IDP Waiver Wire: Week Seven

Ryan Miller

The world of IDP fantasy football is definitely a tricky landscape. While someone seems to erupt out of nowhere on any given week, there are ways to uncover them before they break out. Let’s dig in ahead of week eight and see which players have put themselves in the best position to earn their way on an IDP roster!

The gist of this column: finding guys that are either long-term dynasty fliers or quality one-week rentals-you’ll know which one from my writing. We will be using two different avenues to uncover IDP talent.

The first measure will actually be a metric I invented, called Disruption Score. This metric specifically measures which players were most efficient at getting behind the line of scrimmage and affecting the quarterback’s normal motions, therefore “disrupting” the play. This metric has the most weight for DE/DT, but it can also show us which linebackers have multi-sack upside throughout the season if you are in big-play scoring formats.

Secondly, I will purely assess the matchups for the following week and give my best dart throws for that given week. It is definitely the least concrete analysis I have posted, but a large part of fantasy football is going with your guys (and it has actually done very well so far), so this is a section dedicated to that.

*“Busts” will be considered as players who ranked outside of the top 60 of their position for that week, “Hits” will be anyone who finishes within the top 25 of their position, and “Average” will be anyone in between.*

Without further ado, let’s do this thing!

Season Totals:

Disruption Score~ 7 Busts, 6 Average, 5 Hits
Snap Counts~ 3 Busts, 4 Average, 2 Hits
Matchup Preview~ 6 Busts, 6 Average, 5 Hits

Disruption Score Waiver Adds

Defensive Line

Ronald Blair, DE SF (Disruption Score: 51.94)

While Blair may be overshadowed by the likes of Deforest Buckner and Nick Bosa, Blair has found his niche in this dominant defensive line. This week’s slip-n-slide matchup against the Washington Redskins was not the best representation of the impact Blair can make on the field, and I fully expect Blair to bounce back against the Panthers and (Cam Newton? Kyle Allen??) on Sunday. Kyle Shanahan and Frank Reich are running away with Coach of the Year honors.

Carl Nassib, DE TB (Disruption Score: 39.58)

One of my initial Disruption Score darlings, Nassib is once again performing well under the radar. He currently has the most tackles for loss of any player with less than three sacks (6 TFL), but found the quarterback in London before hitting the bye week. Nassib’s slow start should ramp up much sooner than later, and he may still be on waivers after sitting out this week with a bye. I was amped to casually find him on my waivers last week, so be sure to look for the same.

DeMarcus Walker, DE DEN (Disruption Score: 46.14)

No, this isn’t the reincarnation of forty-year-old Demarcus Ware. Nobody in the IDP world could have confidently told you exactly who Vic Fangio would dial-up as the beneficiary from Bradley Chubb’s devastating ACL tear, but it is without a doubt now that DeMarcus Walker should be found in every league. Amassing four sacks in the past four weeks (with five total tackles this week to boot), I would feel confident using Walker as a DE2 against the Colts in week eight.

Linebacker

Nicholas Morrow, LB OAK (Disruption Score: 11.46)

It turns out Vontaze Burfict’s “unique” pass rushing repertoire wasn’t so unique after all. Morrow has racked up eighteen tackles over his first three games replacing Burfict full-time, including an interception and a quarterback hit. Morrow is truly showing his full range of skills since getting the extra opportunity to restart his career, and he hasn’t looked back since. The Raiders should have plenty of teams running out the clock on them to finish the season, boosting his opportunity even further upward.

Matchup-Based Waiver Adds

Defensive Line

Marcell Dareus, DT JAX (Week 8, @ NY Jets)

The Jets are currently allowing more sacks per game than the Steelers, Cowboys, 49ers, and Colts COMBINED! Sacksonville will be looking to prove their title after only earning two sacks against the Bengals on Sunday, while Calais Campbell and Yannick Ngakoue are already on rosters. I’d be looking to get any exposure I can get on this Jacksonville line, even if my hope is in 29-year-old Marcell Dareus.

Tyson Alualu, DE PIT (Week 8, vs. Miami)

This one is an automatic add. Stephon Tuitt’s brutal pectoral injury sidelines what was a spectacular bounce-back season for the All-Pro defensive end, but Alualu has shined over the past two seasons in limited snaps. There aren’t much friendlier situations than home versus the Dolphins on Monday Night Football after a bye week, so if Alualu can’t perform in week eight, it’s safe to assume he never will.

Linebacker

Troy Reeder, LB LAR (Week 8, vs. Cincinnati)

I don’t know when Troy Reeder necessarily became a thing, but all that matters is that it is here. Even with Cory Littleton playing his usual role in Wade Phillips’ defense, Reeder has found his identity in this intimidating Rams front seven. I expect the Rams to get ahead on the lowly Bengals early and often next Sunday, which bodes well for Reeder.

Blake Cashman, LB NYJ (Week 8, @ Jacksonville)

Shout-out to the amazing IDP Read & React podcast for being so high on Blake Cashman prior to the NFL Draft. Odds are that if you’re here looking for IDP waivers in week eight, you’ve heard of them by now… but if not, do yourself the favor! I was foolishly a bit more skeptical of Cashman’s upside heading into 2019, but Cashman has absolutely made the most of this opportunity after Avery Williamson’s preseason ACL tear. The Jets are back into their rhythm with Darnold back in the fold, and the best way to do so is to establish the game flow is with Leonard, Leonard, and more Leonard Fournette. Plus-matchup for Cashman here.

Defensive Backs

Jonathan Jones, CB NE (Week 8, vs. Cleveland)

We’ve all seen the disaster start Baker Mayfield has had in the first half of 2019. New bye week, new Baker? I’m afraid not. Bill Belichick plays chess while we all just play with our lineups, and we know to start the Patriots’ secondary against the struggling Mayfield. Look for Jones to have a nice bounce-back game next Sunday if you’re looking for big score potential.

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