DL Kyle Vanden Bosch, TEN (7 solos, 1 asst, 3 sacks)
Although he's been pretty quiet for most of this season, Vanden Bosch appears to be playing some of his best football lately. With his dominating performance against the Chargers on Sunday, he now has 13 solos, 4 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles over his last 3 games. With 9 sacks on the year, he now has a great chance to collect his second double digit sack season in the past 3 years and he remains one of the leading tacklers among all defensive ends during that same time period.
DL Patrick Kerney, SEA (6 solos, 1 asst, 3 sacks)
After a quiet game last week against the Eagles, Kerney exploded with another 3-sack game this week against the Cardinals. Kerney now has recorded 3 sacks in 3 of the past 4 games and has 10 sacks during the Seahawks 5-game winning streak. He leads the league with 13.5 sacks and looks like a strong contender for defensive player of the year.
DL Greg White, TB (4 solos, 1 asst, 3 sacks, 2 FF, 1 PD)
Even though it's been a very long season for White, having come to the NFL from the Arena league, he continues to produce at a very high level. He now has 8.5 sacks on the season, with 6 sacks and 6 forced fumbles all coming in his last 4 games. When combined with his record-setting 15 sacks in the Arena league earlier this year, White has a shot at putting up double digit sack seasons twice in the same calendar year.
DL Alex Brown, CHI (5 solos, 2 asst, 1 sack, 1 FF, 1 PD)
After losing his starting job to Mark Anderson, Brown's production fell off considerably. But, he's been the more effective player of late so the coaches have been rewarding him with more playing time. Brown is a much better run defender than Anderson and he's been showing it with 12 solo stops over the past 3 games, along with a big sack and forced fumble this week.
DL Trent Cole, PHI (3 solos, 3 asst, 2 sacks)
After he faded down the stretch last year, there was some concern that Cole was headed for a repeat when he went sackless in 4 straight games. Those concerns were put to rest this week when Cole came through with 2 sacks of Eli Manning and 6 tackles. He now has 11.5 sacks on the season, which ties him for 3rd most in the league and is the most by an Eagles player since Hugh Douglas finished with 12.5 in 2002.
DL Aaron Schobel, BUF (3 solos, 1 sack, 1 FF, 1 PD)
Although this has certainly been a very disappointing season for Schobel, he normally finishes strong and does appear to be heating up as the fantasy playoffs roll around. He has 8 solo tackles and 2 sacks over his last two games, but he'll have a very tough matchup with Joe Thomas and the Browns next week.
DL Jeff Charleston, IND (2 solos, 1 asst, 1 sack, 1 FF)
Charleston saw his most extensive playing time this week due to the season-ending injury to Dwight Freeney and release of Simeon Rice. He's a small school college player who recorded 12 sacks as a senior at Idaho State, but has mostly been playing as a special teams player this year.
DL Quinn Pitcock, IND (2 solos, 1 asst, 2 sacks)
With Raheem Brock seeing more snaps at defensive end in place of Robert Mathis, more playing time has opened up for rookie Quinn Pitcock. He had already been seeing about 12 to 15 snaps per game, but he earned more with his strong play this week.
LB Greg Ellis, DAL (3 solos, 1 sack, 1 FF, 1 PD)
Ellis has flown under the radar for much of the season while playing opposite DeMarcus Ware, but he now has 11.5 sacks on the season despite missing the first 3 games while recovering from an injury. In 10 games played, he has only been held sackless twice. Although he played most of his career as a defensive end, he appears to be a great fit at OLB in Wade Phillips' aggressive 3-4 scheme.
LB Karlos Dansby, ARI (10 solos, 1 asst, 1 FF)
Dansby is having a breakout season and it's coming in a contract year as he's headed for free agency this offseason. He's averaging 6 solo tackles per game and has also shown his versatility as a playmaker with 3.5 sacks, 3 interceptions, 3 forced fumbles and 7 passes defensed. He's apparently looking for a contract similar to the ones given to Adalius Thomas and Julian Peterson in recent years so the Cardinals may be forced to use their franchise tag on him.
LB Morlon Greenwood, HOU (7 solos, 6 asst, 1 sack, 2 PD)
Greenwood has seen his production fluctuate quite a bit this season but he's been very consistent over the past month. In his last 4 games, he's recorded 26 solo tackles, 11 assists, 1 sack, and 1 interception. It's probably not a coincidence that his increase in production has seemed to correspond with the groin injury to Danny Clark.
LB Chris Draft, STL (8 solos, 4 asst, 1 PD)
With the latest injury to Pisa Tinoisamoa, Draft moved into the starting lineup in Saint Louis and has been very productive with 12 solos, 4 assists, a sack, and 3 passes defensed over the past two games. He may be able to provide some playoff depth as the season comes to a close.
DB James Sanders, NE (5 solos, 3 asst, 1 FR)
Sanders filled in for Rodney Harrison at SS early this year and he's been starting at FS since Harrison returned. He's been saving his best for last too with 15 solos, 7 assists, 2 interceptions, 1 FF, 1 FR, and 4 passes defensed over his last 4 games. Who knows how much longer Rodney Harrison will play but Sanders seems like the leading candidate to take over for him whenever he does decide to hang up the cleats.
DB Sean Jones, CLE (7 solos, 1 asst, .5 sack, 1 INT, 1 PD)
Jones had a disappointing start to the year but has turned things around in a big way with 4 interceptions over his last 6 games. His tackle numbers have been much more consistent in the second half of the season and he's making plays for a team that has a great chance to make the postseason.
