Fantasy Football: Week 9 IDP Rankings & Tiers

• A great week to start Rashan Gary: Gary’s dominant pass-rush metrics combined with his regular workload and positive matchup make him one of the top bets among edge rushers this week.

• A favorable matchup for the Seattle IDPs: Bobby Wagner, Jordyn Brooks and Jamal Adams are all in line for strong fantasy performances against the Baltimore Ravens this week.

• 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: 13 minutes

With bye weeks and injuries beginning to test the depth of fantasy football rosters, checking in on weekly rankings to find all the players to target and avoid each week becomes all the more crucial.

Check the PFF.com rankings page for any updates closer to game time.

Jump to a Position:

LB | ED | DI | S | CB

LINEBACKER

RANK	TIER	NAME	TEAM	OPP	NOTES
1	1A	Bobby Wagner	SEA	@ BLT
2	1A	Roquan Smith	BLT	SEA
3	1A	T.J. Edwards	CHI	@ NO
4	1A	Frankie Luvu	CAR	IND
5	1B	Bobby Okereke	NYG	@ LV
6	1B	Lavonte David	TB	@ HST
7	1B	Kyzir White	ARZ	@ CLV
8	1B	Quincy Williams	NYJ	LAC	MNF
9	1C	Shaquille Leonard	IND	@ CAR
10	1C	Jordyn Brooks	SEA	@ BLT
11	1C	Quay Walker	GB	LAR
12	1C	Jordan Hicks	MIN	@ ATL
13	2A	Terrel Bernard	BUF	@ CIN	SNF
14	2A	Jack Sanborn	CHI	@ NO	WW
15	2A	C.J. Mosley	NYJ	LAC	MNF
16	2A	Logan Wilson	CIN	BUF	SNF
17	2B	Drue Tranquill	KC	MIA	GER
18	2B	Patrick Queen	BLT	SEA
19	2B	Christian Rozeboom	LAR	@ GB
20	2B	Azeez Al-Shaair	TEN	@ PIT	TNF
21	2C	Devin White	TB	@ HST
22	2C	E.J. Speed	IND	@ CAR
23	2C	Kenneth Murray Jr.	LAC	@ NYJ	Q/MNF
24	2C	Blake Cashman	HST	TB
25	3A	Robert Spillane	LV	NYG
26	3A	De'Vondre Campbell	GB	LAR	WW
27	3A	Cole Holcomb	PIT	TEN	TNF
28	3A	Germaine Pratt	CIN	BUF	SNF
29	3B	Nate Landman	ATL	MIN
30	3B	Jamin Davis	WAS	@ NE
31	3B	Eric Kendricks	LAC	@ NYJ	Q/MNF
32	3B	Jerome Baker	MIA	@ KC	GER
33	3C	Damone Clark	DAL	@ PHI
34	3C	Kaden Elliss	ATL	MIN
35	3C	Jack Gibbens	TEN	@ PIT	TNF
36	3C	Pete Werner	NO	CHI
37	4A	Demario Davis	NO	CHI
38	4A	Zach Cunningham	PHI	DAL
39	4A	Nakobe Dean	PHI	DAL
40	4A	Josh Woods	ARZ	@ CLV
41	4B	David Long Jr.	MIA	@ KC	GER
42	4B	Ja'Whaun Bentley	NE	WAS	Q
43	4B	David Mayo	WAS	@ NE
44	4B	Tyrel Dodson	BUF	@ CIN	SNF
45	4C	Markquese Bell	DAL	@ PHI	WW
46	4C	Micah McFadden	NYG	@ LV
47	4C	Willie Gay	KC	MIA	Q/GER
48	4C	Leo Chenal	KC	MIA	WW/GER
49	5A	Anthony Walker Jr.	CLV	ARZ
50	5A	Denzel Perryman	HST	TB
51	5A	Henry To'oTo'o	HST	TB
52	5A	Elandon Roberts	PIT	TEN	TNF
53	5B	Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah	CLV	ARZ
54	5B	Jaylon Smith	LV	NYG
55	5B	Kwon Alexander	PIT	TEN	TNF
56	5B	Deion Jones	CAR	IND
57	5C	Ivan Pace Jr.	MIN	@ ATL
58	5C	Sione Takitaki	CLV	ARZ
59	5C	Nicholas Morrow	PHI	DAL
60	5C	Amari Burney	LV	NYG	WW

Bobby Wagner (LB2) and Jordyn Brooks (LB10) have been especially effective this season, with both players ranking inside the top 10 at their positions in tackle efficiency (minimum of 50% of snaps). It has helped to play on the most zone-heavy defense in the league. Brooks ranks fifth in tackle efficiency (16.2%) and is doing so on an average of just 79% of defensive snaps. The Seattle Seahawks‘ linebackers draw the top matchup of the week in terms of teams that yield the most tackles per game to the position — the Ravens (19.6) — which should allow this duo to continue being among the most efficient in the league.

