IDP Guide
To be successful in any Individual Defensive Player (IDP) fantasy league, you need two basic things… skill and luck. Depending on whom you ask, the percentage needed for each varies. We personally feel skill is 20% and luck is 80%. Skill is the combination of research, knowledge, comprehension, and a basic gut instinct. Luck is made up of things we have no control over such as injuries, coaching decisions, transactions, matchup schedules, and so on. We are here to try and help you with the skill aspect of your goal for success.
The first thing you need to understand in preparation for the start of your league is the scoring system. There are so many variations of IDP scoring, but most of them center around two basic systems, tackle heavy and big play heavy. For the purpose of this article, we will define big plays as sacks, interceptions (INT), forced fumbles (FF), fumble recoveries (FR), and passes defended (PD). In tackle heavy scoring systems, solo tackles and assists produce more points on a regular basis than big plays. If Bobby Wagner posts 7 solos and 4 assists, then Chandler Jones would need three sacks (includes three solos) with three FFs and three FRs just to break even with Wagner. If we add any big plays to Wagner’s game, then you can see how tackles are more important in a tackle heavy scoring system. If it is a big play heavy system and Jones had two sacks with one FF and a FR, then Wagner would need three solos and two assists for every big play. That would mean 14 solos and 6 assists to just get in the ballpark of Jones. Therefore, Jones has greater value in a big play heavy system whereas Wagner has greater value in a tackle heavy system.
The next thing you need to wrap your head around is knowledge of defensive schemes. Forty years ago, defensive schemes were pretty straight forward. You had a 4-3 base or a 3-4 base defense. This meant you had either four defensive linemen (DLs) and three linebackers (LBs) or three DLs and four LBs. Each base defense had one of two gap assignments. The DLs had to either attack the gaps between offensive linemen or plug them up by taking on multiple offensive linemen (OL) to free up the LBs behind them. Nowadays, teams are implementing hybrid schemes created by matchups and game situations. It is not uncommon for a defense to be 4-3 and 3-4 based all in the same game. Players are bigger and faster which allows coaches to create schemes and take advantage of their player’s strengths. There are more specialized players (edge rushers, coverage players, run stoppers, etc) allowing teams to rotate IDPs more frequently. We see more defensive backs (DBs) on the field in coverage packages such as the nickel or dime. With the league trending towards more passing than running plays, teams will put five, six or seven DBs on the field during any given down. Teams utilize three safeties (S) on the field more often with one of them playing a hybrid LB/S position. We hear defensive coordinators (DCs) speaking more and more about their systems being governed by situations and player personnel so as to make it that much harder to figure out what a defense is trying to do. In fact the better the quarterback (QB) faced, the more intricate and detailed the alignments and coverage are. This is designed to create confusion on the opposing offense’s part. With this said, we have not even touched on defensive pass coverage such as man, zone, Cover-1, Cover-2, etc.
In order to achieve diverse defensive schemes, teams need to hire the right coaches and acquire the proper players who fit their grand designs. When teams change coaches, in particular their defensive coordinator (DC), there is usually a learning curve for the new coach and the players. In 2020, nearly a third of NFL teams (nine in total) have a new defensive coordinator (DC) or none at all. Atlanta, Miami, and Minnesota hired new DCs but they plan on operating the same defensive schemes they used last year. Tennessee is the team that does not have a DC as head coach Mike Vrabel will likely call the defensive plays, but operate out of the same 3-4 base scheme the team has been operating from. Thus, the following six teams will be implementing a new defensive system: Carolina, Dallas, Detroit, LA Rams, NY Giants and Washington. The Panthers, Rams and Giants will stick with a 3-4 base system while Dallas and Detroit remain in a 4-3 base defense. Washington will shift from a 3-4 to a 4-3 base scheme and that means securing the proper personnel to make the transition a smooth one. The key to the teams with new coaches and the rest of the league will be flexibility, diversity, and interchangeability in their systems no matter what base defense they start a game with.