DB Chris Harris, CAR (10 solos, 4 asst, 2 FF, 1 PD)
Harris missed a day of practice last week with a shoulder problem but managed to play and had a very busy day with 14 total tackles. His 2 forced fumbles this week give him an NFL-leading 7 for the season, which is pretty amazing for a defensive back as nearly everybody else in the leaderboard for that statistic is a pass rusher.
DB Brandon McGowan, CHI (9 solos, 1 asst, 1 FF)
McGowan took over the starting SS job in Chicago after the benching of Adam Archuleta. With 6 solo tackles last week and then 9 this week, McGowan is establishing himself as a reliable tackler. He's had some durability issues in the past but should be productive as long as he remains healthy.
DB Reed Doughty, WAS (5 solos, 2 asst, .5 sack)
Doughty has been moved into the starting lineup after the injury and then tragic death of Sean Taylor. He's performing well with 19 solos, 10 assists, and a half sack in his last 4 games. Doughty played strong safety in college and is a very intelligent player who could hold onto the starting job next season if he continues to play well.
DB Marcus Trufant, SEA (4 solos, 2 asst, 3 INT, 3 PD, 1 TD)
Trufant had a huge game against the Cardinals this week as he finished with 3 interceptions and ran one back for a TD. He is one of the better tackling CBs in the league with 61 solos on the season, but he also now ranks 2nd in the league with 7 interceptions. It would not be a big surprise if the Seahawks decide to use their franchise tag on him in a few months when he becomes a free agent.
Downgrades
DL Antonio Smith, ARI (2 solos, 1 asst)
After a great start to his season that saw him record 3.5 sacks in his first 6 games, Smith has cooled off considerably. He has just 1 sack in his last 7 games and also has finished with 2 or fewer solo tackles in 4 of his last 5 games.
DL Ray Edwards, MIN (Suspended)
Edwards received a 4-game suspension for violating the league's substance abuse policy. With Erasmus James going on IR with a knee injury, more opportunities should open up for rookie Brian Robison and Otis Grigsby who was signed off the Panthers practice squad and recorded a sack this week.
Kenechi Udeze, MIN (1 solo)
Udeze had 4 sacks in his first 7 games this season, but he's gone sackless in the 6 games since then. Making matters worse, he's not doing much against the run either with just 5 solo tackles over his last 5 games. He figures to get plenty of playing time with the loss of Ray Edwards and Erasmus James, but he doesn't look like he'll be able to do much with it.
DL Chris Clemons, OAK (0 tackles)
After recording 4 sacks in 3 games, Clemons has now gone 2 straight games without recording even a single tackle. As a pass rush specialist, this type of inconsistent production is probably a sign of what to expect from him in the future.
DL Julius Peppers, CAR (1 solo, 1 asst)
Unfortunately, it looks like this will wind up being a lost season for Julius Peppers. Despite playing in every game, he has just 3 sacks, a far cry from the 10.5 he's averaged during his first five years in the league.
DL Darryl Tapp, SEA (1 solo)
Tapp has had a successful first season as a starter with 6.5 sacks but it's disappointing that he hasn't been able to take better advantage of the play of Kerney opposite him. He has just 1 solo and 1 assist over the past 2 games.
DL Marques Douglas, SF (1 solo, 1 asst)
Douglas has a very impressive 51 solo tackles this season, but he has only 5 over his last 3 games. Also, of his 3 sacks for the season, just one half of a sack has come in the last 9 games.
LB Shawne Merriman, SD (4 solos, 1 asst, 2 sacks)
Although Merriman had been playing great with 6 sacks in his last 3 games, he has already been ruled out for week 15 with a knee injury and he could miss the game after that as well. Tough break for teams that were counting on him in the playoffs.
LB Gerald Hayes, ARI (2 solos)
Not sure what caused the problem but Hayes went from recording a season-high 12 solo stops in week 12 against the 49ers to recording just 2 solo stops in each of the past 2 games against the Browns and Seahawks. He's been outplayed by fellow linebackers Karlos Dansby and Carlos Pace in those games.
LB Keith Bulluck, TEN (1 solo, 1 PD)
After averaging over 100 solo tackles/year for the past 5 seasons, Bulluck has just 55 this year with only 3 games remaining. This has clearly been a disappointing season for him and his fantasy owners. An 11 solo game in week 12 appeared to give some false hope that he'd finish strong, as he's recorded just 3 solo tackles in the two games since then. Probably not a bad idea to bench him this week if you have other options available.
DB Antoine Bethea, IND (1 solo, 1 asst)
With nearly 50 solo tackles and 4 interceptions this year, Bethea has been having a very solid sophomore campaign. However, he left the game this week with a knee injury and may not play next week against the Raiders.
DB Tanard Jackson, TB (2 solos)
Jackson has been one of the league's bigger rookie surprises on the defensive side of the ball this year. His production appears to be dropping off in recent weeks, however, as he's finished with 2 or fewer solo tackles in 4 of his last 5 games.
DB Ken Lucas, CAR (2 solos)
It wasn't too long ago when Lucas was one of the best fantasy CBs in the league as he registered 60 solo tackles and 6 interceptions in back to back seasons. In his past 26 games, however, he has about 75 solo tackles and 5 interceptions so his production has clearly dropped off considerably. Lucas has just 8 solo tackles and 0 passes defensed over his past 4 games, and he left the game this week with a neck injury that he suffered while trying to recover a fumble.
