Week One is in the books, and already some significant injuries are impacting fantasy fortunes. There are also some defensive players that are playing at levels exceeding where they were projected during the preseason, as well as a few that are not performing up to expectations. This article will suggest on a weekly basis who you want to target off the waiver wire, who you may want to drop or at least bench, and what injuries are affecting your rosters the coming week and perhaps all season long. So come along for the information every week to assist you in dominating your IDP leagues.
Bye Weeks coming up: None, it is too early for that yet.
Elevator Going Up
Linebackers
Jordan Hicks PHI
Hicks was an every down LB in Week One, and you can look for that to continue to be the situation going forward. He had an excellent stat line against the Falcons: seven total tackles (TT) with five of those being solo and one for a loss of yards (TFL), 1.5 sacks, two QB hurries (QH) and one pass defensed (PD).
Matt Milano BUF
Buffalo’s defense looks to spend considerable time on the field if the first week’s action is any clue. Milano had eight TT (seven solo, one TFL) and a fumble recovery against the Ravens, which will make the LB a wire target this week.
Nick Vigil CIN
Vigil was on the field for all 82 defensive snaps in Week One, and will be relied upon to shore up the Bengal defense so long as starter Vontaze Burfict is on the sidelines. He had 11 solo tackles with two TFL against the Colts on the road. This week is the Cincy home opener, and look for the defense to play well against the visiting Ravens.
Defensive Linemen
Margus Hunt DE IND
Hunt started at DE in Week One, and looks to get continued high snap usage going forward, based on the two sack/two QH effort he put forth on Sunday. He also added three solo tackles, all for a loss of yards.
Defensive Backs
Kareem Jackson S HOU
Jackson is a converted cornerback, which means on both the Yahoo and ESPN platforms he has dual eligibility. If you play in a cornerback-mandatory league, and he is available, snap him up immediately and plug him into your lineup.
Safety production from the CB roster position is huge. He is coming off an eight solo tackle effort against the Patriots in Week One, with two forced fumbles, so do not dawdle in making your claim for his services.
Kayvon Frazier S DAL
Kentrell Brice S GB
Brice looks like the starting strong safety for the Packers, a position which has yielded excellent fantasy value in the past. Morgan Burnett has left to join the Steeler defense, which provides an opportunity for Brice to grab the starting job. He grabbed his first sack of the season against the Bears, to go with nine TT (eight solo).
Damontae Kazee S ATL
With Keanu Neal now lost for the season, the Falcons will turn to Kazee to step in at safety. In the event you were (un)fortunate enough to snag Neal in the draft, now is the time to regroup by picking up his replacement.
Tavon Young CB BAL
Young has value so long as Jimmy Smith is out on suspension. He had two sacks in the first half against the Bills, but then again, the Bills will likely make lots of IDP look like superstars this season if Week One is any indication of future performance. He also had three solo tackles (two TFL) plus a pair of QH and a PD, to make for an attractive stat line coming out of the first week of action. He is a definite short-term pickup.
Denzel Ward CB CLE
Ward had a nice debut, grabbing a couple of INTs against Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers, as well as three PDs. Toss in six TT (two solos) and the Ohio State alum becomes an intriguing waiver wire addition if your CBs are underperforming.
Tre Flowers CB SEA
The converted college safety looked solid in Week One, with eight TT (seven solo) and a PD. As a rookie, expect offensive coordinators to target him until he proves his mettle, and thus, he should see a ton of action to open the season. If he keeps up his performance as he showed in the first game of the regular season, he is a player to keep an eye on, even if you do not need to add him immediately.
Escalator Going Down
Linebackers
B.J. Goodson NYG
Goodson was the starter at ILB with Alex Ogletree, but played in just over 50% of the defensive snaps. He was limited to just two total tackles (one solo), which is not the sort of production you should value on a weekly basis.
Defensive Linemen
Adrian Clayborn DE NE
The Patriots frequently frustrate fantasy owners with their usage of defensive players, and Clayborn was involved in just 30% of the defensive snaps against the visiting Texans. Unless and until his snap count increases, he is not going to produce for your IDP squad.
Defensive Backs
None to speak of, except those listed in the injury report below.
Matchups to Exploit
This portion of the report will highlight those teams you want to look to when picking up IDP to replace injured players or those whose teams are on a bye. It is too early in the season to truly get a handle on how defenses are shaking out yet, however, so you will have to wait until next week to see specific suggestions here. This early on in the season you should not panic, instead relying on those players that were projected as top IDP to draft so long as they are healthy. Patience is warranted here, rather than rash action that may not be easily remedied.
