The final week of byes is upon us, with another six teams sitting out in Week 11. Thus, the limited number of recommended pickups for this scoring period, especially at linebacker. There are a decent number of safeties and defensive ends, though, so have a run at the wire if you are missing players due to inactivity while on the bye or injury.
Bye Weeks coming up: Carolina, Indianapolis, Miami, New York Jets, San Francisco, Tampa Bay
Elevator Going Up
Linebackers
Nick Perry GB
Denzel Perryman LAC
Perry picked up three sacks in the Week 10 contest against the Bears, to go with his nine total tackles (six solo) with three of those tackles being for a loss of yards (TFL) and three quarterback hits/hurries (QH). Baltimore, the fourth most generous team in terms of linebacker points allowed, is next up on the schedule.
Perryman returned to action and was limited to just 46 snaps (55%) against the Jags. That did not seem to bother his production, as he collected nine total tackles (eight solo). Now that he is back on the field, he should continue to provide good tackle numbers. Grab him now off the wire if you play in tackle oriented league.
IDP to consider that have been previously profiled:Tahir Whitehead DET (Week 5),DeVondre Campbell ATL (Week 8).
Defensive Linemen
Dion Jordan DE SEA
Cornelius Washington DE DET
Anthony Zettel DE DET
Adrian Clayborn DE ATL
Sheldon Rankins DT NO
Jordan may see significantly more playing time if Frank Clark's hamstring holds him out of action in Week 11. He picked up a sack and three QH in limited time last week, along with a solo tackle for loss of yardage.
Washington picked up a pair of sacks in Week 10 against the Browns, to go with four total tackles (three solo, two TFL) plus two QH. Although the two sacks were his first of the season, the fact that he doubled his snaps on defense from Week 9 (48 as opposed to 24) bodes well going forward.
Zettel has garnered a sack in Week 10, his second in two weeks. The tackle numbers are not great, but as the Lions have been searching for an effective pass rush this season, he should be able to build on his recent success, even though his next three contests are against middle of the pack teams with regard to points allowed to opposing DEs.
Clayborn must be mentioned after a six sack effort against the Cowboys, along with six solo tackles (three TFL) seven QH, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. Of course, do not expect this kind of production every week going forward, but that stat line certainly is eye opening.
Rankins had a full stat line in Week 10: two solo tackles (two TFL), a QH, an INT, one PD and a sack. He was highly anticipated after being drafted 12th overall in 2016 as a rookie DT, but has failed to impress until last week. There is some hope after a strong Week 10 performance that he is ready to bust out.
IDP to consider that have been previously profiled: None
Defensive Backs
Budda Baker S ARI
Tre Boston S LAC
Justin Simmons S DEN
Daniel Sorensen S KC
Davon House CB GB
The rookie Baker will see an uptick in playing time so long as Tyvon Branch's torn ACL sidelines him. He had nine total tackles against the Seahawks, leading the team. He also contributed with a pass defense (PD).
Boston is much more valuable in big play leagues, with a strong front defensive line that can rush the passer and corners that direct the action to the middle of the field. He had six total tackles against the Jaguars in Week 10 (one TFL) to go alongside his two INT and three PD.
Simmons led the Broncos in tackles in Week 10 with 10 total (six solo, one TFL), likely due to his playing all the snaps on defense. He also contributed a QH and a sack. He offers both coverage and run stopping skills, so the amount of playing time should remain steady.
Sorensen stepped in when Eric Berry went down with his Achilles injury, and has provide solid production. He is coming off a bye week, and thus should be available in most leagues.
House is what is often referred to as a "physical" cornerback, and his Week 10 production shows off his potential, with eight solo tackles (two TFL), a QH and a sack. If your league requires a CB or two in your starting lineup, consider adding him to your roster.
IDP to consider that have been previously profiled: Tavon Wilson S DET (Week 9)
Escalator Going Down
Linebackers
Will Compton WAS
Preston Smith WAS
Martinez only managed to accrue two tackles (one solo) in Week 10' contest against the Bears. He had been on a nice streak, with 67 tackles in his prior six games, so let's chalk this up to the Bears not having a ground game in Week 10.
Compton and Smith both had disappointing Week 10 results, with only three total tackles between the two LBs, although Smith did record a QH. Compton is in time share with Martrell Spaight which further hurts his value for fantasy purposes.
Defensive Linemen
None to speak of, except for those listed in the injury report below.
Defensive Backs
Adrian Phillips S LAC
Phillips managed to play 50% of the snaps on defense in Week 10, despite the return of Denzel Perryman (discussed above), but ended up with a goose egg in the stat column. He is likely looking at a time share situation where he is used more in coverage, so the tackle numbers are going to be depressed unless and until he sees a more full time role.
Matchups to Exploit
Remember, the second team listed is the one to use your IDPs against. Do not go crazy, and play a LB5 against the Browns, but certainly you will do well if you own a top LB on the Cowboys, Chargers or Packers that you can plug in this week, for the most part.
