2018 IDP Waiver Wire Pickups: Week 15
Hello and welcome back to the IDPGuru.com’s most popular in-season article, IDP Waiver Wire Pickups, which will be releasing every Tuesday of the regular season.
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Let’s start things off by going through some IDP news, notes, and commentary from Week 14 of the NFL season.
Injuries
Ezekiel Ansah re-injured his troublesome shoulder and was shut down for the rest of this season and may have played his last snap in a Lions uniform.
Defensive tackle Robert Nkemdiche was placed on injured reserve with a knee injury. His season is over.
Emerging linebacker Matt Milano with miss the remainder of the season with a fractured fibula.
CB Xavien Howard has arthroscopic knee surgery and is questionable for Week 15.
Denzel Ward, a cornerback for the Browns, missed last week due to a concussion. The hope is he will be able to return this week.
DB1 Landon Collins landed on IR before the Giants’ Week 14 contest against the Redskins with a shoulder injury.
Bears cornerback Bryce Callahan suffered a broken foot last week and will miss at least the rest of the regular season.
General Player Notes
Darron Lee was suspended four games for violating the league’s policy on substance abuse. His season is over.
Wesley Woodyard has seen his snap counts reduced over the last three weeks which has put a dent into his production. This said, we have to downgrade him into the boom/bust LB3 tier and likely look for other more reliable options for the fantasy playoffs.
Eric Berry is expected to make his season debut this Thursday night against the Chargers. Expect him to be on a snap count given how long he’s been out, however.
For more updates on playing time splits across the linebacker position, check out the latest update of my every-down linebackers column.
Now onto The Guru’s IDP waiver wire selections for Week 15!
Defensive Linemen
(Previously recommended DLs: Markus Golden, Sheldon Richardson, Isaac Rochell, Larry Ogunjobi, Taco Charlton, Matt Ioannidis, Benson Mayowa, Margus Hunt, Kenny Clark, Stephen Weatherly, David Irving, Takkarist McKinley, Jerry Hughes, Jarran Reed, Trent Murphy, Corey Luiget, Romeo Okwara, Joey Bosa, Cameron Wake, Jarran Reed, Everson Griffen, Damon Harrison, Chris Jones, Markus Golden, Ezekiel Ansah, Dante Fowler, Matt Ioannidis, Markus Golden, Dante Fowler, Jonathan Allen, Da’Ron Payne, Carl Nassib, Brandon Graham, Javon Hargrave, Maurice Hurst, Robert Nkemdiche, Carl Nassib, Allen Bailey, Jonathan Allen, Denico Autry, B.J. Hill)
DE Trey Flowers (NEP) – Flowers had largely been regarded as a fantasy disappointment for over half of this season as he only mustered 2.5 sacks over the team’s first 10 games. In the three weeks since their Week 11 bye however, Flowers has racked up four sacks (at least one in each game) and continues to see some of the higher snap counts at his position which should keep his floor relatively high. Consider him a DL2+ the rest of the season.
DT Denico Autry (IND) – I called out Autry last week as a nice late-season pickup. Owners that headed that advice were rewarded handsomely as Autry posted a fantastic 3-1-2 stat line. If you didn’t pick him up last week and he’s still available, now’s the time the pull the trigger as he squares off against a Cowboys team that has allowed a league-leading 48 sacks this season. Top 25 play in Week 11.
DT David Irving (DAL) – Irving has missed the last six games due to a high ankle sprain but could return this week against the Colts. Even if Irving returns, he will be on a snap count but he’s shown he can be very productive in a limited role in his career and should be looked at as a boom/bust DL3/DT2+ for deep league owners in search of potential big points.
