Week 3 Notes
- The absence of Darius Leonard opened the door for Anthony Walker and Bobby Okereke to show what they can do, and they capitalized in a major way. Okereke posted a very good 8 combined tackles (6 Solo, 2 assists), while Walker exploded for 14 tackles (11 solo, 3 assist) with two of those going for a loss. Walker had just 8 total tackles coming into this contest, and Okereke had 2. Both are solidly on the radar if Darius Leonard is still in concussion protocol for Week 4, and Walker may be worth owning on his own merit, even if Leonard plays.
- After an incredible 3 tackle, 3.0 sack performance in Week 2, Shaquil Barrett decided to do his owners one better and rack up a monstrous 6 tackle, 3 TFL, 4.0 sack and 2 forced fumble statline. He reclaimed the NFL sack lead from Myles Garrett, whose 6.0 sacks in the year trail Barrett by 2.
- J.J. Watt lives! After a didastrous first two weeks that included a goose egg in Week 1, Watt notched 5 tackles (two for loss) and 2.0 sacks in the Texans’ win over the Chargers.
- Speaking of slow starters having huge games, Calais Campbell woke up from his early season slumber with 7 tackles (4 for loss) and 3.0 sacks on Thursday night against Tennessee.
- Chandler Jones picked up a pair of forced fumbles and a fumble recovery on Sunday, giving him 3 and 2 of each already on the year, respectively. Combined with 3.0 sack, the 8th year pass-rusher extraordinaire continues to be one of the better defensive line options in leagues where he has such eligiblity.
- Tragically, Falcons safety Keanu Neal tore his Achilles against the Colts, and will miss the remainder of the season. This is a huge blow for the Falcons’ defense, and incredibly sad for the 24 year-old, who missed all but one game last season with a torn ACL. It looks as though Kemal Ishmael, who has been with the Falcons since 2013 primarily as a reserve, will take over at strong safety, with Damontae Kazee remaining at corner. Ishmael finished this game with 6 tackles (1 for loss).
- Malik Hooker is expected to miss 4-6 weeks for the Colts, after suffering a torn meniscus against Atlanta. it’s awful news but sadly par for the course for the oft injured former first-round pick. Rookie Khari Willis out of Michigan State will take over his spot.
- Mike Daniels is expected to miss an undisclosed amount of time with a foot injury, and A’Shawn Robinson saw his highest snap count of the season with Daniels going down. A situation to potentially monitor.
- Bobby Wagner had a huge game against the Saints, dropping a career-high 18 tackles, 14 of which were assisted, also a career high.
- The New York Jets and San Francisco 49ers are on bye this week.
- Cowboys are expected to be without Xavier Woods for 4-6 weeks, as he recovers from a hamstring injury.
Below are my Top 50 players this week at each defensive position. Players who appeared on their teams’ injury report as of this writing are in red lettering. Position eligibility is based on FantasyPros, so positional rankings may differ depending on your host site.