We touched on players fitting into defensive schemes or in coach speak being a proper fit. It takes time for an IDP to shift from a 4-3 DE with their hand on the ground at the start of each play to a standing 3-4 outside linebacker (OLB). In addition, their responsibilities change when moving from 4-3 to 3-4 and vice versa. All teams now have specialized edge rushers and their roles vary depending on the scheme. Edge rushers usually perform at their best when coming off the edge or outside the offensive tackle (OT). Middle linebackers (MLBs) who jump from a 4-3 scheme to inside linebacker (ILB) in a 3-4 system can drop off statisticlly, especially if they are teamed up with another solid ILB. Shifting from 3-4 ILB to 4-3 MLB all depends on what ILB spot (WILL or MIKE ILB) the player came from. In the secondary, moving from one scheme to another is also very tricky. A cornerback (CB) that has played in a zone coverage defense and is now expected to excel in a man-to-man coverage scheme might falter depending on his versatility. Safeties have the same adjustments depending on whether their responsibility is to be aggressive and attack towards the box or drop off and assist in coverage. Simplicity use to be the norm as a strong safety (SS) attacks and free safety (FS) drops in coverage. Even that is no longer reliable as safeties do both assignments these days. To say your work is cut out for you is an understatement as teams will vary their schemes week to week and it makes it that much harder for you to analyze and understand defensive systems.
Many IDP leagues have three basic positions which are DL, LB and DB. There are leagues that include a DT, thus making them DT required leagues. Some leagues are extremely in depth and break rosters out to include DE, DT, LB, CB and S. These leagues are the more sophisticated and time consuming but are extremely fun to partake in. Edge rushers are also becoming more prevalent these days in fantasy football (more on edge rushers below). To understand the value of each IDP position, you have to not only comprehend the fantasy value of the position but also know when that position tends to be taken during roster selection. There is a fine line balancing between these two philosophies and the one common element that brings them closer together is finding an IDP that is a three-down player or takes an extremely high number of snaps for their IDP position. A high number of snaps does not guarantee fantasy success, but does increase the chances for success. Snap counts are tedious statistics but crucial information for understanding a player’s value on any particular defense. Only three IDPs (Jordan Hicks, Tre Boston, Jarrod Wilson) played 100% or all of their team’s defensive snaps in 2019. If we look at the top 100 snap counts for DLs, LBs, and DBs, the average snap count is 62% for DLs, 72% for LBs, and 87% for DBs. Just 21 LBs and 44 DBs took 90% or more snaps in 2019. The highest snap count for a DL was DE Joey Bosa at 86% with only four other DLs between 80-84%. While DBs tend to see the field more than LBs and DLs, that does not mean DBs should be acquired first. In fact, we feel just the opposite. DBs are a dime a dozen not only during the offseason but also in-season via the waiver wire. There were 31 DBs who took 1000 or more defensive snaps last year as compared to just ten LBs and zero DLs. Add in another 32 DBs who took 900-999 snaps, and you begin to see a plethora of DBs with high snap counts. Finding elite or consistently reliable fantasy DLs is the complete opposite. So while LBs tend to be sought after early and often in drafts and auctions, snagging a solid DL should be at the top of your fantasy bucket list.
