Time to celebrate the conclusion of the bye weeks and the confusion it brings to setting fantasy lineups and stocking rosters with sufficient talent to prevail in your matchups. Not a ton of rising players to consider this week, but there are options in each of the IDP categories that fantasy owners are concerned with filling.
Bye Weeks coming up: Current Week: Kansas City, Los Angeles Rams; Future weeks: No byes! Yippee!
Elevator Going Up
Linebackers
Kyler Fackrell Fackrell picked up every one of the three sacks for the Packers last Thursday night, along with accumulating six total tackles (TT), five of those of the solo variety. He also put up four tackles for a loss of yards (TFL) and four QB hits (QH). So long as his playing time remains high (71% and 83% of the snaps over the past two games), he is a viable LB in IDP formats. His next two matchups against the Vikings and Cardinals are favorable for continued production, based on the generosity of the stat crews.
Austin Calitro SEA
So long as K.J. Wright is sidelined, Calitro is a fine replacement option. He had five TT (one solo) with a QH and half a sack, tossed in for good measure. This week’s opponent, Carolina is just a so-so matchup, but the 49ers in Week 13 holds promise, assuming he is still seeing significant snap counts on defense.
Defensive Linemen
Rasheem Green DE SEA
The rookie, back from an earlier injury, snagged his first career sack last Thursday evening against Green Bay. He also piled up a QH and two TT (one solo, one TFL). As a third round pick, look for the Seahawks to continue to find playing time for the pass rusher.
Vic Beasley , Jr. DE ATL
Any time a DL picks up a pair of sacks in a game, he is worth looking at as an addition to your squad. The three solo tackles (two TFL) and couple of QH are not just window dressing, either. The next two weeks are not superior matchups, but in Week 14 at the beginning of fantasy playoffs, he get to take on the Packers for a tasty meeting.
Myles Garrett DE CLE
He is coming off his bye week, and is likely available on the waiver wire or as a free agent pickup. The Texans are on tap for Week 13, and they are allowing the third most fantasy points to DE on the season. He has four sacks over the past four games he has played.
Sam Hubbard DE CIN
Hubbard has been favored with an increasing snap count as the season wears on, and has picked up a pair of sacks over his last three contests. He has the Browns on the schedule this week, who have allowed the most sacks in the AFC to date, so there is that potential.
Sheldon Rankins DT NO
Rankins is a pass rushing DT, which provides him with increased value as a DL, but makes him extremely tempting in DT-mandatory leagues. He is not much for tackle production, like most of the Saint DLs, but in big-play leagues, he is useful.
Defensive Backs
Kenny Moore II CB IND
Moore is coming off a big game against the visiting Titans, where he gathered 10 TT (nine solo, one TFL). He also contributed a QH and half a sack in that game. The home stat crew in Indianapolis is generous in handing out tackles, so look for decent production to continue this week when he faces off against the Dolphin offense.
Jalen Ramsey CB JAX
Ramsey picked off a pair of Ben Roethlisberger passes in Week 11’s contest, and defended (PD) three in that game. Throw in eight solo tackles, and he was an extraordinarily fruitful IDP addition to your fantasy team. His week 12 opponent, Buffalo, is in the top 10 as regards to allowing fantasy points to cornerbacks.
Escalator Going Down
Linebackers
Jaylon Smith DAL
Smith has seen a serious downturn in his tackle production over the past couple of games, and has a pair of poor matchups on the schedule with Washington and New Orleans coming to town. It may be a blip on the radar, but it is not wise to take unnecessary chances with the fantasy playoffs quickly approaching.
Olivier Vernon NYG
Vernon is seeing plenty of defensive snaps with the Giant defense, but only has accrued six TT (four solo) and zero sacks over the past four contests in 2018. Do not be swayed by his name recognition, rather look to the fantasy numbers and bench him or if you have a limited bench, cut him loose.
Haason Reddick ARI
As with Vernon, Reddick is seeing plenty of playing time on the field but not producing any meaningful fantasy numbers. It would behoove you to move on from the Cardinal strongside LB.
Defensive Linemen
None to speak of, except for those profiled in the injury report below.