Jack Sanborn (LB14) is likely to take on a full-time role this week as Tremaine Edmunds deals with a knee injury that is expected to sideline him for at least one game. Sanborn was one of the more efficient linebackers in the league last season when he took over a starting role in this Chicago Bears defense, and he draws a favorable matchup against the Saints this week to keep that going. In 2022, Sanborn delivered a very high 17.8% tackle efficiency and continues to deliver over expectations in a limited role this season at a 16.0% efficiency clip. The Saints are giving up 18.9 tackles per game to the linebacker position, which is the seventh most in the league.

Blake Cashman (LB23) emerged as the Houston Texans‘ top linebacker in snaps in Week 8 amid an entirely healthy corps of options for the team. This, unfortunately, caused both Denzel Perryman (LB50) and Henry To’oTo’o (LB51) to split the secondary linebacker snaps, with both playing just under half of the team’s defensive snaps. Perryman was still an effective IDP last week, but his usage isn’t worth relying on consistently if his role remains the same. For now, Cashman is the lone Texans linebacker to start in most IDP leagues in a slightly below-average matchup for the position going against Tampa Bay.

EDGE DEFENDER

RANK	TIER	NAME	TEAM	OPP	NOTES
1	1A	Maxx Crosby	LV	NYG
2	1A	Myles Garrett	CLV	ARZ
3	1A	T.J. Watt	PIT	TEN	TNF
4	1A	Danielle Hunter	MIN	@ ATL
5	1B	Micah Parsons	DAL	@ PHI
6	1B	Rashan Gary	GB	LAR
7	1B	Haason Reddick	PHI	DAL
8	1B	Kayvon Thibodeaux	NYG	@ LV
9	1C	Trey Hendrickson	CIN	BUF	SNF
10	1C	Carl Granderson	NO	CHI
11	1C	Brian Burns	CAR	IND
12	1C	Alex Highsmith	PIT	TEN	TNF
13	2A	Joey Bosa	LAC	@ NYJ	MNF
14	2A	Jaelan Phillips	MIA	@ KC	GER
15	2A	Josh Sweat	PHI	DAL
16	2A	Preston Smith	GB	LAR
17	2B	Kwity Paye	IND	@ CAR
18	2B	Harold Landry III	TEN	@ PIT	TNF
19	2B	Montez Sweat	CHI	@ NO
20	2B	Jermaine Johnson	NYJ	LAC	MNF
21	2C	Denico Autry	TEN	@ PIT	TNF
22	2C	Sam Hubbard	CIN	BUF	SNF
23	2C	DeMarcus Lawrence	DAL	@ PHI
24	2C	Khalil Mack	LAC	@ NYJ	MNF
25	3A	Za'Darius Smith	CLV	ARZ	Q
26	3A	Greg Rousseau	BUF	@ CIN	SNF
27	3A	George Karlaftis	KC	MIA	GER
28	3A	Bradley Chubb	MIA	@ KC	GER
29	3B	Odafe Oweh	BLT	SEA
30	3B	Darrell Taylor	SEA	@ BLT
31	3B	Byron Young	LAR	@ GB
32	3B	Jonathan Greenard	HST	TB
33	3C	Samson Ebukam	IND	@ CAR
34	3C	Will Anderson Jr.	HST	TB
35	3C	Cameron Jordan	NO	CHI
36	3C	Boye Mafe	SEA	@ BLT
37	4A	Michael Hoecht	LAR	@ GB
38	4A	Ogbo Okoronkwo	CLV	ARZ
39	4A	Shaquil Barrett	TB	@ HST
40	4A	Mike Danna	KC	MIA	GER
41	4B	Tuli Tuipuloto	LAC	@ NYJ	MNF
42	4B	Yannick Ngakoue	CHI	@ NO
43	4B	Charles Omenihu	KC	MIA	GER
44	4B	Leonard Floyd	BUF	@ CIN	SNF
45	4C	Anfernee Jennings	NE	WAS
46	4C	Andrew Van Ginkel	MIA	@ KC	GER
47	4C	Dayo Odeyingbo	IND	@ CAR
48	4C	Kyle Van Noy	BLT	SEA
49	5A	Bryce Huff	NYJ	LAC	MNF
50	5A	Von Miller	BUF	@ CIN	SNF
51	5A	Cameron Thomas	ARZ	@ CLV
52	5A	Arden Key	TEN	@ PIT	TNF
53	5B	Jadeveon Clowney	BLT	SEA
54	5B	Josh Uche	NE	WAS	Q
55	5B	Brandon Graham	PHI	DAL
56	5B	Zaven Collins	ARZ	@ CLV
57	5C	Bud Dupree	ATL	MIN
58	5C	Joe Tryon-Shoyinka	TB	@ HST
59	5C	Tyree Wilson	LV	NYG
60	5C	Lorenzo Carter	ATL	MIN

