RADIO
As any manager in an IDP league can tell you, adding defensive players to a fantasy draft changes the math. IDP formats not only require wider knowledge of league-wide rosters, it asks managers to create value systems like the real NFL Draft.
Managers having wildly different value systems are often part of the fun. Is it worth waiting on a No. 3 receiver to get a top linebacker? When should a possible sack leader go off the board? Which defensive rookies will have the most immediate impact?
In one of my IDP leagues, Indianapolis linebacker Zaire Franklin (pick No. 109) became the NFL's tackle leader, outscored all but five tight ends, and proved to be one of the best value picks of the night. Minnesota defensive end Jonathan Greenard (undrafted) finished within a point of No. 43 pick Myles Garrett. Correctly identifying key IDPs can have league-winning effects. Generally speaking, player values are at their lowest — and most unpredictable — before a rookie season. Let’s take a look at some IDPs to know.
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Travis Hunter, CB/WR, Colorado
This is the most fascinating player, rookie or not, in any 2025 IDP draft — but how Hunter is valued will be determined by an extraordinary number of variables. Every NFL team could have a slightly different vision for how to use his talents.
Will he primarily be a receiver who can play cornerback in certain personnel groupings? Or a corner who occasionally plays offense? Or a super-gadget offensive player? Or exclusively a DB with returner potential?
Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter is listed as a cornerback among NFL combine invitees: www.nfl.com/news/full-li...
— Nicole Auerbach (@nauerbach.com) February 13, 2025 at 11:13 AM
Most important will be the way in which your league scores him. If your league opts for the Shohei Ohtani route — scoring him as two different players, one offensive and one defensive — his IDP value is minimal, and managers should use their top DB spot on a safety instead.
But if he’s scored as a super player whose total stats count as one, he'll change the course of IDP drafts.
The possibility of a player who might, say, catch six passes for 100 yards and a touchdown and qualify at defensive back would instantly vault Hunter to the top of the IDP rankings.
Carson Schwesinger, LB, UCLA
IDP leagues tend to be old-fashioned in that a run-stopping linebacker is typically your most valuable defender.
Of all players projected to go in the first two days, that best describes Schwesinger, who led the Big Ten in tackles.
The most reliable IDPs are tackle monsters, and this may be the next generation. Schwesinger had 12 or more tackles a whopping eight times last season, and though he’s unlikely to be the first linebacker selected in the NFL Draft, IDP managers should have their eye on the rookie as a possible late-round gem.
#UCLA LB Carson Schwesinger:
🏈136 tackles (8 1/2 TFL) in lone year as starter
🏈16 pressures, 4 sacks, 2 INT, 2 PBU
🏈Moves like a WR, can cover in slot
🏈Ex-Walk-On
🏈Zero ⭐Recruit... and more NFL Draft underclassmen to know on @theathletic.bsky.social
www.nytimes.com/athletic/605...
— Nick Baumgardner (@nickbaumgardner.bsky.social) January 15, 2025 at 9:12 AM
Nick Emmanwori, S, South Carolina
Some IDP managers hunt interceptions with their DB spot, but interceptions are unpredictable and tough to replicate on a year-to-year basis. Tackles are a better bet, and safeties who can do both — like Arizona’s Budda Baker or Minnesota’s Harrison Smith — have a higher floor and reliably end up near the top of IDP leaderboards.
Emmanwori led the Gamecocks in total tackles and finished 12th in the SEC, which is notable for a defensive back.
This young man is listed at 6'3, 230 and he's got the fluidity and juice to carry No.1 vertically from being in a flat-footed shuffle. And he's a really quick-witted match coverage defender overall.
Nick Emmanwori. My guy. The flag's been planted but now I'm making everyone hear me.
— daltonbmiller.bsky.social (@daltonbmiller.bsky.social) December 4, 2024 at 7:26 AM
While proven commodities like Baker or Pittsburgh’s Minkah Fitzpatrick will be among the first wave of DBs to go off the board, Emmanwori will be a significantly cheaper option worthy of late-round consideration.
Jihaad Campbell, LB, Alabama
Campbell piled up 117 tackles last season, but he’s much more versatile than just a see-ball, get-ball linebacker.
Alabama LB Jihaad Campbell is a stud.
-Oozes explosiveness and a hot motor
-Fluid athlete who changes directions well
-Coverage ability to carry vertical, match underneath, and IQ to squat on peripheral routes
-SAM versatility to come off the edge (5 sacks in 2024)— Cory Kinnan (@daftondraft.football) December 23, 2024 at 4:44 PM
He is likely a first-round talent due to his talent as a pass rusher — he had five sacks last year — and, depending on the team that drafts him, could blossom into a hybrid defender who is capable of a steady tackle floor with sack potential.
The defensive coordinator with whom he’s paired will matter greatly, but a good fit could make him worth an IDP league draft pick.
Smael Mondon Jr., LB, Georgia
An all-star game standout, Mondon certainly classifies as a deep sleeper who could have value.
Among all prospects in the 2025 draft, Mondon is a sneaky candidate to go higher than the general public may think. Beyond his floor of being an immediate impact special teamer, he showed legitimate sideline-to-sideline range as a run defender at the Senior Bowl.
He won’t be a bet-the-farm, can’t-miss prospect, but he very well could find his way into a starting role if the right team selects him. And for IDP managers, he’s likely to be available at no cost.
Abdul Carter, Edge, Penn State
The obvious (and, frankly, kinda lazy) comparisons to Micah Parsons wrote themselves. He went to Penn State, wore No. 11, and wrecked a lot of offensive gameplans. He’s a surefire top-10 pick who an NFL team will bet on to turn into a premier pass rusher.
Now, the disclaimer: It depends on how your league scores sacks. If your league heavily rewards big plays and defensive linemen tend to score as highly as linebackers, Carter should be your top IDP prospect in this rookie class.
Every one-on-one pass rep between Minnesota OT Aireontae Ersery (#69) and Penn State Edge Abdul Carter (#11)
— Nate Tice (@natetice.bsky.social) February 11, 2025 at 6:34 PM
If linemen typically score lower than players who record higher volumes of tackles, Carter could be an exciting, late-round alternative to a more experienced pass rusher.
Malaki Starks, S, Georgia
IDP leagues like do-it-all safeties and Starks should immediately challenge for a starting role on an NFL team for that very reason.
An All-American, Starks led Georgia in tackles in 2024 and was a menace in the SEC championship game in which the Bulldogs held Texas to 31 yards rushing. As a pro, Starks has the capacity to be one of his team’s most valuable run defenders.
Georgia’s Malaki Starks is such a high IQ football player. Sees this screen coming pre-snap and he triggers downhill instantly.
Starks was 10th in the SEC in coverage stops among DBs last season (10).
— Bobby Football (@robpaul.bsky.social) February 14, 2025 at 7:11 PM
A big-time tackler at the DB position is valuable, and Starks could be just that at the pro level.
Xavier Watts, S, Notre Dame
Watching tape on the Irish, No. 0 was unavoidable. One of the most seasoned players in the draft, Watts projects to be a day-one starter in just about any defense.
This play pops into my head everytime I see Xavier Watts
The awareness/headiness + athleticism knowing he’s going to be out of bounds, and trying to get this ball to a teammate for the INT
— Anthony (game script enthusiast) (@proant.bsky.social) December 20, 2024 at 9:15 PM
A consensus All-American, he’s the best ballhawk in the draft — he had six interceptions, 10 more passes defended, and a touchdown last season — who also piled up 82 tackles.
For the likely cost of a late-round IDP draft pick, he’s well worth the price of admission.
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