2021 IDP Redraft Rankings – Linebackers

Tier 1

1. Darius Leonard LB – IND (14), +0 vs. ECR 
In his three seasons in the league, Leonard has proven himself as fantasy’s #1 linebacker – averaging 10 total tackles per game along with a 85% chance of generating a big play (INT, FF, FR) each week. He’s well protected up front which will allow him to continue to rack up production at a league-leading rate. The one “ding” on Leonard’s record is he’s never played a full season, missing 1, 3, and 2 games, respectively the last three seasons.

2. Devin White LB – TB (9), +0 vs. ECR 
White had a monster sophomore campaign in which he joined Broderick Thomas (1991) as the only linebacker to ever post 140+ total tackles and eight or more sacks in a single season. There’s an argument for him being the first linebacker off the board; but for me, he’s a notch below Leonard given White still has fairly strong tackle competition from Lavonte David and we can’t realistically bank on nine sacks from him again.

Tier 2

3. Roquan Smith LB – CHI (10), +0 vs. ECR 
Although he had strong tackle production his first two seasons, injuries prevented Smith from reaching his full potential. That wasn’t the case in 2020 as he strung together a full season and set career highs across several categories. He’s still only 24 years old and should see a lot of tackle opportunity as the Bears’ lone every down linebacker.

4. Blake Martinez LB – NYG (10), +1 vs. ECR 
Martinez has been the most consistently productive and reliable fantasy linebacker over the last four seasons, generating at least 144 total tackles each year since 2017 and never missing a start during that time. He doesn’t have the same upside as Leonard, White, and Smith given he’s not asked to blitz much and doesn’t generate a ton of big plays, but he’s one of the more sound tacklers in the game and will provide managers with high floor production.

5. Zach Cunningham LB – HOU (10), +1 vs. ECR 
Cunningham’s tackle production has increased in each of his four seasons in the league, culminating in a league-leading 164 total tackle performance in 2020. His 17.5% tackle frequency was also #1 among all LBs. Similar to Blake Martinez, Cunningham lacks the big play upside of the very top echelon of fantasy linebackers. However, Houston’s defense could be on the field more in 2021 which makes Cunningham a prime candidate to lead the league in tackles again and a sneaky candidate to be the top linebacker off the board in tackle-heavy scoring formats.

6. Bobby Wagner LB – SEA (9), -2 vs. ECR 
Wagner is probably still the game’s best linebacker and a surefire future Hall of Famer. However, there’s an argument to be made that he’s slightly overrated in some scoring formats due to the assist-heavy nature of Seattle’s home stat crew. As a result of this, Wagner has actually only eclipsed 90 solo tackles once in his nine-year career. He makes up for that in standard scoring with a boatload of assists and a decent amount of big plays, but make sure your league rewards for assisted tackles if you are going to take Wagner as a top 5 player at his position.

Tier 3

7. Joe Schobert LB – JAC (7), +0 vs. ECR 
Schobert has been an undervalued tackle producer since his sophomore 2017 campaign. During that time, he’s averaged 8.5 tackles per game with decent big play numbers. He should continue to serve managers well as a high volume dependent LB1-.

8. Fred Warner LB – SF (6), +0 vs. ECR (AVOID)
I’ve seen Warner ranked as high as the #1 overall LB. I think the 49ers defense limits their own opportunity too much for him to warrant that high of a draft selection. Although he’s developed into a great player, his production is too inconsistent (he had 9 games of 4 solos or less last year) for me to feel great about him as my LB1 “stud” in most leagues.

9. Eric Kendricks LB – MIN (7), +1 vs. ECR 
Long time IDPGuru.com followers know that I’ve been perpetually down on Kendricks versus other rankers; however, he proved me wrong last year. Before getting injured in Week 12, Kendricks was averaging nearly 9 total tackles a game and produced 3 INTs to boot. This bump in tackle production was likely due to the Vikings defense being weaker up front than in past years. Although he’s unlikely to pick up exactly where he left off last year, he should see enough opportunity to remain in the low-end LB/high-end LB2 conversation.

10. Patrick Queen LB – BAL (8), +2 vs. ECR (TARGET)
Queen struggled mightily at times in his rookie season. This was masked to the casual fan due to a couple of game-changing big plays he made but he actually led all defenders in missed tackles with a whopping 21 and graded out as PFF’s 82nd of 83 linebackers. This said, he still provided LB3 value for fantasy managers while only being on the field for 80% of the defensive snaps. It will be important to watch his performance in camp but if he can shore up his mistakes and play with more discipline, I expect to see him in a true every down role this year where he can tap into a lot of unrealized upside on a team with limited tackle competition.