2018 IDP Waiver Wire Pickups: Week 10
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Let’s start things off by going through some IDP news, notes, and commentary from Week 9 of the NFL season.
Injuries
David Irving suffered a high ankle sprain in practice last week and is expected to miss four to six weeks due to that injury.
First-round pick Marcus Davenport is likely going to be shelved for about a month with a toe injury.
Christian Kirksey injured his hamstring and did not return to the game.
Sean Lee aggravated his oft-injured hamstring on Monday Night and did not return. Given his ridiculously long injury history, Lee is almost surely going to miss games moving forward.
LB1- Blake Martinez was carted off with an ankle injury last week but returned to the game late in the fourth quarter. He should be fine for Week 10.
The Chargers put linebacker Kyzir White on injured reserve. He had been sidelined since Week 3 after undergoing a knee scope. Although his season is over, he’s shaping up to be one of the sneakier dynasty/long-term IDP pickups heading into the 2019 season.
Damarious Randall was a bit of a surprise inactive this past Sunday due to a groin injury. I would expect him to be ready to go for Week 10. Teammate Denzel Ward suffered a hip injury as well and did not return to the game. Hip injuries can be troublesome so it wouldn’t be a surprise if Randall were to miss some time. We will have to watch the practice reports this week for more information.
Safety Bradley McDougald has been battling a knee injury in recent weeks and although he started last week’s game, the injury flared up on him again and he had to leave the contest. Aggravation of injuries typically lead to game absences, but we should have a better idea of his status later in the week.
General Player Notes
The NFL suspended Mychal Kendricks for eight games for violating the personal-conduct policy. Although his NFL future is in serious doubt due to his legal issues, he’s likely to play when he’s eligible again in Week 14.
In a very strange move, Pro Bowler Reshad Jones removed himself from the game after just 10 snaps. Head Coach Adam Gase said he and Jones cleared things up after the game and are now on the same page. This makes it sounds like Jones will be back in his normal role, but it’s a situation we need to monitor nonetheless.
Washington acquired Ha-Ha Clinton Dix from the Packers for a 2019 fourth-round pick. He played 71% of the snaps at free safety for the team and racked up seven tackles.
For more updates on playing time splits across the linebacker position, check out the latest update of my every-down linebackers column.
Now onto The Guru’s IDP waiver wire selections for Week 10!
Defensive Linemen
(Previously recommended DLs: Markus Golden, Sheldon Richardson, Isaac Rochell, Larry Ogunjobi, Taco Charlton, Matt Ioannidis, Benson Mayowa, Margus Hunt, Kenny Clark, Stephen Weatherly, David Irving, Takkarist McKinley, Jerry Hughes, Jarran Reed, Trent Murphy, Corey Luiget, Romeo Okwara, Joey Bosa, Cameron Wake, Jarran Reed, Everson Griffen, Damon Harrison, Chris Jones, Markus Golden)
DE Ezekiel Ansah (DET) – Ansah finally returned to the active roster after missing the previous seven games with a nagging shoulder injury. The Lions eased him back in as he saw just 12 snaps (24%), but he still came away with a sack. He should see a significant bump in playing time next week and has a decent chance of racking up his third sack in as many games this season. If he was dropped in your league due to the his extended absence, he makes for a solid DL2-/DL3+ pickup.
DE Dante Fowler (LAR) – Fowler was traded from the Jaguars to the Rams last week and although he compiled just 1 tackle in his debut with the team, his stock is trending up. He’s going to receive a significant bump in playing time (~20%) and have much more sack opportunity given the strength of the Los Angeles offense. The former 3rd overall pick is just 24 years old and is coming off an 8-sack season a year ago, so I consider him a high upside player still. If you need to make a splash move/are looking for potential big points down the stretch, Fowler is a good boom/bust DL3 option in deeper leagues.
DE Matt Ioannidis (WAS) – Ioannidis has sneakily been one of Washington’s best defenders this year. He registered another a sack last week, bringing his season total to 6.5. He’s seen a bump in playing time in recent weeks which has helped his tackle numbers as well. Despite the strong play, Ioannidis remains unrostered in a lot of fantasy leagues (probably due to being a later round draft selection in a typically non-productive fantasy scheme/role) so now is the time to pounce on him before the window closes. Consider him a DL3+/DL2-.
DE Markus Golden (ARZ) – Golden was on the list last week as he was coming off his best game of the season and finally seems to be over his ACL injury. This said, I’m just mentioning him here again as he was on bye last week so he probably fell off the radar of lot of fantasy owners. The Chiefs aren’t a great matchup this week but he gets the Raiders in Week 11 who are a fantastic matchup for opposing defensive ends.