Waiver Wire Targets
As with the Matchup section, this portion of the IDP Report will feature those players that are available on the wire in better than 50 % of leagues. All those players discussed above as rising IDP should fall within that definition in Week Two, and therefore you are directed above to find your targets to add to your rosters. This section will begin to be populated in full beginning with next week’s IDP Report.
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
Deion Jones ATL foot (IR)
Alvin Jones BAL undisclosed
Julian Stanford BUF nose
Luke Kuechly CAR knee
Jonathan Anderson CHI undisclosed
Preston Brown CIN ankle
Oren Burks GB shoulder
Duke Ejiofor HOU hamstring
Ben Heeney HOU ankle
Leon Jacobs JAX foot
Manase Hungalu JAX undisclosed
Ben Niemann KC hamstring
Mark Barron LAR ankle
Travin Howard LAR undisclosed
Obo Okoronkwo LAR foot
Mike Hull MIA knee-MCL
Christian Sam NE undisclosed
Tae Davis NYG hamstring
Olivier Vernon NE ankle
Josh Martin NYJ concussion
Paul Worrilow PHI knee-ACL (IR)
Ryan Shazier PIT spine (PUP)
Malcolm Smith SF hamstring
Brock Coyle SF concussion
Dekoda Watson SF hamstring (IR)
K.J. Wright SEA knee
Erik Walden SEA hip
Rashaan Evans TEN hamstring
Harold Landry TEN ankle
Defensive Linemen
DE
Vontarius Dora ARI undisclosed
Shaq Lawson BUF hamstring
Carlos Dunlap CIN calf
Emmanuel Ogbah CLE ankle
Lenny Jones CLE undisclosed
Randy Gregory DAL concussion
Ezekiel Ansah DET shoulder
Christian Covington HOU thigh
Tyquan Lewis IND toe
Joey Bosa LAC foot
Tyson Alualu PIT shoulder
Frank Clark SEA elbow
Anthony Lanier WAS hip
DT
Willie Henry BAL sports hernia
Brian Price OAK hamstring
Justin Ellis OAK ankle
Eddie Vanderdoes OAK knee-ACL (PUP)
Vita Vea TB calf
Mitch Unrein TB knee (IR)
Stacy McGee WAS groin (PUP)
Defensive Backs
S
A.J. Howard ARI undisclosed
Keanu Neal ATL knee-ACL (IR)
Blidi Wreh-Wilson ATL shoulder
Bennett Jackson BAL undisclosed
DeShon Elliott BAL forearm (IR)
DeAndre Houston-Carson CHI arm
E.J. Gaines CLE knee
Xavier Woods DAL hamstring
Su’a Cravens DEN knee (IR)
Marcus Cromartie DET knee (IR)
Josh Jones GB ankle
Kayvon Webster HOU Achilles
Chris Milton IND concussion
T.J. Green IND hamstring
Eric Berry KC heel
Daniel Sorensen KC knee Meniscus (IR)
Afolabi Laguda LAR undisclosed
Craig James MIN hamstring
Duke Dawson NE hamstring (IR)
Dar NYG hamstring
Marcus Maye NYJ ankle
Marcus Gilchrist OAK undisclosed
D.J. Killings PHI undisclosed
Joe Haden PIT hastring
Dontae Johnson SEA hip
Bryon Maxwell SEA hip
Kam Chancellor SEA neck (PUP)
Brent Grimes TB groin
Kendrick Lewis TEN foot
Troy Apke WAS hamstring
CB
Isaiah Oliver ATL ankle
Maurice Canady BAL thigh
Jaylen Hill BAL knee-ACL/MCL (PUP)
Taron Johnson BUF shoulder
Kevon Seymour CAR shoulder (IR)
Josh Shaw CIN undisclosed
Davontae Harris CIN knee
Marcus Rios DEN hip
Kevin Johnson HOU concussion
Keith Reaser KC quadriceps
Mackensie Alexander MIN ankle
Trae Waynes MIN knee
Jabari Price MIN knee (IR)
Dexter McDonald OAK ankle (IR)
Devin Ross PHI ankle
Vernon Hargreaves TB shoulder
Amari Coleman TB concussion (IR)
Adoree’ Jackson TEN shoulder
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, send a message to ia@fantasyalarm.com.