Coming out of the team’s Week 6 bye week, Rashan Gary (ED6) has been relatively quiet in the box score after a hot start to the year. Gary is coming off one of the tougher matchups in the league for pass-rushers in Week 8 against Minnesota but draws a favorable matchup this week against the Los Angeles Rams, who rank 30th in team pass-blocking grade (47.8) and could potentially be without starting quarterback Matthew Stafford. Gary ranks 10th among edge defenders in pass-rush grade (82.8), second in pass-rush win rate (25.2%) and second in pressure rate (22.1%), putting him in a great position to deliver a strong IDP performance.

The Commanders traded Montez Sweat (ED19) to the Bears at the NFL’s trade deadline, which will have him in line to play his first game with his new team this Sunday in New Orleans. Sweat has delivered in terms of sacks so far this season (6.5) but could potentially be overproducing in that regard, as he ranks just 49th at his position in pass-rush grade (67.2) and leads the position in clean-up and unblocked pressures (13). Playing on a top-end defensive line certainly helped Sweat, but he now joins one of the worst defensive lines in the league, so he may not get nearly as many of those clean-up opportunities. The Saints do have the eighth-worst pass-blocking unit in the league this season, so there is at least one positive for Sweat heading into Week 9.

INTERIOR DEFENDER

RANK	TIER	NAME	TEAM	OPP	NOTES
1	1A	DeForest Buckner	IND	@ CAR
2	1A	Jeffery Simmons	TEN	@ PIT	Q/TNF
3	1A	Chris Jones	KC	MIA	GER
4	1A	Quinnen Williams	NYJ	LAC	MNF
5	1B	Aaron Donald	LAR	@ GB
6	1B	Christian Wilkins	MIA	@ KC	GER
7	1B	Dexter Lawrence	NYG	@ LV
8	1B	Jonathan Allen	WAS	@ NE
9	1C	Derrick Brown	CAR	IND
10	1C	Harrison Phillips	MIN	@ ATL
11	1C	Leonard Williams	SEA	@ BLT
12	1C	Justin Madubuike	BLT	SEA
13	2A	Jalen Carter	PHI	DAL	Q
14	2A	Ed Oliver	BUF	@ CIN	SNF
15	2A	Christian Barmore	NE	WAS
16	2A	Cameron Heyward	PIT	TEN	WW/TNF
17	2B	David Onyemata	ATL	MIN
18	2B	Osa Odighizuwa	DAL	@ PHI
19	2B	Daron Payne	WAS	@ NE
20	2B	Dre'Mont Jones	SEA	@ BLT
21	2C	Kenny Clark	GB	LAR
22	2C	Zach Sieler	MIA	@ KC	GER
23	2C	DJ Reader	CIN	BUF	SNF
24	2C	Jarran Reed	SEA	@ BLT
25	3A	Larry Ogunjobi	PIT	TEN	TNF
26	3A	B.J. Hill	CIN	BUF	SNF
27	3A	Maliek Collins	HST	TB
28	3A	A'Shawn Robinson	NYG	@ LV
29	3B	Dalvin Tomlinson	CLV	ARZ
30	3B	Vita Vea	TB	@ HST	Q
31	3B	Fletcher Cox	PHI	DAL
32	3B	Andrew Billings	CHI	@ NO
33	3C	Nathan Shepherd	NYJ	LAC	MNF
34	3C	Devonte Wyatt	GB	LAR
35	3C	DaQuan Jones	BUF	@ CIN	SNF
36	3C	Calijah Kancey	TB	@ HST

Harrison Phillips (DT10) has been one of the most effective defensive tackles for IDP leagues this season, in large part because of his ability to rack up tackles. He currently leads his position with 45 total tackles on the year, and he has also added two sacks. Phillips draws a great matchup to continue making tackles. The Atlanta Falcons have allowed the fifth-most tackles to the defensive line position this season.

