clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Fantasy Football 2011: Week 9 IDP Guide

Darian Stewart had a monster game in his start at strong safety for the Rams. Where does he rank this week?
Darian Stewart had a monster game in his start at strong safety for the Rams. Where does he rank this week?


Week 1 all the way to Week 7 were good times here at IDP Guide, but Week 8 was arguably the worst. We did hit on quite a few guys in all three positions, but two of the three "Start of the Week" guys were duds. At least Pat Chung exploded. Well.. Let's get down to business.

As always, follow me on Twitter @MikeSGallagher for IDP updates throughout week and instant analysis on Sunday. You can also ask me anything about your IDP squad, too. Add/drops, start/sit, you name it. The tougher the question the better.

Linebackers on the Rise

London Fletcher- Forget Joey Galloway, London Fletcher is the new Ageless Wonder. The 36-year-old linebacker racked up 19 tackles and added a pass deflection in the ugly loss to Buffalo. The Skins offense is going to be horrible for the rest of the season, so Fletch should have more big games than Fletch had sequels. The first Fletch is hilarious by the way. Fletcher should flirt with LB1 status for the rest of the year.

Derrick Johnson- A couple weeks ago I said to get ready for a Derrick Johnson outburst and he is rolling right now after winning Week 8 Defensive Player of the Week. He has a nice schedule and that slow start should be a thing of the past. He's probably going to be in the top 10 for the rest of the season.

Lawrence Timmons- Stay with me here. Timmons has been absolutely trash and he should have been let loose when the news came down he was moving to the outside. He's been dreadful. This week it's a little different as James Farrior and James Harrison are both expected to miss Week 9 against the Ravens. Let's hope Dick LeBeau will shift him to the inside. If you are going to start Timmons, then keep your eyes peeled for news. I'll certainly have you covered on Twitter. He's currently ranked at 25 in hopes that he gives it a go.

 

Rank Linebacker                                                                      Team
1 Nick Barnett BUF
2 Derrick Johnson KC
3 James Laurinaitis STL
4 D.J. Williams DEN
5 Patrick Willis SF
6 D'Qwell Jackson CLE
7 Desmond Bishop GB
8 Pat Angerer IND
9 London Fletcher WAS
10 Ray Lewis BAL
11 David Hawthorne SEA
12 NaVorro Bowman SF
13 Daryl Washington ARI
14 David Harris (Q) NYJ
15 Curtis Lofton ATL
16 Sean Weatherspoon ATL
17 DeMarcus Ware DAL
18 Brian Urlacher CHI
19 Karlos Dansby MIA
20 Brian Cushing HOU
21 Lance Briggs CHI
22 Jonathan Vilma NO
23 Barrett Ruud TEN
24 Jerod Mayo NE
25 Lawrence Timmons PIT
26 Rey Maualuga (Q) CIN
27 Rolando McClain (Q) OAK
28 Jamar Chaney PHI
29 Rocky McIntosh WAS
30 Donald Butler SD
31 Leroy Hill SEA
32 Takeo Spikes SD
33 Brandon Spikes NE
34 Mason Foster (Q) TB
35 Clay Matthews GB
36 Aldon Smith SF
37 Kavell Conner IND
38 Brian Orakpo WAS
39 Tamba Hali KC
40 Wesley Woodyard DEN
41 Bradie James DAL
42 Von Miller DEN
43 Paris Lenon ARI
44 Michael Boley NYG
45 Kevin Burnett MIA
46 A.J. Hawk GB
47 Phillip Wheeler IND
48 Geno Hayes TB
49 Will Witherspoon TEN
50 Calvin Pace NYJ

 

Defensive Backs on the Rise

Jason McCourty- I have never been a proponent of starting corners at defensive back, but McCourty has been outstanding this year. He's still a guy would try to sell high though.

Darian Stewart- Stewart's value just became a giant peach compared to Craig Dahl being the size of James. Oh yes. That was a Roald Dahl reference. Stewart got all the headlines for his pick-six play on Drew Brees and he had a nice game to go with it. The Rams are vulnerable in stopping the run which means Stewart would have to make some tackles at the second level now that he won't be playing the pass-happy Saints. He has enormous upside and any owner that isn't sure about their current DB might consider making the switch.

