enough and being in the correct circumstances to produce week to week. They haven't so far this season and the only reason it looked good this week was that the Bills put up incredible offensive numbers and dominated time of possession 36 minutes to 24 minutes overall, this Washington defense was on the field almost two thirds of the entire game, that's likely why their overall IDP production is as bloated and dangerous as my lower intestines after Chipotle. Neither of these safeties are safe to play week to week as of yet.

    Possible waivers: Jamin Davis (LB) was up to 52% of snaps this week and surpassed Jon Bostic (LB) as the second linebacker here for the first time all season in regards to playing time, also production this week. This has been a slow switch from Bostic to Davis the last couple weeks and we got more of the same this week against the Bills, it's not completely safe to plug Davis in yet but we are getting there. If you can pick him up now I would, he's on his way to being a really nice option here shortly.

    Misc notes: Jon Bostic (LB) however is on his way out of favor, he was down to just 49% of snaps played this week and has been losing playing time to Bostic the last couple weeks and is just barely playable in deeper leagues currently and that gets more and more dangerous every week. Keep this in mind if he's an option for you in deeper leagues, diminishing returns.

    The Washington Football Team pass rush and defensive line had a down week overall, it happens. There were no significant fluctuations to their individual playing time or anything to worry about long term here. I'm sure the Chase Young (DE) owners of the world will continue to freak out, he'll be fine as well. You can drop him if you want, I won't be, anywhere. He'll have some monster weeks this season I'd bet the farm on it.

    Buffalo Bills

    Produced as expected: Tremaine Edmunds (LB) Matt Milano (LB) Micah Hyde (S) Taron Johnson (CB) Greg Rousseau (DE) *somewhat* Jordan Poyer (S)

    Flash in the pan: Star Lotuleilei (DT) did play a decent amount, 57% of snaps this week, but isn't a name we mention often around these parts. He may be something in those much deeper leagues but in general this is an outlier, he's not the next big waiver wire defensive tackle option I would be fairly confident in saying.

    Possible waivers: No new producers this week.

    Misc notes: On the flip side this Bills defense only spent 24 minutes on the field this week so keep that in mind if your favorite IDP option didn't perform to your expectations this week, upon first inspection it looks like most of the usual suspects did just fine this week all things considered. For guys like Tre'Davious White (CB) and Levi Wallace (CB) this was never going to be a great week to stream them in the first place against this not so great Washington passing attack so we can live with the lower level production from both this week. They both played 100% of snaps as usual, they'll be fine. No significant fluctuations in playing time here for any of the usual suspects, the guys we really ask to produce for us week to week did so and the ones that didn't it makes sense why not, so we're looking good in Buffalo. Onwards.

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    Myles Garrett is (another) reason why punting DL is less than ideal

    Bears @ Browns

    Chicago Bears

    Produced as expected: Roquan Smith (LB) Khalil Mack (EDGE) Eddie Jackson (S) Robert Quinn (EDGE)

    Flash in the pan: Deon Bush (S) and Mario Edwards (DT) played 100% and 25% of snaps respectively this week, obviously we can skip Edwards automatically with playing just a quarter of total snaps, his nice week was an outlier from the ridiculous amount of time this defense spent on the field this week, more below on that. As for Bush though the only reason he saw any significant playing time at all this week was the late scratch for Tashaun Gipson (S) who was injured and out this week, as soon as Gipson returns Bush will return to irrelevancy. You can play him, but only as long as Gipson is injured and out, you need one for the other to be a thing.

    Possible waivers: No new producers this week, possibly Deon Bush (S) if Gipson is out again next week.

    Misc notes: Danny Trevethan (LB) is eligible to return from short term IR this week, keep that in mind if you need help at linebacker in leagues that are medium to deeper, he will likely immediately displace Alec Ogletree upon return and resume being a weekly linebacker three in most places with solid playing time, around 80% of snaps a week last season. Bear in mind (haha) that this defense spent 40 minutes on the field this week, their numbers will be inflated and there will be many names that usually don't produce that did simply because they spent two thirds of the entire game on the field as a defense.

    Kindle Vildor (CB) and Jaylon Johnson (CB) both played their typical 100% of snaps this week but neither had a great game, this was to be expected with the Browns passing attack being somewhat banged up this week and frankly they didn't really need to pass in the first place to win this one comfortably. Run and play defense, force a rookie to beat you, that's all it took. They'll both be fine against better passing attacks or teams that are forced to pass more often.

    Alec Ogletree (LB) was in for 62% of snaps this week but somehow only managed four solo tackles this week despite spending 40 minutes on the field and the Browns producing 215 yards on the ground in this one, that's not ideal. No worries though Danny Trevethan (LB) should return soon from the short term IR and that can't happen soon enough, I for one look forward to blasting Ogletree into space and plugging ole reliable Trevethan back into my linebacker three or four slot in deeper leagues. Better days ahead. Nothing else of note here this week, the guys we needed to produce did so, the Khalil Mack (EDGE) injury was nothing more than a few missed plays, he was able to return in the second half and finished with a monster day in the box score. So we're looking good here in Chicago, for IDP production anyways, the team itself is another story entirely.

    Cleveland Browns

    Produced as expected: Myles Garrett (DE) Denzel Ward (CB) & Greg Newsome (CB) *somewhat* Jadaveon Clowney (DE) Ronnie Harrison (S) Malik Jackson (DT)

    Flash in the pan: Jeremiah Owusu Koramoah (LB) and Tak McKinley (DE) played 51% and 42% of snaps this week respectively, more on JOK below, McKinley hasn't done anything of note since the Carter administration, this is just an outlier half sack nothing more for him.

    Possible waivers: No new producers this week but JOK did see a decent bump in snaps up to 51% played this week, he's still behind Malcolm Smith (LB) who had 67% and led all linebackers and is the direct Anthony Walker (LB) replacement still but it's something, especially for those who picked him up in rookie drafts in dynasty. I still wouldn't play him unless in a crazy deep league but at least his playing time is heading in the right direction.

    Misc notes: On the flip side this Browns defense only spent 20 minutes on the field this week as they absolutely dominated time of possession and every other meaningful statistic in this matchup, the Bears offense produced 46 yards rushing and just one yard passing this week!!! There was literally nothing here to eat at all for this Browns IDP production. Don't freak out, this is why guys like John Johnson (S) and Malcolm Smith (LB) had a down week, they'll both be much better options against a real offense. Apparently Fields isn't the answer, yet anyways.

    John Johnson (S) was in for 100% of snaps yet again this week and had another down week for production, his role is clearly not even close to what it was when he was with the Rams and we all have to adjust to the new reality. I'm sure he'll have a couple nice games this season but what the Browns are asking him to do week to week just isn't going to translate to IDP points it's looking like, time to look for other options.

    Grant Delpit (S) only saw 38% of snaps this week and his production, or lack thereof, reflects that fact. Just one assisted tackle on the day, this is what I was warning people about last week when he was a flash in the pan in this article. That little playing time isn't going to work for any kind of consistent production, he could still have value at some point this season, the injury grim reaper is absolutely out in force this season so I'm not dropping him in dynasty obviously or any leagues with a deep enough bench but in shallow redraft if you chased those points from last week you can now learn from that and move on to a better option. Everything else here looked fine, the playing time looked normal for the majority of the known producers here and anyone who had a down game it can pretty easily be explained by this defense barely playing and the Bears putting up almost no offense this week for the Browns IDP corps to eat from.

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    Chuck Clark bounced back in a huge way this week

    Ravens @ Lions

    Baltimore Ravens

    Produced as expected: Chuck Clark (S) Patrick Queen (LB) Marlon Humphrey (CB) Calais Campbell (DE)

    Flash in the pan: Tavon Young (CB) was only in for 56% of snaps this week and lucked into an outlier sack that won't happen again any time soon, we can pass on this, not enough playing time (especially at cornerback).

    Possible waivers: Brandon Stephens (S) was the injury replacement for DeShon Elliot (S), more below, and ended the day with five combined tackles on only 35% of snaps as he finished out the game for Elliot, if the injury to Elliot prevents him from going next week or for any extended length of time this could be an injury replacement waiver wire safety in much deeper leagues, make sure and monitor DeShon Elliot (S) health if you plan on doing this, one allows the other.

    Misc notes: DeShon Elliot (S) left this one after playing 65% of snaps with a quad injury, I can't find much on this at the time of writing but the lack of anyone freaking out leads me to believe it's not serious, regardless if it is something that holds him out your waiver wire guy is above and he should be back sooner rather than later since we haven't seen much on this since Sunday.

