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During the 2022 NFL Draft, YouTuber TKTwelve pointed out how Bill Belichick was attempting to assemble a defensive backfield made up entirely of people named Jones. Belichick’s “master plan” paid off on Monday night. When CB Jack Jones went down with a knee injury, Marcus Jones slid right into the lineup.
CB/WR/punt returner Marcus Jones has become one of the most exciting breakout IDP players. He can do everything. In the past four weeks, he has returned a punt for a game-winning touchdown and caught a touchdown pass, and now replacing Jack Jones, he made seven tackles and an interception.
Jack Jones says his knee doesn’t feel too bad, so he might not miss time. But given Marcus Jones’ versatility, he should continue to have a role on the Patriots—on defense, offense, and special teams—making him one of the best IDP players you can add this week, along with these 13 others.
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Marcus Jones, DB, New England Patriots - Rostered in ~1% of Sleeper Leagues
He’s been the highest-scoring Patriots cornerback each of the past two weeks, outscoring the other Joneses. In Week 13, Marcus Jones got 34 snaps, and in Week 14, he got 67. While his snap total benefited from Jack Jones’ injury, Marcus Jones has played well enough on defense and offense to earn more snaps in the future.
Seven of his eight tackles were solos, so that’s good for fantasy. He was used in the passing game for the second straight week. He caught his one target and made a nice stiff arm to gain extra yards for a first down. When a player has such athleticism, you have to trust he’ll find a way to put up numbers.
Josey Jewell, LB, Denver Broncos - Rostered in ~50% of Sleeper Leagues
Consistently one of the league’s leading tacklers, Jewell has made 10 or more combined tackles in two straight games and four of the last. He also picked off Patrick Mahomes twice in the Broncos’ Week 14 loss.
Kaden Ellis, LB, New Orleans Saints - Rostered in ~1% of Sleeper Leagues
Linebackers on the Saints' defense make a lot of tackles. Pete Werner made a lot of tackles before he got hurt. Now Kaden Ellis, who totaled just 196 defensive snaps in his first three seasons in the league, is taking down a lot of runners. Since Warner went down in Week 9, Ellis has made 26 solo tackles, two tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, and one pass defense.
Demario Davis, LB, New Orleans Saints - Rostered in ~30% of Sleeper Leagues
What did I say about Saints linebackers? Davis has made seven or more combined tackles in five straight games and broken up passes in both of the last two. In his last game, he had two pass breakups and one interception.
Devin Lloyd, LB, Jacksonville Jaguars - Rostered in ~30% of Sleeper Leagues
In his first start since Week 10, the rookie made six solo tackles and two assists while missing no tackles. As Chad Muma was sidelined with an ankle injury, Lloyd played 100% of the Jaguars’ defensive snaps. Muma was described as “day-to-day” last week, so Muma could return this week. But if he doesn’t, Lloyd is in for another every-snap game and a lot of tackles.
Christian Wilkins, DE, Miami Dolphins - Rostered in ~30% of Sleeper Leagues
When it comes to defensive linemen, you usually can’t count on them to make many tackles. But you can count on Christian Wilkins. He has made 21 tackles, a sack, and a forced fumble in the past two games. He has made five or more tackles eight times this season. Here is a defensive tackle I am starting in a tackle-heavy format.
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Willie Gay, LB, Kansas City Chiefs - Rostered in ~52% of MFL Leagues
Gay has been the seventh-highest-scoring defensive player in the IDP Invitational since Week 10. He was No. 4 this past week, as he returned an interception for a touchdown and made five tackles. Yet, he’s still only rostered in half of all MFL leagues. One reason for his lowish roster rate is that he had been suspended for domestic violence-related trespass and property damage and missed four games in the middle of the season. If you are okay with having him on your team, he is a very good linebacker.
Jaelan Phillips, DE, Miami Dolphins - Rostered in ~40% of MFL Leagues
Like his teammate Christian Wilkins, Jaelan Phillips is also good at making tackles on the D-line. He has made 11 solo tackles and 2.5 sacks in the past three games. He has made six sacks on the season and two pass breakups.
Monty Rice, LB, Tennessee Titans - Rostered in ~1% of MFL Leagues
In the wake of David Long’s hamstring injury, Rice started at linebacker and played a season-high 51 defensive snaps (71%) and seven special teams snaps against the Panthers. He made a tackle on about 20% of those snaps—seven solo tackles and five assists, including one for a loss.
PFF calculates that he made four run stops on 25 opponent rushing attempts—for a 16% run stop rate, fifth-best of all linebackers on the week. He has the third-highest run-stop rate on the season—albeit with fewer snaps than season-long starters. Long is on the IR and will miss the rest of the fantasy season, so Rice should continue to start the rest of the way.
Jimmie Ward, S, San Francisco 49ers - Rostered in ~1% of MFL Leagues
He might have been overlooked because he was injured through Week 7, but Jimmie Ward now has had four straight games with a pass defense and two interceptions in that span. In Week 14’s drubbing of the Bucs, he made eight combined tackles and a fumble recovery.
Jerry Jacobs, CB, Detroit Lions - Rostered in ~1% of MFL Leagues
Jacobs has made four pass defenses in four weeks and made seven combined tackles and a sack in the Lions’ Week 14 win over the Vikings. The Lions have a way of making defensive players statistically productive, even if their defense isn’t that great.
Levi Wallace, CB, Pittsburgh Steelers - Rostered in ~10% of MFL Leagues
Wallace has made 11 pass defenses and three interceptions this season. He is on the upswing. In Weeks 12-14, he has combined for 14 tackles.
Sheldon Rankins, DT, New York Jets - Rostered in ~10% of MFL Leagues
Starting alongside Quinnen Williams, Rankins has made 20 solo tackles, 10 assists, seven QB hits, and 3.0 sacks in 11 games. In Week 14’s loss to the Buffalo Bills, Williams left early with a calf injury and is day-to-day. Rankins finished the game with more snaps and a higher snap share than in any other game of this season. While he usually plays between 55%-65% of the snaps, he could see 70% snaps shares in any games Williams, who is day-to-day, might miss.
Cam Sample, DE, Cincinnati Bengals - Rostered in ~0% of MFL Leagues
Bengals DE Trey Hendrickson will miss multiple weeks with a broken wrist. Second-team DEs Cam Sample and Joseph Ossai have been getting approximately equal amounts of snaps, but Sample is grading better and could be a replacement DE in deeper leagues.
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