IDP Recap: Preseason Week 3
IDP Recap: Preseason Week 3
The 2024 NFL season is almost here. As we count down the hours over the next week, let's look back: what did Week 3 of the preseason tell us?
There’s no football this coming weekend as teams go about finalizing their cuts, and we as fantasy players enter the biggest draft weekend of the year. But there was football played this past weekend — and we learned some things. Most teams rested their established guys this week, so I’ll mention cut casualties from this week, too.
Colts 27, Bengals 14
The Colts played their starting defense in this game for the first couple of series and Nick Cross got the nod beside Julian Blackmon. Don’t get too overhyped, though: Cross played 13 of his 16 snaps in the deep safety role.
That also leads to our first casualty of the article: with Cross getting the starting role, veteran Ronnie Harrison was sent packing in the first round of roster cuts.
Kwity Paye and Tyquan Lewis were the guys on the edge starting out. Laiatu Latu did get a run later in the game, but it would appear for at least Week 1 he’ll be working behind those two in a rotation.
With the Bengals resting starters, it appears Cincinnati is moving forward with Vonn Bell and Geno Stone as their starting safeties. Jordan Battle still acquitted himself well in his 26 snaps, accruing 5 total tackles, an overall PFF grade of 90.6, and an 89.9 coverage grade.
Myles Murphy will start the season on IR with a designation to return later this season due to a knee sprain. Murphy suffered the non-contact injury during practice on August 20th and was lucky it wasn’t more serious.
Bears 34, Chiefs 21
Keep an eye on your IDP dynasty waiver wires for Chiefs rookie safety Jaden Hicks, who played 17 of his 34 snaps in the sweet spot in Week 3 and had an 8.6% tackle rate. Also, incumbent starter Justin Reid has battled with injuries this offseason.
Chicago has been looking slim at EDGE outside of Montez Sweat this preseason, with rookie Austin Booker and journeyman DeMarcus Walker getting plenty of playtime. This led the Bears front office to make a thimble-sized splash for Darrell Taylor from the Seahawks in exchange for a 2025 6th-rounder.
Coined “Rigatoni” by Jon Macri, it was a night to forget for Noah Sewell, as he missed all of his tackle attempts (2) on 19 snaps, leading to an abysmal 21.1 PFF tackle grade. As of the final cuts on Tuesday, though, he still made the 53-man roster so our jokes can continue.
Jaguars 31, Falcons 0
Jacksonville gave all their starters but Foye Oluokun a good run for the first time this preseason (outside of single-digit snaps at the beginning of Week 1), and even though Travon Walker and Josh Hines-Allen were up against guys fighting for roster spots, it was still a good tune-up nonetheless.
With Oluokun not suiting up, Chad Muma started beside Devin Lloyd as both played 27 snaps. Muma displayed a strong 14.8% tackle rate and reminded us he’s one of the true handcuff linebackers should Oluokun or Lloyd miss time.
Nate Landman, Kaden Elliss, and Troy Andersen all played a combined 0 snaps this preseason for Atlanta. The money says Elliss is the entrenched starter, but what are we doing at LB2, if anything, between Andersen and Landman?
Dolphins 14, Buccaneers 24
Yaya Diaby avoided IR to start the season and is trending towards playing in Week 1 per Around the NFL. Diaby suffered an ankle injury while training in Week 1 of the preseason and was initially feared to be lost for the year.
If he’s unable to go, Chris Braswell might be worth a spot start if you’re hard up for edge rushers. Braswell struggled against the run, sporting a measly 27.4 run grade while missing 1 of his 2 tackle opportunities. However, he was a menace when rushing the passer against Miami.
Jordyn Brooks and David Long are locked as the starters at the off-ball linebacker positions. However, Channing Tindall put in another performance reminding the Dolphins brass why they took him in the 3rd round just a couple of years ago. Tindall had 12 tackles and 2 pressures on 53 snaps and will hope to have cemented the 1st backup role behind the oft-injured Brooks and Long.
Both Chop Robinson and Mo Kamara were invisible versus the Buccaneers. Miami has a wide-open depth chart at EDGE with Jaelan Phillips recovering from a ruptured Achilles and Bradley Chubb starting the year on PUP, yet neither Kamara nor Robinson has stood out to date.
49ers 24, Raiders 24
The 49ers officially activated safety Talanoa Hufanga off of IR on Tuesday. Ji’Ayir Brown and Malik Mustapha shared the box duty between them in Week 3 with Mustapha playing about 30% in the sweet spot. With Hufanga avoiding IR, Brown will occupy the deep role, allowing Hufanga back into his enforcer role.
De'Vondre Campbell will get plenty of action this season, as Dre Greenlaw will start the season on PUP as he recovers from an Achilles injury sustained in the Super Bowl. Campbell played just 12 snaps in week 3 but put up a monstrous 33% tackle rate, that’s not sustainable of course. But Campbell will be a must-start guy for the first 4 weeks at minimum.
The Raiders continued their theme, playing no one of consequence. Well, no one of consequence right now. Knowing my luck, some of these dudes will be the must-have waiver priority come Week 11.
Panthers 31, Bills 26
Joe Andreessen would have been a 1980’s defensive coordinator’s wet dream. Memes aside, he was heavy on the tackles racking up 8 on a 14.5% tackle rate and 80.0 tackle grade. But, he got torched in the passing game, allowing 67 yards on 5 catches (6 targets) and a 29.7 coverage grade.