    Odafe Oweh (OLB) and Anthony Averett (CB) played 79% and 95% of snaps respectively but both had a bit of a down week overall, nothing to see here for either they're still playing plenty and it's nature of the position for both. Outside linebacker or edge guys are basically splash play dependent for their points week to week, no sack or splash play no points, better week to come for him. For Averett we weren't streaming him in this matchup anyways, this was the Lions not the greatest show on turf, there were better options to go with this past week. Continue to start him in ideal streaming matchups to get ideal points from him. Not much else to see here this week, the guys who were supposed to produce did so with the notable exception of Elliot who got hurt and missed the final 35% of snaps in this one and Avertt/Oweh who we discussed above. We'll see what next week brings for this Ravens defense.

    Detroit Lions

    Produced as expected: Will Harris (S) Alex Anzalone (LB) Romeo Okwara (DE) Amani Oruwariye (CB)

    Flash in the pan: Austin Bryant (LB) was only in for 22% of snaps and lucked into a sack, not likely to happen again any time soon, we can pass on this.

    Possible waivers: Charles Harris (OLB) was the outside linebacker or edge rush replacement for Trey Flowers (DE) this week, if Flowers is out then Harris is in, he played 78% of snaps and had a nice game in the box score including a sack with all the nice things that come with that, this is entirely dependent on Flowers not playing though so keep that in mind.

    Bobby Price (S) played 100% of snaps this week, out of nowhere, and if your league scores pass defense correctly he had a huge game with just two solo tackles but three passes defended, thirteen points in most of my leagues which ain't bad at all for a guy no one knew existed until just now. This could be a nice waiver wire safety option in crazy deep leagues but we've only seen it for a week so keep that in mind, maybe add him and give him a seat and we'll see what next week brings. It's also possible this guy is playing corner is just designated a safety everywhere, in which case this is probably less than ideal, either way next week should tell us more.

    Misc notes: Derrick Barnes (LB) did play some this week but only 48% of snaps overall, I still think we need to see Jamie Collins (LB) actually leave the building before we can safely plug Barnes in going forward but at least he saw some snaps this week, a good sign for those of us who stashed this deep sleeper. We'll see what next week brings but I wouldn't plug him in just yet. UPDATE Jamie Collins has left the building.

    Tracy Walker (S) saw a rather large drop in his playing time this week down to 67% of snaps played, I just did a quick search to see if there was any news behind this but nothing seems to be sticking out. They're probably just back to playing games like last season, this is why Detroit is one of the more frustrating defenses for IDP purposes, Walker has seen nothing but ideal playing time until this week. We'll see what happens next week but I'd start looking for a backup plan just in case this becomes a trend like it has in the past.

    Amani Oruwariye (CB) continues to play the most of any corner here, 100% of snaps again this week, but unlike last week he had a nice box score with an interception, pass defense and four combined tackles in a far less than ideal matchup against this very sporadic Ravens passing attack. I wouldn't trust him anywhere except the deepest of deep leagues but at least he showed us something this week. Not a whole lot going on here beyond those notes for this defense, they were without Flowers and Collins and those are the other notable names we usually check in on here, we'll see what Tracy Walker's playing time looks like next week and continue to monitor the Derrick Barnes experiment and take it from there.

    ***UPDATE*** Jamie Collins (LB) Released by the Lions today. 9/28/21

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    What the hell happened here? 

    Colts @ Titans

    Indianapolis Colts

    Produced as expected: Julian Blackmon (S) Bobby Okereke (LB) Kenny Moore (CB) Al Quadin Muhammed (DE) Khari Willis (S) Darius Leonard (LB)

    Flash in the pan: NA, all names that make sense at the top of the box score this week.

    Possible waivers: No new producers this week, Julian Blackmon (S) is not a new producer and no you shouldn't expect eleven solo tackles from him every week, that's not normal at all, but he does play every snap most weeks.

    Misc notes: DeForest Buckner (DT) was in for 76% of snaps this week but had a down week overall with just three combined tackles and one QB hit on the day, not a total loss but also not what he's capable of either. He'll be fine, nature of the position and whatnot, defensive tackle isn't an "every week" position, it's very boom or bust, this week was bust, we draft Buckner so highly because unlike most defensive tackles most of his weeks are "boom". No need to panic here, bigger weeks to come.

    Khari Willis (S) was down at 68% of snaps this week and is currently listed as questionable in the leagues I have him in, I can't find anything on this so no idea if he got pulled due to a minor injury or what happened here, he's normally a 100% of snaps guy, regardless it's something to keep an eye on this week, maybe start looking for a backup plan in case he is dinged and that effects him this week. Not much else to see here this week, no other fluctuations in playing time in any of the guys we look to as "known IDP producers". We'll see what happens in week four and circle back afterwards.

    Tennessee Titans

    Produced as expected: David Long (LB) Harold Landry (OLB) Kevin Byard (S) and Jeffrey Simmons (DT) *somewhat* Janoris Jenkins (CB) and Kristian Fulton (CB) *somewhat*

    Flash in the pan: Rashaan Evans (LB) was only in for 64% of snaps this week and has seen wildly fluctuating playing time so far this season and his production has been a rollercoaster as a result, more below on this but it's gotten to the point where his eight combined tackles this week now qualify as a flash in the pan for me, it's no longer normal and expected production based off his usual playing time.

    Old Adeniyi (LB) was only in for 48% of snaps this week and lucked into a sack and a half, that's not likely to happen again any time soon but if it does we'll start to pay attention, I won't lose any sleep over calling this a flash in the pan.

    Possible waivers: David Long (LB) appears to be in favor more and more these days, 100% of snaps this week and a really nice box score, more below on this. Dane Cruikshank (S) played 100% of snaps at safety this week with Amani Hooker (S) now on IR he could be a decent waiver wire safety option here going forward, add him for now and we'll see what next week brings I would need to see more before actually starting him though unless in a crazy deep league where you don't have that luxury.

    Misc notes: While we were all told that Jayon Brown (LB) was healthy and ready to roll this week he ended up only playing 16% of snaps so clearly that hamstring is still bothering him, that tracks. What's interesting though is that Rashaan Evans (LB) only saw 64% of snaps this week even with Brown hobbled while Long was in for every snap. More and more we're seeing indicators that when it's all said and done, Brown totally healthy again and we're back to normal, that it will be Long and Brown as the two inside linebackers that see significant playing time here with Evans as the odd man out. We started talking about this in week one and it's been relevant every week since, time to find a backup plan if you're starting Evans anywhere cause this looks like it's happening.

    Despite the Colts offense being a shell of what we saw last season we actually did get most of the production we were hoping for from this Titans defense this week so that's a nice surprise. The big story here is obviously with the linebackers and how that shakes out but that second safety slot could be something important this season as well so we'll keep a close eye on that as well. We'll be back after week four to see what else we've learned about those two situations and anything else that comes up of note.

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    This is not the guy I expected to see at the top of the box score in this one

    Chargers @ Chiefs

    Los Angeles Chargers

    Produced as expected: Nasir Adderley (S) Linval Joseph (DT) Joey Bosa (DE) Asante Samuel Jr (CB)

    Flash in the pan: Alohi Gilman (S) was only in for 34% of snaps this week but had a monster box score, this was outlier production with not even close to ideal playing time, we can ignore it.

    The Chargers linebackers, see more below.

    Possible waivers: Te'Vaughn Campbell (CB) was in for the injured and out Chris Harris Jr (CB) and had a really nice box score along with 92% of snaps, decent streaming corner option if the Harris injury continues to be an issues like it has been the last couple weeks, one thing has to happen for the other to be relevant though so monitor Harris health in the much deeper leagues where this might make sense.

    Misc notes: The Chargers linebackers here are all over the place this week, this clearly looks like an intentional game plan designed to slow down the Chiefs passing attack, and it worked, I wouldn't freak out all that much over this but some strange stuff did happen including Kyzir White (LB) seeing the most snaps at linebacker with 70%, Kenneth Murray (LB) barely playing over half the snaps with just 51% and Drue Tranquil (LB) playing the least with only 43% of snaps but producing the most of the three with eight combined tackles. White had a really nice box score as well. Murray did almost nothing this week and when people see his playing time they're going to shit a brick. I really think this was just something wild they came up with to try and slow down the Chiefs offense, I wouldn't be surprised if we see what we saw the first couple weeks next game. Plus we need to look at gamescript in this one as well, the Chargers got out to a decent lead and the Chiefs had to play catchup. Reading further into this though there's some concern that Murray isn't adjusting to the new defense as quickly as White and Tranquil are so this could be a legit thing going forward. Next week should help tell the tale but if you can it would be prudent to find a backup option for Murray wherever you have him going just in case this does turn out to be a problem.

