IDP Waiver Suggestions and Start/Sits - Week 4

Sep 28, 2016

The dust from Week 3 has settled. Manti Te’o was the big injury of the week, as he suffered a torn Achilles and is done for the year. Lavonte David returned in a big way for his owners, and Derrick Johnson was the highest scorer of the week (though Deion James made a run on Monday night). If you can believe it, we’re hitting the quarter mark of the season, so it’s time to make some decisions on what to do with your IDPs who are underperforming. Time to hit the wire and analyze the matchups.

In some breaking news, JJ Watt was placed on IR due to a back injury. Watt underwent surgery on a herniated disk in July, which caused him to miss the entire preseason. He’s going to be difficult to replace, so hopefully, you can use the waiver wire to pickup someone to help keep you afloat. At this point, Watt can be dropped.

IDP Waiver Wire Suggestions

In parenthesis (Snaps Appeared That Week/Percentage of Defensive Snaps)

Defensive Line

Timmy Jernigan, DE, Baltimore Ravens (47 snaps/71 percent)

There’s something about Jernigan that I just can’t quit. He doesn’t stand out as anything special, but he’s a good football player and knows how to get to the QB. He has sacks in three straight games, producing 10 or more fantasy points in two consecutive games. He’s shaping up to be a decent DL3 this season.

Damon Harrison, DT, New York Giants (43 snaps/61 percent)

Harrison has settled in nicely since moving from one New York team to another. Though he’s not getting sacks, he’s been good in DT-required leagues that are tackle heavy. He’s coming off a 10-tackle game in Week 3 and has upped his tackle rate to 14.9-percent through three games. Harrison has been a beast in the middle of the line, and I look for that to continue.

Kerry Hyder, DE, Detroit Lions (34 snaps/63 percent)

With Ezekiel Ansah in tow, who would have thought it’d be Kerry Hyder as the Lions’ team leader with four sacks. The rookie is shaping up to be a big-play specialist and is generating a near 15-percent QB pressure rate on his pass rush snaps in three games. He’s getting looks in base and nickel packages, so production should continue If he can maintain his 56-percent snap rate.

Cameron Wake, DE, Miami Dolphins (36 snaps/44 percent)

Even though Wake recorded just one sack last week, he was an absolute beast and dominated Austin Pasztor all game. He was held for, what seemed like, most of the game. In 36 snaps, he produced a near 32-percent QB pressure rate and was close to a multi-sack game. Wake will have value in big-play scoring formats going forward.

Stephon Tuitt, DE, Pittsburgh Steelers (62 snaps/95 percent)

Like Jernigan, I really like Tuitt. He’s another guy who doesn’t stand out and isn’t considered elite, but he’s a good football player and makes plays. Tuitt should be on your wire, as he’s gotten off to a slow start, but is worth a look with a stretch of good matchups over the next few weeks.