As we cross the halfway point of the fantasy football regular season, the picture should become clearer about which IDPs we can trust and which we can’t. However, there are still a select few who remain puzzling as to what they can do for our IDP lineups on a weekly basis, making the rankings all the more important to help sort through it all.

Note: Each positional ranking includes an interactive table at the bottom of the article to help you find the players you might be looking for, and all updates leading up to game day will be displayed there.

LINEBACKER

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For IDP managers looking for matchup-based tie-breakers, or for defensive prop bettors, let this tool be your guide.

Data is pulled from PFF to account for true position designations.

HOW TO READ THE DATA:

• (Optimal Opponent) = Teams in parentheses are the offenses that generated these tackle numbers. They are NOT the IDPs we are using; they’re the offense.

• POSITION TO TARGET = Defenses represented in full names/all caps drawing the positive matchup from which we can pull best IDPs. These are the teams whose IDPs we should be looking at.

• LAST 3 GAMES (Average) = This column helps us uncover trends in the opposing offense that aren’t weighed down by full-season totals. This is mostly useful for recent major changes to an offense, e.g., a quarterback change.

LINEBACKER

SAFETY

CORNERBACK

EDGE DEFENDER

DEFENSIVE TACKLE

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You can follow us on all our social media channels, including Twitter and Instagram.

Week 7 Takeaways

WAIVER WIRE TARGETS

This week’s waiver wire targets are listed by position, in order of priority.

• LB Micah McFadden, New York Giants

  • McFadden made the list last week as a speculative add after Tremaine Edmunds’ injury, but now with confirmation that Edmunds is out for the year, he becomes a priority add. McFadden wore the green dot and delivered a productive IDP performance, and he should remain a solid weekly option for the rest of the season.

• LB Isaiah McDuffie, Green Bay Packers

  • With Zaire Franklin dealing with a hairline fracture in his leg, he’s expected to miss some time, leaving McDuffie as the green-dot linebacker for the time being and a strong fill-in option as needed.

• LB DeMarvion Overshown, Dallas Cowboys

  • With Overshown finally back in the lineup after five games away, we should expect his workload to increase, as long as he’s healthy, after he was eased in this week. It’s possible that Overshown will retake the green-dot duties once the team feels he’s ready, so he can be added to non-shallow formats for now.

• LB Shemar James, Dallas Cowboys

  • James wore the green dot for the Cowboys in Week 7, though it’s unclear if this is a permanent plan for the rest of the year, or just until Overshown is ready to play an every-down role again. For now, James is a speculative add in non-shallow formats.

• LB Ty’Ron Hopper, Green Bay Packers

  • Hopper should also see a value boost with Franklin out, after he played a near-every-down role in Week 7, and can be added in non-shallow formats for the time being.

• LB Kendal Daniels, Atlanta Falcons

  • For as long as Divine Deablo is out, Daniels should wear the green dot for the Falcons. While it’s obviously going to be difficult to top this Week 7 game, he’s already shown he can be a much more effective IDP than Deablo this season, making him a strong consideration for most formats.

• LB Harold Perkins Jr., Atlanta Falcons

  • Again, for as long as Deablo is out, Perkins should see an increased workload, though not likely in an every-down capacity. He becomes an option for non-shallow formats if Deablo misses more time.

• ED Mike Green, Baltimore Ravens

  • With Tavius Robinson landing on season-ending IR, Green’s opportunity increases greatly for the rest of his second NFL season. Green comes with a strong college profile and now a full-time opportunity to be a strong DL depth option for non-shallow formats.

• ED Jonathon Cooper, Denver Broncos

  • Cooper returned to the lineup this week, playing a starting role with the potential to be a usable IDP going forward. He was quiet this week, but can be added in non-shallow formats as depth at the position, if needed.

• ED James Pearce Jr., Atlanta Falcons

  • With one game remaining on his eight-game suspension, Pearce is currently the best bet to lead the Falcons’ EDGE group for IDP for the rest of the year. There’s been heavy rotation, aside from an ineffective Cameron Thomas, so Pearce could be a speculative add in deeper leagues if IDP managers are in need.

• DT Mason Graham, Cleveland Browns

  • Graham returned after missing just two games due to injury. While he didn’t produce in his return, his snap share remained at his pre-injury level, and he should bounce back to deliver usable IDP production in non-shallow DT-required formats.

Be sure to check out last week’s IDP waiver targets listed in the report here.

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Welcome back to IDP Bets!

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As the 2026 season unfolds, the ever-changing IDP landscape can leave us with many questions about these players’ rest-of-season value. Whether you’re deciding which players are worth swapping in from the waiver wire, targeting potential trade candidates, or just want to know what to expect from your roster going forward, these rest-of-season IDP rankings are meant to help.

These rankings will be updated weekly to reflect the most recent trends and injuries likely to occur in the 2026 season.

LINEBACKER

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Welcome to Week 7 of DL Streaming 101!

Let’s start by taking a look back at the Ups and Downs of Week 6 of DL Streaming with a friendly reminder that fantasy football is the most important of the least important things in our lives (credit pro wrestler and pro wrestling content creator Simon Miller for theme inspiration this week):

UP:

• The overall season-long streaming average after streamers averaged a respectable 7.77 Big 3 fantasy points in Week 6.

• The season-long average now stands at 7.4.

• For a frame of reference, if you had a crystal ball and were able to only ensure that you started players from the overall top 64 DE and top 64 DT this season, you would only be slightly ahead at 9.3 points per game (and would have had to invest high-end draft capital to get much into the top of this market).

DOWN:

• Calijah Kancey. If you’ve heard me talk DTs on podcasts over the years, you’ll know I’ve never been a Kancey guy.

• Still, the data suggested he would be a back-end Solid Tier play last week, so that is where I put him.

• The result…77% of snaps (55 in total) and zero fantasy points.

• Kancey was not alone in the streaming zero club this week (looking at you Grady Jarrett in your revenge game against the Bears), but he was the first player in this streaming tier to record a zero since Week 3.

UP:

• Let’s end on a positive note, acknowledging that sometimes it may be better to be lucky than good, but if you started Kancey’s teammate, David Walker (my 27th-best streaming option last week), you likely had a very good Sunday.

• Walker scored 31.25 fantasy points in Week 6, which ranked 4th overall among defensive linemen.

• The luck part is due to the fact that he was ridiculously efficient, scoring those points on only 28 total snaps.

• According to DL Streaming 101’s Stats and Info Department, that average is over 1 fantasy point per snap!

Here are the season-long streaming metrics after six weeks:

With another four teams on bye and a little more volatility in the market than last year, we are once again locked out of Tier 1 (Ideal) this week. Still, there are some great options in Tier 2 (Solid), Tier 3 (Solid-Deeper), and we only have to dip a little into Tier 4 (Educated Dart Throw). Per MFL data, all players are available in over 77% of IDP leagues. Here is a closer look at three players who are available in over 94% of leagues.

Featured DL Streamers

DE JT Tuimoloau, IND (🎓🎓🎓)

Hopefully you don’t have to hit the waiver wire to pick up Tuimoloau after you picked him up and played him last week, when he scored a respectable 14.5 fantasy points on the strength of three passes defended. This wasn’t how I expected him to score, but points are points, and a deeper dive into his performance suggests good things may still be to come in Week 7.

First, Tuimoloau recorded no pressures despite 23 pass rush snaps and a season-high pass-rush grade of 69.3. Combine these data points with the fact that he has seven pressures on the season with zero sacks, and positive sack regression is likely if his solid play continues. Second, the Colts play the Vikings this week, who are allowing 41.1 points to opposing edge defenders over the past three weeks. Those same edge groups (Buccaneers, Dolphins, and Saints) only averaged 28.6 points per game for the rest of the season. Tuimoloau is well positioned to score double-digit fantasy points again this week and could easily crack 20 if he registers his first sack of the season.

DT DJ Reader, NYG (🎓🎓)

DJ Reader has always been one of those players who are better in reality than they are in fantasy. This season is no exception. Reader currently stands as the highest-graded interior defender according to PFF, with an overall grade of 89.8. This score also places him fifth among all defenders with significant snaps. While I do not model overall grade, I do closely examine run defense and pass rush scores, and he is excellent in the former (85.3) and solid in the latter (77.3). This ability to defend has translated into the box score with 16 solo tackles on the season.

While this paints a rosy picture, fantasy managers should proceed with some caution in using Reader. As I mentioned above, his stellar play does not always translate into fantasy points. Reader currently ranks 5th in tackles among DT, but only 61st in fantasy scoring at the position. This is partially attributed to a lack of sacks, as a single solo sack would jump him to 27th in scoring. What is more concerning is that his playing time has been limited to 47-64% of snaps this season. Overall, he ranks 47th among interior defenders in snaps, with seven players outsnapping him despite playing one less game due to byes. He certainly has the talent to be more fantasy efficient, but unless his usage increases, he will likely remain a solid play only in deeper, DT-required leagues.

DE Arnold Ebiketie, PHI (🎓)

To be clear, this is a very risky play in Week 7. The Eagles are absolutely decimated at edge rusher. As a result, Ebiketie played 91% of snaps in Week 6. If Nolan Smith, Jalyx Hunt, and AJ Epenesa all miss this week, fire up Ebiketie with confidence. If one is active, he is still a good dart throw. If two are active, look elsewhere. If you are curious about how he is trending, be sure to check out the newest tool from Jake Kohlhagen at The IDP Show, which provides practice report information all in one place!

The primary reason I like Ebiketie as an injury fill-in is the aforementioned ideal usage. He turned that opportunity into a phenomenal 10 combined tackles in Week 6. He has multiple season-long pass-rush grades over 70, so he is absolutely capable of getting a sack. The secondary reason I like him this week is the individual matchup against Cowboys offensive tackle Terence Steele, who has the 64th-worst pass-block grade and 67th-worst run-block grade among offensive tackles this season. The rivalry matchup is Monday night, so if you hope to stream Ebiketie, be sure to have a backup plan such as Kenny Clark (in DL leagues) or Malachi Lawrence (in DE leagues).

Full Week 7 DL Streamer List

Good luck, and if you have any questions about deep DL plays, my office is always open by replying to this article or reaching out on Twitter (@ProfessorIDP).

Be sure to subscribe to The IDP Show on Apple, Spotify, or YouTube.

Welcome back to the Cornerback Corner! As is tradition, we’ll start with transparency and then get right into this week’s calls.

Last week, I made 75 calls for leagues of all shapes and sizes. Of those 75 calls, 7 were declared inactive or injured during play, causing them to miss their projection. Subtracting those players (I’m not responsible for “acts of God”), we’re left with 68 “adjusted” calls.