    Derwin James (S) was dinged in this one but still managed 91% of snaps played this week, the injury was a separated shoulder that was "popped back into place" and he was able to return to the game! That's incredible. Glad to see it wasn't anything that will take him out for any significant length of time, being able to return to the game was obviously the best case scenario. Monitor this week though if you are a Derwin shareholder just to be sure though. Beyond that everything looked OK, Joey Bosa (DE) is still hobbled but managed to continue to play in this one but not his normal snap percentage, only 70% played this week but he still managed half a sack and a handful of tackles as well so we'll take it. Those are the two injuries to watch and we'll definitely see what happens with the linebackers this week after the weird stuff we saw in this one as well.

    Kansas City Chiefs

    Produced as expected: Daniel Sorensen (S) Nick Bolton (LB) L'Jarius Sneed (S/CB) Tyrann Mathieu (S) Anthony Hitchens (LB)

    Flash in the pan: Mike Danna (DE) was in for 70% of snaps this week but only saw significant playing time partly due to the Frank Clark (DE) injury and absence from this one, even if he does maintain this nice playing time he's never been on my radar so we'll need to see some more weeks like this before giving any recommendation, both in terms of production and playing time.

    Possible waivers: Willie Gay (LB), see more below. No new producers this week.

    Misc notes: Willie Gay (LB) is eligible to return from the short term IR this next week as well, it's not clear if he'll displace Nick Bolton immediately but it's a large possibility. Neither will be safe the week he does return whenever that is, follow local beat writers out in Kansas City this week for more information as we get closer to kickoff. Regardless it's a nice waiver wire linebacker stab if you need help in medium to deeper leagues that could end up working out nicely down the line here.

    Chris Jones (DT) and Frank Clark (DE), Jones played 61% of snaps this week but had a second quiet week in a row with just two combined tackles plus a tackle for loss and a QB hit, not a total loss but also not what we drafted him so highly for. Nature of the position and the production of defensive tackle, he'll have some big weeks down the line but it will never be a weekly thing. As for Clark he missed this one as well with that same hamstring injury, we'll continue to monitor and he remains a nice option at defensive end when he is able to go. Jarran Reed (DT) was in for 70% of snaps this week but had a quiet week as well, he was a huge free agent signing for them and will have some nice games this season but once again it's just the nature of the beast here, if you understand and can accept that defensive tackle and end production is sporadic, unpredictable and anything but reliable you can plan accordingly with the rest of your defense. I do so by getting as many solid combined tackle floor guys everywhere that isn't defensive end or tackle, get the week to week consistency where you can and get the best options available at those sporadic positions by grabbing the best talent at those positions of scarcity. No real issues here this week, we'll start to really keep an eye out for news on the return of Willie Gay (LB), that will absolutely throw a wrench in Nick Bolton's (LB) waiver wire linebacker role that a ton of us have been taking advantage of these past few weeks. We'll take it as it comes. Daniel Sorensen (S) continues to play the vast majority of snaps every week and keeps giving us really nice box scores but his PFF grade and missed tackles are starting to really get noticed basically everywhere, not enough for him to be displaced by Juan Thornhill (S), at least yet anyways, but that's a real possibility down the line here this season. Have a backup plan ready if you're a Sorensen shareholder.

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    Mr. Davis has come roaring back to life after a slow week one start

    Saints @ Patriots

    New Orleans Saints

    Produced as expected: Marshon Lattimore (CB) DeMario Davis (LB) Malcolm Jenkins (S) Paulson Adebo (CB) Chauncey Gardner Johnson (CB/S) Tanoh Kpassagnon (DE) Cameron Jordan (DE) *somewhat*

    Flash in the pan: PJ Williams (CB), only 42% of snaps played this week, qualifies, he's not likely to be bolstering his IDP production with random outlier interceptions most weeks, we can pass on that.

    Possible waivers: Tanoh Kpassagnon (DE) was in for 60% of snaps and has been someone we've talked about before in much deeper leagues, guys like him or Al Quadin Muhammed (DE) are decent plays in much deeper leagues simply due to the fact that they're on the field enough and luck into some production every once in awhile, Tanoh was a fill in for the Chiefs awhile ago and had some decent games for them.

    Now that Chauncey Gardner Johnson (S/CB) is back from injury and playing again he returns as a nice safety option in much deeper leagues and a perfect corner option in leagues where that's his designation, he's always been productive despite less than ideal playing time, 86% of snaps this week where he recorded five combined tackles, one sack, two tackles for loss and a pass defense and QB hit as well. He's never going to be as consistent as a full time safety but this is a solid option in deeper leagues based on past production and playing time.

    Misc notes: Zach Baun (LB) and Pete Werner (LB) appear to be in a bit of a transition, Baun only saw 10% of snaps this week while Werner's playing time shot up to 49% of snaps played out of nowhere this week, we all knew this Baun idea wasn't a good one but there are many of us who drafted Werner in later rounds of our rookie drafts this offseason so it's possibly good news if this trend continues in regards to him. We'll see what next week brings, he's not safe enough to play yet but this is good news for Werner shareholders at least.

    Payton Turner (DE) was in for 44% of snaps this week and did nothing of note, even with the injuries here to guys like Davenport and the suspension to Onyemata he's still not playing enough to be startable anywhere which is less than ideal. We'll keep an eye on it but for now this remains a taxi squad or bench option until something changes.

    Bradley Roby (CB) was only in for 3% of snaps this week and appears to be depth only now that Lattimore is back in the fold and healthy, it's Lattimore and Adebo as the streaming corner options here unless something changes. We'll keep an eye on it. Nothing else of note here this week, nice couple of weeks for Jenkins and Davis and even Cameron Jordan, forget the fact he didn't have a sack we'll always take three solos, one tackle for loss, one pass defended and three QB hits on the day for a non splash play week that's beautiful. Points are points no matter how we get them. We'll circle back next week and take it from there.

    New England Patriots

    Produced as expected: Deatrich Wise (DE) Davon Godchaux (DT) Lawrence Guy (DE) JC Jackson (CB) Matt Judon (OLB) Kyle Dugger (S) *somewhat*

    Flash in the pan: Ju'Whuan Bentley (LB) was only in for 48% of snaps this week yet managed to lead the Patriots in production with seven combined tackles and a pass defense, his shareholders got lucky, just keep this in mind for your weekly Pats IDP options, there playing time and therefore production will fluctuate wildly week to week due to the nature of this defense, it's always changing and is never set in stone.

    Possible waivers: No new producers this week.

    Misc notes: Stephon Gilmore (CB) still won't be an option until around week seven, Chase Winovich (DE) remains a terrible idea, just 27% of snaps this week and almost no production once again this week. Donta Hightower (LB) was yet another victim of the nature of this defense seeing only 68% of snaps this week and barely any production. That's just how things go here in New England, there really are no safe options, even someone as talented as Kyle Dugger (S) hasn't seen ideal playing time week to week here and has come crashing back to earth in terms of production since week one. This defense shifts and changes to best adapt to whatever offense it faces each week, Belichick doesn't give a crap about your IDP defense. It's much the same in Miami and Detroit, more so last season in Detroit but we're seeing some shenanigans this year as well with Tracy Walker (S) and the linebackers as well, regardless these three defenses but New England in particular are really terrible for IDP purposes. I wouldn't trust any of the options here unless it was a crazy deep league and I didn't have any other choices. If you want to read differing variations of this rant simply read the Patriots section of this article literally any week from the last three years of me writing this and you'll get similar information and arguments worded slightly differently as I remind people over and over again until the end of time that playing Patriots IDP options is a bad idea.

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    How bad is the news in New York for Mr. Martinez?

    Falcons @ Giants

    Atlanta Falcons

    Produced as expected: Foye Oluokun (LB) Deion Jones (LB) Grady Jarrett (DT) Erik Harris (S/LB) Dante Fowler (OLB/EDGE)

    Flash in the pan: TJ Green (CB) and Isaiah Oliver (CB) played 100% and 81% of snaps respectively this week, which is plenty upon first look, however Green only saw the field due to the AJ Terrell (CB) injury, his return should be sooner rather than later, it was a concussion if I recall correctly so it won't be a long term thing, as for Oliver he's the third corner here behind Moreau and Terrell when things are normal so he'll have less opportunity to score points than those two week to week, I'd pass on that unless we're talking a crazy deep league, there are tons of corners available every week who play every snap not just most of them.

