AFC IDP Snap Counts: Week Seven

In many leagues, we just crossed the halfway line of the regular fantasy season. In the remaining ones, that will happen next week.

Injury rates have been crazy this season, so although not many studs have emerged, opportunity continues to be plentiful.

Baltimore Ravens – 63 snaps

LB Patrick Queen (27) remains a bit-part player. Some of this is due to his injury status – but he has played 46 snaps over the last two games. He’s not hurt badly enough not to see the field. It may well just be that the Ravens have finally tired of how poorly he’s played in the NFL.

Josh Bynes (46) continues to lead the unit instead of Queen, but he’s only playing three-quarters of snaps.

Buffalo Bills

The Bills enjoyed their bye week.

Cincinnati Bengals – 73 snaps

LB rotation reared its head again here. Logan Wilson (59) led the way as he has all season, but he did sit out 14 snaps in a key game against a division rival – albeit one they won handily. Germaine Pratt (47) and Akeem Davis-Gaither (39) also saw serious action. This was probably a minor blip for Wilson, but it’s a reminder that his job is not as secure as some may think.

In a similar vein, the DE rotation was a bit more even this week. Sam Hubbard (53) and Trey Hendrickson (44) had fine days, but Cameron Sample (32) and Wyatt Ray (23) also played more than they have.

Cleveland Browns – 50 snaps

The Browns played just 50 snaps so don’t be disheartened by a lack of productivity.

With Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah out, Anthony Walker (50) was the top LB. No others played more than 50% of snaps.

At corner, Greg Newsome (50) was back to full strength. Denzel Ward (39) and Troy Hill (33) saw limited action.

Denver Broncos – 71 snaps

Aging stud edge Von Miller (33) hurt his ankle and missed half the game. Malik Reed (67) and Jonathon Cooper (40) carried the load, which was less than ideal.

Justin Strnad (71) slid into the every-down LB role as expected but was not productive. Stick with him. He’ll have good days.

Micah Kiser (9) was injured early on, and Curtis Robinson (45) is strictly depth.

Houston Texans – 71 snaps

Edge Charles Omenihu (39) returned from missing the last two games with injury. He generated five pressures (albeit no sacks). Jonathan Greenard (38) recorded two sacks. And still for some reason, Jake Martin (36) and Jordan Jenkins (35) both saw significant action. Rotating edges makes sense if you have a decent group of players. I see little reason for the Texans not to use Omenihu and Greenard more than they are.

Christian Kirksey and Kam Grugier-Hill (both 71) were again the main LBs with Zach Cunningham (15) in a limited role. He’s played just 62 snaps since week three.

Indianapolis Colts – 56 snaps

This was the fourth time the Colts have played 60 or fewer defensive snaps this season. They’re 30th in average defensive snaps now.

DE Kwity Paye (41) again played a decent amount with Kemoko Turay not playing.

Corner Rock Ya-Sin did not play in this game.

With deep safety Julian Blackmon done for the season Andrew Sendejo (44) and George Odum (12) shared playing time next to Khari Willis (56).

Jacksonville Jaguars

The Jaguars enjoyed their bye week.

Kansas City Chiefs – 68 snaps

Underwhelming LB Anthony Hitchens missed this game. Nick Bolton (57) was extremely productive as a tackler, while Willie Gay (46) hauled in an interception and Ben Niemann (50) played most of the game.

Bolton and Gay are a good reminder that it is definitely possible to score well in fantasy terms on limited snaps – just not reliably.

Corner Charvarius Ward (43) returned from injury in this game which cost Mike Hughes (16) playing time.

Juan Thornhill (65) played as a full-time guy for the second game in a row with Daniel Sorensen (16) still in the doghouse. Thornhill had a very good day – but those are also not going to be reliable for him.

Lastly defensive lineman Chris Jones (39) returned from injury. He played a bit more inside, but he was still very much a DE.

Las Vegas Raiders – 69 snaps

Denzel Perryman (55) dropped down to a more human level of performance this week. He managed eight total tackles giving him a tackle efficiency of 14.5%. That’s high but way lower than the 22% he’d been tracking at prior to this game. Note that he’s still sitting out a significant proportion of snaps.

For those keeping track, K.J. Wright (5) has played just 144 snaps in seven games. He’s not a rosterable IDP.

Los Angeles Chargers

The Chargers enjoyed their bye week.

Miami Dolphins – 63 snaps

This defense is bad. They had a nightmare with injuries this week, but they were playing badly before then too.

LB Jerome Baker (10) was one of those hurt. Elandon Roberts (44) and Sam Eguavoen (53) filled in for him.

DE Jaelan Phillips was also knocked up. Emmanuel Ogbah (42) Andrew Van Ginkel (48) and Brennan Scarlett (18) shared the load.

“Star” corners Xavien Howard and Byron Jones (both 63) returned after missing the trip to London. Nik Needham (24) manned the slot so Justin Coleman and bust Noah Igbinoghene did not play.

Deep safety Jevon Holland (63) managed to record a sack from one of his two blitz attempts this week. No other safety played more than 44 snaps.

New England Patriots – 66 snaps

Veteran LB Dont’a Hightower missed this game. LB remains a shared proposition for the Patriots. Kyle Van Noy (63) continued to split his time between LB and edge. Ja’Whaun Bentley (46) came back down to Earth after his crazy week and no other LB played 17 or more snaps.

Safety Devin McCourty (18) was injured and missed much of the game. Myles Bryant (56) played a large role in his absence. Kyle Dugger (55) and Adrian Phillips (54) were both major players too. This is a three-safety defense.

New York Jets – 76 snaps

This defense is very disappointing.

With C.J. Mosley out, and Quincy Williams (23) evaluated for a concussion, rookie Jamien Sherwood (52), Del’Shawn Phillips (37) and even Blake Cashman (33) saw action. None impressed. It’s tough to pin any of these as good options. If you have room to stash them then go ahead, but all are long-shots.

Safety was another matter though. Marcus Maye (76) returned from injury and Ashtyn Davis (76) is finally fully healthy. Both had very productive days.

Pittsburgh Steelers

The Steelers enjoyed their bye week.

Tennessee Titans – 72 snaps

Corner has been a disaster for the Titans. This week Greg Mabin (72) played alongside Janoris Jenkins (54) and slot Elijah Molden (69). Chris Jones (18) had to cover for Jenkins at times. It’s incredible that Patrick Mahomes did not eviscerate this unit.

At safety we saw a blast from the past. Matthias Farley (44) saw action playing deep alongside Dane Cruikshank (72) and Kevin Byard (54).

Good luck everyone!