Week 4 Linebacker Rankings
| Rank | Name | Team | Matchup |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bobby Wagner | SEA | at ARI |
| 2 | Darius Leonard | IND | v OAK |
| 3 | Jordan Hicks | ARI | v SEA |
| 4 | Leighton Vander Esch | DAL | at NOR |
| 5 | Cory Littleton | LAR | v TBB |
| 6 | Luke Kuechly | CAR | at HOU |
| 7 | Zach Cunningham | HOU | v CAR |
| 8 | Blake Martinez | GBP | v PHI |
| 9 | Deion Jones | ATL | v TEN |
| 10 | Devin Bush | PIT | v CIN |
| 11 | Joe Schobert | CLE | at BAL |
| 12 | Roquan Smith | CHI | v MIN |
| 13 | Lavonte David | TBB | at LAR |
| 14 | Thomas Davis | LAC | at MIA |
| 15 | Tremaine Edmunds | BUF | v NEP |
| 16 | Devin White | TBB | at LAR |
| 17 | Jerome Baker | MIA | v LAC |
| 18 | Shaq Thompson | CAR | at HOU |
| 19 | Myles Jack | JAX | at DEN |
| 20 | Jaylon Smith | DAL | at NOR |
| 21 | Patrick Onwuasor | BAL | v CLE |
| 22 | Anthony Hitchens | KCC | at DET |
| 23 | Khalil Mack | CHI | v MIN |
| 24 | DeMario Davis | NOR | v DAL |
| 25 | Denzel Perryman | LAC | at MIA |
| 26 | Eric Kendricks | MIN | at CHI |
| 27 | Jayon Brown | TEN | at ATL |
| 28 | T.J. Watt | PIT | v CIN |
| 29 | Jamie Collins Sr. | NEP | at BUF |
| 30 | Haason Reddick | ARI | v SEA |
| 31 | Matt Milano | BUF | v NEP |
| 32 | Nick Vigil | CIN | at PIT |
| 33 | Anthony Walker | IND | v OAK |
| 34 | Cole Holcomb | WAS | at NYG |
| 35 | Vontaze Burfict | OAK | at IND |
| 36 | Danny Trevathan | CHI | v MIN |
| 37 | Tahir Whitehead | OAK | at IND |
| 38 | Benardrick McKinney | HOU | v CAR |
| 39 | Chandler Jones | ARI | v SEA |
| 40 | Bradley Chubb | DEN | v JAX |
| 41 | Von Miller | DEN | v JAX |
| 42 | Alec Ogletree | NYG | v WAS |
| 43 | K.J. Wright | SEA | at ARI |
| 44 | De’Vondre Campbell | ATL | v TEN |
| 45 | Shaquil Barrett | TBB | at LAR |
| 46 | Todd Davis | DEN | v JAX |
| 47 | Jarrad Davis | DET | v KCC |
| 48 | Nigel Bradham | PHI | at GBP |
| 49 | Quincy Williams | JAX | at DEN |
| 50 | Josey Jewell | DEN | v JAX |
Week 4 Defensive Linemen Rankings
| Rank | Name | Team | Matchup |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Calais Campbell | JAX | at DEN |
| 2 | Aaron Donald | LAR | v TBB |
| 3 | Danielle Hunter | MIN | at CHI |
| 4 | Myles Garrett | CLE | at BAL |
| 5 | Joey Bosa | LAC | at MIA |
| 6 | DeMarcus Lawrence | DAL | at NOR |
| 7 | J.J. Watt | HOU | v CAR |
| 8 | Chandler Jones | ARI | v SEA |
| 9 | Melvin Ingram | LAC | at MIA |
| 10 | Cameron Jordan | NOR | v DAL |
| 11 | Akiem Hicks | CHI | v MIN |
| 12 | Frank Clark | KCC | at DET |
| 13 | Chris Jones | KCC | at DET |
| 14 | Everson Griffen | MIN | at CHI |
| 15 | Cameron Heyward | PIT | v CIN |
| 16 | Clelin Ferrell | OAK | at IND |
| 17 | Stephon Tuitt | PIT | v CIN |
| 18 | Sam Hubbard | CIN | at PIT |
| 19 | Montez Sweat | WAS | at NYG |
| 20 | Olivier Vernon | CLE | at BAL |
| 21 | Carlos Dunlap | CIN | at PIT |
| 22 | Yannick Ngakoue | JAX | at DEN |
| 23 | Preston Smith | GBP | v PHI |
| 24 | Kenny Clark | GBP | v PHI |
| 25 | Jadeveon Clowney | SEA | at ARI |