    Possible waivers: No new producers this week.

    Misc notes: Duron Harmon (S) is now splitting snaps with Jaylin Hawkins (S) which means neither is a great option currently, 69% and 33% of snaps respectively this week, I would avoid both for now. We'll see what the future brings. Richie Grant (S) continues to see special teams snaps only, not great, he's still a taxi squad or bench guy for now. Maybe he'll get a chance later in the season. Everything else here looked good this week, the guys who we count on to produce did so and we even got a really nice bounce back week from Grady Jarrett (DT) as predicted here. Looking good in Atlanta.

    New York Giants

    Produced as expected: Logan Ryan (S/CB) Gerbil Peppers (S) Xavier McKinney (S) Leonard Williams (DE)

    Flash in the pan: Austin Johnson (DT) and Azeez Ojulari (LB) played 63% and 50% of snaps respectively this week, for Johnson that's plenty however he's a nose tackle according to NFLGsis and that's not a traditionally IDP relevant position simply due to their role week to week which is more space clogger and run stopper and less pass rusher and splash play maker. For Ojulari this is not the third week in a row he's logged an outlier sack with far less than ideal playing time, maybe he'll do it all seventeen weeks, maybe I'll poop solid after Taco Bell, these are the questions that keep me up at night. Odds are good though that when guys like Chandler Jones and TJ Watt don't go every week of the season with a sack or splash play Azeez Ojulari won't be either. He'll come back down to earth sooner rather than later.

    Possible waivers: Tae Crowder (LB), go get him, now. More below.

    Misc notes: Blake Martinez (LB) is done for the season, it appears that Tae Crowder (LB) is his replacement at the moment, will that stick all season? No idea. Is it the best move you can make right now? Yes. We'll keep an eye on it and track this as things progress, the injury grim reaper strikes again.

    Jabrill (Gerbil) Peppers (S) was only in for 69% of snaps this week and apparently had a meltdown before the game and was throwing a temper tantrum according to a Giants beat writer on Twitter. He's had some issues this season, well every season, with being good at football and because of that has seen fluctuations in playing time because he's a liability in coverage among other issues. With a PFF grade of 66.1 currently he's improved somewhat since the start of the season but he's also allowed 13 catches on 15 targets so his coverage skills remain pretty crappy, this is a passing league, if you can't cover you can't play. I don't have any shares, do what you will with this but I'm all set. His value is that he returns punts occasionally and used to be a 100% of snaps safety, that's not the case any longer for the second part and the vast majority of leagues don't have return yards, so essentially he's useless unless he can maintain an extremely high tackling efficiency throughout the season based on far less than ideal playing time week to week.

    James Bradberry (CB) and Dexter Lawrence (DE/DT) played their normal snaps this week but both had a down week overall, nature of the position for both. Corner is wildly unpredictable, that's why most leagues don't use them, and for defensive line same deal, most weeks it's nothing, some weeks they get a sack or splash play. The more talented guys who also play more snaps tend to do it more often and that's why we draft them highly, that's not Dexter Lawrence, at least yet anyways. He'll have some good weeks before it's all said and done but for now he remains a defensive tackle or end two preferably three in deeper leagues. Everything else was fine here this week, we'll monitor the Martinez replacement situation and the Peppers fiasco and report back after this week's games.

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    The Real Deal?

    Bengals @ Steelers

    Cincinnati Bengals

    Produced as expected: Logan Wilson (LB) Jessie Bates (S) Eli Apple (CB) Sam Hubbard (DE) Mike Hilton (CB) Trey Hendrickson (DE) Vonn Bell (S)

    Flash in the pan: Akeem Davis Gaither (LB) and Germaine Pratt (LB) played 54% and 43% of snaps respectively this week and have done nothing else of note this season, this has far more to do with the approximately ten thousand short dump off bail out passes to Najee Harris (RB) that were tackled by a Bengals linebacker and far less to do with either of these guys playing enough or being talented enough to be a legit waiver wire linebacker option, pass on both.

    BJ Hill (DT) and Cam Sample (DE) played 40% and 37% of snaps this week respectively, not enough for any kind of consistency for either, lucky outlier flash in the pan production based off a sack for each, not likely to happen again any time soon, pass here as well.

    Possible waivers: No new producers this week, Logan Wilson (LB) last call, he's gone in even the shallowest leagues after this weeks box score so I hope you paid attention to previous iterations of this article.

    Misc notes: Chidobe Awuzie (CB) was only in for 49% of snaps this week due to a groin injury that took him out early, with news that Trae Waynes (CB) will also be in the mix this week the Bengals cornerbacks corps will look a little different this week so we may wish to tread carefully streaming them this week due to the uncertainty with injuries and options returning from injury. They've got the Jaguars anyways and not the second coming of the 2013 Colts so we can probably skip that matchup to stream from to begin with and avoid this headache entirely.

    Larry Ogunjobi (DT) was in for his normal playing time, 69% of snaps this week, but came back to earth with only three combined tackles and a tackle for loss, still not terrible at all for a non sack non splash play game at defensive tackle, he's been a nice surprise this season and continues to be a solid defensive tackle two or three in deeper leagues. Jessie Bates (S) didn't practice today (9/28/21) due to a neck injury, keep an eye on that since they play early this week on Thursday night, if he can't go that's a tier one safety option we lose this week. Will he ever find happiness with Anna? Everything else was fine here in Cincy. Nice win for the Bengals. UPDATE Jessie Bates (S) will not play this week, no idea who his replacement is and don't care to be honest, it's the Jags not the 92' Cowboys in the building, you can skip this one or follow up with local beat writers, Ben Baby on Twitter, to see who the replacement is if you're in a crazy deep league and need to go with a (likely one week only) option like that.

    Pittsburgh Steelers

    Produced as expected: Joe Schobert (LB) Terrell Edmunds (S) That's it legitimately, this Bengals offense scored quick and got out in front and stayed there, the Steelers actually dominated time of possession as they attempted over and over again to climb back into this one unsuccessfully all game long. The Steelers defense only spent 25 minutes on the field and despite the blowout win the Bengals offense didn't do a ton besides score enough points to win comfortably.

    Flash in the pan: NA, the couple names that produced enough IDP points this week belong at the top of the box score and make sense.

    Possible waivers: No one I plan on talking about since they'll be useless the second TJ Watt (EDGE) and Alex Highsmith (EDGE) return to the lineup.

    Misc notes: With TJ Watt (EDGE) out this week, Alex Highsmith (EDGE) also, this defense was a shell of what it's capable of being and as a result was shredded by cool Joe Burrow and company. They'll be better with those two guys back and we can ignore the flash in the pan playing time, production as well, from guys like Derek Tuszka (LB) and Chris Wormley (DE) since they'll disappear the second these guys are healthy again and it looked like minimum Watt had a decent chance to play this week and they just sided with caution. There were no significant fluctuations in playing time here this week for the known and relied upon producers. The Joe Schobert (LB) and Devin Bush (LB) breakdown was 89% for Joe and 81% for Devin. Terrell Edmunds (S) is back to playing about 80% of snaps again like last season, the early 100% of snaps trend was too good to be true. Beyond that nothing to see here. Moving on.

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    Warm body production by default, the life blood of IDP

    Cardinals @ Jaguars

    Arizona Cardinals

    Produced as expected: Jordan Hicks (LB) Jalen Thompson (S) Marco Wilson (CB) Budda Baker (S) Isaiah Simmons (LB) Robert Alford (CB) Byron Murphy (CB) Markus Golden (OLB)

    Flash in the pan: NA, all names that make sense at the top of the box score this week.

    Possible waivers: No new producers this week but Jalen Thompson (S) did have two good weeks in a row, I could be totally wrong about him and if I am you may as well add him now because it's better to have him and not need him than need him and not have him, I won't be though, I still don't believe it's real, same deal with Olujari on the Giants, it's just outlier nonsense and we have such a small sample size that it looks good to people who have only ever seen three games worth of IDP production in their lives. I've seen sixteen games a week (approximately, bye weeks and whatnot) for sixteen weeks a season for eighteen years games worth of IDP production so I think I can smell BS by now. That's over 4,500 games of IDP production sweet Jesus I'm getting old.