Of those, 53 were correct (matched, beat, or were within a slim margin of their projections on Yahoo and MFL), and 15 were incorrect (didn’t match or beat their projections and weren’t even close), giving us 77% accuracy for Week 6.

Of those 53 correct calls, 30 were “massive hits” (doubled, tripled, or more than their projections), giving us a 56% massive-hit rate on correct calls for Week 6.

We are 74% accurate overall for the season, with 45% of all correct calls resulting in “massive hits.”

Week 1: 74% accuracy, 36% massive hit rate

Week 2: 75% accuracy, 32% massive hit rate

Week 3: 73% accuracy, 47% massive hit rate

Week 4: 77% accuracy, 51% massive hit rate

Week 5: 73% accuracy, 49% massive hit rate

Week 6: 77% accuracy, 56% massive hit rate

• Please see THIS if you need a primer on cornerback streaming or what’s being discussed in this article (for new readers, a 20-minute audio podcast primer).

• Please see the Week 1 edition of this article if you’re looking for more of my overall thought process. I intentionally included a ton of that information in the Week 1 edition for new readers.

• A huge shout-out to the couple of readers who have commented here and on Twitter with info/updates/articles I may have missed during the week that will affect our calls in this article. Tracking 96-plus corners each week is always a challenge, and things will inevitably slip through the cracks. I will always welcome any updates or info you (the reader) may have spotted during the week if you don’t see that corresponding update in this article (if it looks like I missed it). We’re all in this together as degenerates that stream corner, and I’m definitely not perfect.

• This season, these teams used 11-personnel (3 WR sets) the least week to week (go from the bottom up on this list). Your opposing slot corners (Marcus Jones, Ja’Quan McMillian, Andru Phillips, etc.) will likely see a significant reduction in playing time against these teams. Thank you to sumersports.com for the information.

  This Substack is reader-supported. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Patriots at Bears

Outlook: The Thursday night game to kick off Week 7 has an over/under of 49.5 points, with Chicago favored by a field goal at home. New England is in the top third of the league for passing yards per game, while Chicago is in the middle of the pack. Both teams are in the middle of the pack for weekly wide receiver targets.

We can fire up the usual suspects in medium-to-deeper leagues, and we should be looking good for this one.

New England Patriots

Carlton Davis/Charles Woods (CB): Carlton was inactive last week, but would be a risky (reinjury) SOLID option this week as a full-time outside corner. Woods appeared to be his replacement last week, but topped out at just 64% of snaps at outside corner, so I’d just skip it if Carlton can’t go this week.

Christian Gonzalez (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Marcus Jones (CB): IDEAL if Carlton is inactive, SOLID otherwise. He played 96% of snaps last week, about half from the slot and the rest from outside corner or the box. He gets those sweet slot snaps regardless; he only sees the extra 40% or so of snaps when Carlton or Gonzo are inactive.

Chicago Bears

Cam Lewis (S/CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only. He played 67% of snaps as a deep safety last week and is incorrectly designated as a corner on Yahoo.

Jaylon Johnson (CB): SOLID. He played 83% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Malik Muhammed (CB): SOLID. He played 83% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Kyler Gordon (CB): SIT. Add him, and sit him for now. I know he went nuts and had 3 sacks last week, but he only played 30% of snaps in the slot as a corner. He’s still ramping up, and 3 sacks is clearly an outlier performance. You can play this however you want, but that’s not enough playing time yet. He’ll get there, but it’s playing with fire to trust it at the moment.

If Penix dumps the ball off instead of standing there like an idiot, then Gordon has just one solo tackle last week, and this is an entirely different conversation. Beyond that, New England ranks 22nd overall in 11 personnel usage, so any increase in snaps would likely be capped this week, as New England doesn’t use 3-wide receiver sets often enough for Gordon to have ideal playing time.

Ultimately, it’s your team and your call, but we’ve seen corners with bad playing time fail exponentially more often than we’ve seen them succeed over the many years of me writing this article.

Tyrique Stevenson (CB): SIT. He was sidelined with a hip injury last week, but is likely on his way out the door as a starter anyway, based on multiple articles I’ve read from Chicago beat writers in recent weeks.

Steelers at Saints

Outlook: The early total for this battle in the Bayou is 44.5 points, with Pittsburgh favored by a field goal on the road. Both teams are in the middle of the pack for passing yards per game. New Orleans is a top-ten team for weekly wide receiver targets, as is Pittsburgh.

We can fire up our New Orleans corners in leagues of all sizes, and it will be an ideal matchup for our Pittsburgh options in Week 7.

Pittsburgh Steelers

Jalen Ramsey (S/CB): IDEAL but somewhat risky for future weeks. With DeShon Elliot returning this week, Ramsey should play less safety and more slot corner. That’s beautiful in this matchup, but it could limit his upside down the road against teams that play less 11 personnel (New Orleans is 6th overall). Ramsey played 100% of snaps last week; half came from the slot while the rest were from deep safety or the box or defensive line. He is incorrectly designated a corner on Yahoo.

Asante Samuel Jr (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Jamel Dean (CB): SOLID. He played 87% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

New Orleans Saints

Koolaid McKinstry (CB): SOLID. He played just 41% of snaps last week and then exited the game with a migraine. He’ll be good to go for this week as a full-time outside corner.

Quincy Riley (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only, RISKY. He played 77% of snaps as an outside corner last week. This is the second week in a row he’s seen decreased playing time. Martin Emerson appears to be pushing for a starting job; we’ll keep an eye on it.

49ers at Falcons

Outlook: The early total for this one sits at a massive 50.5 points with San Francisco favored by 4.5 points on the road. Both teams are in the middle of the pack for passing yards per game. Both teams are in the bottom third of the league for weekly wide receiver targets. If it’s not the decaying corpse of Mike Evans or Drake London on the other side, they aren’t getting a target. It will be “deeper leagues only” across the board for this one.

San Francisco 49ers

Marques Sigle (S/CB): SIT. He was inactive again last week. He was possibly being displaced by Mustapha the last time we saw him, so we’ll need to give it a game or two when he returns to see where we’re at.

Renardo Green (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Deommodore Lenoir (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Upton Stout (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only. He played 41% of snaps as a slot corner last week and should see similar (bad) playing time this week against the 21st-ranked team in 11-personnel usage.

Atlanta Falcons

Billy Bowman (CB): SIT. He played just 18% of snaps as a slot corner last week. Sydney Brown (safety) has been seeing most of the slot corner duties recently.

Mike Hughes (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

AJ Terrel/Avieon Terrell (CB): AJ could be back from IR this week; if he is, we can SIT him. He’ll likely be eased back into the lineup, and San Francisco isn’t a great matchup to begin with. If he’s inactive, Avieon becomes a SOLID, deeper-league-only option as a full-time outside corner.

Bengals at Ravens

Outlook: The early total for this AFC North battle sits at a ridiculous 52.5 points with Baltimore favored by a field goal at home. Cincy is a top-ten team for passing yards per game, while Baltimore is in the middle of the pack. Cincy ranks in the top third of the league in weekly wide receiver targets, while Baltimore ranks in the bottom third.

It’s an ideal matchup for the Glizzy Gobbler and company in Week 7. Still, we’ll go “deeper leagues only” for our Cincy corners against a run-first Baltimore team that only targets Zay Flowers as its primary wide receiver each week.

Cincinnati Bengals

Dax Hill (S/CB): SOLID, leagues of all sizes. The matchup may be bad, but Hill played 97% of snaps and lined up everywhere in Week 5 (bye last week). He had over half of his snaps from the slot, and the rest from the box and outside corner.

DJ Turner (CB): SOLID. He played 97% of snaps as an outside corner in Week 5.

Tacario Davis (CB): SIT. He played just 18% of snaps as an outside corner the last time we saw him (bye last week), and gets a crappy matchup this week. Skip it for now, and we’ll keep an eye on it.

Baltimore Ravens

Marlon Glizzy Gobbler Humphrey (CB): IDEAL. He played 95% of snaps as an outside corner last week and matched his projection despite the horrendous matchup against Cleveland. This is an exponentially better matchup; he should feast once more this week (upon glizzies, obviously).

Nate Wiggins (CB): SOLID, leagues of all sizes. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

All others (CB): SIT. We saw another smattering of random corners last week beyond the two known options, none of which struck our fancy.

Bucs at Panthers

Outlook: The early total for this NFC South showdown is 43.5 points, with Carolina favored by a field goal at home. Carolina is second overall in passing yards per game, while Tampa Bay is in the bottom third of the league in this category. Both teams are in the middle of the pack for weekly wide receiver targets, but Daniels has been peppering Egbuka and company in recent weeks, so Tampa Bay's ranking has been on the rise.

We can fire up our Carolina options in leagues of all sizes and hope that Baker (who is likely playing this week) continues the trend of elevated wide receiver targets, but for our Tampa Bay corners, it will be “medium to deeper leagues” in this particular setup. And even if Baker dials it back a bit, this Carolina offense has looked incredible so far this season; odds are good that Tampa Bay will need to throw it early and often to hang with them in this one.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Zyon McCollum (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Jacob Parrish (CB): SOLID. He played 98% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Keionte Scott (CB): SOLID. He played 65% of snaps as a slot corner last week and should see similar playing time this week against a Carolina team that ranks 16th overall in 11 personnel usage.

Carolina Panthers

Will Lee (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week. Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson won’t return until at least Week 11, it appears, so we’ve got these two for the next few weeks.

Akayleb Evans (CB): SOLID. He played 98% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Giants at Texans

Outlook: The early total for this battle in the Lone Star State is 43.5 points, with Houston favored by 9.5 points at home. Houston is a top-ten team for passing yards per game, while New York is in the middle of the pack. Houston is also a top-ten team for weekly wide receiver targets, while New York is in the middle of the pack once more.

We can fire up Deonte Banks and company in an ideal matchup this week. However, it will be “medium to deeper leagues” for Lassiter and our Houston options. Demote them a bit further if JJ McCarthy gets the start (he stinks, and will spend a good portion of this game running for his life, I would think).

New York Giants

Deonte Banks (CB): IDEAL. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week. He’s at least doubled his projection in every game he’s played so far this season, and the matchup is correct.

Greg Newsome/Nic Jones (CB): SOLID if healthy. He was concussed last week but is a full-time outside corner when healthy. If Newsome is inactive, Jones is an option as a full-time replacement outside corner, but a risky one (we’ve only seen it once).

Andru Phillips (CB): SOLID, leagues of all sizes. Borderline ideal. He played 73% of snaps as a slot corner last week and added value with a nice chunk of box snaps. Houston is 9th overall for 11 personnel usage, so the acceptable playing time should continue this week; it’s just tough to call him ideal after that stinker in a perfect matchup against New Orleans last week.

