Should you be fortunate enough to have prevailed in the initial round of playoffs in the 2022 fantasy football season, or perhaps were rewarded with a bye week, now is no time to stop tweaking your lineups and rosters. Even if you are not going to use a particular player, putting him on your bench to frustrate your opponent is a strategy decision to consider. Also, the injuries keep on manifesting and causing havoc on your fantasy football squads, and it is imperative to keep an eye on those who are at risk of not suiting up, and thus, the Injury Report is always worth a glance.

Remember, set your lineups early as most of the games this week are taking place on Saturday.

 

 

NFL IDP Report - Week 16

Elevator Going Up

Linebackers

Kayvon Thibodeaux, New York Giants 

Thibodeaux was featured in this article back in Week 7, but until Week 15 against the Washington Commanders, he has not exactly distinguished himself. 12 total tackles (TT), with nine of those of the solo variety and three for a loss of yardage (TFL) does jump off the stat sheet. Toss in a sack, a QB hit/hurry (QH), a forced fumble and recovery (FF and FR) that led to a TD, and he provided one heck of a week of production for those who had faith in the rookie’s development.

 

Troy Andersen, Atlanta Falcons

As with the linebacker profiled directly above, Andersen was also profiled here in Week 7. He had a big game when he was suggested as a rising young LB to target, and he now appears to have stepped into a starting role at inside linebacker for the Falcons. He had his second-best tackle production game last week, with seven TT (five solo) and as his PT increases as the starter alongside Rashaan Evans going forward, he should continue to produce good to very good tackle numbers for his owners. 

 

Nicholas Morrow, Chicago Bears 

Morrow was also the subject of an early paragraph in this article, although he came to light in Week 3, not mid-season like the two LBs talked about directly above. He returned to double digit tackle numbers last week, which he had not achieved since Week 6, grabbing 11 TT (nine solo, one TFL). He is not any sort of big play producer, though, so his value is strictly in tackle-oriented leagues.

 

Damone Clark, Dallas Cowboys

When Leighton Vander Esch had to leave the field due to a neck injury, the rookie Clark stepped in with nine TT (five solo) against the host Jacksonville Jaguars. He likely will be filling in for this week at a minimum, and makes for a low-owned waiver wire target that can help in tackle-oriented leagues.

 

Robert Spillane, Pittsburgh Steelers

Spillane is another LB that saw an uptick in PT due to an injury, this time to Myles Jack who is currently listed as questionable for Week 16. If the 27-year-old is again relied upon to fill in for Jack, he has a prime matchup in store with the Raiders coming to the Steel City for a contest in potentially nasty weather conditions.

 

Defensive Linemen

DeMarcus Walker, DE, Tennessee Titans

The two sacks in Week 15 that he collected against the Chargers went nicely with his season high five TT (four solo, two TFL). His sack production has picked up in the season’s second half, making this a prime time to take a chance on him as a DL to replace one of your injured defensive ends.

 

Romeo Okwara, DE, Detroit Lions

Coming back into action in Week 14, the Lions have plugged him into their starting DL lineup, and he responded with a pair of sacks against the Jets in Week 15. He also added four TT (two solo, two TFL) as well as a couple of QH. The Lions are without Charles Harris, so look for Okwara to see more and more snaps on defense as the regular season plays out.

 

Joseph Ossai, DE, Cincinnati Bengals

The rookie may be able to pick up his PT with the injuries the Bengals have seen at DL. He has not produced much in limited snap time so far, but should be a cog the team is going to rely upon going forward. He has a good matchup with the Patriots on the schedule this week.

 

DeShawn Williams, DT, Denver Broncos

Our sole DT option this week, Williams had 2.5 sacks credited to him in Week 15 against the visiting Cardinals, giving him 4.5 over the last three contests. He offers decent tackle numbers for a DT, and if your league requires a defensive tackle be active on your roster, his recent sack production makes him a tempting addition.

 

Defensive Backs

Kyle Hamilton, S, Baltimore Ravens

While only playing about half the snaps on defense, Hamilton still manages to pick up useful stats for fantasy purposes, including a sack last week along with a QH and a pass deflection/defense (PD). The safety also snagged seven TT (six solo, two TFL) while playing up near the line of scrimmage for the Ravens. 