    Misc notes: Chandler Jones (EDGE) was in for 90% of snaps and had an acceptable game considering no sacks or splash plays, three solo tackles, one tackle for loss and three QB hits for approximately eleven points in most of my leagues which is perfectly acceptable for a non sack non splash play week at EDGE. He's ahead of the curve with two solid games out of three this season, no reason to complain at all here.

    JJ Watt (DE) however only had two combined tackles and a tackle for loss on 82% of snaps this week and is yet to record a sack or splash play on the season, I can understand the frustration here a little more but would still advise patience. He's playing more than plenty, we've seen the historical production, we know he has the talent and opportunity. That's all we can control, the rest is up to the football Gods. I'm not moving him for any lineup where I have him currently, generally as a defensive end two or three in deeper leagues. Bigger weeks to come.

    Zaven Collins (LB) still topping out at 41% of snaps this week as Jordan Hicks (LB) played all 100% of snaps and Isaiah Simmons (LB) clocked in at 88% this week. He's still the odd man out despite the high draft pick, that won't last forever, we're a Jordan Hicks (LB) injury away from a major role here and in dynasty this looks like a lock for next season (where it makes far more sense financially to release Hicks) regardless. For now we wait. Nothing else to see here this week, go get Byron Murphy (CB) off waivers to stream at corner, the Rams are in town this week.

    Jacksonville Jaguars

    Produced as expected: Myles Jack (LB) Damien Wilson (LB) Tyson Campbell (CB) Andrew Wingard (S) Shaq Griffin (CB)

    Flash in the pan: NA, all names that make sense at the top of the box score this week.

    Possible waivers: Andrew Wingard (S), Rayshawn Jenkins (S) and Damien Wilson (LB) now while you still can in some places, this Jags defense spends approximately 36 minutes on the field every single week (the Jags offense is ranked 31st in time of possession this season) and availability is the best ability. The warm body production by default is STRONG on this defense! Give me all of it. Don't even worry about the down week for RESHAPE Jenkins, he'll be fine. Now there's been some back and forth on this idea on IDP Twitter and I don't know about you but this seems pretty straightforward to me, we look at guys like Justin Simmons (S), Alexander Johnson (LB) and Josey Jewell (LB), before he got hurt, and see that they only spent approximately 23 minutes a game on the field so far this year (Denver's offense is currently ranked number one in time of possession). All three of those known, consistent, reliable producers are having down seasons overall to the point where people are freaking out and dropping them everywhere and the reason behind the lack of production seems pretty obvious to me, they aren't playing nearly as much as a defense week to week as they were last season with HCL at the helm driving that offense into the ground and keeping that defense on the field constantly, and when they are on the field opposing offenses aren't producing against them and are going three and out or turning over the ball, it's a combination of less opportunity plus better actual football play defensively that's hurting those traditionally consistent and reliable options. If the opposing offense can't sustain drives where are the tackles, pass defenses and opportunities for splash plays going to come from? If the defense isn't on the field because the offense is how can they score IDP points from the bench? Sure there will still be sacks and picks but where will the tackles come from? The tackles are the life blood of IDP production, like it or not.

    We see the reverse of that here and we've got two excellent waiver wire IDP safeties, a stud in Myles Jack (LB) and an excellent waiver wire linebacker in Damien Wilson (LB). These guys aren't pro bowlers. They aren't stars. They are just dudes with a pulse who are on the field a ton, they are key to consistent weekly IDP production, warm body production by default. I look at these box scores, snaps and read what the beat writers have to say every single week and every single week the team that wins time of possession always has far fewer names overall under their defensive box score, they also have far fewer combined tackles and passes defended than if the situation were reversed, that's not always true for sacks and picks but then again those aren't something we can ever predict reliably. Follow the tackles, that's your floor for your IDP defense, the other stuff is nice but you can't rely on it. It's a nice bonus but the tackles are what should be your bread and butter. There will be a shitload of tackles here in Jacksonville because this offense is beyond terrible and this defense will be on the field constantly. Does that mean I agree that we should reward bad defense, mediocre players no one will remember next season and that the biggest cross section of IDP production should be from situations like this? Nope. But is that what it is right now? Yes. I'm a realist, until it changes I'll adapt to the here and now. And here and now this Jags defense is Gods gift to IDP for weekly tackle production. And I'm not alone in saying this, HUGE names in IDP Twitter have mentioned production by default and defenses being on the field more often due to their offense losing the time of possession battle consistently as positive factors for player X or Y as a weekly IDP option. And it doesn't necessarily even mean that offense is bad, Seattle spends a ton of time on defense every week and their offense is fine, their pace of play and ability to score quickly via big plays works to the advantage of their defense for time spent on the field and is just as good as if they were terrible and going three and out all the time. Doesn't matter how it happens as long as the offense sucks at their time of possession ranking the defense will spend more time on the field than others. 

    Rant complete, grab these guys while you still can because it's going to be a long season in Jacksonville and this defense is going to spend the vast majority of it on the field producing IDP points.

    Misc notes: Josh Allen (DE) was in for 76% of snaps this week but had a down week overall, just one tackle assist on the day, better days to come for him he's still playing plenty and we've seen the production in the past. He's even already had one really nice week of the three total this season, as long as he's not your best and primary option at defensive end you should be fine with this.

    Rayshawn Jenkins (S) was in for 100% of snaps but had a down week, he still played a ton of snaps in the box and we know that's excellent for him and his chances at good consistent production here this season, he should be fine as well.

    K'Lavon Chaisson (OLB), 46% of snaps this week, isn't fine, won't ever be fine, no change here.

    Andre Cisco (S) and Andrew Wingard (S) no changes here either, Cisco didn't play anything but special teams this week and Wingard was in for every single snap so if anything it got slightly worse for Cisco and a little bit better for Wingard. That switch still hasn't happened and still no sign of it happening any time soon, enjoy your Andrew Wingard (S) warm body production by default for now and we'll hope we catch the warning signs in time before they yank the rug out from under us and start Cisco later this season after they've realized their season has been swirling the toilet since week one. Not much else to see here this week, moving on.

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    Like a zombie crawling out of the grave Von Miller is dangerous once more

    Jets @ Broncos

    New York Jets

    Produced as expected: CJ Mosley (LB) Marcus Maye (S) Quincy Williams (LB) Quinnen Williams (DT) Bryce Hall (CB)

    Flash in the pan: Bryce Huff (DE) was only in for 46% of snaps and only got us half a sack on the day, neither of those pieces of information are really mind blowing so we can skip this.

    Possible waivers: Quincy Williams (LB) for as long as Jarrad Davis (LB) remains out of the lineup, we're getting close to him being eligible to return though so keep an eye on that if you plan on doing this.

    Misc notes: Jarrad Davis (LB) and Ashtyn Davis (S) are eligible to return soon assuming it was the short term IR for them, I just did a search on both of these guys and didn't find anything concrete so we'll circle back next week and see if there's any updates, this might be something we hear about game day or randomly on Twitter or we could miss it entirely, shit I could miss it entirely, I've got a life beyond all this stuff and it's wonderful. Worst case we do miss it and I'll tell you afterwards, I'm telling you now though so at least it will be on everyone's radar. Take some personal responsibility and do your own investigative work occasionally, I'm only capable of tracking down so much of this crap week to week.

    Quinnen Williams (DT) bounced beck in a huge way this week with a sack and a half plus all the trimmings that go with that along with four combined tackles and two QB hits, told you he would be fine, normal playing time here too no issues there.

    John Franklin Meyers (DE) played plenty, 67% of snaps this week, but had a down week overall, nothing to see here just nature of the position. Better weeks to come, not nearly as many better weeks as guys like Myles Garrett (DE) or Danielle Hunter (DE) but then again that's why we take them as our first IDP picks in start ups and we pick up this guy off waivers only after the injury grim reaper has forced us to a few weeks into the season, match your expectations to reality my friends. Everything else looked good here this week, Adrian Colbert (S) got some random safety snaps but not enough to really talk about it and we'll need to see it again before it's anything other than something weird in the snap counts. The guys we count on to produce did so and did so well, we'll take it. Marcus Maye (S) will miss approximately four weeks with an injury, Astyn Davis (S) is practicing this week so there's your replacement right there, this news broke today, Wednesday.

    Denver Broncos

    Produced as expected: Alexander Johnson (LB) Justin Simmons (S) Patrick Surtain (CB) Malik Reed (EDGE) Von Miller (EDGE) Shelby Harris (DE)

    Flash in the pan: Caden Sterns (S) was only in for 24% of snaps and lucked into an interception, never heard of him, doesn't play enough, not interested.

