RADIO
If you look up “league winner” in the fantasy dictionary, you’ll see a picture of Marcus Jones. The Patriots' rookie cornerback (not to be confused with their two other corners, Jack Jones and Jonathan Jones) is the IDP version of Taysom Hill. He’s scored touchdowns as a punt returner and a wide receiver, too. Now he has scored his first defensive touchdown by taking a poorly thrown Joe Burrow pass 69 yards to the house.
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Jones is no longer a speculative player. As long as Jack Jones (knee) is still injured next week, Marcus Jones will start on defense, and Marcus is a must-start. If Jack Jones comes back, it is less clear. PFF states that he has been terrible in pass coverage, allowing 65.6% of passes to be caught and 91.7% last week, so Bill Belichick might want to put the better coverage corner back in. That would limit Jones’ tackling ability and make him a low volume TD-or-bust Taysom type.
You have to add him just in case and consider these nine others.
6-Starter Leagues
Marcus Jones, CB/WR, New England Patriots - Rostered in ~0% of Sleeper Leagues
I remarked upon Jones in the intro. He scored 44 fantasy points in the RotoBaller Standard IDP scoring system. Forty-four. He made fourteen combined tackles, twelve of them solo.
Logan Wilson, LB, Cincinnati Bengals - Rostered in ~50% of Sleeper Leagues
Wilson’s explosive rookie season made him one of the hottest breakout candidates in 2022 IDP fantasy football, but he ended up on the waiver wire in many shallow leagues after a shaky start and a midseason injury. But he’s back to balling consistently. The Wyoming product has scored 10 or more RotoBaller Standard IDP points in five straight games and 20 or more in three straight games. He has made 40 solo tackles, the ninth-most, since Week 10. Against New England this past week, he made nine tackles, one sack, and a fumble recovery.
Rashaan Evans, Atlanta Falcons - Rostered in ~50% of Sleeper Leagues
Week 16 was an off-day for the fourth-year man from Alabama. He only made six combined tackles, ending a streak of six straight double-digit tackle games. Evans is No. 6 in the league for tackles on the season, and while he only has two sacks and one forced fumble, he is valuable in leagues with tackle-heavy scoring formats (less so in leagues that use RotoBaller Standard).
DaRon Bland, CB, Dallas Cowboys - Rostered in ~0% of Sleeper Leagues
Facing hated division foes, Bland continued his streak of interception excellence. He has taken the ball away from opposing quarterbacks in three of the past four games and made five pass breakups during that time span. He has also made five or more tackles in each of the past five games. Bland is one interception behind C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Tariq Woolen for the season-long interception lead.
Darrick Forrest, S, Washington Commanders - Rostered in ~0% of Sleeper Leagues
And Darrick Forrest, who added another interception against the 49ers, is one interception behind Bland. He continues to play every snap, as he has for each of the past six games.
11-Starter Leagues
Azeez Ojulari, OLB, New York Giants - Rostered in ~20% of MFL Leagues
Since returning from a calf injury that cost him Weeks 5-12, Ojulari has overtaken Jihad Ward in the Giants’ rotation and made a sack in each game he’s been back. He had 5.5 sacks in six games on the season, as well as seven QB hits, nine solo tackles, three forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery. Unfortunately, he had to leave Week 16’s loss to the Vikings early with an ankle injury. He says he is optimistic that he can play in Week 17, but you’ll have to monitor the Giants’ practice report. If he can’t go, Jihad Ward becomes a streaming option.
John Cominsky, DE, Detroit Lions - Rostered in ~0% of MFL Leagues
He has played 70% or more of Detroit’s defensive snaps every week since Week 10. In that time, he has been one of the best pass rushers at getting to the quarterback and disrupting him. PFF says he ranks tenth in QB hits since Week 13. Officially, he is credited with eight QB hits since Week 11. He was only able to turn two of those into sacks, but you’ll get one point for each of those hits, and he might convert sacks at a higher rate in the future.
Fletcher Cox, DT, Philadelphia Eagles - Rostered in ~40% of MFL Leagues
Cox has made 3.0 sacks in the past five games and 6.0 sacks on the season. He has put ten hits on QBs unfortunate enough to line up opposite the Eagles' defensive line. Jordan Davis (head) was ruled out of the game against the Cowboys. Cox still gets enough play in the rotation when Davis is healthy, but he might be on the field even more in Week 17 if Davis is out.
Jack Gibbens, LB, Tennessee Titans - Rostered in ~0% of MFL Leagues
With Zach Cunningham (elbow) and Bud Dupree (chest) both leaving the game, the rookie Gibbens was put in and played 72% of the snaps. He made eight combined tackles, an interception, and a pass defense.
Deommodore Lenoir, S, San Francisco 49ers - Rostered in ~0% of MFL Leagues
For each of the past two games, Lenoir has been one of the Niners’ leading tacklers. He has 15 solo tackles in the past two and 24 in the past five, along with three pass breakups and one interception. The 23-year-old has played 81% of San Fran’s defensive snaps, compared with 29% his rookie year, and he could make an impact in deep tackle-heavy leagues.
Cameron Sutton, CB, Pittsburgh Steelers - Rostered in ~0% of MFL Leagues
Sutton is tied with Patrick Peterson and Tariq Woolen for the fourth-most pass defenses. He also has three interceptions, fewer than Woolen and Peterson but more than pass defense leaders Sauce Gardner and James Bradberry. Worse, Sutton has only 38 combined tackles, while most of the other top cornerbacks in this conversation have made 53 or more. Some leagues give bonuses to cornerbacks for pass defenses and picks in order to pass the position. Sutton could be viable in such leagues.
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