Linebackers
(Previously recommended LBs: Fred Warner, Darius Leonard, Nick Vigil, Matt Milano, Cory Littleton, Darius Leonard, Reuben Foster, Roquan Smith, Devondre Campbell, Duke Riley, Kenny Young, Austin Calitro, Vontaze Burfict, Leighton Vander Esch, Josh Bynes, Anthony Walker, Vontaze Burfict, Jatavis Brown, Jayon Brown, Jerome Baker, Zach Cunningham, Jaime Collins, Vincent Rey, Thomas Davis, Bradley Chubb, Adarius Taylor, Elijah Lee, T.J. Watt, Todd Davis. Jordan Evans, Jamie Collins, K.J. Wright, Marquel Lee, Leighton Vander Esch, Tanner Vallejo, Nigel Bradham, Kendell Beckwith, Deion Jones, Nick Vigil, Zach Cunningham, Roquan Smith, Jatavis Brown, Reuben Foster, Alec Ogletree, Kyler Fackrell, Vontaze Burfict, Gerald Hodges, Anthony Walker, Eric Kendricks, Hardy Nickerson Jr., L.J. Fort)
LB Todd Davis (DEN) – In all honesty, Davis has been very solid all season and could have shown up on this list much earlier in the year. He doesn’t bring much value in the big play columns, but he’s averaging nearly 8 tackles a game and have been extremely consistent in that regard, posting four or more solo tackles in every game this season except for one. He gets a slight bump this week playing against a top 10 matchup in the Cleveland Browns.
LB Anthony Walker (IND) – Despite only seeing around 70% or so of the defensive snaps the last several weeks, Walker has still managed to rack up impressive tackle numbers. Over his last five games, he’s accumulated 44 total tackles (nearly 9 tackles a game). He faces a Cowboys team that has been dominating time of possession as of late via their running game which should bode well production-wise for the Colts linebackers. Walker will be a LB3+/LB2- play this week.
LB Neville Hewitt (NYJ) – Hewitt saw the majority of snaps at ILB (82%) next to Avery Williamson as a fill-in for the suspended Darron Lee. With those snaps he managed to garner 8 total tackles to go along with 0.5 sack. He has a top 5 matchup against the Texans this week as well making him a decent LB3- option in most moderately sized IDP leagues.
Defensive Backs
(Previously recommended DBs: Kentrell Brice, Clayton Geathers, Terrell Edmunds, Jessie Bates, Justin Simmons, Ricardo Allen, Donte Jackson, Anton Exum, Damontae Kazee, Brian Poole, Tre Boston, Jessie Bates, Eric Reid, Damarious Randall, Jordan Lucas, Mike Mitchell, Kenny Vaccaro, Patrick Chung, Darryl Roberts, Kenny Vaccaro, Marcus Maye, Eli Apple, Justin Reid, Tedrick Thompson, Bashaud Breeland, Michael Davis, T.J. McDonald, Adrian Phillips, Bene Benwikere, Isaiah Johnson, Corey Graham, Prince Amukamara, Jordan Whitehead, Ibraheim Campbell, Karl Joseph, Jordan Whitehead, Eli Apple, B.W. Webb)
S Michael Thomas (NYG) – Thomas was a near every-down player last week (94%) filling in for the injured Landon Collins at strong safety. With the Giants getting out to an early and large lead, there weren’t as many run stopping opportunities for Thomas, but he benefited from playing up in the box a lot and still managed 6 total tackles, an interception, and pass deflection. He should be a solid DB3- starter down the fantasy playoff stretch.
S Ronnie Harrison (JAX) – With the Jaguars out of playoff contention, they are starting to get a better look at their younger talent. This said, rookie Ronnie Harrison has started and played in an every-down role the last two weeks over Barry Church at safety. He posted above average stat lines in both games (2-1-1 and 5-0 with an INT), making him an intriguing boom/bust DB3/DB4 option for the final couple weeks of the fantasy season. He’s a player that at least warrants a pickup in most dynasty leagues.
S D.J. Reed (SF) – Those in deep IDP leagues that are thin on options and desperate for some big point potential may want to look at D.J. Reed. The first-year safety was forced to move over to nickel cornerback with K’Waun Williams inactive due to injury and he filled up the box scores with a 10-2-1, 3 TFL, 1 QB, and 1 FF stat line. If Williams is out again in Week 15, Reed is worth a look against a Seahawks team that has been decent matchup for opposing cornerbacks.
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Last Updated: December 11, 2018