SAFETY

RANK	TIER	NAME	TEAM	OPP	NOTES
1	1A	Derwin James Jr.	LAC	@ NYJ	MNF
2	1A	Kamren Curl	WAS	@ NE
3	1A	Budda Baker	ARZ	@ CLV
4	1A	Camryn Bynum	MIN	@ ATL
5	1B	Dax Hill	CIN	BUF	SNF
6	1B	Jevon Holland	MIA	@ KC	Q/GER
7	1B	Grant Delpit	CLV	ARZ
8	1B	Kyle Dugger	NE	WAS
9	1C	Reed Blankenship	PHI	DAL
10	1C	Julian Blackmon	IND	@ CAR
11	1C	Harrison Smith	MIN	@ ATL
12	1C	Jamal Adams	SEA	@ BLT
13	2A	Antoine Winfield Jr.	TB	@ HST
14	2A	Justin Reid	KC	MIA	GER
15	2A	Jayron Kearse	DAL	@ PHI
16	2A	Kyle Hamilton	BLT	SEA
17	2B	Kevin Byard	PHI	DAL
18	2B	Rudy Ford	GB	LAR
19	2B	Jessie Bates III	ATL	MIN
20	2B	Jordan Poyer	BUF	@ CIN	SNF
21	2C	Jabrill Peppers	NE	WAS
22	2C	Jalen Pitre	HST	TB
23	2C	Richie Grant	ATL	MIN
24	2C	Jalen Thompson	ARZ	@ CLV
25	3A	Xavier McKinney	NYG	@ LV
26	3A	Josh Metellus	MIN	@ ATL
27	3A	Xavier Woods	CAR	IND
28	3A	Jordan Fuller	LAR	@ GB
29	3B	Ryan Neal	TB	@ HST
30	3B	Tre'von Moehrig	LV	NYG
31	3B	Elijah Hicks	CHI	@ NO
32	3B	Julian Love	SEA	@ BLT
33	3C	Keanu Neal	PIT	TEN	WW/TNF
34	3C	Tyrann Mathieu	NO	CHI
35	3C	Amani Hooker	TEN	@ PIT	TNF
36	3C	Jordan Whitehead	NYJ	LAC	MNF
37	4A	Marcus Maye	NO	CHI
38	4A	Nick Scott	CIN	BUF	SNF
39	4A	Sam Franklin Jr.	CAR	IND
40	4A	Jimmie Ward	HST	TB
41	4B	Marcus Williams	BLT	SEA	Q
42	4B	DeShon Elliott	MIA	@ KC	GER
43	4B	Jason Pinnock	NYG	@ LV
44	4B	Donovan Wilson	DAL	@ PHI
45	4C	Micah Hyde	BUF	@ CIN	SNF
46	4C	Eddie Jackson	CHI	@ NO
47	4C	Jonathan Owens	GB	LAR
48	4C	Quandre Diggs	SEA	@ BLT
49	5A	Marcus Epps	LV	NYG
50	5A	Tony Adams	NYJ	LAC	MNF
51	5A	Mike Edwards	KC	MIA	GER
52	5A	Percy Butler	WAS	@ NE	Q
53	5B	Elijah Molden	TEN	@ PIT	WW/TNF
54	5B	Rodney Thomas II	IND	@ CAR
55	5B	Russ Yeast	LAR	@ GB
56	5B	Damontae Kazee	PIT	TEN	WW/TNF
57	5C	Malik Hooker	DAL	@ PHI
58	5C	Alohi Gilman	LAC	@ NYJ	MNF
59	5C	Bryan Cook	KC	MIA	GER
60	5C	Juan Thornhill	CLV	ARZ

Jamal Adams (S13) played just 81% of his team’s defensive snaps this past week but is still getting ideal IDP usage, with only 17.5% of those snaps coming from a deep alignment. He spends the rest of his time closer to the line of scrimmage and even gets a few opportunities per game to rush the passer. Against the Ravens, who are giving up the second-most tackles to the safety position this season, expect Adams to deliver a productive day in the box score, even if he doesn’t play a true full-time workload.