Houston Texans

Jalen Pitre (S/CB): SOLID if healthy. He was inactive last week, but is typically a full-time slot corner with some added box snaps when he plays. Depending on the platform, he could be a safety or a corner in your league of merit.

Derek Stingley (CB): SOLID. He played 95% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Kamari Lassiter (CB): IDEAL. He played 100% of snaps last week, mostly from outside corner, but also a nice chunk in the slot or box. His utilization has improved significantly with Pitre sidelined. When all things are equal, he’s an outside corner. He faced another 8 targets in coverage and is powered by the “he’s not as dangerous as Stingley” effect. He has been under projection in just one game this season, and his projections are typically as bloated and dangerous as my lower intestines after Taco Bell.

Colts at Vikings

Outlook: The early total for this one is 42.5 points, with Minnesota favored by a touchdown at home. Indy is in the middle of the pack in passing yards per game, while Minnesota is in the bottom third of the league in this category. Indy is a top-10 team in weekly wide receiver targets, while Minnesota is in the bottom third of the league in this ranking.

We can fire up the usual suspects in medium- to deep-league settings for this one, and we should be sitting pretty.

Indianapolis Colts

Chavarious Ward (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Sauce Gardner/Cam Taylor Britt (CB): Sauce was injured last week and is a SIT this week. Reinjury risk plus the bad matchup means we steer clear. Cam Taylor Britt replaced him and would be a SOLID option in deeper leagues as a full-time outside corner/warm body if Sauce is inactive this week. Sit otherwise.

Justin Walley (CB): SOLID, medium to deeper leagues. He played 91% of snaps as a slot corner last week and clearly saw a bump with Sauce sidelined. He should play a bit less this week against a Minnesota team that is 20th overall for 11 personnel usage.

Minnesota Vikings

Josh Metellus (S/CB): IDEAL. He played 100% of snaps the last time we saw him (bye last week) and lined up all over the place. He had significant snaps at slot, deep safety, box safety, and the defensive line as a blitzer.

Byron Murphy (CB): SOLID, leagues of all sizes. He played 84% of snaps as a slot corner with some bonus slot, and box snaps the last time we saw him (bye last week).

Isaiah Rodgers (CB): SOLID. He played 82% of snaps as an outside corner the last time we saw him (bye last week).

James Pierre (CB): SIT. He played just 46% of snaps as an outside corner the last time we saw him (bye last week).

Dolphins at Jets

Outlook: The early total for this AFC East battle sits at just 38.5 points, with New York favored by 4.5 points on the road. New York is in the bottom third of the league for passing yards per game, while Miami is dead last in this category. Both teams are in the bottom third of the league for weekly wide receiver targets.

This one has “deeper leagues only” written all over it.

Miami Dolphins

Chris Johnson (CB): IDEAL. He played 98% of snaps and lined up all over the place the last time we saw him (bye last week). He had significant snaps in the slot, box, and outside corner in Week 5.

Jason Marshall (CB): SOLID. He played 89% of snaps as an outside corner the last time we saw him.

Juju Brents (CB): SOLID. He played 60% of snaps as the slot corner the last time we saw him (bye last week) and gets the 11th-overall team for 11-personnel usage this week (he should play as much, and likely more, this week).

New York Jets

Azareyeh Thomas (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Brandon Stephens (CB): SOLID. He played 95% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Jarvis Brownlee (CB): SOLID. He played 54% of snaps as the slot corner last week and should see a few more snaps this week against the 13th-overall team in 11-personnel. This is RISKY. D’Angelo Ponds saw some playing time last week, and as the Jets’ season swirls the toilet, the likelihood of rookies getting playing time increases with each passing week.

Browns at Titans

Outlook: The early total for this second stinker in a row sits at a pathetic 36.5 points, with Cleveland favored by 1.5 points on the road. Both teams are in the bottom third of the league in passing yards per game; Tennessee is actually the second-worst team in this category. Both teams are in the middle of the pack for weekly wide receiver targets.

This one will also be “deeper leagues only”, and I’ll likely be skipping this one and the Jets/Dolphins game completely for my own streams this week.

Cleveland Browns

Denzel Ward (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Tyson Campbell (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only. He played 98% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Myles Harden (CB): SOLID. He played 57% of snaps as a slot corner last week and should see more snaps this week against the second-best team in the league in 11-personnel usage.

Tennessee Titans

Alontae Taylor/Joshua Williams (CB): SIT them both. Taylor was benched out of nowhere last week despite his ridiculous offseason contract. Williams replaced him and played 100% of snaps as an outside corner. This slot is clearly in flux, and it’s the Browns under Watson, not the reincarnation of the 1967 Oakland Raiders; we can skip it and sleep well this week.

Alontae Taylor was declared inactive before kickoff, which is exactly why I include that note about checking inactives at the bottom of this article and have done so since I started writing it 6 or 7 (hands moving up and down) years ago.

Marcus Harris (CB): SOLID. He played 79% of snaps as a slot corner last week and should see more snaps this week against the 4th-best team in the league in 11-personnel usage.

Cor’Dale Flott (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Broncos at Cardinals

Outlook: The early total for this battle in the desert is 43.5 points, with Denver favored by 4.5 points on the road. Arizona is in the middle of the pack in passing yards per game, while Denver is in the bottom third of the league in this category. Both teams are in the middle of the pack for weekly wide receiver targets.

We can fire up the usual suspects in medium- to deep-league settings for this one, and that should be about right.

Denver Broncos

Patrick Surtain/Jahdae Barron (CB): SOLID, risky, if Surtain can play. He’s a full-time outside corner when healthy. However, as we saw last week, Moss was eased back into the lineup, so it’s likely we would see the same with Surtain if he can play this week. If he’s inactive again, Barron becomes a SOLID option as a full-time replacement outside corner.

Riley Moss/Kris Abrams-Draine (CB): SIT them both. Moss was eased back into the lineup last week with just 23% of snaps at outside corner. He should see more this week, and as his snaps increase, Abrams-Draine’s will decrease. We’ll sit on it until Moss is back to his full complement of snaps.

JaQuan McMillian (CB): SOLID. He played 76% of snaps as a slot corner last week and could see a bit less playing time this week against the 17th-overall team in 11-personnel usage.

Arizona Cardinals

Denzel Burke (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only. He played 79% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Max Melton (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only. He played 77% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Garrett Williams (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only, risky. He played 62% of snaps last week, some in the slot, most in the box. He appears to be losing his slot snaps to Kalen King, but it’s too early to know for sure. Denver is 10th overall for 11 personnel usage, so he should be OK to play this week on paper, assuming he resumes his slot role in Week 7.

Kalen King (CB): SIT. However, he played 62% of snaps as a slot corner out of nowhere last week. He could be displacing Williams; time will tell. Consider this a heads-up for now.

Packers at Lions

Outlook: The early total for this NFC North powerhouse battle sits at a massive 52.5 points with Detroit favored by a field goal at home and indoors. These are the 4th- and 3rd-best teams in passing yards per game, respectively. Green Bay is a top-ten team for weekly wide receiver targets, while Detroit is in the middle of the pack.

We can fire up our Detroit corners in an ideal matchup, and leagues of all sizes for our Green Bay corners in Week 7. This could be a perfect matchup for everyone who plays cornerback and is alive if Vegas is correct and this thing ends up as an epic shootout.

Green Bay Packers

Keisean Nixon (CB): IDEAL. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week and has not been under projection in any game yet this season.

Brandon Cisse (CB): SOLID, leagues of all sizes, if healthy. He was dinged up last week but is usually a full-time outside corner. He has only been under projection in just one game this season.

Carrington Valentine (CB): SOLID only if Cisse is inactive, SIT otherwise. Valentine would replace Cisse as the other starting full-time outside corner this week if Cisse is inactive.

Detroit Lions

Christian Izien (S/CB): SIT. He was displaced the last time we saw him (by Keith Abney) last week. However, with Brian Branch designated to return and possibly play this week, we’ll skip all this and give it a week to see how everything plays out and adjust from there.

DJ Reed (CB): IDEAL. He played 98% of snaps as an outside corner the last time we saw him, has been very productive this season, and is in an excellent matchup this week.

Roger McCreary (CB): IDEAL. He played 100% of snaps the last time we saw him (bye last week) and lined up all over the place. He had significant snaps at slot, box, and outside corner and faced a truly ridiculous 18 targets the last time he saw the field. Beyond that, the matchup is ideal.

Update: Rock Ya Sin may return from injury this week, if he does then McCreary could see a significant reduction in snaps. Keep an eye on the status of Ya-Sin if you want to play McCreary this week.

Keith Abney (CB): SIT. However, he did displace Izien in Week 5 (bye last week) and could be a full-time safety/corner hybrid in a perfect matchup this week if both Brian Branch AND Kerby Joseph don’t actually play this week (both are designated to return from the PUP). I’m calling this a “sit” since we’ve only seen it once, and it’s dependent on multiple other factors to even be a possibility. It’s technically there if you want to chase it, though.

Rams at Raiders

Outlook: The early total for this battle at the Death Star sits at 47.5 points, with Los Angeles favored by a touchdown on the road. Both teams are in the top ten for passing yards per game. Los Angeles ranks in the top ten for weekly wide receiver targets, while Las Vegas ranks in the bottom third of the league in this category.

It’s an ideal matchup for Taron Johnson and our Las Vegas corners this week, but it will be “deeper leagues only” for our Los Angeles corners in Week 7.

Los Angeles Rams

Trent McDuffie (CB): SOLID if healthy. He was inactive last week, but is a full-time outside corner if he can play this week.

Jaylen Watson (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Josh Wallace (CB): SOLID if McDuffie is inactive; SOLID, much deeper leagues only, if McDuffie plays this week. Wallace saw 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week in place of McDuffie, who was inactive. When both Watson and McDuffie are healthy, Wallace's playing time drops significantly.

Las Vegas Raiders

Treydan Stukes (S/CB): IDEAL. He played 100% of snaps as a mostly deep safety, but with a nice chunk of box snaps last week. He is incorrectly designated as a corner on Yahoo.

Eric Stokes (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Taron Johnson (CB): SOLID, leagues of all sizes. He played 91% of snaps last week, split evenly between the slot and the box. He is getting the 15th-overall team for 11-person usage this week, so his playing time could dip a bit. Beyond that one small issue, everything else looks excellent for him this week.

Darien Porter/Hezekiah Masses (CB): SIT them both as they continue to split this role like a pair of booty cheeks. Porter was on 79% of snaps at outside corner last week, compared to just 27% for Masses. Porter is technically an option this week, but with as much fluctuation as this specific cornerback slot has seen already this season, that’s a dangerous stream to pursue.

