Fantasy Football: Week 5 IDP Rankings & Tiers

• A dominant start to Year 2 has Aidan Hutchinson locked in as a top IDP: Hutchinson has the playing time, pass-rush metrics, and optimal opponent to be considered a top-five edge play this week.

• Quincy Williams is trending up: With an every-down role and high-end tackle production, the other Jets’ Williams brother has had a great start to the season.

• Dominate your fantasy league in 2023: For up-to-date fantasy draft rankings and projections, check out PFF’s fantasy rankings tool!

Estimated Reading Time: 12 minutes

With the first month of the 2023 NFL season in the books, it’s time for IDP managers to separate themselves from the pack as bye weeks hit and depth and roster construction really start to matter.

This article will be updated throughout the week, but you can also check the PFF.com rankings page for updates.

Jump to a Position:

LB | ED | DI | S | CB

LINEBACKER

Quincy Williams (LB15) had a productive first month of the season with 39 total tackles, even out-pacing teammate C.J. Mosley (LB8) in that regard. Mosley is still the preferred option because he plays a handful more snaps per game, but Williams has yet to dip below 96% of the team’s defensive snaps in any game so far this season. As long as he stays in that range, he’ll be in consideration as a top-24 linebacker on a weekly basis.

Jordan Hicks (LB18) has posted two double-digit tackle games so far this season, thanks to an every-down role and defensive coordinator Brian Flores deploying more zone coverage than he has in the past. Against the Chiefs this week, who have been among the league leaders in tackles allowed to the linebacker position, Hicks should have a strong chance to hit double-digit tackles once again. The only thing keeping Hicks from going any higher in these rankings is a higher blitz rate than most linebackers, which could ultimately limit his opportunities to come up with tackles.

Divine Deablo (LB41) falls down the ranks this week because his snap share has declined in each of the past two weeks, most recently to just 71% of defensive snaps. As a result, Deablo has fewer opportunities to make tackles. He managed only four this past week. Assuming his snap share remains around 70%, there will be much more reliable options for fantasy managers to depend on in the weeks ahead.

EDGE DEFENDER

Aidan Hutchinson (ED5) has been on a tear to start his sophomore NFL season, earning an 89.8 pass-rush grade, which ranks seventh among edge defenders. He has also totaled 27 pressures (tied for first) and 3.5 sacks. Hutchinson is playing more than 90% of the team’s defensive snaps, making him a locked-in top-12 edge candidate on a weekly basis. This week, he’s going up against the Panthers, who rank 29th in pass-blocking grade (43.5), and Bryce Young, who has a top-10 highest pressure-to-sack conversion rate (22.0%). Hutchinson qualifies as a top-five play in Week 5.

Trey Hendrickson (ED18) has crept up the rankings in recent weeks, having posted a 90.4 pass-rush grade (sixth) and 3.5 sacks through the first four games. Hendrickson draws a matchup against the Cardinals’ 25th-ranked pass-blocking unit this week, but quarterback Josh Dobbs has maintained a strong 13.4% pressure-to-sack conversion rate that keeps Hendricks from moving too high up the rankings. That being said, Hendrickson’s 90.4 pass-rush grade for the year is currently a career-high mark, so he remains in consideration as a strong ED2 option this week.

INTERIOR DEFENDER

Osa Odighizuwa (DI14) has delivered three sacks and earned a 72.4 pass-rush grade (24th) on the year. Odighizuwa draws a positive matchup this week against the 49ers’ interior offensive line, which ranks 31st in pass-blocking grade (28.1). While they’ve allowed only one sack on the year, this remains one of the better matchups for some of the top pass-rushing interior defensive linemen in the league and puts Odighizuwa in play as a high-end DT2 option.

SAFETY

Jalen Pitre (S16) returned to the lineup this past week and played a strong 37.5% of his snaps in the box, overtaking Jimmie Ward (S26), who handled that role in Week 3 when Pitre was out. While Pitre did not deliver strong tackle numbers in his return in Week 4, he should have much better outings going forward, considering his role and history of strong tackle production.

Harrison Smith (S24) is coming off a big IDP performance in Week 4 in which he totaled three sacks. Smith has seen the large majority of snaps in the box among the team’s safeties but, outside of last week, has been unable to deliver consistent fantasy production for his IDP managers. The hope is that this past week’s game is not an outlier and that he can get back on track to deliver for fantasy purposes with his ideal IDP deployment. For now, he remains a low-end S2 option.

CORNERBACK

Jerry Jacobs (CB9) has been among the most targeted cornerbacks in the league and, as a result, has delivered strong fantasy production through the first month of the season. Jacobs draws a Week 5 matchup with the Panthers, who rank fifth in pass rate (69.1%) this season, which should allow him to continue to produce fantasy points.

Taron Johnson (CB17) has started the year slowly, but as the Bills’ primary slot cornerback, he draws a strong matchup this week against the Jaguars. Jacksonville is tied for the most targets to the slot this season, which should allow Johnson to factor in heavily to the action and deliver decent fantasy production.

KEY

• DNP: Did not participate in team's most recent practice due to injury
• LP: Limited participation in team's most recent practice due to injury
• D: Player is doubtful to play due to injury
• Q: Player is questionable to play due to injury
• TNF: Player is playing on Thursday Night Football. Set lineups accordingly.
• SNF: Player is playing on Sunday Night Football. Set lineups accordingly.
• MNF: Player is playing on Monday Night Football. Set lineups accordingly.
• UK: Player is playing on Sunday morning’s London game. Set lineups accordingly.
• WW: Potential waiver-wire target (see Weekly IDP Fantasy Report).