Week 5 IDP Rankings for Fantasy Football (2026) - Defense Positional Rankings for LB, DL, DB

October 8, 2026

Fantasy football IDP rankings and IDP streamers for Week 5 of the 2026 NFL season. Chris's IDP fantasy start 'em, sit 'em picks for individual defensive players.

Lane Johnson's retirement was sudden, as the sterling left tackle retires with the second-best pass-block win rate in the NFL this year. In fact, Johnson’s refusal to allow sacks or pressures (zero sacks and two pressures this year) is why Byron Young was a fade for us last week, prior to the news that Johnson would miss.

When Johnson mysteriously went inactive this past weekend, it was a red flag for a player who has been reliable and dominant for over a decade. His presence, or lack thereof, was enough to swing Young from a concerning play to a three-sack monster in Week 4. In fact, Young’s explosion became predictable once we knew Johnson would be gone.

All of this is to say that Johnson has been a Hall of Fame-caliber blocker for most of his career and the Eagles will miss him badly. There are few real difference-makers at offensive tackle, and the NFL lost one of them. His exit is bad for Philly, though we hope it is good for him, and it is a big reason IDP managers can upgrade edge-rushers facing the Eagles moving forward.

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 per 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 help elevate players like Travis Hunter and Marcus Jones.

Top Fantasy Defensive Linemen of the Week

DL Riser of the Week

Cameron Thomas, Atlanta Falcons

Thomas is an underrated IDP weapon this year, available in 99.8% of leagues despite sitting at DL38 in total standard IDP scoring. Even better, the advanced metrics love Thomas. He ranks sixth in overall pass rush grade, 15^th in pass rush win rate, is tied for third in quarterback hits, and is eighth in quarterback pressures.

Better yet, Thomas faces a Ravens offense allowing the third-most quarterback pressures per game, with 16 pressures allowed off the edge in four games. Those pressures will translate into sacks far more often if Lamar Jackson is out this week, which reports indicate is a likelihood.

DL Fade of the Week

Seattle Seahawks Pass-Rushers

The 49ers have allowed zero sacks in four games, despite facing pass-rushers such as Myles Garrett, Byron Young, and Nik Bonitto. Worse, San Francisco’s offensive line ranks second-best in pressures allowed and pass-block win rate. These metrics are obviously aided by easy matchups with Arizona and Miami, but they are still impressive.

While this sackless streak for Brock Purdy and company is bound to end, perhaps as early as this week, trusting any Seahawks pass-rusher against these metrics is tough. We are fading all of Seattle’s pass-rushing experts against San Francisco, though players like Leonard Williams retain value due to their impact on the run game.

Top Fantasy Linebackers of the Week

LB Riser of the Week

Arvell Reese, New York Giants

Reese is our Riser of the Week for the second week in a row. While it may seem lazy, his ascent has been meteoric, and it merits recognition in this space. He started the year as a high-upside LB3 and rose into our “trusted LB2” category last week, earning him this title for Week 3. He earns the title again because he very well may be our LB1 overall.

While we knew Reese had immense upside coming out of Ohio State, we thought his true value was as an edge-rusher. However, the Giants still view the former Buckeye as their primary interior leader, even with Brian Burns out, and that instinct seems correct. The rookie is playing 100% of the snaps with stellar tape as a run defender and in coverage.

Reese is the front-runner for Defensive Rookie of the Year in what is shaping up to be a strong defensive class, with Mansoor Delane, Jacob Rodriguez, and David Bailey also putting together strong starts. In fact, Reese’s film is so strong that it merits trading a solid haul for him in dynasty leagues before he breaks out any further.

LB Fade of the Week

Cedric Gray, Tennessee Titans

Gray makes his second appearance as our Fade of the Week, in part because he is one of the biggest fallers from our preseason rankings.

After finishing 2025 as LB5 overall in standard IDP scoring points per game, the entire IDP community expected the young North Carolina product to keep ascending. Those expectations have not come close to being met, as Gray has failed to crack 50% of the defensive snaps in three games started.

As we have noted in the past, we often see players get brought back slowly from serious knee injuries or other issues that can lead to nagging injuries. However, we rarely see players clear concussion protocol and still be “babied” back to form. This suggests Gray is either not a fit for Robert Saleh’s scheme, or he has fallen out of favor.

Whatever the reason for his fantasy decline, Gray is not earning the snaps or opportunities needed for him to be trusted in fantasy. While there is hope that game script or locker room politics will swing back in his favor, it is difficult to trust that will happen in Week 5 against a Texans offense that is throwing the ball surprisingly well.

Top Fantasy Defensive Backs of the Week

DB Riser of the Week

Brian Branch, Detroit Lions

Branch is unlikely to play this week as he continues to recover from a torn Achilles, which is why he is absent from this week’s rankings. However, HC Dan Campbell reported that Branch is “close” to returning, and he may even practice this week. That is great news for the Lions’ leaky secondary and fantasy managers.

When healthy, Branch is a trustworthy DB1 in almost any IDP format. While we should manage expectations early in his return, as most players do not recover as fully from an Achilles as George Kittle has this year, it is hard not to consider Branch an immediate DB2.

If he is available on your waivers, the Alabama product is worth stashing before his official return.

DB Fade of the Week

Jevon Holland, New York Giants

Holland is the DB2 overall in standard IDP scoring this year, scoring seven or more points in three of four contests. His reliability and talent keep him in the DB3 discussion for us this week, too, but his matchup is less than ideal.

41.4% of Holland’s fantasy production has come from his three interceptions, and 46% of his points have come off ill-advised throws. In other words, nearly half of his fantasy value comes from making plays on balls in the air. Unfortunately, Washington doesn't mesh with that skill set.

The Commanders are reportedly set to start Jayden Daniels in Week 5, which is bad news for Holland.

Daniels had zero turnover-worthy plays in his first two games this season before going down with injury. Worse, Daniels had the lowest turnover-worthy play rate as a rookie, and he was eighth best in that category last year. For his career, across 1,042 career dropbacks, Daniels has committed just 20 turnover-worthy plays at a rate of 1.9%.

Considering how much of Holland’s production has come from turnover-related plays this year, it is concerning that he is facing a quarterback with the lowest turnover-worthy rate of any passer over the past three years. Holland is producing enough to trust him as a DB3, but nothing more.

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