Linebackers
Jacksonville @ Cleveland
Dallas v Philadelphia
Los Angeles Chargers v Buffalo
Green Bay v Baltimore
Defensive Ends
Arizona @ Houston
Cincinnati @ Denver
Chicago v Detroit
Kansas City @ New York Giants
Defensive Tackles
New Orleans v Washington
Houston v Arizona
Safeties
Oakland v New England
Houston v Arizona
New England @ Oakland
Cornerbacks
Jacksonville @ Cleveland
Cincinnati @ Denver
Atlanta @ Seattle
Waiver Wire Targets
All these players are spotlighted above, and you can read my comments about them in the "Elevator Going Up" section of this article. Not all the players commented on are here, however, as there is no need to waste your time searching for players that are heavily owned. This group consists of those that you may have a chance of locating on your league's waiver wire in that they are owned in significantly less than 50% of leagues. Happy claiming for your weekly matchups.
Linebackers
Nick Perry GB
Denzel Perryman LAC
Defensive Linesmen
Dion Jordan DE SEA
Cornelius Washington DE DET
Anthony Zettel DE DET
Adrian Clayborn DE ATL
Sheldon Rankins DT NO
Defensive Backs
Budda Baker S ARI
Tre Boston S LAC
Justin Simmons S DEN
Daniel Sorensen S KC
Davon House CB GB
Ouch (My Aching Roster)
All the injury reports below need evaluation prior to kickoff. Teams are notoriously sketchy about injury reports, and we often do not know a player's status until just before game time. Consider the list below as a "heads up" as to what is going on early in the week, and should not be considered definitive.
Linebackers
Duke Riley ATL knee (meniscus)
Tim Williams BAL thigh
Andrew Gachkar CAR coach’s decision
Danny Trevathan CHI calf
Sean Lee DAL hamstring
Todd Davis DEN ankle
Jalen Reeves-Maybin DET ankle
Dylan Cole HOU hamstring
John Simon IND neck
Dee Ford KC back
Hayes Pullard LAC neck
Robert Quinn LAR illness
Stephone Anthony MIA coach’s decision
Brandon Watts MIA back
Bryan Braman NO undisclosed
A.J Klein NO ankle
Kelvin Sheppard NYG groin
Keenan Robinson NYG quadriceps
Devon Kennard NYG quadriceps
BJ. Goodson NYG ankle
Corey Lemonier NYJ foot
James Harrison PIT back
Elijah Lee SF knee
Will Compton WAS foot
Defensive Linemen
DE
Jerry Hughes BUF shin
Bryan Cox CAR coach’s decision
Roy Robertson-Harris CHI hamstring
Ezekiel Ansah DET back
Joel Heath HOU knee
Allen BaileyKC knee (MCL)
Everson Griffen MIN foot
Cassius Marsh NE shoulder
Anthony Johnson NYJ undisclosed
Marcus Smith SEA concussion
Frank Clark SEA thigh
Aaron Lynch SF calf
Solomon Thomas SF knee (MCL)
William Gholston TB neck
Matt Ioannidis WAS hand
DT
Pat Sims CIN calf
Larry Ogunjobi CLE groin
Quinton Dial GB chest
Malcom Brown NE ankle
Damon Harrison NYG ankle
Timmy Jernigan PHI ankle
Jarran Reed SEA hamstring
Defensive Backs
S
Chuck Clark BA thigh
Chris Prosinski CHI hamstring
Shawn Williams CIN hamstring
Ed Reynolds CLE knee
Jeff Heath CAL concussion
Don Carey DET knee
Morgan Burnett GB groin
Andrew Sendejo MIN groin
Kenny Vaccaro NO groin
Michael Mitchell PIT ankle
Earl Thomas SEA hamstring
Kam Chancellor SEA neck
Su’a Cravens WAS personal
Keangelo Hall WAS knee
Nontae Nicholson WAS shoulder
CB
E.J. Gaines BUF hamstring
Ladarius Gunter CAR coach’s decision
SherrickMcManis CHI hamstring
Bryce Callahan CHI knee
Adam Jones CIN concussion
William Jackson CIN toe
ChidobeAwuzie DAL hamstring
Kevin King GB shoulder
Chris Culliver IND undisclosed
Darryl Morris IND undisclosed
Kenny Moore IND head
Eric Rowe NE groin
Donte Deayon NYG ankle
Morris Claiborne NYJ foot
David Amerson OAK foot
Ronald Darby PHI ankle
Joe Haden PIT upper leg
Richard Sherman SEA Achilles
Robert McClain TB hamstring
Vernon Hargreaves TB hamstring
As ever, good luck and Godspeed in your fantasy efforts. Make sure to read all of our great articles to help you win your fantasy match ups every week and ultimately bask in championship glory. If you have any fantasy football questions, especially about IDP leagues, I can be reached at ia@fantasyalarm.com.