IDP Fantasy Rankings After Week 6

Uncategorized Posted on  —by Joseph Haggan
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This year the NFL has seen some serious injuries (sorry Falcons) and some fresh young faces that have shaken up the Fantasy Player rankings. Here is a position by position top 10 of Fantasy Players after Week 6.

Linebacker

Rankings

  1. Darius Leonard- 63 Tackles (43 solo), 7 tackles for  loss, 2 pass deflections, 4 sacks, 2 forced fumbles.
  2. Kiko Alonso- 61 Tackles (42 solo), 3 pass deflections, 2 interceptions, 3 forced fumbles.
  3. Blake Martinez- 51 Tackles (34 solo), 6 tackles for a loss, 2 pass deflections, 3 sacks.
  4. Jordan Hicks- 50 Tackles (37 solo), 3 tackles for a loss, 4 pass deflections, 1.5 sacks.
  5. Joe Schobert- 49 Tackles (23 solo), 1 tackle for a loss, 6 pass deflections, 1.5 sacks, 1 interception, 1 forced fumble.
  6. Avery Williamson- 44 Tackles (32 solo), 3 tackles for a loss, 3 pass deflections, 2 sacks, 1 interception, 1 forced fumble.
  7. Tremaine Edmunds- 47 Tackles (32 solo), 2 tackles for a loss, 5 pass deflections, 1 sack, 2 forced fumbles.
  8. Corey Littleton-  48 Tackles (31 solo), 1 tackle for a loss, 8 pass deflections, 1 interception, 1 blocked kick.
  9. Leighton Vander Esch- 51 Tackles (40 solo), 1 tackle for a loss, 1 pass deflection.
  10. Josh Bynes- 51 Tackles (36 solo), 2 tackles for a loss, 2 pass deflections, 1 sack.

Discussion

Darius Leonard has been a fantasy revelation for whoever picked him up. It is no surprise that he is at the top of this list, even though he has only played 5 games. That actually makes his number more spectacular. Kiko Alonso looks like the player he was his rookie season.  Most importantly forcing 5 turnovers in 6 games as well as racking up tackles. These guys are the obvious top 2. While the rest of the list consists of players like Blake Martinez, Jordan Hicks, and Joe Schobert, who are top 10 mainstays, there are some newcomers. 

Avery Williamson was always a good contributor for Tennessee. Between four seasons from 2014-2017 he racked up 377 tackles (239 solo), 11.5 sacks, 8 pass deflections, and 2 interceptions. In addition, this season he is on pace for 132 tackles (96 solo), 9 tackles for a loss, 9 pass deflections, 6 sacks, 3 interceptions and 3 forced fumbles. That would be a boost from the past few years and almost bumps him into the top 5.

If you didn't notice, there are three rookies in the top 10. Theses rookies include Darius Leonard, Tremaine Edmunds, and Leighton Vander Esch. These three have made a tremendous impact for their respective teams on defense, whether it was starting from day one or filling in for an injured teammate. Either way the young group of Linebackers in the NFL (Roquan Smith included) looks very bright.

Defensive Back

Rankings

  1. Budda Baker- 57 Tackles (45 solo), 5 tackles for a loss, 1 pass deflection, 1.5 sacks, and 1 fumble recovery for TD.
  2. Tre Boston- (Injured) 40 Tackles (33 solo), 7 pass deflections, 3 interceptions, 1 forced fumble.
  3. Derwin James- 36 Tackles (28 solo), 4 tackles for a loss, 6 pass deflections, 3.5 sacks, 1 interception.
  4. Bradley Mcdougald- 36 Tackles (33 solo), 2 tackles for a loss, 5 pass deflections, 2 interceptions, 2 forced fumbles.
  5. Kareem Jackson- 35 Tackles (27 solo), 3 tackles for a loss, 8 pass deflections, 2 interceptions, 2 forced fumbles.
  6. Jamal Adams- 41 Tackles (30 solo), 3 tackles for a loss, 5 pass deflections, 1 sack, 1 interception, 2 forced fumbles.
  7. John Johnson III- 41 Tackles (25 solo), 1 tackle for a loss, 6 pass deflections, 2 interceptions, 1 forced fumble.
  8. Damontae Kazee- 34 Tackles (30 solo), 4 pass deflections, 3 interceptions, 1 forced fumble.
  9. Brian Poole- 36 Tackles (32 solo), 2 tackles for a loss, 4 pass deflections, 2 sacks, 1 interception.
  10. Harrison Smith-32 Tackles (25 solo), 4 tackles for a loss, 2 pass deflections, 3 sacks, 1 interception, 1 forced fumble.

