DL Mario Williams, HOU (3 solos, 4 asst, 2.5 sacks)
This marks the third straight good game that Williams has had in a row and
he appears to be emerging as a dominant force. He's also been doing well
in some marquee matchups as he faced Reggie Bush two weeks ago and this week
he faced Vince Young, the two players that many Texans fans wanted the team
to draft instead of Williams. He's now up to 8.5 sacks on the season
and has a very impressive 10 solos, 7 assists, 4.5 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles
over his last 3 games.
DL Gaines Adams, TB (4 solos, 1 sack)
Adams was the most highly regarded pass rusher in this year's draft class
and he's starting to show why with 9 solos and 2 sacks over his last
3 games. It normally takes defensive ends a full season or two to reach their
potential, but Adams is in a great system and looks like he could be headed
for a breakout season in 2008.
DL Jared Allen, KC (4 solos, 2 sacks, 1 TD reception)
Tough to find a reason to upgrade a player who has been one of the best fantasy
DL for most of the past 2 seasons, but Allen gave us one this week. In addition
to the 10th multi-sack game of his career, Allen also demonstrated his versatility
by coming down with an acrobatic 2-yard TD catch. With 11.5 sacks on the season,
Allen currently leads the NFL despite missing the first two games due to a
suspension.
DL Robert Mathis, IND (4 solos, 1 sack, 1 FF)
With the season-ending injury to Dwight Freeney, Mathis has shifted to RDE
and is getting more snaps as a result. He appears to be making the most of
his increased opportunity with 6 solos, 2 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles over
the past 3 games. He also has 5 sacks over his last 5 games, making him one
of the hottest pass rushers in the league.
DL Jacques Cesaire, SD (2 solos, 5 asst, .5 sack, 2 PD)
Cesaire has been doing a great job filling in for Luis Castillo and now has
1.5 sacks and 2 passes defensed over the past two games. He did have minor
surgery on his thumb on Monday but is not expected to miss any time.
LB Lofa Tatupu, SEA (11 solos, 3 INTs, 3 PD)
Even though Tatupu has been one of the best and most consistent fantasy linebackers
since entering the league, a game like this is certainly worthy of an upgrade.
He was not highly regarded in the 2005 draft due to a perceived lack of athleticism
but he makes up for it with great instincts as seen by his 8 career interceptions
before his 3rd season is finished.
LB Shawne Merriman, SD (6 solos, 3 sacks, 1 FR)
Merriman hasn't been his same dominant self for much of this season but
his 3-sack performance this week has given him a chance to lead the league
for a second straight season. He now has 9.5 sacks on the season and is just
2 behind league leader Jared Allen with 4 more games to play.
LB Patrick Willis, SF (17 solos, 1 asst)
Back to back 17 solo games for Willis have brought his season total up to
100 and put him within range of the 126 solos that DeMeco Ryans had with the
Texans last year. Both players certainly look like they could dominate IDP
leagues for awhile in the same way that Zach Thomas and Ray Lewis did for
many years. Willis certainly looks like a lock for the defensive rookie of
the year award.
LB D.J. Williams, DEN (13 solos, 3 asst, 1 FR)
Williams was expected to put up great numbers this season with the move to
MLB in a new Broncos defense. While there have been some ups and downs along
the way, he's been very active of late with 22 solo tackles over the
last 2 games. With 81 solo tackles on the season, he has already surpassed
his career-high set in his rookie season of 2004 and has a great chance to
top 100 before the season is over.
LB Angelo Crowell, BUF (4 solos, 5 asst, 1 sack, 1 safety, 1 FR)
Rather quietly, Crowell ranks 4th in the league in total tackles with 106
(71 solos). He has also added 2 sacks, an interception, and a forced fumble.
Crowell is a leader for the Bills defense who never leaves the field and could
warrant some Pro Bowl consideration for helping to keep the Bills in playoff
contention despite al the injuries they've suffered on defense this season.
LB Stephen Cooper, SD (7 solos, 3 asst, 1 sack)
Cooper's production had fallen off in recent weeks but he showed that
he's still a viable 3rd or 4th LB in many leagues with a huge game against
the Chiefs this week. Although his tackle numbers have been somewhat inconsistent,
he is on a pace to finish with nearly 75 solo stops and could wind up as a
top-30 LB in most leagues.
LB Joey Porter, MIA (4 solos, 1 asst, 1 sack, 1 INT, 1 PD)
With the Dolphins at 0-12, Porter obviously hasn't had the type of season
he expected playing opposite Jason Taylor. However, he has been putting up
some impressive numbers over the past month. In his last 4 games, Porter has
22 solos, 1.5 sacks, and 2 interceptions.
DB O.J. Atogwe, STL (6 solos, 1 INT, 1 PD)
Despite the lost season for the Rams as a team, Atogwe is putting together
an incredible stretch of games. He has now recorded an interception in 4 straight
games and is tied for the league lead in interceptions by a safety with 3
other players. He established himself as a playmaker with 3 interceptions
and 5 forced fumbles last year and he's proving this year that it wasn't
a fluke.
DB Will Demps, HOU (7 solos, 5 asst, 1 PD)
When Von Hutchins moved to CB to replace the injured Dunta Robinson a few
weeks ago, Will Demps entered the starting lineup at FS. He's performed
well with 14 solo tackles and 5 assists over the past 3 games, including an
impressive 12 total tackles this week in a loss to the Titans.
DB Josh Bullocks, NO (10 solos, 2 asst)
Although Bullocks plays free safety in New Orleans and is known more for his
abilities as a playmaker, he is currently tied for 3rd in the league in solo
tackles by a safety. With Roman Harper and Josh Bullocks in place, the Saints
appear to have a pretty solid young safety tandem to build around.