Linebackers
(Previously recommended LBs: Fred Warner, Darius Leonard, Nick Vigil, Matt Milano, Cory Littleton, Darius Leonard, Reuben Foster, Roquan Smith, Devondre Campbell, Duke Riley, Kenny Young, Austin Calitro, Vontaze Burfict, Leighton Vander Esch, Josh Bynes, Anthony Walker, Vontaze Burfict, Jatavis Brown, Jayon Brown, Jerome Baker, Zach Cunningham, Jaime Collins, Vincent Rey, Thomas Davis, Bradley Chubb, Adarius Taylor, Elijah Lee, T.J. Watt, Todd Davis. Jordan Evans, Jamie Collins, K.J. Wright, Marquel Lee)
LB Leighton Vander Esch (DAL) – With Sean Lee almost surely slated to miss games with a hamstring injury, LVE will immediately slot back into an every-down role at WLB. He’s been a tackle beast on a per snap basis and should be the top waiver wire pickup this week. He’s a borderline LB1/high-end LB2.
LB Tanner Vallejo (CLE) – Vallejo took over for an injured Christian Kirksey and played essentially every down. He put up 6 tackles in 39 snaps. He’s not going to set the world on fire in the box scores but could be a reliable source of LB3- production in Week 10 against the Falcons if Kirksey and Joe Schobert are both inactive.
LB Nigel Bradham (PHI) – Bradham isn’t much of a high ceiling option at this point in his career, but he can provide you with a high tackle floor as he’s had five or more solo tackles in four straight games and is one of the few surefire every-down linebackers left on the waiver wire in a lot of leagues. He’s got a top 10 matchup against the Cowboys who will likely look to employ a heavy dosage of Zeke Elliot against their division rivals in Week 10. If you are a favorite in your matchup and are just looking for safe points out of your LB3, Bradham is a pretty good choice.
LB Kendell Beckwith (TB) – This recommendation is for those in super deep leagues. Beckwith has yet to play this year as he’s still working his way back from an ankle injury. However, he resumed practicing last week and is likely to get activated off the PUP list in the next week or so. Once he returns, he’s likely to take over in the middle of the defense with Kwon Alexander out for the season and could play every down. He put up monster numbers as an every-down MLB in the few games he played in that role last year, so he makes for a great speculative add if you have a bench spot in 14 or 16-team leagues.
Defensive Backs
(Previously recommended DBs: Kentrell Brice, Clayton Geathers, Terrell Edmunds, Jessie Bates, Justin Simmons, Ricardo Allen, Donte Jackson, Anton Exum, Damontae Kazee, Brian Poole, Tre Boston, Jessie Bates, Eric Reid, Damarious Randall, Jordan Lucas, Mike Mitchell, Kenny Vaccaro, Patrick Chung, Darryl Roberts, Kenny Vaccaro, Marcus Maye, Eli Apple)
S Justin Reid (HOU) – Injuries at the cornerback position have forced Kareem Jackson back into his historical cornerback role which has allowed Reid to become a full-time starter at safety. With Zach Cunningham out with an injury at linebacker, more tackles have flowed into the secondary which has resulted in huge box score numbers for Reid in the last two weeks (5-4, INT, 2 PD and 9-1 FR). He’s on bye this coming week, but he’s someone that should be on your pickup radar when the opportunity is right to add him to your roster.
S Tedrick Thompson (SEA) – Although Thompson hasn’t blown out the box scores since taking over for Earl Thomas (IR) in Week 5, he’s been serviceable in the fantasy department. The matchup this week is appealing at the Rams give up the 11th most points to defensive backs and Thompson had the best game of his career against them earlier in the year (6-2, 1 INT, 1 PD). Additionally, with Bradley McDougald and K.J. Wright banged up, I expect more tackle opportunity to trickle into the Seattle secondary. He’s a nice, high-floor DB3 option this week.
CB Bashaud Breeland (GB) – Breeland made his season debut last week at cornerback and played 96% of the snaps while working his way to 8 total tackles (4 solos). He’s been a productive fantasy cornerback in the past, so I’m buying that he can be a valuable contributor in CB-required leagues moving forward. I’d play him as a CB2/DB4.
CB Michael Davis (LAC) – Davis took over the starting cornerback role from Trevor Williams and put up 8 total tackles (7 solos). Expect teams to continue to throw at the rookie who is playing opposite a strong cover corner in Casey Hayward. I’m currently valuing him as a short-term CB2+.
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Last Updated: November 6, 2018