Chiefs at Seahawks

Outlook: The early total for this heavyweight fight is 42.5 points, with Seattle favored by 1.5 points at home. Kansas City is a top-ten team for passing yards per game, while Seattle is in the middle of the pack. Seattle has climbed to third overall in weekly wide receiver targets, while Kansas City is now dead last in this ranking across the league.

We can fire up Sneed and company in an ideal matchup this week, but our Seattle options are “deeper leagues only,” though Witherspoon and Emmanwori should be fine regardless of matchup, as is tradition.

Kansas City Chiefs

L’Jarius Sneed (CB): SOLID. He played just 49% of snaps at slot corner last week and could see similar (bad) playing time this week against the 27th-ranked team in 11-personnel usage. However, he’s been exceedingly efficient this season and has only been under projection in one game. Everything except his likely playing time looks great this week.

Nohl Williams (CB): SOLID. He played 78% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Mansor Delane (CB): SOLID. He played 95% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Seattle Seahawks

Nick Emmanwori (S/CB): IDEAL. He played 96% of snaps last week and lined up all over the place. He had significant snaps in the box, in the slot, or on the defensive line during blitzes. He is incorrectly designated as a corner on Yahoo.

Devon Witherspoon (CB): SOLID. He played 98% of snaps last week, mostly from outside corner, but also with a nice chunk of slot and box snaps as added value. This would be ideal, but Kansas City no longer needs to throw the ball all that often with Ken Bone Walker powering the offense.

Josh Jobe (CB): SOLID. He played 98% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Cowboys at Eagles

Outlook: The early total for this dumpster-fire matchup of NFC East disappointments sits at 44.5 points, with Dallas favored by 4.5 points on the road. We can fire up DeJean and company in an ideal matchup against a Dallas passing attack that ranks in the top 10 in passing yards per game and averages the most wide receiver targets per game in the league at the time of writing.

For the reverse, it will be “deeper leagues only” for our Dallas options against this shredded Philly offense that will have a backup quarterback under center. That shouldn’t matter much for the game itself; Dallas will find a way to screw it up, but for our Dallas corners, there are better streams elsewhere.

Dallas Cowboys

DaRon Bland (CB): SOLID. He played 97% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Joey Porter Jr. (CB): SIT. He played just 48% of snaps as an outside corner last week as guys like Revel and Speed all chipped in to cover the “other” cornerback slots. None played enough for our purposes, especially in this (bad) matchup.

Cobie Durant/Shavon Revel/All others (CB): SIT. Durant is still banged up, and Revel, Speed, etc., didn’t play enough to strike our fancy last week. Besides, it’s a backup quarterback on a shredded Philly offense, not the second coming of the 1950 Los Angeles Rams.

Philadelphia Eagles

Cooper DeJean (CB): IDEAL. He played 98% of snaps and lined up all over the place last week. He had significant snaps in the slot, deep safety, box safety, and on the defensive line. Beyond that, the matchup is correct.

Quinyon Mitchell (CB): SOLID, leagues of all sizes. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Tariq Woolen (CB): SOLID. He played 97% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Byes this week: Buffalo, Jacksonville, LA Chargers, Washington

My favorite matchups, Week 7:

• Pittsburgh corners versus New Orleans

• Baltimore corners versus Cincy

• New York Giants corners versus Houston

• Detroit versus Green Bay, either side

• Las Vegas corners versus Los Angeles (Rams)

• Philly corners versus Dallas

Week 7 corners at a glance:

These are not in any particular order or ranking; they are just divided into the sections you see below. I typically identify the best matchups (see above), then the best options within those matchups, to find my favorite streaming options each week.

*If you see player/player, that means starter/direct replacement*

IDEAL: (Our best options)

• Jalen Ramsey

• Dax Hill, Marlon Glizzy Gobbler Humphrey

• Deonte Banks, Kamari Lassiter

• Josh Metellus

• Chris Johnson

• Keisean Nixon, DJ Reed, Roger McCreary (check McCreary note for additional information in Lions/Packers section

• Treydan Stukes

• Nick Emmanwori

• Cooper DeJean

SOLID: (Matchup or some other factor isn’t perfect. These are generally “safe” options that play enough to get you some production)

• Carlton Davis, Christian Gonzalez, Marcus Jones, Cam Lewis, Malik Muhammed, Jaylon Johnson

• Asante Samuel, Jamel Dean, Koolaid McKinstry, Quincy Riley

• Renardo Green, Deommodore Lenoir, Upton Stout, Mike Hughes, Avieon Terrell (only if AJ Terrell is inactive)

• DJ Turner, Nate Wiggins

• Zyon McCollum, Jacob Parrish, Keionte Scott, Will Lee, Akayleb Evans

• Greg Newsome/Nic Jones, Andru Phillips, Jalen Pitre, Derek Stingley

• Chavarious Ward, Justin Walley, Sauce Gardner/Cam Taylor Britt, Byron Murphy, Isaiah Rodgers

• Jason Marshall, Juju Brents, Azareyeh Thomas, Brandon Stephens, Jarvis Brownlee

• Denzel Ward, Tyson Campbell, Myles Harden, Marcus Harris, Cor’Dale Flott

• Patrick Surtain/Jahdae Barron, JaQuan McMillian, Denzel Burke, Max Melton, Garrett Williams

• Brandon Cisse/Carrington Valentine

• Trent McDuffie/Josh Wallace, Jaylen Watson, Eric Stokes, Taron Johnson

• L’Jarius Sneed, Nohl Williams, Mansor Delane, Devon Witherspoon, Josh Jobe

• DaRon Bland, Quinyon Mitchell, Tariq Woolen

TRAPS: (Sit these players)

• Charles Woods, Tyrique Stevenson, Kyler Gordon (read the blurb up top in the Chicago/New England section if Gordon doesn’t make sense to you)

• Marques Sigle, Billy Bowman, AJ Terrell

• Tacario Davis

• James Pierre

• Alontae Taylor, Joshua Williams

• Riley Moss/Kris Abrams-Draine, Kalen King

• Christian Izien, Keith Abney

• Darien Porter/Hezekiah Masses

• Joey Porter Jr., Shavon Revel, Cobie Durant

Reminder: These are only suggestions. Your lineup is your responsibility and yours alone. However, I’m making the same moves, so we sink or swim together. Remember to check for inactive players before kickoff to prevent any surprise zeroes.

For any questions/comments, to discuss specific cornerback streams, or to talk IDP in general, hit up my Twitter or email me at Johnysmack3141@yahoo.com.

Thank you for reading, and good luck this week! Go get those titles!

Be sure to subscribe to The IDP Show on Apple, Spotify, or YouTube.

You can follow us on all our social media channels, including Twitter and Instagram.

We’re reaching the halfway point between the start of the season and the fantasy football playoffs, meaning it’s imperative that our lineups are in as good of a shape as we can possibly get them to secure a win. With struggling stars, surging youths, and an ever-changing landscape of IDP options, lock into our rankings so you’re as prepared as possible for the week ahead.

Note: Each positional ranking includes an interactive table at the bottom of the article to help you find the players you might be looking for, and all updates heading into game day will be displayed there.

LINEBACKER

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Week 6 Takeaways

WAIVER WIRE TARGETS

This week’s waiver wire targets are listed by position, in order of priority.

• LB Henry To’oTo’o, Houston Texans

  • With To’oTo’o back from injured reserve, he’s once again in a spot to resume his every-down role for the rest of the season, making him a strong option where available and as needed in most IDP formats.

• LB Micah McFadden, New York Giants

  • With Tremaine Edmunds injured on the last play of the game, he may miss time. McFadden should be considered a speculative add in case Edmunds is out, as he should see a near-every-down role.

• LB Josh Woods, Atlanta Falcons

  • If both Divine Deablo and Kendal Daniels miss time due to injuries sustained in Week 6, Woods should serve as the green-dot linebacker again, making him an option in non-shallow formats.

• LB Tyrice Knight, Seattle Seahawks

  • If Drake Thomas misses more time, Knight should continue to play a starting role in Seattle’s defense, with the opportunity to contribute as a deeper-league IDP option.

• S Brian Branch, Detroit Lions

  • Branch is expected to return from injured reserve after the team’s Week 6 bye, and he should be added in all formats where available. Even if Branch doesn’t play 100% of snaps in his first game back, he’s expected to be a high-end IDP option for the rest of this season once he gets back up to speed.

• S DeShon Elliott, Pittsburgh Steelers

  • Elliott is expected to return in Week 7 after spending time on injured reserve. Elliott is a high-end tackler at safety and should be able to return strong IDP value once he’s back in a full-time role, making him a solid bet to grab now if you have the need/space.

• S Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, Cleveland Browns

  • With Grant Delpit suffering a concussion, McNeil-Warren stepped into an IDP-friendly role as the team’s primary box safety, and he should be a target for non-shallow formats for as long as Delpit is out.

• S Treydan Stukes, Las Vegas Raiders

  • Stukes’ opportunity to play in the box has increased nicely over the last three games, and he finally delivered as a result. Stukes can be considered for deeper formats as a full-time safety with decent usage around the line of scrimmage, where needed.

• S Damar Hamlin, Buffalo Bills

  • With C.J. Gardner-Johnson at risk of suspension, Hamlin would move into a starting role, making him an option in deep leagues.

• CB Kyler Gordon, Chicago Bears

  • Gordon’s big IDP performance is going to turn heads, and while he can still be a speculative add in deeper CB-required formats, he shouldn’t necessarily be trusted as a starter yet until we see his snap share increase significantly.

Be sure to check out last week’s IDP waiver targets listed in the report here.

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Welcome back to IDP Bets!

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As the 2026 season unfolds, the ever-changing IDP landscape can leave us with many questions about these players’ rest-of-season value. Whether you’re deciding which players are worth swapping in from the waiver wire, targeting potential trade candidates, or just want to know what to expect from your roster going forward, these rest-of-season IDP rankings are meant to help.

These rankings will be updated weekly to reflect the most recent trends and injuries likely to occur in the 2026 season.

LINEBACKER

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Welcome to Week 6 of DL Streaming 101!

Let’s start by taking a look back at Week 5 of DL Streaming by using a format inspired by the thing I’m currently obsessed with almost as much as IDP fantasy football:

NEW ACHIEVEMENT: “Maybe you do know what you are doing.” Your DL streaming picks for Week 5 not only set a new weekly high average of 8.78 but also included two of the top 12 DL overall for the week. You know who else was able to pick two of the top 12 DL last week: those fancy pre-season consensus rankings that don’t have to go dumpster-diving for players available in 75% or more of IDP leagues. What’s more, your top 14 players averaged 12.4 points per game, while your bottom 14 averaged 5.1. Maybe you’re lucky, maybe you’re good, maybe you’re pulling a Biff and are using a Grays Sports Almanac for a really niche purpose. YOUR REWARD: You get to write another DL streaming article with four teams on bye…good luck with that!