While we advocate knowledge of snap counts, this should not be the only primary research tool when acquiring IDPs. We mentioned above that extensive knowledge of your scoring system and of defensive schemes that teams tend to utilize are major keys to analyzing IDP fantasy value. In 2019, 16 of the top 20 tackle producers and 17 of the top 20 sack producers at DE played in 4-3 base defenses. Conversely at DT, 11 of the top 20 tacklers were 3-4 base but 12 of the top 20 sackers were 4-3 base. Statistically, more 4-3 base defensive linemen tend to be in the top 20 for fantasy scoring than 3-4 base DLs. Thus, securing a DL that plays in a 4-3 base scheme and takes 75% or more of the snap count tends to bring more fantasy success. Still, going after a 3-4 DT or NT in tackle heavy leagues is not as horrible an idea as once thought. In tackle heavy leagues, LBs have the best fantasy value with elite DLs going early and the rest of the DLs a little later. SS and FS tend to rise among fantasy scorers in tackle heavy leagues more so than CBs. Quite the opposite in big play heavy scoring leagues as CBs tend to be in the top 20 in INTs than SS or even FS. Hybrid IDPs like S/LB Budda Baker are huge in tackle heavy leagues but Baker only had nine big plays in 2019 (six of them were PDs). Stephon Gilmore had just 50 total tackles but his 27 big plays (6 INTs, 20 PDs, 1 FR) make him more valuable in big play leagues over Baker. Whether you are in a tackle or big play heavy leagues, DBs (in particular CBs) tend to be far more inconsistent in fantasy scoring than any other IDP. This is why earlier we stated that DBs are a dime a dozen throughout an entire fantasy season. If luck and skill on are your side, you can acquire a DB each week that could help you in that given week.
Here at FantasyPoints.com, we like to differentiate edge rushers. Many years ago, edge rusher was an unknown term in the NFL. Today, an edge rusher has a similar value on defense that a quarterback (QB) has on offense. Do not be confused with this statement. An edge rusher does not have equal value as a QB. Yet, NFL teams will dish out more money for a good edge rusher than any other IDP position. An excellent edge rusher applies pressure on QBs and that leads to turnovers. Winning the turnover battle in every game is tantamount to success in the NFL. The problem here for fantasy owners is the limited number of snaps an edge rusher takes in any given week. When you look at top 10 sacks among DEs, they averaged a combined 70% of the defensive snaps. Yet going into 2019, there were a handful of DEs that were highly sought after that ended up underperforming with low snap counts and poor sack productions. Players like J.J. Watt finished the season with just four total sacks and 44% of the defensive snaps. Jadeveon Clowney had three sacks and 56% of the snaps. Olivier Vernon (3 sacks and 40% of snaps), DeMarcus Lawrence (5 and 62%), Jurrell Casey (5 and 64%), and Leonard Williams (0.5 and 33%) were other players underachieving for fantasy owners in 2019. Granted, most of these players were hindered by injuries, trades, or their defensive schemes in general. Watt, Vernon, and Clowney all dealt with injuries last year. Clowney also played in a Seahawk 4-3 base that forced him to line up frequently straight over the LT or RT when edge rushers thrive lining up far outside. Williams was traded from the Jets to the Giants and even though both teams run a 3-4 base defense, they are significantly different in their language and player responsibilities. Edge rushers in 4-3 base defenses normally are DEs while 3-4 base edge rushers are usually OLBs. You have to be extremely careful with what position your league classifies an edge rusher. Edge rushers who are listed as a LB tend to disappoint fantasy owners frequently, more so in tackle heavy scoring systems than big play scoring. Yet, they have high fantasy potential if listed as a DE. Whatever the scheme used by teams, edge rushers for the most part thrive in big play (sack) heavy leagues but tend to disappear in tackle heavy leagues. We could go on and on about the variances and difficulties you have in predicting which edge rushers will reward you in a fantasy season. For this main reason, fantasy owners tend to wait a little longer in drafts or pay a little less in auctions for edge rushers. Yes, you will have your fantasy owner who takes Watt too early or pays too much, but they tend to regret it come season’s end.
While we could go on about so many intangibles regarding IDPs, we should take this moment to reflect on the information we have provided. Skill and luck play a major role in your fantasy success. Thoroughly understand your league’s IDP scoring system and know the defensive scheme your targeted IDP is playing in and how it relates to their individual skills and profile. Study the coaching staff and players surrounding your IDP target. Familiarize yourself with IDP snap counts and always try securing a stud DL and a stud LB if at all possible. While these are difficult tasks to undertake, they will help you increase the probability of fantasy success in IDP leagues.
