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Mitch Blatt's top IDP waiver wire adds and defensive streamers for Week 18 of the 2023 fantasy football season. These LB, DL, and DB have matchups worth exploiting.
For most people, the fantasy football season is over. For some, you are competing for a championship in Week 18. If you are in a dynasty league, you might want to think about players to add and stash for next season.
If you had Antoine Winfield on your IDP team, you might have won your league. He was drafted in the 13th round in my home league by the manager who went on to win the league, but he ended up finishing as the second-highest-scoring IDP behind only T.J. Watt. Watt finished as the IDP1, as he did in 2021, his last healthy season, but he was drafted much earlier.
I have divided this week's column between waiver wire adds for Week 18 and players to stash or watch for in the upcoming season.
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IDP Waiver Wire Adds for Week 18 Championship Games
Dorance Armstrong, EDGE, DAL
Armstrong and the Cowboys face the Washington Commanders in Week 18. The Commanders have allowed the fifth-most sacks per game. Coach Ron Rivera has not yet announced who will start at quarterback, but Sam Howell, Jacoby Brissett, and Jake Fromm are all quite sack-prone. Howell is leading the league with 61 sacks taken, which means he is sacked about 9% of the time he attempts a pass, but Fromm, who has not attempted a pass this year or last year, was sacked at the same rate in 2021.
Dorance Armstrong has been the second-most productive pass rusher for the Cowboys this season. He has made 30 pressures and 6.5 sacks. Armstrong is coming off a two-game streak of making at least half a sack. While he has not made more than three tackles in a game this season, Armstrong is a solid play in sack-heavy formats.
YaYa Diaby, LB, TB
I have mentioned Diaby in a couple of previous columns, and I'm highlighting him again here because of his favorable Week 18 matchup. Diaby is listed as an inside linebacker on Sleeper, but he's listed as a defensive end on My Fantasy League. My Fantasy League is right; he has lined up on the defensive line over 450 times this season and lined up in the box just a dozen times. He has rushed the passer 277 times and made 24 pressures and 6.5 sacks.
In Week 18, Diaby and the Bucs face the Carolina Panthers, who have allowed an average of 3.9 sacks per game, which is tied for the third-most. The Panthers have a poor quality offensive line blocking for a rookie quarterback who has few playmakers to throw the ball to, making him have to stay behind the line for a long time before releasing the ball. Diaby, a rookie, is also someone to consider stashing for next season and beyond.
Isaac Yiadom, CB, NO
Yiadom, a sixth-year veteran, has been playing more than fifty snaps a game in most of the Saints' games since Week 12. He has taken the team lead in passes defended, and he has an 80.1 coverage grade in PFF. He made his first fumble recovery of the season last week, and he has a favorable matchup this week against the Atlanta Falcons.
In just four games as a starter, Falcons quarterback Taylor Heinicke has already thrown four interceptions and committed nine turnover-worthy plays. Yiadom has a chance to cause a turnover or get his hand on a pass for another pass breakup. He is currently available in almost all leagues.
Paulson Adebo, CB, NO
Adebo is another good play in the Saints' Week 18 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons. He is leading the team with four interceptions, and he is playing 100% of the team's defensive snaps in most games. Adebo is only rostered in 6% of Sleeper IDP leagues.
Justin Simmons, S, DEN
Simmons has some of the best hands of all defensive backs. Ha has made three or more interceptions in each of the past six seasons. But he is only rostered in 22% of IDP leagues. In Week 18, he faces the Las Vegas Raiders, whose quarterback, Aidan O'Connell, has thrown seven interceptions and committed nine turnover-worthy plays in ten games.
Cam Taylor-Britt, CB, CIN
Taylor-Britt is back after having missed five games. In his Week 17 return, Britt played 54 snaps and made two tackles. While he made no interceptions against the NFL's best quarterback, Patrick Mahomes, he has made four interceptions this season, and he has a more favorable matchup coming up.
Cleveland coach Kevin Stefanski has not announced who will start at quarterback in Week 18. (The Browns would be expected to slot into the fifth seed whether they win or lose.) But both quarterbacks Joe Flacco and P.J. Walker are turnover-prone. Flacco has thrown an interception in each of his five starts for a total of eight on the season.
He has made up for it thus far by adding big plays and averaging 8.0 yards per attempt, but for IDP purposes, he's a good quarterback to play against. Attempting over 40 passes per game in four of his five starts, he also gives defensive backs ample opportunities to make tackles.
IDP Waiver Wire Adds for Dynasty Stashes
James Houston, EDGE, DET
Houston, who played for Coach Prime at Jackson State University, was one of the exciting breakout stories of 2022. After being drafted in the sixth round and not playing for the first half of the season, he made a sack in five of his seven games from Week 12 to 18 despite his small size (245 pounds). PFF premium stats gave him an 18.5% pressure rate and a 47.1% pressure-to-sack rate.
Could he keep it up? He was targeted as a late-round sleeper in many IDP leagues, and he was supposed to fill a void on the Lions' defense. Even if his unsustainable pressure-to-sack rate fell, he could have made up for it with greater volume.
Unfortunately, Houston fractured his ankle in a Week 2 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, and he hasn't played since. While the Lions have opened up his 21-day window for practicing, his status for Week 18 against the Vikings is still highly in doubt. Hopefully, we'll get to see him in the playoffs and get some idea of what his role might be. We'll have to wait until 2024 to see if he can be a regular producer.
Alex Wright, EDGE, CLE
Wright was a third-round draft pick out of UAB in 2022. He had a poor season in 2022, making no sacks and earning a 38.4 grade from PFF, which was one reason the Browns pursued Za'Darius Smith in free agency. This season, Wright has been playing better, particularly in the recent weeks.
He has played over 40 snaps in every game since Week 15 and made a sack in each game. Meanwhile, Za'Darius Smith has had an underwhelming season, and the Browns can cut him this offseason without incurring much of a cap hit. Wright might head into 2024 as either a starter or a key rotational piece across from Myles Garrett.
Ji'Ayir Brown, S, SF
Brown was a rookie I had high hopes for based on his exceptional athleticism and production in college. He scored 89-out-of-100 for production on his Next Gen Stats draft profile, the number one score of any safety. He made sacks, interceptions, and plays all over the field while at Penn State.
But it wasn't until Week 11 that he finally started playing much for the 49ers. When he got on the field, he was good. He ended up making 26 solo tackles, seven assists, and two interceptions on 396 snaps. If the 49ers use him more as a pass rusher as he matures, he'll also have some chances to get sacks and fumble recoveries behind the line.
Joey Porter Jr, CB, PIT
Like Brown, Porter hasn't started playing many snaps until later in the season. But in the second half of his rookie campaign, he has seen over 60 snaps in most games. He has looked good, particularly with regard to defending passes. He has made six pass breakups and has earned himself a starting job by limiting the offense to a 47.1% completion percentage when he is targeted.
Nakobe Dean, LB, PHI
Dean was supposed to be the Eagles' every-down middle linebacker this season, but he only ended up playing in five games. In his limited playing time as a rookie and then this season, he was an excellent tackler. He has made 30 solo tackles in his career and has not missed a single tackle, according to PFF. His tackle grade improved from 78.8 as a rookie, when he played just 38 snaps, to 89.2 this season, when he managed 182.
The Eagles had to glue together a paper string of replacement linebackers who have all left much to be desired. They will be happy to have Dean back next season and put him back at the center of their defense.
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