Week 2 of football is officially in the books, and it’s time to look ahead for our fantasy football leagues.
The IDP report will provide an early look at several waiver wire priorities of varying league sizes, along with preliminary Week 3 IDP rankings.
Since all leagues are different sizes and have differing IDP requirements, the weekly rankings might be more beneficial than the waiver list.
As usual, the rankings are a reflection of IDP Flex rankings for tackle-heavy formats.
Top Week 3 IDP Pickups
Zach Allen, DT, Denver Broncos
I’m not normally one for recommending defensive tackles, as they tend to have less upside, but here we are. What if I told you only two D-linemen have over 100 snaps and a pressure rate of 25% or higher (per TruMedia)?
Unsurprisingly, Aidan Hutchinson (5.5 sacks through 2 games) is one of them. The other is none other than the Broncos’ Zach Allen.
I get it, one sack is nothing to write home about, and just six combined tackles through two games isn’t great. Better days are ahead, though, as the underlying stats show.
Allen’s nine hurries are tied for the top spot among DL with guys like Chris Jones, Carl Granderson, and Dexter Lawrence. If he keeps it up, double-digit sacks may be in the offing for 2024.
Jahlani Tavai, LB, New England Patriots
A late swap in after the reports, Jahlani Tavai is a must-add and probably the highest long-term priority among all IDPs. That’s not because he’s any elite talent, but LBs are mostly dependent upon playing time.
With Ja’Whaun Bentley done for the year with a pectoral injury, Tavai looks to be the every down LB for the Patriots. Tavai has shown his talent in flashes with the Patriots.
I get it; he’s only hit four tackles in each of his first two games of 2024. However, as a full-time player for the Patriots, I’d expect that to change starting in Week 3. Bentley posted 12 tackles and half a sack in Week 1. If he’s rostered, Raekwon McMillan is likely to be the Patriots’ LB2.
Baylon Spector, LB, Buffalo Bills
As of this moment, the Bills haven’t added more to the initial reporting on Terrel Bernard. What we know so far is that it’s a multi-week issue, and IR is on the table. The last thing we know is that Baylon Spector took over directly for Bernard, making him an extremely valuable player on waivers.
It’s hard to tell you how much to chase Spector without knowing the severity of Bernard’s injury, but he’s worth a decent bit if you really need a multi-week option.
Despite being just over 80% of snaps against Miami, Spector totaled 10 combined tackles while filling in for Bernard. That role was a borderline top-12 IDP, so expect solid results for a couple of weeks.
Nick Cross, S, Indianapolis Colts
I might be a week too late, but it appears the Nick Cross breakout is on in 2024.
So far, Cross has posted two weeks with 14 or more combined tackles. He’s the only player to do that so far in 2024 and is actually the league leader in tackles through two weeks.
Now in just his third season, Cross is just 10 tackles away from crossing his previous season high in tackles. I’m mildly skeptical of the role when teammate Julian Blackmon returns, though.
Cross played the strong safety role in Week 2 after playing more deep in Week 1. While fine for fantasy, 14 tackle games are much harder when playing primarily deep.
Early Week 3 Fantasy Football IDP Rankings
1) T.J. Edwards, LB | CHI (at IND)
2) Zack Baun, LB | PHI (at NO)
3) Fred Warner, LB | SF (at LAR)
4) Alex Singleton, LB | DEN (at TB)
5) Roquan Smith, LB | BAL (at DAL)
6) Bobby Okereke, LB | NYG (at CLE)
7) Azeez Al-Shaair, LB | HOU (at MIN)
8) Maxx Crosby, DE | LV (vs. CAR)
9) Bobby Wagner, LB | WAS (at CIN)
10) Nick Bolton, LB | KC (at ATL)
11) Baylon Spector, LB | BUF (vs. JAC)
12) E.J. Speed, LB | IND (vs. CHI)
13) Foyesade Oluokun, LB | JAC (at BUF)
14) Nick Bosa, DE | SF (at LAR)
15) Aidan Hutchinson, DE | DET (at ARI)
16) Logan Wilson, LB | CIN (vs. WAS)
17) Eric Kendricks, LB | DAL (vs. BAL)
18) Blake Cashman, LB | MIN (vs. HOU)
19) Shaq Thompson, LB | CAR (at LV)
20) Brian Branch, S | DET (at ARI)
21) Kyzir White, LB | ARI (vs. DET)
22) Lavonte David, LB | TB (vs. DEN)
23) Josey Jewell, LB | CAR (at LV)
24) Quay Walker, LB | GB (at TEN)
25) Derwin James Jr., S | LAC (at PIT)
26) T.J. Watt, LB | PIT (vs. LAC)
27) Myles Garrett, DE | CLE (vs. NYG)
28) Micah Parsons, LB | DAL (vs. BAL)
29) Robert Spillane, LB | LV (vs. CAR)
30) Ernest Jones IV, LB | TEN (vs. GB)
31) Patrick Queen, LB | PIT (vs. LAC)
32) Quincy Williams, LB | NYJ (vs. NE)
33) Tremaine Edmunds, LB | CHI (at IND)
34) Zaire Franklin, LB | IND (vs. CHI)
35) Tyrel Dodson, LB | SEA (vs. MIA)
36) Jordyn Brooks, LB | MIA (at SEA)
37) Kyle Dugger, S | NE (at NYJ)
38) Boye Mafe, DE | SEA (vs. MIA)
39) Demario Davis, LB | NO (vs. PHI)
40) Kyle Hamilton, S | BAL (at DAL)
41) Derrick Barnes, LB | DET (at ARI)
42) Joshua Metellus, S | MIN (vs. HOU)
43) Trey Hendrickson, DE | CIN (vs. WAS)
44) Budda Baker, S | ARI (vs. DET)
45) Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, LB | CLE (vs. NYG)
46) Grant Delpit, S | CLE (vs. NYG)
47) Jahlani Tavai, LB | NE (at NYJ)
48) Dorian Williams, LB | BUF (vs. JAC)
49) Jalen Pitre, S | HOU (at MIN)
50) Nakobe Dean, LB | PHI (at NO)
Top IDP Players To Start in Week 3
Aidan Hutchinson, DE, Detroit Lions
Starting a player fresh off a 4.5 sack performance? Duh… Hutchinson appears ready to finally become the elite sack producer everyone’s been waiting for.
.@aidanhutch97's 4.5 sacks against Tampa Bay were the second-most in #Lions single-game history pic.twitter.com/oJ4kxykTcV
— Detroit Lions (@Lions) September 18, 2024
Hutchinson has had four or more QB hits in each of his first two games and now gets a Cardinals matchup that is primed for more production.
Hutchinson’s first two matchups came against the 14th-best Rams, then the 17th-best Buccaneers, according to Pro Football Network’s offensive line rankings.
This week, that drops to the 24th-ranked Cardinals, who are already down one of their starting tackles.
Hutchinson should continue his hot start, and could well post another multi-sack performance.
Shaq Thompson, LB, Carolina Panthers
Did you know just four LBs have posted 10+ total tackles in the first two weeks of the 2024 season? Logan Wilson is actually the “biggest name” of the group in IDP circles. E.J. Speed, Robert Spillane, and Shaq Thompson are the other three. All three moved up a significant amount in my rankings for this week, none more so than Thompson.
When healthy, Thompson has always produced for IDP purposes. Now he’s back in a full-time role. He’s played 100% of snaps each of the first two weeks of the year.
With Carolina struggling, Thompson has been able to rack up tackles while trailing. However, even with a better offense possible after the QB change, Thompson can easily post 10+ tackles again.