    Possible waivers: Justin Strnad (LB) was in fact the other inside linebacker of note here this week replacing the injured and out for the season Josey Jewell (LB), he played 76% of snaps but only recorded four combined tackles, reasons for that below, he'll be fine. GET HIM NOW. Much better production coming now that the Broncos are hitting the "real football teams" part of their schedule.

    We've talked about Malik Reed (EDGE) before, he's the Bradley Chubb (EDGE) replacement and is a fine option in deeper leagues for boom or bust sack or splash play dependent production for the duration of the Chubb injury, just make sure Chubb is actually inactive before you plug him in each week.

    Misc notes: Not to continue to harp on this but anyone who thinks that Justin Simmons (S) just all of a sudden stinks and hasn't looked at the other factors, mentioned above in the last section with the Jags, is only seeing half the picture here. The Broncos only spent 24 minutes on defense this week, let's start there, during those 24 minutes the Jets recorded a total of just eleven first downs, 119 yards passing and 43 yards rushing for the entire game. The Broncos defense also recorded two interceptions and four sacks, those two picks immediately ended those Jets drives and the four sacks most definitely helped put a sudden and swift end to those Jets drives on offense as well. Asking guys like Simmons and Johnson to produce consistently week to week when opposing offenses are giving them THAT to work with (the other two games this season for the Broncos look amazingly similar both in time of possession and opposing offensive stats) is not realistic. This week we got lucky, Johnson lucked into two sacks and Simmons had one of those interceptions so we got away with it, what neither of them had was a legit opportunity to give us anything resembling a nice combined tackle floor. Without that combined tackle floor we're JUST relying on sacks, picks and sporadic splash plays for the entirety of their IDP production.

    Ask anyone who's ever rolled out an outside linebacker in their regular linebacker slot how that goes, typically not well. Sure some weeks are good, like this week for Simmons and Johnson, but the consistency disappears without a combined tackle floor available. This is what's happening with those guys and I would bet my internal organs that this problem will go away entirely once they Broncos reach the portion of their schedule where they play the Chargers twice, the Chiefs twice, the Raiders twice, the Ravens once, the Steelers once, the Bengals once and the Browns, Eagles and Cowboys once. What do all those teams have in common that the Giants, Jets and Jaguars do not? They have an offense. With a real life opposing offense across from this defense I would bet the farm that these games aren't so lopsided in terms of time of possession and that with opposing teams actually being able to sustain drives, create first downs, complete passes and put up points that MAGICALLY these Broncos IDP options will raise up from the dead like a phoenix from the ashes. It all starts this week with the Ravens coming to town, I for one will be firing up my Justin Simmons (S) and Alexander Johnson (LB) shares that I've been collecting off the waiver wire the last few weeks with extreme confidence as we enter the "real opponents" phase of the Broncos schedule.

    Not much else to see here this week, Kareem Jackson (S) and Kyle Fuller (CB) both had down games for production but that makes complete sense after you just finished reading the rant/explanation above. They'll both be fine going forward, shit is about to get real for this Broncos team, the cupcakes are over with, time to play some actual competitive football starting this week against the Ravens.

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    Can Denzel Perryman continue to produce as efficiently as we've seen in the first couple weeks?

    Dolphins @ Raiders

    Miami Dolphins

    Produced as expected: Jerome Baker (LB) Christian Wilkins (DT) Xavien Howard (CB) and Byron Jones (CB) *somewhat*

    Flash in the pan: Zach Sieler (DT) and Brandon Jones (S) played 51% and 43% of snaps respectively this week, Sieler I'll keep an eye on he could end up being something down the line but Jones is just another example of what this defense does every week, some random guy who doesn't play enough has a massive week in the box score, people chase those points and it gets them nothing because they aren't playing enough for any kind of consistency. Pass on Jones, pass on Sieler for now but we'll see.

    Elandon Roberts (LB), 57% of snaps, same deal as Brandon Jones (S), not enough playing time for consistent production either. Nik Needham (CB), 69% of snaps, same story as well.

    Possible waivers: Jaelen Phillips (OLB) saw a pretty large increase in playing time this week, the highly sought after rookie hasn't played much at all this season and as a result hasn't produced much either, that changed this week with a jump to 59% of snaps while recording six combined tackles on the day, four of those solo. A great sign for the popular pick in all our rookie drafts in dynasty. Probably still not safe to start yet but this is movement in the right direction at least, we'll see what next week brings.

    Misc notes: Jevon Holland (S) was only in for 51% of snaps this week and if fluctuating with the playing time and therefore the production, it appears he isn't as "locked in" for his role and playing time as most of us, myself included, thought prior to the season and through the first couple weeks. I'm yanking him where I've got him until we see more consistent and ideal playing time.

    Emmanuel Ogbah (DE) played his usual 76% of snaps but had a down week overall, he'll be fine, nature of the position and production at defensive line. Better weeks to come. Nothing else of note here in Miami. Moving on.

    Las Vegas Raiders

    Produced as expected: Denzel Perryman (LB) Cory Littleton (LB) Jonathan Abram (S) Trayvon Mullen (CB)

    Flash in the pan: Quinton Jefferson (DT) was in for 57% of snaps which is enough for defensive tackle and has been a known IDP quantity in the past but hasn't been relevant in some time, we'll need to see this a couple more times before it feels real.

    Solomon Thomas (DT) and Carl Nassib (DE) played 45% and 29% of snaps respectively this week and split a sack, nothing to see here in regards to playing time or production. Pass on both.

    Possible waivers: Denzel Perryman (LB) continues to be the best linebacker option here by a good amount and his playing time shot up roughly 20% this week to 92% of snaps played overall, it's no longer him and Littleton neck and neck for playing time after this week, get him now if you still can this window is closing forever. Excellent waiver wire linebacker option.

    Misc notes: Maxx Crosby (DE) and Yannick Ngakoue (DE) played 75% and 73% of snaps respectively this week which was the most for the defensive ends, neither had a noteworthy day but both should have some nice games this season, nature of the position and all that, nothing to worry about long term. KJ Wright (LB) was only in for 11% of snaps and remains not an option here, no changes on that front. Tre'Von Moehrig (S) is still playing a ton and doing precisely nothing with those snaps, 93% of snaps and just one tackle on the day, a complete waste of a dynasty rookie pick so far, we'll keep an eye on it though. Everything else looked good here in Vegas.

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    As constant as the northern star

    Bucs @ Rams

    Tampa Bay Buccaneers

    Produced as expected: Devin White (LB) Lavonte David (LB) Antoine Winfield Jr (S) Shaq Barrett (EDGE) Ross Cockrell (CB)

    Flash in the pan: William Gholston (DE) was only in for 37% of snaps this week and lucked into a sack, the only sack for this defense this week, we can pass on this, he's not playing enough to keep this up.

    Possible waivers: No new producers this week, Joe Tyron Soyinka (OLB) was just a short term option to replace JPP and will be gone again as soon as Pierre Paul returns from injury so it's not really worth looking at, he didn't do much to begin with as well.

    Misc notes: Ross Cockrell (CB) had a really nice week and was in for 88% of snaps but with the Richard Sherman (CB) signing he'll likely see a reduced role shortly, it will likely end up being Carlton Davis (CB), Sherman and either Murphy Bunting or Dean when they're available after a return from injury. We'll have to see how this shakes out, Davis is the only safe option currently until we see how this plays out. The Bucs pass rush only managed one sack on the day and JPP was injured and out to begin with, we can just chock this game up as an outlier, this defense will get back on track, very likely this week against a Patriots team that is going to get destroyed big time. They'll all be fine, no significant changes in playing time or anything to worry about, just an off week for this defense in general.

    Jordan Whitehead (S) only played 65% of snaps this week, this could be them easing him back into the lineup after that injury or it could be that they liked what they saw in Mike Edwards (S), 35% of snaps this week, regardless neither is a legit option with them both splitting that other safety role here at the moment. Everything else here looked good this week, surprising down week for Carlton Davis (CB) in a pretty ideal streaming matchup but it happens, this defense and team overall should bounce back against New England on Sunday night this week, there will be blood.

    Los Angeles Rams

    Produced as expected: Kenny Young (LB) Jalen Ramsey (CB) Darious Williams (CB) Taylor Rapp (S) and Jordan Fuller (S) *somewhat* Leonard Floyd (OLB) Aaron Donald (DT)

    Flash in the pan: A'Shawn Robinson (DT) was only in for 26% of snaps this week and hasn't been IDP relevant since his Lions days, and even then it was just in theory, it never actually worked out. We can pass on this pretty easily.