Thanks for indulging me! Here is our traditional look at season-long streaming metrics after five weeks:

The combination of bye weeks and the market wising up on players like Elijah Ponder and Deone Walker has reduced the talent pool somewhat for Week 6, but there are so many options in the Solid and Solid-Deeper tiers that I don’t have to dip into Educated Dart Throws! I typically do a deep dive into one player from each tier, but given only two tiers are represented this week, I’ll hop into one of my favorite plays of the week, a middle-of-the-road play, and the longest shot of the week (that still has a lot of upside), sticking to edges this week.

Featured DL Streamers

ED JT Tuimoloau, IND (🎓🎓🎓)

With teammate Arden Key placed on IR, the opportunity is knocking for the Colts’ 2025 second-round pick. In his first game in his new starting role last week, Tuimoloau had some ups and downs. Despite registering only one assist, his PFF tackling grade was a solid 70.5 (compared to abysmal grades of 28.8 and 29.4 in Weeks 1 and 2). He also posted two QB pressures despite a pass rush grade under 60. The Colts played the Steelers last week, which has been a highly erratic matchup for opposing edges, allowing 57.05 fantasy edge points to the Browns in Week 4 but only 10 points to Bengals edges in Week 3 (Tuimoloau, Latu, and company mustered 12.75 in total).

I’m optimistic about Tuimoloau in Week 6 because of his usage and matchup. His usage was ideal at 82% with the Colts not rotating heavily to muddy opportunity. That rate was higher than injured teammate Key, who was averaging 72% through three weeks. The matchup against the Titans is incredibly exploitable with the ultra-talented Texans edge group putting up nearly 70 fantasy points last week. Tackle Dan Moore was a particular liability, allowing seven pressures (one sack) last week. Tuimoloau is no Danielle Hunter, but he draws the matchup against Moore this week, and if he could even halve Hunter’s Week 5 production, he would be a welcome streamer.

ED Dre’Mont Jones, NEP (🎓🎓)

Jones is nursing a shoulder injury that caused him to exit Week 5 early, but assuming he plays, he is a solid option for those of you who need to stream in deeper leagues. In limited action (missed much of Week 2, all of Week 3, and part of Week 5), Jones has amassed 14 quarterback pressures but only one sack. With a pass rush grade of 73.5 (19th among edges with at least 100 snaps), positive regression is expected soon.

That could come as early as Week 6, when the Patriots take on the Jets, who have been the third-best matchup for opposing edge rushers since Week 2, allowing an average of 40.64 fantasy points to the position per game. While two teams (the Browns and Chargers) have allowed more fantasy points to edges, the Jets are the only team in the NFL to have allowed at least 30 fantasy points to each of their last four opponents. Jones has a demonstrated snap ceiling (this season) of 84% and is among the highest-graded defenders in the NFL (31st overall across all defensive positions), making him a solid play in deeper leagues (despite the injury risk).

ED Mike Green, BAL (🎓🎓)

Rounding out this week’s featured players is another sophomore with second-round draft capital: Ravens’ defensive end Mike Green. It was off-field concerns, not talent, that led to Green falling to the second round of the draft. It was a very crowded edge room in 2025, which led to the rookie earning only two starts (Weeks 5 and 18). Green took over a full-time role in Trey Hendrickson’s absence, and the talent is beginning to shine through. In his two games as a starter, Green has produced eight pressures, one sack, two tackles, two assists, and two TFLs (a fantasy average of 11.8 points per game).

As of this writing, there is a chance Henrickson is back this week. If he is not, move Green up a bit but not much (he did not eclipse 65% of snaps in either start). If he does return, I would still consider using Green as a solid streamer in deeper leagues in case they ease Hendrickson back in and allow Green to play nearly 50% of snaps (as was the case in Week 2). Part of my excitement for Green, regardless of Hendrickson’s status, is a phenomenal matchup.

Green and company have a rivalry game against the Cleveland Browns in Week 6. Cleveland has allowed more fantasy points to opposing edges than any other team for the season and over a two-, three-, four-, or five-game window in 2026. I would be shocked if this comes to an end this week, given the combination of ceiling and floor the matchup has provided this season. Per PFF, quarterback Deshaun Watson leads the NFL in own pressures allowed, with 17 (10 of which have been converted into sacks). While this speaks to the ceiling, the floor is also there, as the Browns allow the third-most tackles to opposing defensive ends, per some of our great data here at The IDP Show.

Full Week 6 DL Streamer List

Good luck, and if you have any questions about deep DL plays, my office is always open by replying to this article or reaching out on Twitter (@ProfessorIDP).

Be sure to subscribe to The IDP Show on Apple, Spotify, or YouTube.

Welcome back to the Cornerback Corner! As is tradition, we’ll start with transparency and then get right into this week’s calls.

Last week, I made 87 calls for leagues of all shapes and sizes. Of those 87 calls, 9 were declared inactive or injured during play, causing them to miss their projection. Subtracting those players (I’m not responsible for “acts of God”), we’re left with 78 “adjusted” calls.

Of those, 57 were correct (matched, beat, or were within a slim margin of their projections on Yahoo and MFL), and 21 were incorrect (didn’t match or beat their projections and weren’t even close), giving us 73% accuracy for Week 5.

Of those 57 correct calls, 28 were “massive hits” (doubled, tripled, or more than their projections), giving us a 49% massive-hit rate on correct calls for Week 5.

We are 74% accurate overall for the season, with 43% of all correct calls resulting in “massive hits.”

Week 1: 74% accuracy, 36% massive hit rate

Week 2: 75% accuracy, 32% massive hit rate

Week 3: 73% accuracy, 47% massive hit rate

Week 4: 77% accuracy, 51% massive hit rate

Week 5: 73% accuracy, 49% massive hit rate

• Please see THIS if you need a primer on cornerback streaming or what’s being discussed in this article (for new readers, a 20-minute audio podcast primer).

• Please see the Week 1 edition of this article if you’re looking for more of my overall thought process. I intentionally included a ton of that information in the Week 1 edition for new readers.

• A huge shout-out to the couple of readers who have commented here and on Twitter with info/updates/articles I may have missed during the week that will affect our calls in this article. Tracking 96-plus corners each week is always a challenge, and things will inevitably slip through the cracks. I will always welcome any updates or info you (the reader) may have spotted during the week if you don’t see that corresponding update in this article (if it looks like I missed it). We’re all in this together as degenerates that stream corner, and I’m definitely not perfect.

• This season, these teams used 11-personnel (3 WR sets) the least week to week (go from the bottom up on this list). Your opposing slot corners (Marcus Jones, Ja’Quan McMillian, Andru Phillips, etc.) will likely see a significant reduction in playing time against these teams. Thank you to sumersports.com for the information.

Seahawks at Broncos

Outlook: The Thursday night game to kick off Week 6 has an over/under of just 42.5 points, with Seattle favored by a field goal on the road. Both teams are in the middle of the pack for passing yards per game. Both teams are in the bottom half of the league in wide receiver targets per game.

We can fire up our usual options in medium-to-deep leagues, and we should be in good shape for this one.

Seattle Seahawks

Nick Emmanwori (S/CB): IDEAL. He played 93% of snaps last week. All of his snaps came from either the box, slot, or defensive line (perfect utilization). He is now designated as a corner in Yahoo; this is the ultimate cheat code. Set him and forget him in a corner slot, then go add another safety to replace him in that safety slot he just vacated. Net net, you’ve got the perfect weapon at corner and just added another safety to the weekly mix (safety is typically more consistent and productive week to week compared to cornerback). Yahoo making this change in Week 5 is some insane stuff. Preseason, sure; after Week 1, OK; now? Insanity.

Devon Witherspoon (CB): IDEAL. He played 98% of snaps last week; most of them came from outside corner, but 30% plus came from the slot and box.

Josh Jobe (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Denver Broncos

Patrick Surtain/Jahdae Barron (CB): SOLID if healthy. Surtain was inactive last week, and Barron replaced him, playing 100% of snaps as an outside corner. Barron has value only if Surtain or Moss is inactive; if both play, he goes back to the bench. Update: Surtain is officially inactive this week; Barron should be good to go. Keep an eye on Moss to see if Abrams-Draine is an option or not as well.

Riley Moss (CB): IDEAL if healthy. Moss was also inactive last week, but is an ideal option that gets picked on in coverage often if he can play this week as a full-time outside corner.

Kris Abrams-Draine (CB): SOLID only if both Surtain AND Moss are inactive; if either of those two plays, Barron would likely be the “first up” replacement, and Abrams-Draine would return to the bench.

JaQuan McMillian (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only. He played 55% of snaps as the slot corner last week, but would see a reduction in snaps against a Seattle team that is 30th overall for 11 personnel usage.

Texans at Jaguars

Outlook: The early total for this AFC South showdown is 43.5 points, with Jacksonville favored by a field goal at home. Houston is a top-ten team for passing yards per game, while Jacksonville is in the middle of the pack. Houston is also a top-ten team for weekly wide receiver targets, while Jacksonville is once more in the middle of the pack.

It’s an ideal matchup for our Jacksonville corners, as the trend of “Houston can’t run, so they pass” continued last week, and we can fire up our Houston corners in medium- to deep-league formats with confidence. Houston also just added Harrison Jr. to the mix at wide receiver, and Montgomery is injured and will be out for several weeks. That all just helps our Jacksonville options look even better this week.

Houston Texans

Kamari Lassiter (CB): IDEAL. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week and benefits from the “not as dangerous as Stingley” effect (he gets picked on in coverage).

Derek Stingley (CB): SOLID. He played 98% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Jalen Pitre (S/CB): SIT. He was injured last week (shoulder) and is doubtful to play this week. Kamari Ramsey appeared to be his replacement, but is a safety everywhere I’ve seen (“cornerback corner”, not “safety corner”).

Jacksonville Jaguars

Travis Hunter (WR/CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps at outside corner last week and had 6 snaps on offense, including one catch.

Jarrian Jones (CB): SOLID. He played 98% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Montaric Brown (CB): SIT. Brown reinjured himself and exited after 9% of snaps last week. There was no direct replacement; Jacksonville upped Hunter’s snaps to cover the absence and went with three corners instead of their usual four.

Jourdan Lewis (CB): SOLID, leagues of all sizes. Just short of IDEAL due to concerns about playing time. He played 66% of snaps as the slot corner last week and could see even more playing time this week against a Houston team that ranks in the top 10 in 11-personnel usage.

Bears at Falcons

Outlook: The early total for this NFC matchup is 47.5 points, with Atlanta favored by 1.5 points at home. Chicago is in the middle of the pack for passing yards per game, while Atlanta is in the bottom third of the league for this ranking but improving weekly as Penix stacks more starts. Chicago is a top-ten team for weekly wide receiver targets, while Atlanta was the second-worst team in the league for this ranking at the time of writing.