Bernard Pollard- The guy that messed up Tom Brady's (this T-shirt idea still amuses me) has been playing much better with five tackles in his last three games each. He is far from the beast he once was in Houston or Kansas City, but he is at least on the radar in deeper formats.

Start of the Week

Antrel Rolle- Rolle should be a busy man against Tom Brady.  He's expected to have his hands full with sticking the likes of Aaron Hernandez and Rob Gronkowski. What's more, the Giants are ranked 28th in rushing defense, so compound that with how they will likely be in a lot of nickel packages and it should bode well for Rolle to make some tackles at the second level in the running game.

 

Rank Defensive Back                                                             Team
1 George Wilson BUF
2 Patrick Chung NE
3 Kam Chancellor SEA
4 Antrel Rolle NYG
5 LaRon Landry WAS
6 Tyvon Branch OAK
7 Yeremiah Bell MIA
8 Antoine Bethea IND
9 Morgan Burnett GB
10 Eric Weddle SD
11 Jason McCourty TEN
12 Darian Stewart STL
13 Roman Harper NO
14 Dashon Goldson SF
15 Kenny Phillips NYG
16 Tanard Jackson TB
17 Earl Thomas SEA
18 Jordan Babineaux TEN
19 Reggie Nelson CIN
20 Jon McGraw KC
21 Eric Smith NYJ
22 Quintin Mikel STL
23 Brandon Flowers KC
24 Charles Woodson GB
25 Sean Jones TB
26 Jairus Byrd BUF
27 Kyle Arrington NE
28 Troy Polamalu PIT
29 Donte Whitner SF
30 T.J. Ward CLE
31 Devin McCourty NE
32 Adrian Wilson ARI
33 Ladarius Webb BAL
34 Richard Marshall ARI
35 Rashad Johnson ARI
36 Steve Gregory SD
37 Antonio Cromartie NYJ
38 Bernard Pollard BAL
39 Patrick Peterson ARI
40 Ryan Clark PIT

 

Defensive Linemen on the Rise

Chris Long- Long looked like his papa on Sunday with one of the most dominating performances of the season of any lineman. He brought Brees down three times in the backfield on Sunday and could not be blocked. A lot people forget about how great Coach Spags can be at putting pressure on the QB and Long might become a stud in no time.

Pack a Sack Lunch at U of P- The Cardinals and Rams have two of the worst offensive lines in football and there are four lineman in this game that are ranked in the top 13 in these rankings. A lot of Rams love this week.

Aaron Maybin- Maybin has a great motor lately and there's a good chance he gets to show what he can do against the team that cut him. By the way, how come nobody says things like, "that guy has a bad motor"?

Start of the Week

Andre Carter- Another gentleman that has been mentioned multiple times in IDP Guide, he is rolling with three very good games in a row including back-to-back five-tackle, two-sack games. The Giants are going to have to spread them out and not have much protection off the edge to keep Carter at bay.

Note: I completely whiffed on Michael Johnson last week since I went out on a limb a bit. This week I'm going with the more proven guy. He really should be owned in all leagues, too.

 

Rank Defensive Lineman                                                      Team
1 Terrell Suggs BAL
2 Trent Cole PHI
3 Jason Babin PHI
4 Andre Carter NE
5 Chris Long STL
6 Calais Campbell ARI
7 Julius Peppers CHI
8 Justin Smith SF
9 Jason Pierre-Paul NYG
10 James Hall STL
11 Chris Clemons SEA
12 Osi Umenyiora NYG
13 Darnell Dockett ARI
14 Will Smith NO
15 John Abraham ATL
16 J.J. Watt HOU
17 Haloti Ngata BAL
18 Aaron Maybin NYJ
19 Robert Mathis IND
20 Ray Edwards ATL
21 Lamarr Houston OAK
22 Richard Seymour OAK
23 Carlos Dunlap CIN
24 Justin Tuck NYG
25 Elvis Dumervil DEN
26 Dwight Freeney IND
27 Marcell Dareus BUF
28 Jabaal Sheard CLE
29 Stephen Bowen WAS
30 Dwan Edwards BUF

 

Thanks for reading and post your comments below!