Week 3 of fantasy and gaming hit like a nuclear bomb with upsets bringing down the 49ers, Browns, and Raiders.
The Bengals' loss to the Commanders brought down the last remaining contestants. At least Trey Hendrickson made another sack even if the rest of his defense didn't do anything.
Along with Hendrickson, here are a dozen linebackers, defensive linemen, and defensive backs to add to your IDP fantasy team for Week 4.
Be sure to check all of our fantasy football rankings for 2024:- Quarterback fantasy football rankings
- Running back fantasy football rankings
- Wide receiver fantasy football rankings
- Tight end fantasy football rankings
- Kicker fantasy football rankings
- FLEX fantasy football rankings
- Defense (D/ST) fantasy football rankings
- Superflex fantasy football rankings
- IDP fantasy football rankings
- Dynasty fantasy football rankings
Waiver Wire Pickups at Linebacker
Henry To'oTo'o, LB, Houston Texans
Rostered in 40% of Sleeper IDP Leagues
With Christian Harris on IR, Henry To'oTo'o has become a regular starter in Houston. He only made five tackles this week, but he has made 25 tackles on the season and should remain a regular producer.
Troy Andersen, ILB, Atlanta Falcons
Rostered in 34% of Sleeper IDP Leagues
Nate Landman's absence due to a pectoral injury put Andersen in the starting lineup. Playing almost all of the snaps, Andersen made 12 tackles, his first double-digit tackle game of the season. Landman will miss at least the next three games.
Daiyan Henley, ILB, Los Angeles Chargers
Rostered in 17% of Sleeper IDP Leagues
Following the depletion of the Chargers linebacker room in two consecutive offseasons, Daiyan Henley, a Los Angeles native who was drafted in the third round in 2023, is the linebacker to have on the team.
He leads all Chargers linebackers in snaps, tackles, and PFF grade. Against the run-heavy Steelers, Henley made 12 tackles, his first week hitting double digits. For the year, he has made 14 tackles.
Waiver Wire Pickups at Defensive Line
Jaelan Phillips, EDGE, Miami Dolphins
Rostered in 33% of Sleeper IDP Leagues
Phillips has an opportunity to pick up a few sacks and fumble plays against Will Levis and the Tennessee Titans in Week 4. Levis has been sacked 15 times this season and lost a fumble in each of his three starts.
When in trouble, he tends to try to get rid of the ball haphazardly, giving way to opportunities for opposing defensive linemen.
Trey Hendrickson, DE, Cincinnati Bengals
Rostered in 31% of Sleeper IDP Leagues
Hendrickson could be on this list every week. He has simply ascended to the second tier of top pass-rushers after skirting around the edge for a while earlier in his career.
He has made over 10 sacks in three of his past four seasons and three forced fumbles each in his past three seasons. He appears well on his way to another double-digit-sack season with three sacks in his past two games.
His reputation as being "boom-bust" might be holding some back from adding him, hence his relatively low roster rate.
However, he finished last season with half a sack or more in nine straight games, and he has made at least a full sack in 11 of his last 15 games. He's more likely to make a sack a game than miss.
Jonathan Greenard, EDGE, Vikings
Rostered in 10% of Sleeper IDP Leagues
What would Jonathan Greenard look like in a new uniform? We are getting our first looks, and he is looking good.
Well, he didn't look good in Week 1. He put up no tackles and just one QB hit. That might have caused people to turn cold on him after his breakout 2023 season with the Texans.
But in each of the past two weeks, he has made a sack, including three sacks this week against his former team. He is getting pressures, too. PFF credited him with six pressures in Week 2, and he had three official QB hits in Week 3.
Will McDonald IV, DE, New York Jets
Rostered in 6% of Sleeper IDP Leagues
The second-year player had his second straight multi-sack game, making two sacks against the Patriots on Thursday Night Football. McDonald has made strides since his rookie year. He already has 10 total pressures in three games. He had 12 pressures all of last season.
McDonald is critical to the Jets' pass rush, as Jermaine Johnson will likely miss the rest of the season, and there is no word that Haason Reddick will end his holdout anytime soon. McDonald's roster rate is on the rise and will only increase more after waivers run this week.
Nick Herbig, EDGE, Pittsburgh Steelers
Rostered in 0% of Sleeper IDP Leagues
In a previous column, I wrote that if Alex Highsmith or T.J. Watt went down, Nick Herbig would have the potential to produce. That happened this week.
Highsmith left the Steelers' 20-10 win over the Chargers early with a groin injury and didn't return. In his absence, Herbig made three tackles, two of which were sacks, and forced a fumble.
Waiver Wire Pickups at Cornerback and Safety
Nick Cross, CB, Indianapolis Colts
Rostered in 33% of Sleeper IDP Leagues
The Colts as a team rack up a lot of tackles. Last season, they ranked No. 3 in team tackles per game. This season, they are No. 1 by a large margin, averaging 85.7 tackles per game, 11.7 more than the No. 2 Falcons. Last week, the Bears ran 84 plays against the Colts, and in Week 1, the Texans ran 76 plays.
With explosive offensive potential in Anthony Richardson and a below-average defense, they might get into more shootouts as the season continues.
So it's no wonder Colts linebackers like E.J. Speed and Zaire Franklin and defensive backs like Julian Blackmon and Nick Cross put up good numbers in tackle-friendly IDP leagues. Cross has hit double-digit tackles every week this season and leads the league with 39 total tackles.
Jalen Ramsey, CB, Miami Dolphins
Rostered in 10% of Sleeper IDP Leagues
Jalen Ramsey has a shot to make an interception against the Tennessee Titans, whose erratic quarterback, Will Levis, has already thrown five interceptions this season.
Levis has thrown at least one interception and lost one fumble in each of his three games.
Julian Blackmon, S, Indianapolis Colts
Rostered in 9% of Sleeper IDP Leagues
See the entry for Nick Cross. The Colts defense faces a lot of plays, so their players make a lot of tackles. Blackmon made 88 tackles last season and made four interceptions on top of that. He missed Week 2, but in Week 1 and Week 3, he made 13 and seven tackles, respectively.
Tyler Nubin, S, New York Giants
Rostered in 6% of Sleeper IDP Leagues
Through three weeks, Nubin leads all rookies in snaps played, per PFF, and is tied for second in tackles made. His PFF grade is a respectable 65.4, and his missed tackle rate is only 6.3%.
Download Our Free News & Alerts Mobile App
Like what you see? Download our updated fantasy football app for iPhone and Android with 24x7 player news, injury alerts, rankings, starts/sits & more. All free!