Fantasy Football IDP Preview: Cornerback Tiers

This week we present the fourth and final installment of our series previewing defensive players that are available to populate your IDP rosters during fantasy drafts, an anticipated event whose occurrence is presently uncertain due to circumstances beyond our control. As the NFL draft unfolds in the commissioner’s basement, this article focuses on those players who patrol the defensive backfield, the cornerbacks who pair with those IDPs profiled last week, the safeties. These players are more suited for use in big play leagues, although they do have the potential to rack up tackles for your defensive squad.

To repeat the first suggestion set forth the last couple of weeks, it will be to your immense benefit to examine and comprehend your league settings intimately. This will allow you to take full advantage of any idiosyncrasies that your commissioner or the platform your league plays within have inserted in your league’s scoring system. Once you have studied the settings, you should be able to determine what on-field results are most valuable for defensive players.

Essentially, there are three types of IDP leagues: tackle-oriented, big-play or hybrid schemes. Those three league formats are fairly self-explanatory, but in short, tackle-oriented leagues reward heavily for tackles collected, while big-play leagues compensate for interceptions (INT), sacks, fumbles forced (FF) and fumbles recovered (FR). Hybrid IDP leagues combine both those systems, remunerating in an even-handed manner for IDP that either tackle a ton or shake things up on the field by generating turnovers or loss of yardage. For an example of a hybrid scoring system, the following point structure is one used in certain leagues that I have participated in over the years:

One additional proposition is that touchdowns are generally set at a standard six points, no matter how achieved.

This point also bears repeating: Do not to get caught up in any one player thinking that he will make or break your draft. There will (almost) always be another player that can provide the same or nearly the same results as that player that your opponent drafted before you had the opportunity to select him. Instead, you can improve your confidence and provide yourself with some peace of mind by grouping your IDP into tiers as part of your draft preparation. Figure out, based upon whatever projections you gather from the experts or that you compile yourself, which players are relatively comparable in the overall fantasy production they will provide you over the course of the NFL season. Then, when you are in the middle of your draft, you can keep track of when the set of IDP in a particular category (LB/DL/DB) is being diminished to a point where you will have to settle for lesser value if you do not jump into the pool this round.

To aid in your drafting efforts, and understanding that no rookies are included in the tables below, and further realizing that these projections are subject to adjustment over the next few months, below are tables that set forth the top 25 cornerbacks for tackle-oriented, big-play and hybrid leagues, with rough tiers (1/2/3 and in one set, 4) within the groups.

Tackle-Oriented Cornerbacks

Big Play Cornerbacks

Hybrid Cornerbacks

As was the case with safeties, the big plays that corners provide run the gamut of interceptions, pass deflections (PD) and forced and recovered fumbles (FF and FR, respectively), with the occasional sack tossed in for good measure. Certain cornerbacks can be great sources for tackles, although they generally are less productive in this stat category than linebackers but more so than defensive linesmen. Shutdown corners, once they develop that reputation in the league, are not all that valuable for fantasy purposes, as offenses will avoid their side of the field, or not throw to the player they are shadowing/matched-up against in a particular week. Conversely, a starting rookie corner is fantasy gold, as offensive coordinators will test them all game long until they prove their mettle on the field, allowing for numerous tackles and big-play opportunities in the form of interceptions and pass defenses. Stay tuned for our rookie IDP discussions that are coming up in the near future, now that the draft is taking place.

As ever, godspeed and best of luck in your fantasy endeavors. If you have any questions regarding IDP, or fantasy football in general, you can send an inquiry to ia@fantasyalarm.com for a personalized suggestion (or two, if the spirit moves).