If it’s not Drake London, they aren’t getting a target in Atlanta. With that in mind, medium- to deep-league options make sense for our Chicago options. And we can fire up our Atlanta corners in leagues of all sizes, especially if Caleb Williams is back this week. Temper expectations if he isn’t; both backup quarterbacks looked bad last week against a suspect Green Bay defense.

Chicago Bears

Cam Lewis (S/CB): SOLID, much deeper leagues only. Risky. He played just 59% of snaps last week as a deep safety with some bonus slot snaps. He is now splitting this role with Xavier Woods (possible displacement incoming). He is mistakenly designated as a corner in Yahoo.

Kyler Gordon (CB): SIT. He should be back this week, but we’ve seen this movie before in past seasons. He’ll likely be “eased back into” the lineup. Add him now. Sit him and await the free real estate when he fully regains his starting slot as a corner.

Tyrique Stevenson (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only. Risky. Stevenson was back down to 51% of snaps as an outside corner after returning to 100% last week. He will likely be fully displaced when Gordon is healthy and back in his normal role and playing time, but we should be able to get at least one more week out of him for those of you who are desperate for a warm body in extremely deep leagues.

Jaylon Johnson (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Atlanta Falcons

Billy Bowman (CB): SIT. He was down to just 32% of snaps as a slot corner last week and saw (safety) Sydney Brown steal the rest of his slot snaps. We’ll keep an eye on it, but he’s not safe anymore as things stand currently, with this secondary clearly in flux.

CJ Henderson/Avieon Terrell (CB): Henderson was hurt last week but would be an IDEAL option as a full-time outside corner if he can play this week. He’s been red hot all season long. If he’s inactive, then Terrel becomes an option as his replacement at outside corner; sit Terrel otherwise.

Mike Hughes (CB): SOLID. He played 90% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Ravens at Browns

Outlook: The early total for this AFC North showdown sits at just 40.5 points with Baltimore favored by a field goal on the road. Both teams are in the bottom half of the league for passing yards per game. Cleveland is in the middle of the pack for weekly wide receiver targets, while Baltimore was the 3rd-worst team in the league in this ranking at the time of writing.

Deeper leagues only across the board feels right for this one, as even Vegas is expecting a “black and blue” affair (defensive struggle). It’s hard to argue with them on that, especially if Lamar is inactive again.

Baltimore Ravens

Nate Wiggins (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Marlon Glizzy Gobbler Humphrey (CB): The Gobbler ended up being active last week, but saw his incredible 12-game-plus streak of incredible production end in Atlanta. We salute you, Glizzy Gobbler, and thank you for taking many of us through fantasy playoffs last year and for the blistering start to this season. He remains IDEAL as he’s smashed his projection in every game except one this season and is always a threat for a splash play. The Gobbler played 100% of snaps at outside corner last week.

All others (CB): SIT. We still have a rotating cast of characters taking any remaining cornerback snaps, none we can trust at this point.

Cleveland Browns

Denzel Ward (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Tyson Campbell (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Myles Harden (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only. He played 55% of snaps as the slot corner last week, but could see fewer snaps this week against a Baltimore team that is 24th overall for 11 personnel usage.

Titans at Colts

Outlook: The early total for this AFC South showdown is 44.5 points, with Indy favored by a touchdown at home. Both teams are in the bottom third of the league for passing yards per game. Both teams are just outside the top ten in weekly wide receiver targets, but neither quarterback is exactly lighting up the box score at the moment (targets and completions are two different things).

Medium-to-deeper leagues for our options on both sides should do the trick for this one.

Tennessee Titans

Marcus Harris (CB): SOLID, medium to deeper leagues. He played 57% of snaps as the slot corner last week, but could see a slight reduction in snaps this week against an Indianapolis team that is 20th overall in 11 personnel usage.

Alontae Taylor (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Cor’Dale Flott/Micah Robinson (CB): Flott was injured last week but would be a SOLID option as a full-time outside corner if he can play this week. Robinson replaced him and played the same role, but would only be an option if Flott is inactive this week; sit otherwise.

Indianapolis Colts

Chavarious Ward (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Sauce Gardner (CB): SOLID. He played 98% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Justin Walley (CB): SOLID, leagues of all sizes, just short of IDEAL because it’s Cam Ward, not the reincarnation of Fran Tarkenton. He played 66% of snaps as the slot corner last week but should see a bump in snaps this week against the second-best team in the league for 11 personnel usage.

Jets at Patriots

Outlook: The early total for this AFC East battle is 44.5 points, with New England favored by a touchdown at home. Both teams are in the middle of the pack for passing yards per game. New England is in the middle of the pack for weekly wide receiver targets, while New York is in the bottom third of the league once more.

It will be “deeper leagues only” for our New England options, and medium-to-deeper leagues should be about right for our New York corners in Week 6.

New York Jets

Azareyeh Thomas (CB): SOLID. He played 98% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Brandon Stephens (CB): SOLID. He played 98% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Jarvis Brownlee (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only. He played 85% of snaps as the slot corner last week but should see a reduction in snaps against the 22nd-ranked team in the league in 11-personnel.

New England Patriots

Carlton Davis (CB): SOLID if healthy. He is a full-time outside corner. Davis was inactive last week.

Christian Gonzalez (CB): SOLID if healthy. He is a full-time outside corner. Gonzo was inactive last week.

Marcus Jones (CB): SOLID. He played 83% of snaps last week from outside corner with a good chunk of slot and box snaps. He will play less than that and focus solely on the slot if both Gonzalez and Carlton play this week. Demote him slightly if they’re both healthy.

Kindle Vildor/Charles Woods (CB): SIT them both. This is the Geno Smith-led Jets, not the second-coming of the 1961 Oilers; we don’t need to chase backups against this passing attack.

Saints at Giants

Outlook: The early total for this battle in the Big Apple is 45.5 points, with New York favored by 1.5 points at home. New Orleans is a top-ten team in passing yards per game, while New York is in the bottom third of the league in this category at the time of writing. New Orleans is also in the top-ten for weekly wide receiver targets, while New York is in the bottom third of the league once more.

It’s an ideal matchup for our New York corners this week, but it will be “deeper leagues only” for our New Orleans options against a New York team that targets Nabers exclusively in their wide receiver corps.

New Orleans Saints

Quincy Riley (CB): SIT. He played 78% of snaps as an outside corner last week. Martin Emerson played those final 22% of snaps at outside corner, which could indicate a displacement. We’re just going to skip it this week and see what happens; we’ll readjust next week. Better to skip a mediocre cornerback stream in a mediocre matchup than risk recommending a guy that might not play at all this week.

Koolaid McKinstry (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

New York Giants

Deonte Banks (CB): IDEAL. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner and has annihilated his projection in every game he’s played so far this season. He’s also got a great matchup this week.

Greg Newsome (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Andru Phillips (CB): IDEAL. He played 77% of snaps as the slot corner last week and gets the 5th-most team snaps in 11 personnel this week (he should play even more). Phillips also landed two sacks last week blitzing from the slot.

Panthers at Eagles

Outlook: The early total for this battle in the city of Brotherly Love, with greased light poles, sits at 43.5 points, with Philly favored by 1.5 points at home. Philly was the second-worst team in the league for passing yards per game at the time of writing, while Carolina was first overall for this ranking. Both teams are in the middle of the pack for weekly wide receiver targets.

We can fire up our Philly corners in leagues of all sizes if Coker is back this week, and demote them slightly if not. And as for our Carolina corners, between the crappy matchup and their injury issues, they're only in deeper leagues this week.

Carolina Panthers

Will Lee (CB): SOLID. He should be a full-time outside corner with both Horn and Jackson on IR.

Jaycee Horn/Mike Jackson (CB): SIT. They both remain on IR.

Akayleb Evans (CB): SOLID, risky. Evans should be a full-time outside corner this week, but we’ve only seen it once.

Philadelphia Eagles

Michael Carter (S/CB): SIT. He was injured last week and was only a replacement for Epps to begin with.

Quinyon Mitchell (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Cooper DeJean (CB): IDEAL. He played 100% of snaps last week as a slot corner, with a good chunk of box-safety snaps as well.

Tariq Woolen (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Steelers at Bucs

Outlook: The early total for this battle in Tampa Bay sits at just 40.5 points, with Pittsburgh favored by a field goal on the road. Pittsburgh is in the middle of the pack for passing yards per game, while Tampa Bay is in the bottom third of the league. Pittsburgh is a top-ten team for weekly wide receiver targets, while Tampa Bay is in the middle of the pack.

We can fire up everyone in medium-to-deep leagues if Baker is back this week; otherwise, demote our Pittsburgh corners to deeper leagues only if he’s inactive again in Week 6. Jalon Daniels was good enough to beat Dallas last week, but there are better quarterbacks to stream against if he’s getting the start again in Week 6.

Pittsburgh Steelers

Jalen Ramsey (S/CB): IDEAL. He played 100% of snaps last week. Those snaps were roughly evenly split among the slot, box, and free safety.

Asante Samuel Jr. (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only. He played 94% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Jamel Dean/Daylen Everett (CB): SOLID, risky, for Dean. He was inactive last week, but would be a full-time outside corner if he plays this week, with some reinjury risk. Everett was his replacement and only has value if Dean is inactive again this week.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Zyon McCollum (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Jacob Parrish (CB): SOLID. He played 96% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Keionte Scott (CB): SOLID, leagues of all sizes. He played 73% of snaps as the slot corner last week and should have similar or more playing time this week against the 7th-overall team in 11-personnel usage.

Cardinals at Rams

Outlook: The early total for this NFC West showdown sits at a massive 52.5 points with Los Angeles favored by 12.5 points at home. Los Angeles was the second-best passing attack (YPG) at the time of writing, while Arizona resides in the bottom third of the league for this ranking. Los Angeles is in the top third of the league for weekly wide receiver targets, while Arizona is in the middle of the pack.

We can fire up our Los Angeles corners in an ideal matchup, but it will be “medium to deeper leagues” for McDuffie and company against an Arizona team that throws to their tight ends just as often as their wide receivers and could lose the time of possession battle handily against an exponentially better football team at their house.

Arizona Cardinals

Denzel Burke (CB): SOLID, leagues of all sizes. He played 95% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Max Melton (CB): SOLID. He played 57% of snaps as an outside corner last week and likely sat late due to the blowout.

Garrett Williams (CB): SOLID. He played 54% of snaps as the slot corner last week and should see similar playing time this week against the 12th-overall team in 11-personnel usage.