Discussion

Kudos to the Arizona Cardinals for doing something right this offseason. That move was the signing of Tre Boston and moving Antoine Bethea to a more hybrid linebacker position. This move has put Budda Baker and Boston as the two safeties and the tandem is amazing, coming in at the top two on my rankings.

Stud safety Keanu Neal was hit with a season ending injury week one. Because of this, Demontae Kazee has been forced into a starting role. Since the injury, Kazee has played very well and placed himself into my top 10 with a great knack for forcing turnovers with 4 total. 

The interesting part of my DB top 10 is the youth showing up in it. Half of the players in my top 10 are either rookies or in their second year of professional football. This may be because of the new style of player these DB's are being groomed to become.

In years past you could tell which position a DB was going to play in the NFL. Now many of these players could play Strong Safety, Free Safety, or even Cornerback. The sheer versatility of these young players may be what makes them so good.

Defensive Line

Rankings

  1. J.J. Watt- 25 Tackles (19 solo), 8 tackles for a loss, 7 sacks, 4 forced fumbles.
  2. Danielle Hunter- 28 Tackles (22 solo), 9 tackles for a loss, 7 sacks.
  3. Khalil Mack- 19 Tackles (15 solo), 3 tackles for a loss, 2 pass deflections, 5 sacks, 4 forced fumbles, 1 interception returned for a TD.
  4. Chandler Jones- 22 Tackles (17 solo), 5 tackles for a loss, 4 pass deflections, 5.5 sacks, 3 forced fumbles.
  5. Myles Garrett- 22 Tackles (17 solo), 4 tackles for a loss, 3 pass deflections, 5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles.
  6. Cameron Jordan- 17 Tackles (12 solo), 7 tackles for a loss, 2 pass deflections, 5 sacks.
  7. Jerry Hughes- 21 Tackles (18 solo), 5 tackles for a loss, 4.5 sacks, 3 forced fumbles.
  8. Frank Clark- 14 Tackles (13 solo), 5 tackles for a loss, 1 pass deflection, 5.5 sacks, 1 interception, 3 forced fumbles.
  9. Carlos Dunlap- 19 Tackles (14 solo), 3 tackles for a loss, 5 pass deflections, 4 sacks, 2 forced fumbles.
  10. Jason Pierre-Paul- 19 Tackles (18 solo), 6 tackles for a loss, 5 sacks, 1 forced fumble.

Discussion

If it wasn't for J.J. Watt's 4 forced fumbles, Danielle Hunter would top this list. Watt is Watt, and if his brother T.J. Watt was listed as a defensive end instead of linebacker than he would be near the top of this rankings. With that being said, Danielle Hunter has been phenomenal.

The Vikings defense as a group has been a let down this year. Although if you watch any of the Viking's games, two players jump out. Those two are Harrison Smith (possibly the best Safety in the league) and Danielle Hunter. Most importantly Hunter, who has been so disruptive in the backfield, has 7 sacks which is tied for 2nd in the league. In addition he also has 9 tackles for a loss. That means almost half of his solo tackles happen behind the line of scrimmage. If only the rest of the Defense could get on the same page.

One person missing for the defensive line top 10 is Demarcus Lawrence. Had this list been two weeks ago he may have been in the top 5. Because of the poor performance for Lawrence the past two weeks, accumulating a measly 2 assisted tackles, he drops out of top the top 10. He needs to stay consistent on a weekly basis to crack the list again.

Let me emphasize that these are my top 10 rankings at each position for Fantasy Football. If it was my top 10 actual football players at each position it would look a little different. We all know that you don't have to be the best at your position to put up great Fantasy numbers. If you have a chunk of these players on your fantasy squad then I would say you are doing quite well this year if you do.

Follow me each week for changes in my top 10 rankings. For more tips and analysis please follow me on twitter, @josephhaggan. Listen to the guys podcast on weekly basis as they discuss information that will help you win your IDP Fantasy Leagues.

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Joseph Haggan

I am the proud father to an amazing young girl and husband to an unbelievable wife. Senior writer for IDPGuys, as well as projections creator and co-founder of our elite IDP Scoring Tool.
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