    Possible waivers: No new producers this week, Kenny Young (LB) was in for 100% of snaps though and continues to be the best linebacker option here by a goodly amount. Grab him if he's there, we got bye weeks coming soon and the injury grim reaper is always out there.

    Misc notes: Not a whole lot going on here honestly, we're still trying to figure out the safety situation and which option is better for the rest of the season but beyond that everyone we know here as a "known" IDP producer who we might rely upon for weekly production did what they were supposed to do across the board. Good news everywhere in Los Angeles with the Rams. We'll see what next week brings.

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    Eric Kendricks had a nice matchup with the Seahawks well balanced offense in town this week

    Seahawks @ Vikings

    Seattle Seahawks

    Produced as expected: Jamal Adams (S) Bobby Wagner (LB) Tre Flowers (CB) Jordyn Brooks (LB)

    Flash in the pan: Darrell Taylor (DE) and Alton Robinson (DE) played 49% and 56% of snaps respectively this week which isn't terrible at defensive end, the issue here is the entire defensive line, tackles and ends, is in a true rotation and we have seen all kinds of fluctuation week to week for playing time, at this point there's no way to figure out who the best bets are week to week for the best playing time and therefore the best shot at consistent production. Beyond Poona Ford (DT) that is, and he ain't exactly been Aaron Donald (DT) 2.0. I'm just avoiding this entire situation completely until we get some clarity on how this thing will look the rest of the season.

    Possible waivers: No new producers this week.

    Misc notes: Al Woods (DT) only saw 43% of snaps this week after seeing much more than that the last couple weeks, I touched on this above, he's in flux just like the other guys here on the defensive line. Rasheem Green (DE) and Carlos Dunlap (DE) played 56% of snaps each, that's far more than usual (so far this season anyways) for Dunlap and a few less than recent for Green (if I recall correctly) and is yet another example of the defensive line in flux here.

    Jordyn Brooks (LB) was dinged in this one and it looked like it might have been a somewhat serious injury at the time but he was able to return and finish the game, he ended with only 67% of snaps played due to that missed time while they examined the injury but still recorded seven combined tackles, a tackle for loss and a QB hit on the day so we got what we needed out of him. He was carted off the field...for cramps. You can see how this initially looked not great at all but in the end turned out alright. Thank God for small favors. Not much else to see here this week, the guys we count on for production gave it to us, the defensive line is a mess but we'll keep checking in on it and maybe we'll find some consistency for the playing time and therefore the production at some point this season.

    Minnesota Vikings

    Produced as expected: Eric Kendricks (LB) Harrison Smith (S) Nick Vigil (LB) Bashaud Breeland (CB) Everson Griffen (DE)

    Flash in the pan: NA, all names that make sense at the top of the box score this week.

    Possible waivers: Nick Vigil (LB) continues to be an option while Anthony Barr (OLB) is injured and out, that won't last forever though and there are 100% some people who don't know that one thing is tied to the other and will absolutely freak out when Barr returns and Vigil disappears like a Thanos snap one of these weeks here shortly, don't let that be you, continue to monitor Barr's status if you want to continue to plug in Vigil week to week.

    Misc notes: Xavier Woods (S), Danielle Hunter (DE) and Dalvin Tomlinson (DT) all played their customary snaps this week but all had down weeks overall, Patrick Peterson (CB) as well. Part of this was just nature of the position for all these guys, well except Woods, he was more the second thing I'll be talking about here shortly, but for Hunter, Tomlinson and Peterson they play massively sporadic IDP positions that are boom or bust week to week and it is what it is, business as usual there. For Woods I think his down week had more to do with the Vikings defense only being on the field for 24 minutes total, a good deal less than usual for this defense, that was immediately apparent when I saw this box score without even checking the team stats, there are legitimately over twenty guys who recorded some kind of defensive statistic for the Seahawks defense this week and only fourteen or so for the Vikings, whenever I see that kind of imbalance it's one of the indicators of a large imbalance in the time of possession battle, interesting note though the Seahawks always lose the time of possession battle and are one of the worst ranked teams in the league in that statistic but it has nothing to do with their offense being bad, quite the contrary in fact.

    Their pace of play and ability to score quickly from big plays has the same effect that going three and out constantly and turning the ball over has on teams like the Jets, their defense is on the field constantly. The bottom line is it doesn't matter how it happens so long as it does it makes the IDP pieces on those teams with a terrible time of possession ranking more valuable than teams that don't have that issue. Anyways, Woods didn't play as much this week, he'll be better going forward I would bet, or not, who really cares he's just a shot in the dark safety play in crazy deep leagues anyways. Everything else looks good here in Minnesota, hopefully we'll get a bounce back game from Hunter next week. Onwards.

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    Did Fred and Al Shaair put up numbers this week?

    Packers @ 49ers

    Green Bay Packers

    Produced as expected: De'Vondre Campbell (LB) Darnell Savage (S) Adrian Amos (S) Jaire Alexander (CB) Eric Stokes (CB) Preston Smith (OLB) Kenny Clark (DT) Rashaan Gary (OLB)

    Flash in the pan: Oren Burks (LB), Jonathan Garvin (LB) and TJ Slaton (DT) played 36%, 29% and 3% of snaps respectively and all split parts of two sacks combined, we can pass on all this nonsense. You can see why I would hope. Eric Stokes (CB) produced as expected but only because Kevin King (CB) was injured and out so he replaced him due to that injury, don't chase this as a waiver wire pickup his playing time will plummet once King is back.

    Possible waivers: No new producers this week, Stokes doesn't count, see above. He'll be an option at some point, not yet though. Preston Smith (OLB) and Rashaan Gary (OLB) will likely both continue to see increased snaps while Za'Darius Smith (OLB) is injured and out like we've been seeing, Smith won't take a huge hit he usually plays a bunch regardless but Gary absolutely will once Za'Darius is back, keep that in mind.

    Misc notes: Not a whole lot to talk about here this week, what a great game that was. We'll keep looking to see when Za'Darius Smith (OLB) is coming back, I just checked for news on this and there's nothing yet. We'll keep an eye on it. Kevin King (CB) should be back soon as well. Beyond that everyone we look to as a known and popular IDP option here delivered for us this week, Krys Barnes (LB) shouldn't have been in that category after what we saw last week but if you did roll him out, after I told you not to specifically, you got nailed by the injury grim reaper and his 14% of snaps and three combined tackles (only one of them solo) in this game. He won't be relevant again until something changes with De'Vondre Campbell (LB), who's been excellent for them and has an iron grip on that job at the moment.

    San Francisco 49ers

    Produced as expected: Azeez Al Shaair (LB) Fred Warner (LB) Emmanuel Moseley (CB) Javon Kinlaw (DT) Arik Armstead (DT) Nick Bosa (DE) *somewhat*

    Flash in the pan: NA, all the right names at the top of the box score this week.

    Possible waivers: Emmanuel Moseley (CB) played 100% of snaps in his first game back this season and recorded six combined tackles and two passes defended, he becomes the best streaming corner option here once more.

    Misc notes: Deommodore Lenoir (CB) and Josh Norman (CB) both saw a decent reduction in playing time with the return of Emmanuel Moseley (CB), I missed the notice on this so I got caught starting Lenoir in a deeper league and his production absolutely suffered as a result of this. They played 71% and 48% of snaps respectively this week and immediately get a downgrade in the streaming corner world with Moseley back in the mix.

    Jimmy Ward (S) and Jaquiski Tartt (S) had a down week but played their normal snaps, Nick Bosa didn't land a sack but had enough other stats to give us an acceptable week, Dee Ford (DE) is still only playing 32% of snaps so he remains not an option. Beyond that everyone we look to for production gave us production. So we're looking good. Let's finish up I'm already clear of seventeen thousand words and my brains are melting out my ears.

    You're Patrick Mahomes? Good to see you. 

    Eagles @ Cowboys

    Philadelphia Eagles

    Produced as expected: Anthony Harris (S) Alex Singleton (LB) Javon Hargrave (DT) Eric Wilson (LB) Avonte Maddox (CB) Josh Sweat (DE)

    Flash in the pan: TJ Edwards (LB) only played 41% of snaps and lucked into an outlier sack, we can pass on that.