Rams 15, Texans 17
Last week I said to keep your eyes out for Desmond King. Then Houston went and cut him. I’m still holding a candle for King, especially with kick and punt returns being the way they are. There is, however, no need to actively pursue him.
Ernest Jones saved Christmas, but it wasn’t enough to save his Job. Les Sneed moved from his “F those picks” mentality to an “F that player I took with those remaining picks” outlook, moving Jones and a 2025 6th for a 2025 5th.
Jones’ possible replacement didn’t play in Week 3. However, in Week 2, Omar Speights had 9 tackles on a 21% rate and an 89.1 overall grade, 91.1 run defense, and 83.0 tackle grade.
Ravens 7, Packers 30
The drumbeat for Trenton Simpson has been unstoppable all offseason and this game was no different. Simpson notched 7 tackles on a 13% tackle rate to go with a single pressure. Watching him beside Roquan is going to be exciting.
It was a quiet game for IDPs on the Packers’ side of the ball. Green Bay rested all their presumed starters and second-stringers, mostly just playing rookies and vets vying for roster spots.
Vikings 26, Eagles 3
It finally happened! We got the famed caucasian cornerback sighting. Not only was he on the field but Cooper DeJean also played 45 of his 47 snaps in the slot. Oh yeah, they also had him return a punt in this game, too.
Just one year after receiving the highest base salary guarantee for an undrafted free agent in the offseason ($300,000 in 2023), Andre Carter put in a stellar Week 3 preseason performance… and the Vikings still waived him.
Steelers 17, Lions 24
He was below poor in Week 1 and didn’t play in Week 2, but James Houston made a splash off the edge this week and showed us what we saw glimpses of in 2022 his rookie season when he had 8 sacks.
I’m a sucker for an unnecessary extrapolation on a tiny sample size. But Nick Herbig has got to be one of those guys where giving him more volume makes sense, right? He was explosive in Week 3 and finished the entire preseason with 4 sacks on 6 pressures, a 23.8% win rate, a 27.3% pressure rate, and a 92.6 pass rush grade from PFF.
Chargers 26, Cowboys 19
Week 3 of preseason meant we finally got to see what the long-term future might look like in Los Angeles with Junior Colson getting his first run of 2024. When Colson manages to displace either Perryman or Henley is anyone’s guess. But it’s just great seeing him on the field being effective. Colson played 21 snaps, accruing 5 tackles on a 23.8% tackle rate and collecting an 81.1 overall PFF grade.
Alohi Gillman is always seen as the safe guess beside Derwin James, but that may change. Tony Jefferson just went and staked out a spot on the 53-man roster. Jefferson retired after the 2022 season with Baltimore only to un-retire to the tune of 12 tackles, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble, 1 pass breakup, and 2 interceptions against the Trey Lance-led Cowboys, all while playing 66% of his snaps deep.
Giants 6, Jets 10
I don’t care if it’s preseason, 13 sacks are diabolical. The Giants O-line must have been treating the Jets like “Kwik-E-Mart” customers in the Simpsons, just hitting them with a “Thank you, come again” after each allowed sack.
Browns 33, Seahawks 37
Seattle traded Darrell Taylor to the Bears for a 6th rounder because they felt they had a surplus of talent along the D-line. Then Uchenna Nwosu went down and they realized they were a lot thinner at EDGE than they thought. So they traded a 2025 6th to Jacksonville for Trevis Gipson. Luckily for Nwosu, he avoided IR to start the season, which means he should be back before Week 4.
Rookie Tyrice Knight had another solid outing. Currently, Knight sits firmly behind incumbents Tyrell Dodson and Jerome Baker. However, he’s worth keeping an eye on in case either one goes down. Knight had 5 tackles and an 11.1% tackle rate on 45 snaps against the Browns.
Myles Garrett will do Myles Garrett things and play between 77-83% of the snaps. This we know. It’s what happens on the other side to him, or when he’s not on the field, that creates uncertainty.
Titans 30, Saints 27
If you’re like me, and you have no idea what the Titans are going to do now with Kenneth Murray, Ernest Jones, and Jack Gibbens, our very own Green Dot king Mike Woellert has you covered:
“I'm not going to assume he wears the dot. Kenneth Murray has worn it all preseason and has established himself as the communicator and leader. In my opinion, it doesn't make sense to switch ahead of the season. As someone who has Jones in a few leagues, I'm not counting on him for at least the first half of the season to see how snaps shake out. I could see him in a rotation with Gibbens or used in pass-rush situations.”
I’ve talked about Chase Young, Payton Turner, and Carl Granderson in the past two weeks, and now it’s time for Isaiah Foskey. Foskey survived the final cutdown, but playing 57 snaps in Week 3 is never a good sign. It’s probably safe to move on from the former 2nd rounder for now.
Broncos 38, Cardinals 12
A cup of water will look like a lake to a thirsty man in the driest desert. With Darius Robinson heading to IR, in terms of pass-rushing talent, the Arizona Cardinals are as dry as the Arizona desert. Is Cameron Thomas a cup of water? An oasis? Or just a mirage?
Patriots 10, Commanders 20
Jamin Davis is 100% an edge rusher. If he’s still on your roster, make of that what you will. KJ Henry, meanwhile, has 10 pressures in the preseason. Pick him up.
Christian Elliss earns the “Joe Andreessen Award” which is presented as a dominant tackle performance that does more harm than good when trying to sort out the pecking order in a linebacking core. But man, can those Elliss boys tackle. Christian finished with 11 on 44 snaps for a 25% rate with no misses.
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