It's down to the nitty gritty with a few weeks left -- and just a few Fantasy teams playing each week. Here are some thoughts on players to watch for the upcoming week that could help you on some of your IDP decisions.
Only three other running backs had more carries over the past three weeks than Jamal Lewis' 66. With cold weather on the horizon, the Bills and Browns will both be happier to run than pass. That means the Bills defense should see a lot of Lewis, which spells plenty of tackles for SS Jim Leonhard and LB John DiGiorgio.
Derrick Brooks has re-taken the lead in tackles for the Buccaneers away from Barrett Ruud, and the future Hall-of-Famer goes up against his former Buc (and FSU) teammate RB Warrick Dunn of Atlanta. Strangely, Brooks has only 33 total tackles in his past five games against Atlanta. This Falcons team is in disarray and the offense might not be on the field much, limiting Brooks' chances.
Oakland's Justin Fargas has carried the rock 70 times since Week 12, surpassed only by Willie Parker (73) and LaDainian Tomlinson (73). That should give Indy's SS Bob Sanders more than a few tackle opportunities.
Is this the week that DE Charles Grant finally comes through? He'll face a rookie right tackle in Arizona's Levi Brown, who allowed three sacks to Seattle's Patrick Kerney last week. The rookie wall might help Grant out this week.
Lito Sheppard has 16 career interceptions, seven of which have come against Dallas -- the team he plays Sunday. He also has two INT returns for touchdowns in his career, both came against Dallas.
DE Trent Cole should be in for a tough game against Dallas' Flozell Adams. Cole has 11.5 sacks this season, but Adams is having a career year.
Cincinnati's LB Landon Johnson left Sunday's game against St. Louis twice with ankle problems. But he wasn't on Wednesday's injury report, so he should be able to continue to lead the team in tackles in Week 15 against San Francisco. The Niners will be leaning on the running game and Frank Gore once again.
Let's take a look at the Week 15 outlook for IDP leagues:
Defensive linemen
| WEEK 15 -- BEST SACK MATCHUPS |
| 1. | San Diego vs. Detroit |
| 2. | Tennessee at Kansas City |
| 3. | Tampa Bay vs. Atlanta |
| 4. | Green Bay at St. Louis |
| 5. | New England vs. N.Y. Jets |
DE
Mario Williams has 5.5 sacks in his past four games ... Kerney, one of the best defensive free-agent signings of the past season, has 10 sacks and three forced fumbles in his past five games ...
Aaron Schobel is starting to put up good numbers again, with a sack in each of the past two games.
Week 15 Sleeper pick: Greg White, Tampa Bay (three percent ownership) -- I'm sticking with White for the second straight week. The 2007 Arena League Defensive Player of the Year had two sacks and two forced fumbles against Houston last week. I think rookie
Gaines Adams loses some snaps with the return of
Greg Spires (calf). With
Chris Redman at QB for Atlanta, White could duplicate what he did last week.
Linebackers
| WEEK 15 -- MOST TACKLE CHANCES |
| 1. | N.Y. Jets at New England |
| 2. | Philadelphia at Dallas |
| 3. | St. Louis vs. Green Bay |
| 4. | Oakland vs. Indianapolis |
| 5. | Buffalo at Cleveland |
Rookie LBs Jon Beason and
Patrick Willis still lead their teams in tackles ...
Joey Porter is finally starting to pay off for the Dolphins as one of their big free-agent pickups this offseason. He has two interceptions, a sack and 19 tackles in his past four games ... And former Miami LB
Morlon Greenwood is also excelling. Only nine other LBs have more tackles than Greenwood's 26 over the past four weeks.
Week 15 Sleeper pick: Karlos Dansby, Arizona (41 percent ownership) -- Only a handful of linebackers have played better from a Fantasy standpoint over the past four games. Dansby has a sack, an interception, a forced fumble and 28 tackles from Weeks 11 to 14.
Defensive backs
| WEEK 15 -- BEST INTERCEPTION MATCHUPS |
| 1. | Green Bay at St. Louis |
| 2. | New Orleans vs. Arizona |
| 3. | Minnesota at Chicago |
| 4. | Baltimore at Miami |
| 5. | Tennessee at Kansas City |
CB
Walt Harris has three interceptions in his past two games against Cincinnati ...
Nate Clements continues to impress with two picks and a forced fumble in his past five games. Coming over from Buffalo, it was unclear how well the free agent would do in San Francisco's defense, but he has put up a solid year.
Week 15 Sleeper pick: Marcus Trufant, Seattle (49 percent ownership) -- With four picks and a touchdown in his past three games, it's tough to ignore a guy that's this hot. Plus he'll be facing either
David Carr,
Matt Moore or
Vinny Testaverde.
Here are the top 12 IDP players at each position. These are not lineup rankings for weekly matchups.
| IDP RANKINGS FOR YEARLY LEAGUES |
| Defensive Linemen | Linebackers | Defensive Backs |
1. Jared Allen, KC
2. Aaron Kampman, GB
3. Jason Taylor, MIA
4. Patrick Kerney, SEA
5. Trent Cole, PHI
6. Andre Carter, WAS
7. Osi Umenyiora, NYG
8. Marques Douglas, SF
9. Adewale Ogunleye, CHI
10. Terrell Suggs, BAL
11. Will Smith, NO
12. Darnell Dockett, ARI | 1. Patrick Willis, SF
2. DeMeco Ryans, HOU
3. London Fletcher, WAS
4. David Harris, NYJ
5. Jon Beason, CAR
6. Kirk Morrison, OAK
7. Ray Lewis, BAL
8. Brian Urlacher, CHI
9. Karlos Dansby, ARI
James Harrison, PIT
10. Lofa Tutupu, SEA
11. Mike Vrabel, NE
12. James Harrison, PIT | 1. Sean Jones, CLE
2. Nate Clements, SF
3. Kerry Rhodes, NYJ
4. Leigh Bodden, CLE
5. Antonio Cromartie, SD
6. Terence Newman, DAL
7. Michael Lewis, SF
8. Gibril Wilson, NYG
9. LaRon Landry, WAS
10. Antoine Winfield, MIN
11. Ed Reed, BAL
12. DeAngelo Hall, ATL |
Feel free to send me a question or a comment. Here are a few that you can just clip and paste. "What have you been smoking?" ... "Have you ever seen a football?" ... "You're an idiot -- but who should I start out of these 13 players?" ... "I have a beautiful sister that likes Fantasy dorks, want her phone number?" ... Send your comments, death threats, credit card numbers and beautiful sister's phone numbers to me by clicking on my Columnist page and writing a note through the feedback form.
