It's time for some bye weeks, folks. The one of the tougher parts of IDP compared to D/ST leagues is knowing whether or not you should let a guy go because it's often too difficult to have a backup in most IDP formats. Personally, I never carry more than one LB on my bench in IDP leagues. Safeties and lineman are plentiful on the wire and there are some very nice matchups that we will explore in Week 5 IDP Rankings in a few days. The best succinct advice I can give is if there is a clear difference from the guy you might cut from the guys on the wire, then don't do it. A move I have used for years is to cut my kicker and hope to make a 2-for-1 deal before Sunday, then pick up a kicker. Simple, right?
Check out some new guys to target after the jump:
Follow me on Twitter!
Defensive Backs
Dashon Goldson- Goldson was a quasi-stud for the past two season averaging 87 tackles and 2.5 picks. He is back in the IDP limelight with his 10 tackles (all solo) against the Eagles after totaling eight tackles in Week 3. Goldson should be owned in most leagues.
William Moore- Moore was all set to have a big season as the starting strong safety in Atlanta. He had his best game of the year with eight tackles against the Seahawks and looked much more aggressive in stopping the run. Expect him to be a busy man against Green Bay on Sunday Night Football and he could be a nice play.
Charles Godfrey- Carolina was gashed in a big way with Matt Forte's career-high 205 yards on the ground. It's becoming abundantly clear all the injuries at the linebacker position has made them soft in the middle. The Panthers are going to need to play more 4-6 defenses in an effort to limit teams from running the ball down their throat. He has a nice matchup against the Saints on Sunday too.
Jason McCourty- Cortland Finnegan on the other side has made most quarterbacks more apt to throwing at McCourty in the early going. He accounted for 10 tackles (all solo) on Sunday against the Browns. Colt McCoy was slingin' it all day with 61 attempts, so don't expect 10 tackles from McCourty in the near future. He's still one of the better corners in the league for IDP though.
Linebackers
David Hawthorne- Hawthorne was the cover boy for my preseason IDP 100. He came in at number 12 overall and a DNP for the first week took the wind out of his sails. Slowly but surely he is getting there as an every-week starter and he racked up 10 tackles on Sunday after accumulating nine in Week 4. Seattle's D has been decent this year and Hawthorne has been a big part of it. He should be owned in all IDP leagues.
D.J. Williams- The U product is back and had eight tackles on Sunday. He needs to be owned. Also downgrade Joe Mays for deeper IDP leagues.
Kavell Conner- Conner's turn! One week after Pat Angerer led the league with 20 tackles, Conner stated his case as being a beast with 18 tackles on Monday Night Football. A large chunk of his tackles came in the secondary and were a product of the Bucs taking advantage of the Colts only running Tampa 2, Cover 4 and Man Under schemes. They were dinking and dunking all game and Conner was all over it. He is second in the league in tackles (behind his teammate Angerer) and it's hard to ignore those numbers. I mentioned him in Week 3 IDP Waiver Wire and now he gets way more cred after Monday's gem.
Gary Guyton- Jerod Mayo was dealt a tough blow with a Grade-3 sprain of his MCL. That particular grade equates to a complete tear of the ligament which will keep him out up to six weeks. Guyton took over at middle linebacker and was sporting the radio with matching green sticker on his helmet. The Georgia Tech product was able to rack up 85 tackles back in '09 and should be able to fill Mayo's void nicely. Brandon Spikes also gets a boost and is someone to watch against the Jets on Sunday. He is a bit to slow to throw in on passing downs at this point though.
Greg Jones- Jones is getting the work at middle linebacker for the Giants. He doesn't come in on nickel packages and in most passing situation. Consider him for your watch list.
Defensive Lineman
Ryan Kerrigan- Yes, Kerrigan plays linebacker, but his true value lies as a lineman-eligible player. I had him in Week 1's edition and he has made me look pretty good since. He should be owned in just about every league. He is on a bye week, so owners shouldn't have to use their waiver priority to grab him.
Daryl Tapp- Trent Cole is going to miss some time with a a Grade-2 calf strain. Cole figures to miss three weeks. The Eagles will have no choice but to insert Tapp into the lineup opposite Jason Babin. Babin, the league leader in sacks, should demand double teams throughout the course of a game. Tapp is quick enough to beat one-on-one assignments even though it will likely becoming against left tackles. Buffalo's left tackle, Demetrius Bell, is far from good and Tapp is a sleeper for a sack or two in deeper leagues for Week 5.
I'll have 30 lineman ranked and ready for you guys on Thursday. We'll be talking about the always-under-fire quarterbacks like Ben Roethlisberger, Alex Smith, Jay Cutler and Sam Bradford.
Thanks for reading! Post your questions below or feel free to ask me anything your IDP heart desires on Twitter @MikeSGallagher