Justin Reid (S15) also draws a favorable matchup against the Miami Dolphins in Germany, as Miami has given up the fifth-most tackles per game to the safety position this season. Reid is the Kansas City Chiefs‘ lone every-down safety and has lined up in the box on a strong 38% of his snaps this season. Reid has had some up-and-down games this year but should be in a position to have one of his better performances of the season this week.

CORNERBACK

RANK	TIER	NAME	TEAM	OPP	NOTES
1	1A	Kenny Moore II	IND	@ CAR
2	1A	Kader Kohou	MIA	@ KC	GER
3	1A	Cam Taylor-Britt	CIN	BUF	SNF
4	1A	D.J. Reed	NYJ	LAC	MNF
5	1B	Nate Hobbs	LV	NYG
6	1B	DaRon Bland	DAL	@ PHI
7	1B	Taron Johnson	BUF	@ CIN	SNF
8	1B	Jamel Dean	TB	@ HST
9	1C	Trent McDuffie	KC	MIA	GER
10	1C	Marshon Lattimore	NO	CHI
11	1C	Devon Witherspoon	SEA	@ BLT
12	1C	L'Jarius Sneed	KC	MIA	GER
13	2A	Sauce Gardner	NYJ	LAC	MNF
14	2A	Carlton Davis III	TB	@ HST
15	2A	Tyrique Stevenson	CHI	@ NO
16	2A	Xavien Howard	MIA	@ KC	Q/GER
17	2B	Jaire Alexander	GB	LAR
18	2B	Kyler Gordon	CHI	@ NO
19	2B	Brandon Stephens	BLT	SEA
20	2B	Paulson Adebo	NO	CHI
21	2C	Benjamin St. Juste	WAS	@ NE
22	2C	A.J. Terrell	ATL	MIN
23	2C	Darius Slay	PHI	DAL
24	2C	Amik Robertson	LV	NYG
25	3A	Michael Davis	LAC	@ NYJ	MNF
26	3A	Levi Wallace	PIT	TEN	Q/TNF
27	3A	Jalen Ramsey	MIA	@ KC	GER
28	3A	Rasul Douglas	BUF	@ CIN	SNF
29	3B	Akayleb Evans	MIN	@ ATL
30	3B	Marco Wilson	ARZ	@ CLV
31	3B	Christian Benford	BUF	@ CIN	SNF
32	3B	Roger McCreary	TEN	@ PIT	Q/TNF
33	3C	James Bradberry	PHI	DAL
34	3C	Asante Samuel Jr.	LAC	@ NYJ	MNF
35	3C	Kendall Fuller	WAS	@ NE
36	3C	Stephon Gilmore	DAL	@ PHI
37	4A	Deonte Banks	NYG	@ LV
38	4A	Tavierre Thomas	HST	TB
39	4A	Byron Murphy Jr.	MIN	@ ATL
40	4A	Jaylon Johnson	CHI	@ NO
41	4B	Patrick Peterson	PIT	TEN	TNF
42	4B	Sean Murphy-Bunting	TEN	@ PIT	TNF
43	4B	CJ Henderson	CAR	IND
44	4B	Alontae Taylor	NO	CHI
45	4C	Marlon Humphrey	BLT	SEA
46	4C	Tariq Woolen	SEA	@ BLT
47	4C	Derion Kendrick	LAR	@ GB
48	4C	Denzel Ward	CLV	ARZ

Cam Taylor-Britt (CB3) has been an efficient tackler at cornerback and has even come up with two interceptions, allowing him to be among the top-scoring cornerbacks in IDP leagues this year. Taylor-Britt faces the Buffalo Bills on Sunday night, a team that is giving up the second-most tackles to the cornerback position (15.8) this season. He is also the Bengals' most targeted defensive back (36) this season and should see plenty of looks his way to create more opportunities for IDP production this week.

D.J. Reed (CB4) returned to the New York Jets‘ lineup in Week 8, and while he didn’t have the most productive game, he’s still been a strong IDP option overall. Reed is averaging six tackles per game and draws a matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers, who are allowing the most tackles to the cornerback position this season (16.1). Reed has been the most efficient tackler of the Jets' cornerbacks and should see plenty of volume against the eighth-most pass-heavy team in the league this week.

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.
GER: Player is playing on Sunday morning’s Germany game. Set lineups accordingly.
WW: Potential waiver-wire target (see Weekly IDP Fantasy Report).