| 26 | Grady Jarrett | ATL | v TEN |
| 27 | Marcus Davenport | NOR | v DAL |
| 28 | Justin Houston | IND | v OAK |
| 29 | Josh Allen | JAX | at DEN |
| 30 | Mario Addison | CAR | at HOU |
| 31 | Brian Burns | CAR | at HOU |
| 32 | Fletcher Cox | PHI | at GBP |
| 33 | Denico Autry | IND | v OAK |
| 34 | Jurrell Casey | TEN | at ATL |
| 35 | Trey Flowers | DET | v KCC |
| 36 | Vita Vea | TBB | at LAR |
| 37 | Brandon Graham | PHI | at GBP |
| 38 | Takkarist McKinley | ATL | v TEN |
| 39 | Jerry Hughes | BUF | v NEP |
| 40 | Damon Harrison | DET | v KCC |
| 41 | Robert Quinn | DAL | at NOR |
| 42 | Linval Joseph | MIN | at CHI |
| 43 | Geno Atkins | CIN | at PIT |
| 44 | Ed Oliver | BUF | v NEP |
| 45 | Emmanuel Ogbah | KCC | at DET |
| 46 | Derek Barnett | PHI | at GBP |
| 47 | Da’Ron Payne | WAS | at NYG |
| 48 | Johnathan Hankins | OAK | at IND |
| 49 | Dean Lowry | GBP | v PHI |
| 50 | Dante Fowler Jr. | LAR | v TBB |
Week 4 Defensive Back Rankings
| Rank | Names | Team | Matchup |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Landon Collins | WAS | at NYG |
| 2 | Harrison Smith | MIN | at CHI |
| 3 | John Johnson | LAR | v TBB |
| 4 | Jordan Poyer | BUF | v NEP |
| 5 | Budda Baker | ARI | v SEA |
| 6 | Shawn Williams | CIN | at PIT |
| 7 | Antoine Bethea | NYG | v WAS |
| 8 | Tracy Walker | DET | v KCC |
| 9 | Jessie Bates III | CIN | at PIT |
| 10 | Jabrill Peppers | NYG | v WAS |
| 11 | Justin Reid | HOU | v CAR |
| 12 | Ronnie Harrison | JAX | at DEN |
| 13 | Kevin Byard | TEN | at ATL |
| 14 | Tyrann Mathieu | KCC | at DET |
| 15 | Malcolm Jenkins | PHI | at GBP |
| 16 | Adrian Amos | GBP | v PHI |
| 17 | Terrell Edmunds | PIT | v CIN |
| 18 | Kamel Ishmael | ATL | v TEN |
| 19 | Kareem Jackson | DEN | v JAX |
| 20 | Bradley McDougald | SEA | at ARI |
| 21 | Kenny Vaccaro | TEN | at ATL |
| 22 | Hasean Clinton-Dix | CHI | v MIN |
| 23 | Darnell Savage | GBP | v PHI |
| 24 | Minkah Fitzpatrick | PIT | v CIN |
| 25 | Damarious Randall | CLE | at BAL |
| 26 | Kyle Fuller | CHI | v MIN |
| 27 | Vonn Bell | NOR | v DAL |
| 28 | Eddie Jackson | CHI | v MIN |
| 29 | Montae Nicholson | WAS | at NYG |
| 30 | Clayton Geathers | IND | v OAK |
| 31 | Anthony Harris | MIN | at CHI |
| 32 | Earl Thomas III | BAL | v CLE |
| 33 | Bobby McCain | MIA | v LAC |
| 34 | Kendall Fuller | KCC | at DET |
| 35 | Rayshawn Jenkins | LAC | at MIA |
| 36 | Damontae Kazee | ATL | v TEN |
| 37 | Jaylen Watkins | LAC | at MIA |
| 38 | Juan Thornhill | KCC | at DET |
| 39 | Karl Joseph | OAK | at IND |
| 40 | Brandon Facyson | LAC | at MIA |
| 41 | Ricardo Allen | ATL | v TEN |
| 42 | Tre Flowers | SEA | at ARI |
| 43 | Eric Reid | CAR | at HOU |
| 44 | Logan Ryan | TEN | at ATL |
| 45 | Marshon Lattimore | NOR | v DAL |
| 46 | LaMarcus Joyner | OAK | at IND |
| 47 | Casey Hayward | LAC | at MIA |
| 48 | Justin Simmons | DEN | v JAX |
| 49 | Siran Neal | BUF | v NEP |
| 50 | Quandre Diggs | DET | v KCC |
(Photo by George Walker/Icon Sportswire)
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