Welcome to the eighth weekly edition of “Raiding the IDP Waiver Wire” for 2021! For those returning for another installment of defensive player recommendations, your interest and support are appreciated!
This weekly column will help you, the reader, plunder your league’s waiver wire for real value where it counts: in your line-ups. We’ll dig into the past week’s top performers among available options for repeatable production.
“Raiding the IDP Waiver Wire” is written for fantasy football gamers in leagues that require a full complement of 11 defensive starters in leagues of 12 to 16 teams. Recommendations rely on scoring settings from FantasyPros.com, even though their value for passes defensed is low. We’ll look for options at both conventional and true defensive positions as they arise. Players qualifying for this column are those rostered in no more than a third of IDP leagues on MyFantasyLeague.com (MFL). These recommendations further assume you, the manager, have finite roster space with challenging cut decisions to add new names.
Between injuries and the November 2, 2021 trade deadline, consequential news for fantasy gamers focusing on offense and defense alike has cascaded through the last several days. Some of the biggest names in the game are changing teams or moving to IR. Rookies we’ve followed for six months or more are getting their big break. Teams are changing their trajectories, accepting their fates for 2021, adding risk to their veterans’ utility as fantasy options.
This week’s injury recap on NFL.com understates the impact of the carnage on the 2021 season. The breadth of upheaval seems only slightly less likely than Josh Norman repeating a feat of seven solo tackles and two turnovers forced in consecutive weeks after starting the season on the street. (Sorry, folks.)
Christian Barmore, Patriots DT
The Patriots nabbed former Crimson Tide defender and draftniks’ consensus DT1 Christian Barmore at a value in the second round of the 2021 NFL draft. His snap share has gradually but steadily risen through the season. He’s compiled 20 QB pressures per Pro Football Focus, which ties him for 14th in the statistical category with players you might have heard of: Grady Jarrett and Calais Campbell. Barmore got home with his pass rush for the first time this season versus the Chargers in Week 8. As the only serious internal pass-rush threat in New England, Barmore’s role could continue to grow as the season progresses.
DJ Wonnum, Vikings DE
Among the biggest loss on either side of the ball in Week 8 was Vikings stud defender Danielle Hunter. The Vikings’ first end off the bench, sophomore DJ Wonnum steps into a high-volume role opposite rejuvenated Everson Griffen. Wonnum, who celebrated his 24th birthday on Halloween, has not played well through a season-and-a-half, but he possesses the necessary athleticism to be a high performer off the edge in the NFL. His underdevelopment at the University of South Carolina led to his status as a Day-3 pick in 2020. His opportunity on a competitive team, however, makes him a high-priority waiver-wire option in conventional-position leagues where scarcity at defensive end hurts.
Marcus Davenport, Saints DE
Former Saints first-round pick and impending bust Marcus Davenport has resumed his role as Cameron Jordan’s bookend after a stint on IR. Thus far, Davenport’s 2021 production has been as lackluster as his previous campaigns. He’s at lower risk, however, of losing snaps to a player like Trey Hendrickson. The former Saint and current Bengal scored 13.5 sacks playing opposite the stalwart Jordan. The warm bodies behind Davenport are less likely to overtake the Saints’ pet project for the clean-up sacks that Hendrickson fed on last season.
Ernest Jones, Rams LB
The Rams just might be the antithesis of Jimmie Johnson’s Cowboys from 30 years ago. While the Cowboys built a powerhouse through the draft, the Rams have dealt most of their picks for veterans that have them in contention for a championship.
GM Les Snead dealt two valuable picks for former Broncos outside linebacker Von Miller. Snead cleared the roster space for Miller by trading away inside linebacker Kenny Young to the Broncos just days earlier. Snead basically gave away Young, who had been a fantasy LB1, for a late pick upgrade in 2024.
Young’s departure opened the door for the Rams’ 2021 third-round selection Ernest Jones, a teammate of DJ Wonnum at USC, to play a significant role. Jones seized the day with an interception and nine tackles including a half a QB sack. Equally important, he overtook Troy Reeder as the lead LB after seeing no time on defense the previous week.
Baron Browning, Broncos LB
Like Ernest Jones in LA, Denver’s Baron Browning grew his role on defense from zero in one week. Browning’s role was even greater than Jones’s in Week 8 (97% to 89%). Browning also capitalized, collecting eight tackles including one for loss in Week 8.
Week 8 also marked Kenny Young’s first game in orange. The new addition played a healthy 65% of the snaps in his debut and could be a threat to Browning’s apparent full-time role. More likely, in your author’s opinion, is that Young represents an upgrade to the underwhelming Justin Strnad. A popular preseason sleeper, Strnad has simply not shown the play strength to succeed in the NFL. He appears better suited as a dime linebacker than the heart of a defense.
Brandon Jones, Dolphins Safety
Those of you who follow me on Twitter or listen to my podcast appearances might feel cheated by my recommendation of Brandon Jones as a waiver-wire priority. I’ve only stumped for him as a fantasy asset since summer!
It may finally be happening now, as Jones played 70 snaps (96%) for the Dolphins in a game against the Bills that was competitive into the second half. His special teams’ role has steadily declined as well over the last four weeks.
Jones’s tackle numbers in Week 8 don’t inspire enthusiasm; however, he made one of those tackles behind the line of scrimmage and scored two QB hits. His big-play potential as a blitzer represents fantasy upside that few safeties can equal across the league. This week might be the last opportunity to claim Jones inexpensively.
Happy Bidding!
I’d be remiss not to revisit Josh Norman. He is a good CB streamer in Week 9 versus the Cardinals and a hobbled Kyler Murray. The gaudy stat line that Packers CB Rasul Douglas posted against Cardinals in Week 8 was surpassed by very few, but Josh Norman was among them.
I welcome those of you looking for more streamer recommendations to follow me through the week. This column drops every Tuesday afternoon. I’ll attach recommendations of widely rostered players one might consider dropping to make room for these players on Twitter. I look forward to interacting with you there!
A Clemson and Michigan alum, a fan of the Cowboys and Panthers, I try to see both sides of every debate and every fantasy football trade. Reach out to me @DynastyTripp on Twitter.