Los Angeles Rams

Trent McDuffie (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Jaylen Watson (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Josh Wallace (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only. He played 54% of snaps, mostly at slot corner, last week and should see similar playing time this week against an Arizona team that is 14th overall for 11 personnel usage.

Chargers at Chiefs

Outlook: The early total for this AFC West matchup is 45.5 points, with Kansas City favored by a touchdown at home. Kansas City is a top-ten team in passing yards per game, while Los Angeles is in the bottom third of the league in this category. Both teams are in the bottom third of the league for weekly wide receiver targets.

We can fire up our usual options here in deeper leagues only, as this could easily end up being the “Ken Bone Walker” show with Kansas City having issues at wide receiver beyond Rice (Thornton done for the year). And Los Angeles hasn’t been ideal to stream against in any game yet this season; no reason for that to change this week.

Los Angeles Chargers

Elijah Molden (S/CB): SOLID. He played 82% of snaps as a deep safety with some bonus box and slot snaps last week. He is mistakenly designated as a cornerback in Yahoo.

Cam Hart (CB): SOLID. He played 96% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Tarheeb Still (CB): SOLID. He played 93% of snaps as an outside corner last week, but also saw a nice chunk of slot and box snaps.

Deane Leonard (CB): SIT. He saw some garbage time snaps last week, but hasn’t been a name I’ve typed all that much so far this season.

Kansas City Chiefs

L’Jarius Sneed (CB): SOLID. He played 75% of snaps as a slot corner the last time we saw him (bye last week), but could play substantially less against the 29th-overall team in 11-personnel usage this week.

Mansor Delane (CB): SOLID, leagues of all sizes. He played 92% of snaps as an outside corner and was on a nice hot streak for production the last time we saw him (bye last week). This would be ideal in prior seasons, but Herbert has been a shell of himself this year.

Nohl Williams (CB): SOLID. He played 83% of snaps as an outside corner the last time we saw him (bye last week).

Bills at Raiders

Outlook: The early total for this AFC battle sits at a massive 54.5 points with Buffalo favored by a field goal on the road. Both teams are in the top third of the league for passing yards per game. Both teams are in the bottom third of the league for weekly wide receiver targets.

We’ll split the difference here; Vegas thinks we’re getting a shootout and a “back-and-forth” affair, but neither team utilizes their wide receivers all that often, or their wide receiver of note is DJ Moore, who is injured more than he’s active these days. Medium-to-deeper leagues should be about right for both sets of corners.

Buffalo Bills

Christian Benford (CB): SOLID. He played 93% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Maxwell Hairston (CB): SIT. He was significantly demoted last week and only played 20% of snaps compared to 84% for Igbinosun, who was seeing playing time in relief of the injured Benford, but has apparently caught the eye of the coaching staff. We’ll sit them both for now and see what happens.

Davison Igbinosun (CB): SIT. Igbinosun may have displaced Maxwell Hairston, but time will tell. We’ll sit them both for now and see how this shakes out.

Dee Alford (CB): SOLID, much deeper leagues only, if healthy. He was inactive last week but would be a slot corner against the worst team in the league (32nd overall) in 11-personnel usage.

Las Vegas Raiders

Treydan Stukes (S/CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as a deep safety with a nice chunk of box snaps last week. He is incorrectly designated as a corner on Yahoo.

Eric Stokes (CB): SOLID. He played 85% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Taron Johnson (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only. He played 85% of snaps as the slot corner last week, but should see far fewer snaps this week against the 25th-ranked team in 11-personnel usage.

Hezekiah Masses/Darien Porter (CB): SIT them both. We’re back to fluctuation for this specific slot, as Masses only played 33% of snaps last week compared to 66% for Porter. This slot has flip-flopped a couple of times now already this season, so it’s back to being “unsafe” to start either player currently. More to be revealed.

Cowboys at Packers

Outlook: The early total for this NFC battle in Green Bay is 50.5 points, with Dallas favored by 1.5 points on the road. We’ve got a low spread, huge total, and two of the most prolific passing attacks this season going head-to-head. Both teams are in the top ten for passing yards per game and weekly wide receiver targets.

We can fire up everyone with a pulse for this one, and Keisean Nixon in particular could be in for a monster game.

Dallas Cowboys

DaRon Bland (CB): IDEAL. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Joey Porter Jr. (CB): SOLID, risky. He was inactive due to sickness last week but was on his way to being a full-time outside corner the week prior, which was his first week in a Dallas uniform. They could still ease him into the lineup, but with players like “Ameer Speed” getting snaps last week, my bet is that they throw Porter to the wolves immediately.

All Others (CB): SIT. Shavon Revel should have some kind of role if you’re truly desperate, but it’s better to let the dust settle and get an accurate read on this new-look secondary before recommending anything other than the two “known” and “paid” starters.

Green Bay Packers

Keisean Nixon (CB): IDEAL. He played 88% of snaps as an outside corner last week and then sat late due to the blowout. He has surpassed his projection in every single game he’s played this season, and the matchup does not get any better.

Brandon Cisse (CB): SOLID, leagues of all sizes. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Commanders at 49ers

Outlook: The Monday night game to wrap up Week 6 sits at 50.5 points with San Francisco favored by a touchdown on the road. San Francisco is a top-ten team for passing yards per game, while Washington is in the middle of the pack. Washington is a top-ten team in weekly wide receiver targets, while San Francisco was dead last in this ranking at the time of writing.

It will be “deeper leagues only” for our Washington corners, but we can fire up Stout, Renardo, Lenoir, and company in leagues of all sizes for this one!

Washington Commanders

Quan Martin (S/CB): SOLID, leagues of all sizes if Nick Cross is inactive. SOLID, deeper leagues only, if Nick Cross plays. Without Cross playing, Quan shoots up to nearly 100% of snaps as a deep safety, and is incorrectly listed as a corner on Yahoo. With Cross active, the role remains similar, but the playing time drops to around 60% of snaps.

Rasul Douglas (CB): SOLID. He played 97% of snaps as an outside corner last week and had another monster game in the box score.

Amik Robertson (CB): IDEAL. He played 97% of snaps as an outside corner with a nice chunk of slot snaps last week. He has surpassed his projection in every single game this season and has annihilated it most weeks.

All Others (CB): Fabian Moreau and Sainristil saw some snaps last week, but not enough to strike our fancy.

San Francisco 49ers

Marques Sigle (S/CB): SIT. He was inactive last week but may have been in a displacement situation the prior week. A badly timed injury prevented us from getting that information. Better safe than sorry on this one. If he plays this week, we’ll know the deal from the snaps and alignment information afterward and will adjust accordingly.

Renardo Green (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Deommodore Lenoir (CB): SOLID. He played 100% of snaps as an outside corner last week.

Upton Stout (CB): SOLID, leagues of all sizes. He played 47% of snaps as the slot corner last week, but should see significantly more snaps this week against the 9th-overall team in 11-personnel.

Byes this week: Cincy, Detroit, Miami, Minnesota

My favorite matchups, Week 6:

• Jacksonville corners versus Houston

• New York Giants corners versus New Orleans

• Arizona corners versus Los Angeles Rams

• Cowboys at Packers, either side

• San Francisco corners versus Washington

Week 6 corners at a glance:

These are not in any particular order or ranking; they are just divided into the sections you see below. I typically identify the best matchups (see above), then the best options within those matchups, to find my favorite streaming options each week.

*If you see player/player, that means starter/direct replacement*

IDEAL: (Our best options)

• Nick Emmanwori, Devon Witherspoon, Riley Moss

• Kamari Lassiter

• Marlon Glizzy Gobbler Humphrey

• Deonte Banks, Andru Phillips

• Cooper DeJean

• Jalen Ramsey

• DaRon Bland, Keisean Nixon

• Amik Robertson

SOLID: (Matchup or some other factor isn’t perfect. These are generally “safe” options that play enough to get you some kind of production)

• Josh Jobe, Jahdae Barron, JaQuan McMillian

• Derek Stingley, Travis Hunter, Jarrian Jones, Jourdan Lewis

• Cam Lewis, Tyrique Stevenson, Jaylon Johnson, Mike Hughes, CJ Henderson/Avieon Terrel

• Nate Wiggins, Denzel Ward, Tyson Campbell, Myles Harden

• Marcus Harris, Alontae Taylor, Cor’Dale Flott/Micah Robinson, Chavarious Ward, Sauce Gardner, Justin Walley

• Azareyeh Thomas, Brandon Stephens, Jarvis Brownlee, Carlton Davis, Christian Gonzalez, Marcus Jones

• Koolaid McKinstry, Greg Newsome

• Will Lee, Akayleb Evans, Quinyon Mitchell, Tariq Woolen

• Asante Samuel Jr., Jamel Dean/Daylen Everett, Zyon McCollum, Jacob Parrish, Keionte Scott

• Denzel Burke, Max Melton, Garrett Williams, Trent McDuffie, Jaylen Watson, Josh Wallace

• Elijah Molden, Cam Hart, Tarheeb Still, L’Jarius Sneed, Mansor Delane, Nohl Williams

• Christian Benford, Dee Alford, Treydan Stukes, Eric Stokes, Taron Johnson

• Joey Porter Jr., Brandon Cisse

• Quan Martin, Rasul Douglas, Upton Stout, Deommodore Lenoir, Renardo Green

TRAPS: (Sit these players)

• Patrick Surtain

• Jalen Pitre, Montaric Brown

• Billy Bowman, Kyler Gordon

• Kindle Vildor, Charles Woods

• Quincy Riley

• Jaycee Horn, Mike Jackson, Michael Carter

• Deane Leonard

• Maxwell Hairston, Davison Igbinosun, Hezekiah Masses, Darien Porter

• Marques Sigle

Reminder: These are only suggestions. Your lineup is your responsibility and yours alone. However, I’m making the same moves, so we sink or swim together. Remember to check for inactive players before kickoff to prevent any surprise zeroes.

For any questions/comments, to discuss specific cornerback streams, or to talk IDP in general, hit up my Twitter or email me at Johnysmack3141@yahoo.com.

Thank you for reading, and good luck this week! Go get those titles!

Be sure to subscribe to The IDP Show on Apple, Spotify, or YouTube.

You can follow us on all our social media channels, including Twitter and Instagram.

Welcome to the weekly injury tracker. Each week, we will track every team’s injury reporting with a comprehensive list of daily updates. These updates will be running each day, Monday through Saturday, to account for all games. We will update the searchable list for everyone daily between 6-8pm Central.

We hope you can use this information to understand players’ potential availability and the names to watch or be aware of for inactives 90 minutes before each game.

I think at some point in the near future I’d like to use the data to get us some slightly actionable information. But didn’t feel like it was worth diving into at this time. Once it is there, we can add something for that.

Be sure to subscribe to The IDP Show on Apple, Spotify, or YouTube.

