It’s time to wrap up the 2019 IDP fantasy season by discussing some key takeaways from the year. In this series, we will analyze trends, highlight star performers, identify risers and fallers, and project sleepers for the 2020 season at each IDP position group. In this article, we’ll focus on defensive tackles. So, without further ado, let’s wrap up the 2019 NFL regular season at defensive tackle!
What We Learned This Year
Finishing in the first tier of 2019 defensive tackles were four studs, including Aaron Donald, Grady Jarrett, DeForest Buckner, and Sheldon Richardson. Of the studs mentioned above, only Jarrett (fifth round in 2015) was chosen outside of the top 15 picks in his respective draft class. Additionally, three of the top four 2018 DT finishers were first-round picks as well. This is not to say that all first-round DTs turn out to be studs, but there is a solid correlation of stardom attached to the first round. Therefore, when preparing for your 2020 draft, be ready to invest early picks to acquire game changers at the interior defensive lineman position.
Not surprisingly, due to spending a lot of snaps on the field in 2019, the Dolphins and Browns produced multiple top 15 DTs finishers this season (dependent on your scoring system). In Cleveland, Richardson (mentioned above) finished fourth in IDP stats while Larry Ogunjobi finished ninth. In Miami, Davon Godchaux and Christian Wilkins finished 11th and 14th respectively. Looking to the future, I don’t expect Cleveland’s interior lineman repeating their success, but as the Dolphins retool their offense through the draft, 2020 should produce plenty of opportunities for Miami defenders to make plays.
In 2019, Carolina got stung with the injury bug, especially at defensive tackle. Two of the Panthers star linemen were forced to the injured reserve this season. Kawann Short missed 15 weeks and Dontari Poe missed five weeks on the year. Looking ahead, it will be interesting to see what Carolina plans to do with Vernon Butler and Gerald McCoy in 2020 (both Free Agent top 30 DT finishers) with the expected return of Short and Poe, even though Poe could be released for a $3.3mm cap hit.
Player Comparison – Top 20 IDP Producers
| Rank | Name | Age | Team | Tackles | TFLs | Assists | Fum Rec | Fum For | Int | Sacks |
| 1 | Donald, Aaron | 28 | LAR | 27 | 19 | 18 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 12 |
| 2 | Jarrett, Grady | 26 | ATL | 38 | 11 | 31 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6.5 |
| 3 | Buckner, DeForest | 25 | SFO | 33 | 8 | 23 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 6.5 |
| 4 | Richardson, Sheldon | 29 | CLE | 42 | 4 | 17 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| 5 | Harris, Shelby | 28 | DEN | 28 | 8 | 19 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 |
| 6 | Clark, Kenny | 24 | GBP | 29 | 8 | 26 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 |
| 7 | Hargrave, Javon | 26 | PIT | 32 | 7 | 21 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| 8 | Guy, Lawrence | 29 | NEP | 34 | 4 | 24 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 9 | Ogunjobi, Larry | 25 | CLE | 31 | 8 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5.5 |
| 10 | Phillips, Jordan | 27 | BUF | 23 | 13 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 9.5 |
| 11 | Godchaux, Davon | 25 | MIA | 31 | 2 | 34 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 12 | Jones, Chris KCC | 25 | KCC | 22 | 7 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 8 |
| 13 | Payne, Da’Ron | 22 | WAS | 31 | 3 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 14 | Wilkins, Christian | 24 | MIA | 30 | 3 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 15 | Cox, Fletcher | 29 | PHI | 25 | 4 | 14 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| 16 | Robinson, A’Shawn | 24 | DET | 34 | 3 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1.5 |
| 17 | Reader, D.J. | 25 | HOU | 28 | 6 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.5 |
| 18 | Suh, Ndamukong | 33 | TBB | 21 | 6 | 16 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2.5 |
| 19 | Shelton, Danny | 26 | NEP | 28 | 2 | 27 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| 20 | Butler, Vernon | 25 | CAR | 21 | 6 | 9 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 |
Risers
Da’Ron Payne – Washington Redskins
Payne, a former Alabama star, has yet to experience his 23rd birthday. In his first two seasons as a professional, Payne has played in 72% of Washington’s defensive snaps. During those snaps, the defender has produced 111 total tackles and seven sacks. Now that Payne is about to hit his prime, I expect around a 20% increase in production from the 320 pound stud, putting the big man in contention for a top-five finish in IDP leagues.
Derrick Nnadi – Kansas City Chiefs
The second-year standout racked up 48 total tackles in only 53% of the Chiefs’ defensive plays in 2019. Imagine what his production could be with another 200-300 snaps in a season? Chris Jones may cut into Nnadi’s snaps a bit, but the Kansas City coaching staff should make it a priority to get Nnadi on the field while they still have him on his rookie deal in 2020 and 2021.
Ifeadi Odenigbo – Minnesota Vikings
Fairly unknown coming out of Northwestern, Odenigbo came on big-time in his last five games for the Vikings. The 2017 seventh-round selection had 13 tackles, three tackles for loss, and four sacks in the final five critical games for Minnesota down the stretch. That kind of production cannot go unnoticed by Mike Zimmer, who will continue to include Odenigbo in his future plans at defensive tackle.
Fallers
Damon Harrison – Detroit Lions
“Snacks” Harrison absolutely destroyed offenses in 2018, but 2019 was a different story. The star lineman’s tackle numbers dropped by 30, from 79 to 49, and his tackles for loss were cut by 67% (nine down to three). At 31 years old, Harrison may be at the tail end of a solid NFL career.
Ndamukong Suh – Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Can you believe Suh was selected in the draft 10 years ago?! It seems like only yesterday Suh was dominating opposing offenses as the Lions top playmaker. Now at age 33, Suh has played for his fourth team, his sack and tackle numbers have taken a pretty steep drop from 2018 to 2019, and he is a free agent looking for a team in a league that values low-cost contracts. There is a possibility that the prolific lineman could have a year or two left in the tank, but his best days are obviously behind him.
Geno Atkins – Cincinnati Bengals
Since 2015, Atkins has produced sack totals of 11, nine, 8.5, nine and 4.5 respectively. As you can see, 2019 was definitely a down year for the special inside pass rusher. At 31, Atkins still has time for a bounce-back season, but after accumulating 5,913 NFL snaps, eventually, his tires are going to wear out.
Sleepers
Dalvin Tomlinson – New York Giants
The New York Giants defensive tackle started 2019 slowly, accumulating eight total tackles in his first five games. However, in his final 11 games of 2019, Tomlinson racked up 21 solo tackles, seven tackles for loss, 20 assists, and three sacks. Heading into his fourth NFL season, and his contract year, I expect Tomlinson to be a consistent performer for the Giants in 2020.
Dre’Mont Jones – Denver Broncos
The 23-year old, third-round pick out of Ohio State created plenty of splash plays in 2019. An extremely athletic, 281 pound interior lineman, Jones was able to produce 3.5 sacks in limited playing time this season. If given more snaps (he only participated in 290), I see Jones becoming a possible starter in DT required IDP leagues.
Poona Ford – Seattle Seahawks
Ford was an undrafted prospect out of Texas now in his second year in the NFL. The 24-year old flashed multiple times for the Seahawks in his second year as a pro. Securing 32 total tackles and five tackles for loss in the 2019 season, Ford could be on a trajectory to produce DT2 numbers in 2020. If you have roster space, entertain obtaining Ford as a sleeper option in DT required leagues.
Thanks for reading! Don’t forget to check out all of the content we offer here at Dynasty Football Factory. Also, you can interact with me on Twitter at @FF_EvilEmpire. Now go forth and build your empire!
