Week 3 IDP Rankings for Fantasy Football (2026) - Defense Positional Rankings for LB, DL, DB

September 24, 2026

Fantasy football IDP rankings and IDP streamers for Week 3 of the 2026 NFL season. Chris's IDP fantasy start 'em, sit 'em picks for individual defensive players.

When does overreaction turn into simple acceptance? How long do smart managers wait on talent and ignore concerning usage, or health, before giving up and accepting it just may not happen this season?

Colston Loveland has been a hot prospect all summer because he closed the 2025 season as the second-most dominant tight end in fantasy, and the preseason buzz suggested that would continue. Two weeks is likely too soon to “accept” him as a disappointment, though, and the same can be said of several disappointing defenders, including Maxx Crosby and Tuli Tuipulotu.

Crosby and Tuipulotu sit as DL70 and DL71 overall, respectively, in Standard IDP Scoring this season. That is after the two finished as DL3 and DL11, respectively, in 2025. Injuries are a concern for Crosby, obviously, and scheme/script are worries for Tuipulotu. However, both have flashed enough fantasy upside that one shouldn’t consider moving on from either yet.

IDP Scoring System for Rankings:

6 points per Defensive Touchdown

4 points per Forced Turnover (FF/INT)

3 points per Sack

2 points per PD, FR, Safety

1-point Solo Tackle

0.5 points per Assisted Tackle

Note: These rankings are also based on leagues that start one player at each defensive position (DL, LB, DB) and two DFLEX.

Final Note: Our projections include offensive stats and special teams touchdowns, which elevate players like Travis Hunter and Marcus Jones.

Top Fantasy Defensive Linemen of the Week

DL Riser of the Week:

George Karlaftis & R Mason Thomas, Kansas City Chiefs

Consider Karlaftis an intriguing DL3 this week, while Mason Thomas is a deep sleeper who shouldn’t be starting in shallow IDP leagues any time soon. However, both have a tremendous matchup on tap that makes them scary sleepers in deep IDP formats.

The Dolphins offensive line currently ranks worst in pressure rate allowed and pass-block win rate. While they aren't yet attempting the passing volume one would expect when they trail early and often, that could change against a red-hot Chiefs offense this week.

Mason Thomas has rushed the passer on 57% of the Chiefs’ potential passing downs this season, while Karlaftis has seen 81% of such snaps. The two have totaled 10 quarterback pressures between them on those limited reps, suggesting both could benefit from an elite matchup with interesting potential for volume.

DL Fade of the Week:

Chase Young, New Orleans Saints

The Raiders are a shockingly tough matchup for opposing pass rushers this year, surrendering the third-fewest quarterback pressures through two weeks. While their ascension should be taken with a grain of salt given the small sample size, Kolton Miller’s elite protection is consistent with his past performance and should be trusted.

Miller has allowed just two quarterback pressures this season while winning the eighth-most pass-blocking reps of all offensive linemen. This is bad news for Young, who is already having a disappointing season as DL67 overall in Standard IDP points. The Saints deploy Young exclusively off of the left tackle, meaning he will see Miller a lot.

Top Fantasy Linebackers of the Week

LB Riser of the Week:

Anthony Hill Jr., Tennessee Titans

Hill Jr. was one of our preseason sleepers because of his elite athleticism and potential to dominate as the versatile leader on Robert Saleh’s defense. His ascent has come much faster than any camp reports or film study suggested, though. Through two weeks, Hill has played every defensive snap and leads the NFL in tackles.

While the injury to Cedric Gray (more on him below) has allowed Hill to see the field more and earlier than expected, it could be that Hill has played his way into a dominant snap share all season. Given his ability to impact the game in more ways than one and his low roster rate, this rookie is climbing quickly.

LB Fade of the Week:

Cedric Gray, Tennessee Titans

Gray is a favorite of ours, and he should eventually return to a full-time role that may allow him to lead the Titans in tackles a second straight season. However, it is hard to trust the normally reliable leader until we see his usage even out.

After missing Week 1 with a concussion from an ATV accident, Gray did not start and saw just 39% of the defensive snaps. While this could be a disciplinary issue, with the team upset about his risky off-field injury, or a result of the team taking it slow… we usually don’t see teams bring players back slowly from a concussion like this.

With some mild concerns about Gray’s position with the team and usage, along with the ascension of a potential star linebacker in Anthony Hill Jr., we can’t keep Gray in our LB1 tier until we see him take his old role back.

Top Fantasy Defensive Backs of the Week

DB Riser of the Week:

Andrew Wingard, Arizona Cardinals

Wingard is the 88^th most rostered DB in fantasy going into Thursday, but he is tied for DB10 in total scoring. Better yet, he has played every defensive snap for the Cardinals this season, with a quarter of his snaps coming in the box or slot. While his production is likely to receded to his talent, Wingard is under-rostered for his usage and numbers.

Wingard also has a solid matchup on tap this week against the 49ers. Four different defensive backs have racked up 8.5 Standard IDP points or more against San Francisco this season… which means that both Wingard and Budda Baker both stand to profit.

DB Fade of the Week:

Travis Hunter, Jacksonville Jaguars

Hunter is our Fade of the Week for two consecutive weeks, in large part because he is still the sixth-most rostered DB in fantasy despite offering zero offensive production/usage and minimal defensive output through two games. As we noted last week, this could be a short-term issue… but it is starting to feel permanent.

Despite being listed as a starter in both games, Hunter has seen less than 60% of Jacksonville’s defensive snaps, and he has exactly 10 offensive snaps in two games. Game script had little to do with that usage, as he played almost identical snaps in a blowout win over Cleveland and a tight loss to Denver.

This Heisman winner still has the upside to be an IDP star, but the Jaguars’ refusal to use him on offense even when trailing leaves us to wonder when he will get those receiving yards we are hoping for. If defense is his only real source of points, then that 59% defensive snap rate is incredibly concerning.

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