Fantasy Football Week 9 IDP Streamers: Defensive Players from the Rams, Ravens, and More
Players from two teams at each level of the defense that have good matchups in Week 9 of the NFL season.
Injuries to offensive skill players often come with a lot of attention, but the same maladies suffered by defensive players sometimes fly under the radar. A big part of that is because of fantasy football: when offensive players get hurt, it impacts our fantasy rosters, either directly or indirectly.
Fantasy owners in IDP leagues feel some of that same tension on defense because they a personal connection to those players on their fantasy rosters. IDP opens fantasy owners to a new world of caring about random NFL players.
Let's look at players from each level of the defense who have good matchups in Week 9. We will 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
Los Angeles Chargers @ Tennessee Titans
There's a very strict rule when I start with this article each week: Find the team playing against the Titans and list them in the defensive line section. Cameron Ward has been sacked 34 times, six more than any other quarterback, a status he has held all season.
Four edge players have been involved heavily the past two weeks for LA: Tuli Tuipulotu, Bud Dupree, Khalil Mack, and Odafe Oweh. Tuipulotu and Dupree have played the most snaps for the Chargers, while Mack missed four games and returned two weeks ago, and Oweh was acquired from the Ravens in a trade before Week 6.
Tuipulotu leads the team with six sacks, Mack has three in his limited time, and even Oweh has picked up two since joining the team. Dupree hasn't sacked the quarterback and isn't putting up any other stats either.
On the interior, Jamaree Caldwell, Teair Tart, and Justin Eboigbe have shared the bulk of the snaps. Eboigbe has four sacks, and Caldwell has one. Tart hasn't taken down the quarterback, but he has deflected two passes and has a forced fumble and fumble recovery.
Tuipulotu is the best option on the outside, with Mack and Oweh (in that order) as good backup plans who will get on the field less often. Inside, Eboigbe is the guy to grab, while Caldwell is an OK Plan B and Tart Plan C.
Los Angeles Rams vs. New Orleans Saints
ESPN measures win rates for offensive and defensive lines on both running plays and passing plays. It's a way to quantify something that can be impossible to put numbers on at times.
The Saints rank last in pass blocking and 29th in run blocking. They might have the worst offensive line in football. This week, New Orleans is giving rookie quarterback Tyler Shough his first career start. The Rams are in the top 10 in both pass rush win rate and run stop win rate. This is a lopsided matchup.
On the edge, Byron Young and Jared Verse play the most snaps, and Josaiah Stewart works in a reserve role. Both Young and Verse are owned in more fantasy leagues, but there is still some availability. They are both great pickups, but Stewart is more of a desperation option.
The defensive tackle rotation has been led by Kobie Turner, with Braden Fiske next in line and Poona Ford and Tyler Davis on the back of the rotation. Turner leads the group with 1.5 sacks, while Ford and Davis have one sack apiece. Turner is the guy to grab from this unit, with each of the other three close to even footing as backup plans, though I like that Fiske plays a little more.
Linebackers
Arizona Cardinals @ Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys have regularly ranked among the top 10 in most offensive plays per game over the past few seasons. They are sixth after eight weeks. With more plays come more chances for linebackers to do what they do best: tackle. I'm looking for LBs who are going to have the most time on the field, and that means finding offenses that run a lot of plays.
The guys to look at in fantasy from the Cardinals are Mack Wilson Sr. and Akeem Davis-Gaither. Wilson has played essentially every defensive snap and leads the team in tackles (53) and defended passes (six). Davis-Gaither is around 70% of the snaps and has 51 tackles and three defended passes of his own.
Both players should be in line to rack up tackles and might just luck into a sack or a turnover. They're not high-level fantasy IDP players, but they are very capable streamers. Wilson is the guy to grab if you can, and Davis-Gaither is a fine backup plan.
Tennessee Titans vs. Los Angeles Chargers
The Chargers now rank first in offensive snaps per game. They ran 70 plays against the Vikings last week and have averaged 69.3 over their last three games. When this team is humming, they sustain long drives, giving opposing defenses plenty of chances at stats.
That figures to be the state of things in this game, as the Titans are one of the worst teams in the league and have a lowly defense to go along with their struggling offense. We're not looking for efficiency here, though; we're looking for volume, and the Chargers provide it.
Cody Barton and Cedric Gray handle pretty much every linebacker snap when healthy. Barton hasn't missed a defensive snap, and Gray has been over 80% in all but one game (and above 90% in five of eight games).
Gray leads the team with 75 tackles, 30 more than second-place Barton. That has him owned in more fantasy leagues and might make him unavailable, but Gray is the guy you want if you can grab him. If he's not available, then Barton is another good player to have in your lineup this week.
Defensive Backs
Baltimore Ravens @ Miami Dolphins
We have a simple task with our defensive backs this week: Go after the quarterbacks who have thrown the most interceptions. That may seem too simple, but overthinking usually gets us into trouble in fantasy sports.
Tua Tagovailoa is tied for the league lead with 10 picks, and there are issues all around him with injuries and ineffective players. There are a few stars; any team would surely take De'Von Achane and Jaylen Waddle. The offensive line is sixth-worst in pass blocking and third-worst in run blocking, though, not helping their passer or runners.
The cornerbacks on the field most for Baltimore are Nate Wiggins, Marlon Humphrey, and Chidobe Awuzie. Awuzie missed a few games with injury but returned last week in a limited role. Wiggins is the only Raven to have recorded an interception this season (he has two), and he leads the team with five defended passes.
At safety, Malaki Starks and Kyle Hamilton have both been on the field for at least 90% of the snaps in every game in which they were healthy (Hamilton missed Week 5). Alohi Gilman missed the first four games of the season but has now played the past two, and he was heavily involved in both.
Wiggins is the best guy to grab from the CB group, though the other two are both fine options. Hamilton is the top safety on the team, but he is owned in more fantasy leagues and might not be available. Starks or even Gilman are decent pickups in his stead.
Jacksonville Jaguars @ Las Vegas Raiders
And we'll finish with the guy who is tied with Tagovailoa for the interception lead, as Geno Smith had 10 interceptions after the first six weeks. He didn't throw a pick in Week 7, then the Raiders had their bye last week, letting Tua catch up in the meantime.
Vegas hasn't had Brock Bowers for the past three games, and he was less than 100% even when he did play after suffering an injury in Week 1. That has majorly hurt a passing game that's short on impact pass catchers, as has the absence of left tackle Kolton Miller (though Vegas rates close to average in pass blocking on the season).
Jourdan Lewis and Montaric Brown have been the top cornerbacks the past two weeks after the team traded Tyson Campbell to Cleveland. Greg Newsome II, who Campbell was traded for, has been lightly involved in those two games, though not enough to be a fantasy option.
At safety, Andrew Wingard and Eric Murray generally play the most snaps, though Murray has dealt with some injury issues and is questionable for Week 9. If Murray is out, then Antonio Johnson has been the guy filling in. There's risk around Murray even if he is on the field given that he suffered a neck injury before the Week 8 bye.
Lewis and Wingard are the guys to grab if you can get them, and Brown is a fine backup plan at cornerback. I would rather stay away from Murray this week, but if he's out, then Johnson is a lower-level fill-in.
