Fantasy Football Week 8 IDP Streamers: Players from the Patriots, Eagles, and More

IDP fantasy is more of a weekly story than a season-long book compared to offensive players. With fewer defensive stats, even one sack or interception, for example, makes for a big day.

That can cause more shuffling of players for owners who are active on the waiver wire, as matchups often mean more than the player unless you get a star. The guys below that top level are often interchangeable, and that's what we're doing here, is finding the lower tier of players who have decent fantasy outlooks.

Let's look at players from two teams at every level of the defense who have good matchups in Week 8. We'll focus on the guys who are widely available in fantasy leagues and can probably be picked up and inserted into your lineup. Most stats are from NFL.com.

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Defensive Linemen

Indianapolis Colts vs. Tennessee Titans

It's an automatic each week that we are targeting the Titans with defensive linemen. Cameron Ward has led the league in sacks taken all season and has now gone down 30 times, eight more than anyone else.

Tennessee's offensive line is actually a bit above average in pass blocking according to ESPN's metrics; rookies often struggle with holding the ball too long, so Ward is likely hurting himself as much as the men up front are affecting him. A lack of skilled pass catchers doesn't help.

For the Colts, the guys rushing most on the edge are Laiatu Latu and Kwity Paye, with Samson Ebukam and Tyquan Lewis in rotational roles. Ebukam is out this week, while Lewis left Week 7 with an injury and is questionable. Latu and Paye are both exciting options this week.

DeForest Buckner is the big name at defensive tackle if you can get him. He is owned in a lot of leagues, and the other guys who have been on the field most are Grover Stewart, Neville Gallimore, and Adetomiwa Adebawore in that order. Neither of the latter two have topped 1.5 sacks in a season, while Stewart has maxed out at four.

Latu and Paye are strong fantasy plays this week, as is Buckner. If you can't get them, then Lewis (if he plays) and Stewart are decent backup plans, with Gallimore and Adebawore buoyed to low-level status by the matchup.

New England Patriots vs. Cleveland Browns

We could go after Cleveland a lot of ways (it's usually with linebackers), but let's focus on another rookie quarterback in Dillon Gabriel. While Gabriel has been well below average, he hasn't thrown any interceptions, so we can find more value with the defensive line.

Gabriel has been sacked 10 times in his three starts, including six against the Steelers in Week 6. Cleveland ranks 29th in pass block win rate, so on top of a rookie QB, they are weak up front as well.

Harold Landry and K'Lavon Chaisson are the edge rushers who have taken most of the snaps. Landry is owned in more leagues, but he's the guy you want if you can grab him; he has 5.5 sacks this season. Chaisson has 4.5 sacks, one of which came when Tennessee's Ward dropped the ball last week, allowing Chaisson to score a touchdown.

On the interior, Milton Williams and Christian Barmore play the bulk of the snaps, with a few others involved on a smaller scale. Williams could be a keeper and weekly starter who has 3.5 sacks. Barmore had 8.5 sacks in 2023 but has otherwise never topped 2.5 in four other seasons, and he doesn't have any this year.

Landry and Chaisson are both great options on the outside, while Williams is a solid player on the inside. Any of the three could stick on your roster. Barmore is a low-level player, but the matchup gives him a little intrigue.

Linebackers

Houston Texans vs. San Francisco 49ers

The 49ers have run more plays than any other team, nearly 69 per game. I like finding linebackers playing against teams that run a lot of plays because it means they get extra chances at tackles (and other stats). San Francisco often plays through Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle (who was shut out in his return from injury), players who match up with linebackers often in the passing game.

Azeez Al-Shaair has played pretty much every snap, and he's the guy to grab if he's available. Behind him, Henry To'oTo'o and E.J. Speed have been splitting the snaps the past three games. To'oTo'o has more tackles (34 to 23), but he played around 170 more snaps than Speed during the first three weeks. Both players are decent Plan Bs.

Go with Al-Shaair if you can grab him; there is enough availability that there's a good chance you can. If he is owned, then To'oTo'o and Speed, in that order, are fine backups.

Philadelphia Eagles vs. New York Giants

Sticking with the theme of lots of plays, the Giants have run the second-most offensive plays per game behind the 49ers. New York's offense looks different since Jaxson Dart took over, resulting in more sustained drives and more chances for opposing defenses to rack up stats.

Zack Baun and Jihaad Campbell both played most of the snaps so far and are good fantasy players. Baun is probably owned already, but Campbell has a lot of availability and can be picked up.

Campbell has 43 tackles (versus 58 for Baun), two defended passes, an interception, and a forced fumble. Campbell is likely to continue having a varied impact moving forward, making him a good fantasy player both now and in the future.

Defensive Backs

Atlanta Falcons vs. Miami Dolphins

Tua Tagovailoa is tied for the league lead with Geno Smith with 10 interceptions. He has thrown three picks in each of the past two games, including a pick-six against the Browns last week.

Tyreek Hill is out for the season, leaving the Dolphins perilously thin at pass catcher, and Tagovailoa is feeling the effects, though he was even struggling with his star receiver in the lineup. The offensive line rates out below average in both pass blocking and run blocking.

Atlanta has been very strong defending the pass, holding opposing teams to just 155.7 passing yards per game with seven touchdowns and six interceptions. That includes holding Baker Mayfield, Josh Allen, and the 49ers' passing game all to 180 passing yards or less.

A.J. Terrell is the team's top cornerback. He missed a few games but has been back to play 100% of the snaps in each of the past two weeks. Mike Hughes is the other starter, having played every defensive snap this season.

At safety, Jessie Bates III is the top guy, but he's also owned in more leagues and might not be available. If you can't grab Bates, then rookie Xavier Watts is a fine Plan B, with just two fewer tackles than Bates, two interceptions, and four defended passes.

This is a strong set of four players, especially this week with a great matchup. I am in favor of grabbing any of them, maybe even as keepers in the cases of Terrell, Bates, and Watts.

New York Jets @ Cincinnati Bengals

With Smith and the Raiders on bye this week, it was tougher to find a second team to target with defensive backs. New York's place here isn't about their own prowess but rather the sheer volume at which the Bengals throw the ball.

Joe Flacco threw six interceptions in his four games with the Browns, but he hasn't thrown any yet in two starts for the Bengals. He will probably end up somewhere in the middle, throwing a few picks in Cincinnati but not at such a high rate.

Going back to the volume, Flacco has thrown the ball 45 and 47 times in his two games with the Bengals. Cincinnati's pass defense is as bad as any team, so they have to throw the ball to keep up; it would be the same with Jake Browning or Joe Burrow under center.

With so many pass attempts, players get more chances at defending passes and pulling in interceptions. That makes New York intriguing in the secondary.

Sauce Gardner is the top cornerback for the Jets, but he suffered a concussion last week and is questionable. Otherwise, Brandon Stephens has been on the field for nearly every defensive snap, and Jarvis Brownlee Jr. has played close to 70% of the snaps the past two weeks.

Andre Cisco and Malachi Moore have played every defensive snap at safety the past few games and are the guys to target there. Cisco is second on the team with 38 tackles while Moore has 26.