    Possible waivers: It's too late now for Hargrave, I hope you were listening since week one when I've been screaming about that as a good option. Marcus Epps (S) saw a large increase in snaps up to 87% played this week and recorded four combined tackles and a pass defense, this is the first time we've seen ideal or close to it playing time for him so I'm hesitant but it happened, we'll look again after this week. Also I believe they're down their other starting safety, his name eludes me currently, so even if this is legit it's likely just short term so buyer beware.

    Misc notes: Derek Barnett (DE), Josh Sweat (DE) and Ryan Kerrigan (DE) were in for 71%, 63% and 36% of snaps respectively this week, we expected the rotation here to rotate less often with Brandon Graham (DE) injured and out for the season and that's what happened. Barnett saw the biggest bump with Sweat seeing the next biggest and Kerrigan actually lost snaps this week, stock up for the first two and stock down for Kerrigan.

    Fletcher Cox (DT) was only in for 57% of snaps this week and no longer appears to be the favored son at defensive tackle with the incredible start to the season that Hargrave is having, we'll see if this lasts but for now he's definitely taken a step back in terms of playing time and we haven't seen his typical production yet either, not great.

    Alex Singleton (LB) and Eric Wilson (LB) played 74% and 63% of snaps respectively this week, for those of you keeping score at home it's now Singleton with the most inside linebacker snaps two of the three weeks total this season now. Now how most envisioned it but here we are. Do with that what you will, what I did was look for better options wherever I had either of these guys because they're both playing less than what we had thought they would heading into the season. Everything else here looked good, we've got some situations to monitor on the defensive line with the ends and with these two linebackers going forward so we'll see what this week brings and reevaluate during next weeks edition of this ridiculous ass article I spend twelve plus hours on every week. Home stretch.

    Dallas Cowboys

    Produced as expected: Jayron Kearse (S) Anthony Brown (CB) Trevon Diggs (CB) Micah Parsons (LB)

    Flash in the pan: Osa Odighizuwa (DT) only played 57% of snaps, which is actually fine at defensive tackle, it's just I've never heard of this guy so I'll need to see it again to pay attention. Pass for now, or do more research on your own if interested, I'm all set currently.

    Possible waivers: Jayron Kearse (S) was up to 93% of snaps played this week and has really established himself as a starting safety option in Dallas, feel free if you need safety help this is starting to look pretty good.

    Misc notes: The Cowboys dominated time of possession, and every other meaningful statistic, 35 minutes to 25 minutes and were able to rest all of their defensive starters late in this one as it was clearly over by the fourth quarter. The Eagles didn't produce much offense at all so beyond the splash plays we got here the usual tackles we rely on for the floors for many of these guys were few and far between this week, gamescript caused this. It will be fine, Carolina should be a much closer affair and definitely back and forth, anyone who let you down this week should have a nice opportunity to bounce back in that one. Nothing to freak out about though, the playing time all looked good beyond the note that all of these starters got some rest once this one was in the bag. HOW ABOUT THEM COWBOYS?! Micah Parsons played a ton of defensive end snaps again by the way, we'll keep checking in on that, but really if you want to follow that just go to Google or ESPN, it's a major story basically everywhere, it's the Cowboys there's always plenty of media coverage, you don't need me to tell you what's going on with Micah Parsons.


    Thank you for reading the week three edition of the monster. We'll be back next week with yet another small novel discussing everything relevant in the world of IDP fantasy football that happened after the games this week combined with strategy and lessons learned from nearly twenty years of doing this to myself season after season. Good luck this weekend and let's hope the injury grim reaper is a little kinder to us all this time around. I need just twenty eight more words to get to eighteen thousand words in the monster article this week. Just eight more words now, four more words, done.


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    Check out Johny the Greek's Cornerbacks Corner every Friday morning at the site all season long, we'll be looking at the best matchups to stream corner from and the best cornerback options in each matchup. This article will continue to drop every Thursday morning all season as well. Tune in to DF$ on The IDP Show Network and now on the IDPGUYS podcast feed for some shenanigans and daily fantasy with my friend @Adamidp every other week all season and make sure you don't miss The Big Nickel Podcast with me and @PFF_Macri once a month all season as well. Me and PFF's Jon Macri will be looking at the big picture topics in FFIDP and breaking down the latest trends, best waiver options, strategies and macro level topics for your individual defensive players for the 2021/22 season.

    We’ve got you covered from every angle. We’ve been doing this for years and have a massively successful and approachable team here. Take advantage of the over 300 years of combined IDP experience on staff here and let us help you win your leagues this season and for many seasons to come.


    We now have a custom scoring tool for your IDP leagues so you can keep using whatever scoring you want and the tool will adjust rankings and projections accordingly. Come check out our massive amount of in season and off season content and become a part of the site that covers everything IDP plus Devy IDP and offense, college fantasy football and all things “non traditional fantasy football”. Head on over to Fantrax and let them know we sent you! We’ll be doing best ball tournaments with them with huge prize packages and have partnered with them for the IDP invitational as well. Fantrax features big boy IDP with DT and CB positions and even an Edge rusher slot! Ditch the baby DB and DL nonsense and come play with the big boys over on Fantrax!


    Join our site as a subscriber and get access to our slack channel where all the writers and subscribers talk IDP and fantasy football 24/7 all year long. You get access to that plus all our IDP tools and ADP information, both IDP only and combined offense/IDP and rankings! Head over to dynastytradecalculator.com and use their famous trade calculator for your IDP and offense trades, the IDP portion is now powered by our IDP ADP that is always current all year long. Check out our podcasts, IDP Nation, Devy IDP Grind, Johny the Greek’s Free Real Estate and the IDP Lounge, all can be found on our website and on YouTube as part of the IDP Guys Network.

    Sign up for the 2022 Autism Speaks IDP Invitational tournament, we raised over $4,000 for Autism Speaks since we started doing these and we aim to blow way past that next year. Make sure to check out our IDP and offense rookie magazines, available both in print and digital form every year before your rookie draft, over 100 prospects scouted and graded with rankings for all formats including superflex. We’ve got so many coals in the fire it’s borderline ridiculous, take advantage and let us help you dominate your IDP, Devy, Dynasty and College FF leagues for years to come.


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    Johny The Greek

    Non-delusional Cowboys Fan. Been playing Fantasy since 2003, IDP since 2004 and watching football for 35 years. Being a firm believer in "you should know if the person you're taking advice from actually knows or wins anything" I'd like to present exhibit A: I have a diamond rating in Yahoo (976) with 29 plus titles in redraft/dynasty across Yahoo, Sleeper, Fantrax and MFL and an additional 57 plus 2nd/3rd place in redraft/dynasty, same platforms. I also play in and have won several all-IDP leagues. I started playing FanDuel with a free entry and have won almost a grand since. I've also won many leagues on the draft app (RIP Draft App, we miss you) and play the maximum number of free college fantasy leagues on Yahoo every year as well with 3 titles and 9 trophies in just two years of playing before Yahoo discontinued those leagues. My profile includes multiple titles in survivor and pick em leagues as well. I was a finalist in the 2021/22 IDP Guys Invitational and the best ball tournament. Also a MFL & Sleeper best ball & eliminator degenerate with many titles there as well. I just started playing All-22 this season and I would bet the mortgage I'll be good at that too. (Update, I did fine, 9-5 first season and made playoffs). What does all that mean? Nothing except when I do something I tend to overdo it. I have been at this for a long time though so I'll help you with your IDP roster and questions however I can whenever I can. I write a weekly streaming IDP corners article (Johny The Greek's Cornerbacks Corner) and whatever I feel like in the offseason. You can find me @OrangeMan3142 on Twitter. Feel free to reach out for any questions or just to talk some football. Check out my articles on Friday mornings all season long. And new this season and going forward stick around for "Johny The Greek's Free Real Estate" where I interview the best and brightest from FF Twitter, and by that I mean the interesting people who actually help you win and not the useless engagement farmers. I am not an "analyst" I'm just a crazy person/degenerate who has been doing this a long time, has been pretty good at it and is dialed in because I have to be to not sound like an idiot writing all these articles and doing all these shows. My style is straightforward & conversational, IDP isn't complicated and you're not trying to win an argument on Twitter you're trying to win your league. Come join me weekly in season for Johny the Greek's Cornerbacks Corner, where we look at the fine art that is streaming corners or finding ways to maximize your production from your CB slots each week. Also in season check out the IDP Pros Podcast on SGPN network. I hope you enjoyed the article. Let us praise our Messiah Babu Frik and give worship to Baby Yoda. Jimmy G would make a fine husband. Thanks for reading. -Johny the Greek-
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