 

Alohi Gilman, S, Los Angeles Chargers

Gilman is being asked to step up while the Chargers are without Derwin James due to his groin injury. He has been playing every down for the Chargers, and collected eight TT in Week 15 (four solo). With the Colts on the schedule, the matchup is great in Week 16.

 

Kyler Gordon, CB, Chicago Bears

The cornerback returned from injury to play every snap in Week 15, collecting four TT (three solo) along with an INT and a PD. He also recovered a fumble in that contest. He now has a nice matchup against the visiting Buffalo Bills, and the next week against the Lions profiles as a positive situation for the CB, too.

 

Escalator Going Down

Linebackers

Jason Pierre-Paul, Baltimore Ravens

The veteran has been wildly inconsistent, and that makes him too unreliable to trust as your team plays for a glory during the fantasy playoffs. He has not had a sack to his credit since Week 11, either. 

 

Mykal Walker, Atlanta Falcons

Walker has been replaced by Troy Andersen (see the rising LB portion of this article for his profile) in the Atlanta Falcon linebacking corps. Seeing around a quarter of the snaps on defense makes him worth cutting loose at this late date in the season, as you need starting LBs to provide your team with useful stats.

 

Defensive Linemen

Aside from those set forth on the Injury Report, nary an IDP to name.

 

Defensive Backs

None to write home about, except for those listed in the Injury Report below.

 

Matchups to Exploit

Remember, the first team listed is the one to use your IDPs against. Do not go crazy, and play a LB5 against the Chargers or Raiders, but certainly you will do well if you own a top DL in the Chargers/Colts game, or a DB1/2 on the Chargers that you can plug in this week, for the most part.

Inside Linebackers

  • Los Angeles Chargers @ Indianapolis Colts
  • Las Vegas Raiders @ Pittsburgh Steelers
  • Washington Commanders @ San Francisco 49ers
  • Seattle Seahawks @ Kansas City Chiefs
  • Kansas City Chiefs vs Seattle Seahawks

Outside Linebackers

  • Carolina Panthers vs Detroit Lions
  • Cleveland Browns vs New Orleans Saints
  • Cincinnati Bengals @ New England Patriots
  • Chicago Bears vs Buffalo Bills
  • Washington Commanders @ San Francisco 49ers
  • Buffalo Bills @ Chicago Bears

Defensive Ends

  • New England Patriots vs Cincinnati Bengals
  • Los Angeles Rams vs Denver Broncos
  • Los Angeles Chargers @ Indianapolis Colts
  • Denver Broncos @ Los Angeles Rams
  • Minnesota Vikings vs New York Giants

Defensive Tackles 

  • Indianapolis Colts vs Los Angeles Chargers
  • Washington Commanders @ San Francisco 49ers
  • Green Bay Packers @ Miami Dolphins
  • New York Giants @ Minnesota Vikings
  • Detroit Lions @ Carolina Panthers

Safeties

  • Dallas Cowboys vs Philadelphia Eagles
  • Baltimore Ravens vs Atlanta Falcons
  • Indianapolis Colts vs Los Angeles Chargers
  • Green Bay Packers @ Miami Dolphins
  • Kansas City Chiefs vs Seattle Seahawks
  • Arizona Cardinals vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Cornerbacks

  • Indianapolis Colts vs Los Angeles Chargers
  • Buffalo Bills @ Chicago Bears
  • Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Arizona Cardinals
  • Minnesota Vikings vs New York Giants
  • Arizona Cardinals vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers
  • Cincinnati Bengals @ New England Patriots

 

Waiver Wire Targets

This section is intended to serve as a shortened cheat sheet listing those waiver wire targets you should be considering if you need to plug a hole in your starting lineup. All these players are spotlighted above, and you can read my comments about them in the "Elevator Going Up" section of this article. 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

Defensive Linemen

Defensive Backs

 

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

 

Defensive Linemen - DE

 

Defensive Linemen - DT

 

Defensive Backs - S

 

Defensive Backs - CB

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, you can also send a message to ia@fantasyalarm.com for a personal response from the writer of this article. Naturally, the more detail you can send about your league, such as number of teams, platform you play in (Yahoo, ESPN, etc.), scoring and roster system, the better the ability to provide accurate advice.
 

 

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