You can follow us on all our social media channels, including Twitter and Instagram.

With four teams on bye week and injuries (and suspensions) piling up, IDP managers will find themselves tight on starting lineup options. Let these IDP rankings help you find valuable depth options who can fill out your starting lineup this week and give you an edge over your opponents.

Note: Each positional ranking includes an interactive table at the bottom of the article to help you find the players you might be looking for, and all updates heading into game day will be displayed there.

LINEBACKER

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Week 5 Takeaways

WAIVER WIRE TARGETS

This week’s waiver wire targets are listed by position, in order of priority.

• LB D’Marco Jackson, Chicago Bears

  • With T.J. Edwards picking up a hamstring injury, Jackson replaced him as the green-dot linebacker, making him a top-priority option in most IDP formats for as long as Edwards misses time.

• LB Jaden Dugger, San Francisco 49ers

  • On the chance that repeat offender Dre Greenlaw is suspended after being ejected from this week’s game, rookie Dugger should see a near every-down role and be considered a speculative add in non-shallow leagues until we know for sure what’s happening with Greenlaw.

• LB Easton Mascarenas-Arnold, Cleveland Browns

  • Quincy Williams will be the primary option here, but if Carson Schwesinger misses any time, Mascarenas-Arnold could be a deep-league option. It was Williams and Mascarenas-Arnold who were the starters at linebacker in the preseason when Schwesinger was out, and that could be the case again in Week 6 if Schwesinger misses time.

• S Tony Adams, Tennessee Titans

  • Adams filled in for Amani Hooker’s box-heavy role this week, and with Kevin Winston also injured, he should be added in most IDP formats where you need safety help.

• S Reed Blankenship, Houston Texans

  • With Jalen Pitre injured and potentially set to miss time, Blankenship should see a much steadier snap share. Blankenship has been an efficient IDP this season, though absorbing some of Pitre’s prime alignments in a more consistent role will make him more valuable for non-shallow formats.

• S Jason Pinnock/Ar’Darius Washington, New York Giants

  • Tyler Nubin suffered a neck injury that could cause him to miss time. Pinnock missed this week with a concussion, though if Nubin is out, both Washington and Pinnock should play full-time safety roles, making them viable options in deeper leagues.

• S Ifeatu Melifonwu, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

  • Melifonwu is only an option in deeper leagues, and only as long as Antoine Winfield Jr. is out, but he is playing an every-down role, which carries value in those deeper formats.

• S Devon Key, Denver Broncos

  • With Talanoa Hufanga out with an ankle injury, Key can be a deep-league option for as long as Hufanga is sidelined. Key will likely play mostly deep, though he’ll have value as a full-time safety.

• CB Roger McCreary, Detroit Lions

  • The Lions are heading into their bye week, expecting to get Brian Branch back in time for Week 7, which could cause a shift in DB usage again; however, McCreary’s usage these past couple of weeks is encouraging enough to make him a speculative add in CB-required formats.

• CB Kenny Moore II, Philadelphia Eagles

  • For deeper CB-required leagues, if both Marcus Epps and Michael Carter miss another game, Moore worked as a starting safety in their absence and could be a productive IDP option to plug into CB slots.

Be sure to check out last week’s IDP waiver targets listed in the report here.

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Welcome back to IDP Bets!

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As the 2026 season unfolds, the ever-changing IDP landscape can leave us with many questions about these players’ rest-of-season value. Whether you’re deciding which players are worth swapping in from the waiver wire, targeting potential trade candidates, or just want to know what to expect from your roster going forward, these rest-of-season IDP rankings are meant to help.

These rankings will be updated weekly to reflect the most recent trends and injuries likely to occur in the 2026 season.

LINEBACKER

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Rankings Updated: 10/8/2026

Look, we get it: IDP fantasy football can be challenging. Not just in understanding the nuances of the game, but also in prioritizing players on your roster and ranking IDPs across various positions. That’s where a good set of rankings can help.

Adam and Jon have combined their years of experience producing dynasty rankings to offer insight, diverse perspectives, and a consensus ranking, giving you the most well-informed dynasty rankings in the league.

These rankings are based on Big 3 scoring settings, highlighted below.

These rankings also feed our IDP Trade Calculator, which you can access here.

Note on navigation: Use the arrow buttons to navigate between ranking pages. You can also sort by ranker (Adam, Jon) to view each ranker’s individual dynasty preference by clicking their name column.

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Welcome to Week 5 of DL Streaming 101!

If you are reading this using a speech-to-text function, please take a moment to speed up to 5x:

Fantasy football, including IDP fantasy football, contains significant risks. Utilizing streaming at any position increases these risks, and stealing defensive linemen is no exception. Side effects of streaming DL include elation when you started Uchenna Nwosu (22.15), Elijah Ponder (19.9), Alim McNeill (19.25), Maliek Collins (17.7), or Zaven Collins (16.05) in Week 4. Side effects also include a feeling of ‘meh’ if you started 62% of last week’s streaming suggestions and got between .75 and 9 fantasy points.

Rage is possible if you started Koonce or Kancey and took a zero. Overall “streamers” (players available in roughly 75% of IDP leagues) averaged 6.85 points in Week 4. Always start your studs if you have them and consult theidpshow.com (or me on Twitter) if you are curious who we see as the top DL plays of the week (my personal top 6 averaged 19.55 Big 3 points in Week 4 - more if you play DT-premium).

Phew, with that out of the way, let’s look at overall streaming metrics for the season:

Despite the arrival of bye weeks, we have a record three players breaking into Tier 1 (Ideal) territory this week, including a guy whom I feel contractually obligated to talk about every year until he is no longer so widely available. Week 5 also features the fewest Tier 4 (Educated Dart Throw) plays, which have been the biggest boom-or-bust this season (highest average, also the highest 0 percentage). Let’s take a look at a player in each tier that warrants further examination:

Featured DL Streamers

DT Alim McNeill, DET (🎓🎓🎓🎓)

Hopefully this isn't one of my trademark Alim McNeill curse weeks (he hasn't tended to perform well under the pressure of being a featured player in my past articles), but I couldn’t wait any longer to talk about him! McNeill is DT8 through four weeks and DL23, yet he is available in over 94% of IDP leagues on MFL and over 98% on Sleeper. And I write this AFTER most waivers have been processed! While fantasy production is the ultimate end goal of DL streaming, production alone does not get someone on my streaming list.

McNeill checks every box that I model as I go into Week 5. Snaps are ideal at 83% in Week 4 and a floor this season of 76% (he leads all interior defensive linemen with 259 snaps already this season). The underlying talent evaluation is there too, with a 74 pass rush grade and 63.4 run defense grade (per PFF). Both of these grades are in the top 20 among players with significant snaps. His Lions are taking on a Cardinals team that has allowed the 7th most fantasy points to opposing defensive tackles over the past three weeks, including over 30 to Giants players last week. McNeill should have every opportunity to keep his hot start going and is likely to see his roster spot increase sooner rather than later.

DE Isaiah McGuire, CLE (🎓🎓🎓)

Continuing the trend of players who have been productive but underrespected in the fantasy space in 2026, Isaiah McGuire of the Browns is widely available despite being the best edge player on his team thus far. McGuire beats high-profile teammate Jared Verse by a wide margin in most PFF grades (overall, run defense, tackling), leads in advanced (pressures) and basic (sacks) pass-rush metrics, and is less than 2 points behind in the pass-rush grade (57.8 to 59.2). While everyone (myself included) expects Verse to improve, one area where Verse significantly outpaces McGuire is rostered percentage: the former is rostered in over 75% of IDP leagues, while the latter is available in nearly 75%.

Being the hot hand on your team isn’t enough to earn you streaming consideration in Tier 2 (solid), but McGuire’s metrics suggest streaming potential. He has only dipped under 60% of snaps once this season and does not seem significantly at risk of decline. Some sites have Adin Huntington as a DE, and Huntington outsnapped McGuire in Week 4, but those snaps were overwhelmingly from the interior when Mason Graham went down and are not a cause for concern. The matchup this week is ideal as the Browns take on the Jets, who have given up big games to the opponent’s primary pass rusher (36.35 to Lucas van Ness) and secondary pass rusher (23.9 to DJ Wonnum) in two of the last three weeks (in the third they gave up 10+ points to both). This is a get-right game for Verse and another opportunity for McGuire to shine.

DT Nnamdi Madubuike, BAL (🎓🎓)

The next featured player is familiar to most IDP managers, but a season lost to injury has him just getting back on mainstream radars. Nnamdi Madubuike was DT1 in 2023, DT14 in 2024, and was DT8 through two weeks in 2026 before an injury cost him the rest of the season. He has yet to fill up the stat sheet in 2026, but in his two games back from injury, he has shown flashes of his former self.

He has generated 8 pressures with no sacks in his two appearances in 2026 while boasting a solid 59.8 pass rush grade. When players are failing to convert pressures to sacks but have good underlying metrics, positive regression is likely (just as negative regression is often the case in the opposite profile). While Madubuike draws an unfavorable fantasy matchup this week against a Falcons team that has allowed the third-fewest points to opposing DT since Michael Penix returned from injury (11.38/game), the individual matchup creates some optimism. Madubuike has been roughly splitting his time between the left and right side of the defensive line, and the left side of the Falcons line is dealing with an injury to Jake Matthews, which thrust Mike Jerrell into action last week. A banged-up Matthews or an inexperienced Jerrell would both be strong matchups for the Ravens to potentially exploit with Madubuike in Week 5.

DE Dayo Odeyingbo, CHI (🎓)

Odeyingbo has been a streamer each week and has quietly put together three straight games of 13 points or more (and is currently DE17). Like McNeill, Odeyingbo is not even rostered in 1% of leagues on MFL overall, meaning he is likely available in over 94% of IDP leagues. With a player who costs only a mouse click and ranks in the top 20 at his position, you might be wondering why he is relegated to educated-dart-throw territory.

The Bears officially have a three-man rotation at edge: Montez Sweat, Austin Booker, and Odeyingbo (plus Marcus Davenport, who saw some unexpected action in Week 4). Booker grades out the best (and is the youngest), Sweat grades out the worst (but has the biggest contract), so it is incredibly difficult to predict when Odeyingbo will produce, with this snap ceiling likely capped in the low 60% range. The Bears defense also played a TOTAL of 32 snaps overall in Week 4 due to the Jets’ anemic offense. The Bears play the rival Packers this week, who average the fifth-fewest plays per game in their last 3 at 56. If you are in need of a DE due to injury and bye or a boom-bust play due to your matchup, give Odeyingbo a look, but be aware of what is working for and against him.

Full Week 5 DL Streamer List

Good luck, and if you have any questions about deep DL plays, my office is always open by replying to this article or reaching out on Twitter (@ProfessorIDP).

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