Defensive Backs
Quandre Diggs S DET
Diggs has put up a couple of big games this season as the Lion strong safety, but nine TT (eight solo) and a lone PD over the past three weeks is not sufficient to keep him in your starting lineup.
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 Bills or 49ers, but certainly you will do well if you own a top LB in the game featuring the 49ers at Tampa on either side of the field that you can plug in this week, for the most part.
Linebackers
Jacksonville Jaguars @ Buffalo
Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs San Francisco
San Francisco 49ers @ Tampa Bay
Defensive Ends
Baltimore Ravens vs Oakland
Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs San Francisco
Tennessee Titans @ Houston
New Orleans Saints vs Atlanta
Defensive Tackles
Philadelphia Eagles vs New York Giants
Houston Texans vs Tennessee
New England Patriots @ New York Jets
New York Giants @ Philadelphia
Safeties
Pittsburgh Steelers @ Denver
Jacksonville Jaguars @ Buffalo
Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs San Francisco
Dallas Cowboys vs Washington
Cornerbacks
Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs San Francisco
New Orleans Saints vs Atlanta
Denver Broncos v Pittsburgh
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. 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
Austin Calitro SEA
Defensive Linemen
Rasheem Green DE SEA
Vic Beasley DE ATL
Myles Garrett DE CLE
Sam Hubbard DE CIN
Sheldon Rankins DT NO
Defensive Backs
Kenny Moore II CB IND
Jalen Ramsey CB JAX
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
Deone Bucannon ARI chest
Deion Jones ATL foot
De’Vondre Campbell ATL thigh
Tim Williams BAL ankle
Aaron Lynch CHI concussion
Preston Brown CIN knee
Nick Vigil CIN knee-MCL
Sean Lee DAL hamstring
Brandon Marshall DEN knee
Jalen Reeves-Maybin DET neck
Nick Perry GB knee
Zach Cunningham HOU knee-MCL
Duke Ejiofor HOU shoulder
Anthony Barr MIN hamstring
Jordan Hicks PHI calf
Anthony Chickillo PIT ankle
Ola Adeniyi PIT hamstring (IR)
K.J. Wright SEA knee
Kendell Beckwith TB ankle
Lavonte David TB knee-MCL
Defensive Linemen
DE
Taco Charlton DAL shoulder
Ezekiel Ansah DET shoulder
Mike Daniels GB foot
Margus Hunt IND knee
Joey Bosa LAC foot
Marcus Davenport NO toe
Trey Hendrickson NO chest
Kerry Wynn NYG concussion
Stephon Tuitt PIT elbow
Dion Jordan SEA knee
Vinny Curry TB ankle
DT
Robert Nkemdiche ARI calf
Adolphus Washington CIN knee
Antwaun Woods DAL concussion
David Irving DAL ankle
Maliek Collins DAL knee
Daniel Ross DAL calf
A’Shawn Robinson DET ankle
Damon Harriosn DET shoulder
Marcell Dareus JAX back
Eli Ankou NAX calf
Corey Liuget LAC quadriceps
Tyeler Davison NO hand
Defensive Backs
S
Budda Baker ARI knee
Rudy Ford ARI heel
Damontae Kazee ATL thigh
Dymonte Thomas DEN ankle
Kentrell Brice GB ankle
Raven Greene GB ankle
Bashaud Breeland GB groin
D.J. Killings IND ankle
Eric Berry KC heel
Andrew Sendejo MIN groin
Avonte Maddox PHI knee
Delano Hill SEA quadriceps
Neiko Thorpe SEA groin
Justin Evans TB toe
CB
Robert Alford ATL foot
Desmond Trufant ATL thigh
Davontae Harris CIN knee (IR)
Bradley Roby DEN concussion
Darius Slay DET knee
Kevin King GB hamstring
Aaron Colvin HOU ankle
Nate Hairston IND ankle
Quenton Meeks JAX knee-MCL
Trevor Williams LAC knee
Sidney Jones PHI hamstring
Jalen Mills PHI foot
Rasul Douglas PHI knee
Ronald Darby PHI knee
M.J. Stewart TB foot
Quinton Dunbar WAS shin
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. FANation Chat is now live on the site, to help you work through your fantasy football dilemmas. Or 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.