DB Lance Schulters, MIA (7 solos, 1 asst)
With Cameron Worrell suffering an ACL injury this week, Schulters should take
over the starting SS job in Miami. Although he hasn't been a starter
since 2005, he's a proven veteran who has had success in the past. At
just 32 years old, he might be able to provide some solid production off the
waiver wire for the rest of the season.
Downgrades
DL Reggie Hayward, JAX (0 tackles)
After recording a 2.5 sack game against the Titans in week 10, Hayward has
just 1 solo tackle over his last 3 games. He also was forced to leave the
game early in the first quarter this week with a groin injury.
DL James Hall, STL (DNP)
Hall suffered a dreaded high ankle sprain last week and was inactive this
week. Considering the injury and the way the Rams season has been going, we
may not see Hall again for the rest of the season.
DL Dewayne White, DET (1 solo)
Since returning to the starting lineup last week, White has just 2 solo tackles
in 2 games and hasn't looked like the same player he was before his injury.
He's a frustrating player because he can blow up at any moment with a
huge game, but he also has 4 games this year with just 1 solo tackle and no
sacks.
DL Kenyon Coleman, NYJ (0 tackles)
Coleman has been a nice surprise in tackle-heavy scoring systems this year
with 47 solo tackles in his first 11 games. But, as a 3-4 defensive end, it's
tough to sustain that type of production. His 0 tackle game this week didn't
appear to be injury related, but the Dolphins fell behind early and had very
few running attempts in the game.
DL Amobi Okoye, HOU (1 asst)
While Mario Williams has been playing some of the best football of his young
career lately, this year's top pick Okoye has been struggling of late.
He recorded 4 sacks in his first 4 games of the season but has just 3 assisted
tackles and 0 sacks over his last 3 games. He remains a promising prospect
for next season in DT-required dynasty leagues, but it's probably a safe
idea to bench him going forward.
LB Jamar Williams, CHI (2 solos, 1 asst)
There were some reports that the Bears had agreed to a long-term extension
with WLB Lance Briggs. Although they turned out to be premature, the two sides
are apparently still having discussions and Briggs recently stated that he
would be happy to retire as a Bear. If Briggs is signed to an extension, the
value of Williams takes a big hit as he was the front-runner to replace Briggs
in the starting lineup next season.
LB Leon Williams, CLE (2 solos)
With D'Qwell Jackson returning to the lineup last week, Williams has
seen his production drop considerably. Williams was limited to just 2 solo
tackles in each of the past two games after recording 23 solo stops in the
4 previous games. Williams normally splits time with Andra Davis, so don't
expect much from him unless there's another injury.
LB Rocky McIntosh, WAS (3 solos, 3 asst)
McIntosh remains a very promising WLB but his production has seen a noticeable
drop during the past month or so. After finishing no games with 2 or fewer
tackles over the first 9 weeks of the season, he went 3 straight games with
2 solos in each before coming up with 3 this week (along with 3 assisted tackles).
His drop in production appears to have coincided somewhat with the return
of a healthy Marcus Washington several weeks ago.
LB Eric Barton, NYJ (0 tackles)
Barton has been very consistent all season, finishing with between 3 and 5
solo tackles for 10 straight games before Sunday's shutout. The ineffective
Dolphins offense probably deserves most of the blame, but with the emergence
of David Harris this year and the expected return of Jonathan Vilma next year,
Barton is probably not in the Jets long-term plans and could see a drop in
playing time as the season winds to a close.
LB Barrett Ruud, TB (1 solo)
Ruud suffered a knee injury last week that limited him in practice. Even though
he managed to play through it, his production clearly suffered as he finished
with one of his worst statlines of the season. It may not be a bad idea to
look for other options until he shows that he's fully healthy again.
LB Chad Greenway, MIN (0 tackles)
This 0 tackle game doesn't warrant a major downgrade for Greenway as
the Lions only had 7 rush attempts in the game. The Vikings dominated the
game and finished with an impressive 37 minutes of possession so there were
very few opportunities for Greenway and the Vikings defenders to make plays.
DB Stuart Schweigert, OAK (2 solos)
Schweigert appears to have lost his starting FS job to 2nd year player Hiram
Eugene and played only on special teams this week. He may still win the starting
job back, but it may not happen until next season.
DB Aaron Rouse, GB (Inactive)
Rouse missed the game this week with a knee injury but Nick Collins is healthy
again so Rouse figures to finish the season as a backup even if he gets healthy.
With the solid play of Atari Bigby at SS this year, Rouse may have a hard
time winning a starting job again next year.
DB Abram Elam, NYJ (1 asst)
Like most Jets this week, Elam's production was disappointing. Although
he has shown flashes of being a productive player with 3 games of 7 or more
solo tackles, he's also been limited to 3 or fewer solo tackles in 3
other games. He should see a lot more action next week against the Browns
so you may want to wait another week before cutting him loose if you're
considering it.
DB Adam Archuleta, CHI (0 tackles)
The Adam Archuleta experiment appears to be over in Chicago as he was benched
this week in favor of Brandon McGowan. He continues to struggle in coverage
just as he did during last season with the Redskins.
DB Antoine Winfield, MIN (inactive)
Winfield missed another game, his 4th in the past 5 weeks, with the same nagging
hamstring injury that he's been dealing with. They could really use him
as they make a run for the playoffs, as could fantasy owners as he is normally
one of the league's most consistent tacklers at the DB position.
