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Mitchell's top Week 4 IDP waiver wire pickups, adds, fantasy football defensive streamers for 2025. Target these individual defensive players on Week 4 waivers.
Welcome everyone to my fantasy football IDP waiver wire pickups and streamers for Week 4 of the 2025 season. Last week was a wild one thanks to blocked kicks, defensive touchdowns, and turnovers galore. That's what we like to see when we play fantasy football with individual defensive players (IDP)!
Three teams blocked field goals in the final minutes to hold onto victories. Two blocked field goals were returned for TDs. Add in four pick-sixes, a fumble recovery return, and two punt returns taken to the house, and there were a total of nine defensive and special teams scores in one day.
In a big-play bonus league I organized, Vikings cornerback Isaiah Rodgers scored 92 points, with his two forced fumbles and two touchdowns, virtually guaranteeing anyone who would have started him a victory. Sadly, no one started him, and I don't think he’ll do it again next week, but here are some DL, LBs, and DBs to bet on in Week 4.
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Week 4 Waiver Wire Adds for Linebacker
Bobby Wagner, MLB, Washington Commanders - Rostered in 40% of Leagues
Wagner frequently is one of the top-five tacklers in the league, and at age 35, he hasn’t lost a step. He had made 10 or more tackles in each game this season, and he’s third in the league with 32 tackles.
Demario Davis, LB, New Orleans Saints - Rostered in 16% of Leagues
I told readers to add Davis last week, and some listened. His roster rate rose from 13% to 16%. After a Week 3 showing in which he made 11 tackles, bringing his season-long total to 31, tied for fourth-most, he should continue to rise.
Devin Bush, ILB, Cleveland Browns - Rostered in 7% of Leagues
Bush has emerged as one of the Browns’ two primary linebackers and is on the field for 90% of the snaps. Playing in the box for this strong defense is a great opportunity, and Bush is making the most of it.
Through three games, he is on pace to make 125 tackles, 5.5 sacks, and five forced fumbles. His rate of impact plays will probably decrease as the sample size increases, but it's a good bet that he will hit triple-digit tackles.
Jabrill Peppers, LB/DB, Pittsburgh Steelers - Rostered in 3% of Leagues
The Steelers snapped Peppers up after safety DeShon Elliott got injured in Week 1. He was a surprising preseason cut. He had been playing well for the New England Patriots, earning a PFF grade of 75.0 or higher in each of the past three seasons.
With his heavy usage lining up in the box, he has dual positional eligibility in Sleeper leagues. Week 3 was his first game taking snaps, and he made six tackles and one fumble recovery.
Week 4 Waiver Wire Adds for Defensive Line
Brian Burns, EDGE, New York Giants - Rostered in 43% of Leagues
Burns is ascending the ranks of pass rushers. For five years, he was a solid edge for the Panthers. Last season, he set a new career high with 71 tackles, and now, through the first four games of this season, he has made 15 tackles and four sacks—one or more in each game.
He does not have dual positional eligibility on Sleeper. You can only start Burns at DL.
Byron Young, DL/LB, Los Angeles Rams - Rostered in 37% of Leagues
Young is tied with Burns for No. 2 in the league in sacks, and his 20 tackles are outpacing other defensive linemen. After making 8.0 and 7.5 sacks in his first two seasons, respectively, Young could be in for a breakout.
Nick Herbig, DL/LB, Pittsburgh Steelers - Rostered in 3% of Leagues
For readers who are laughing at the possibility that Burns or Young could be available in any league, you might find Herbig on the waiver wire in your serious leagues. Herbig was a highly-touted pass-rushing prospect coming out of Wisconsin in 2023, and he has always played well when he’s in the lineup.
In Week 3, his first start in place of Alex Highsmith, he made two tackles, one sack, and a fumble recovery. Highsmith missed the game against the Patriots with a high-ankle sprain. While he was not placed on the IR, high-ankle sprains typically require multiple weeks of rehab. It is unlikely that Highsmith will be back in Week 4.
Week 4 Waiver Wire Adds for Cornerback and Safety
Talanoa Hufanga, S, Denver Broncos - Rostered in 20% of Leagues
Hufanga broke out in 2022, his second season, showing himself to be one of the best full-field IDP playmakers in the league. With 95 tackles, four interceptions, two sacks, and two forced fumbles, the former USC Trojan finished as the No. 6 highest-scoring DB that year.
Unfortunately, injuries limited Hufanga to only 17 games in his next two seasons, but he still made 89 tackles and three picks.
Hufanga should be a starter in just about any IDP league that requires managers to start DBs. He’s on pace for 153 tackles. That alone is enough to make him one of the best defensive backs. Add in his impact play ability, and he’s even better. In Week 4 against the interception-prone Jack Browning, he could feast.
Brandon Jones, S, Denver Broncos - Rostered in 33% of Leagues
Jones is another quality IDP safety who should be rostered regardless of his matchup. He made 115 tackles and three interceptions last season. With his strong matchup against Cincinnati in Week 4, he should be started.
Riley Moss, CB, Denver Broncos - Rostered in 2% of Leagues
Moss has been starting for the Broncos and played over 55 snaps in both of the first two weeks of the season. He is averaging six tackles per game in the first three weeks. He offers a reliable tackle floor and the potential for grabbing an interception against the Bengals’ Jake Browning, who has thrown five in two games, in Week 4.
Upton Stout, CB, San Francisco 49ers - Rostered in 0% of Leagues
Stout, a rookie third-round draft pick out of Western Kentucky, has started and played most of the 49ers’ defensive snaps since Week 2.
He made his first sack of his career in Week 2, as he was used to rush the passer four times. In each of the last two weeks, he made five tackles. By itself, that makes him an intriguing prospect to stash, especially in deeper leagues.
Add to that the fact that he has a strong matchup coming up as the Niners host the Jacksonville Jaguars, and he’s a dark-horse streamer in Week 4. Jags QB Trevor Lawrence threw another interception in his victory over the flailing Houston Texans, extending his streak to six straight games with at least one interception. He attempted 40 or more passes for the second straight week.
His high volume should give 49ers defensive backs ample opportunities to fill the stat sheet with tackles, pass breakups, and potential interceptions.
Last week, I recommended Texans DBs Derek Stingley Jr. and C.J. Gardner-Johnson as streamers against the Jaguars. Stingley left the contest with an abdominal injury in the first quarter, after he made one pass breakup, and Gardner-Johnson made five tackles. Safety Jalen Pitre was the one to make the interception.
DBs From Previous Weeks Who Remain Good Waiver Wire Adds
- Jourdan Lewis, CB, Jacksonville Jaguars
- Jaylinn Hawkins, S, New England Patriots
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