RADIO
The offenses are waking up, even on Thursday nights. That means harder times for team defenses, especially in leagues where points scored against are factored. Fortunately, IDP players can benefit from seeing the opposing offense on the field over and over again. More tackles mean more points, after all. Linebackers dominate the top 20 as usual but there are some rising stars to keep an eye on in the secondary to be found a bit further down, as we look forward to Week 5.
Dedicated fantasy football players know that the game isn't played on offense alone. While team defenses are a staple of the game, being able to identify value with individual defensive players (IDP) takes it to the next level. As we do with each position and every league type, RotoBaller has you covered when it comes to IDP. Expert analysts Pierre Camus and Justin Carter will bring you their top 100 consensus IDP rankings throughout the 2019 season, so check here for the latest weekly updates.
Players are classified by major position group (DL, LB, DB) to simplify things for you. We've also tiered these rankings to give you an idea of relative importance and will analyze a few key players to watch. Check out our rankings page for the offensive players right here.
Editor's Note: Our incredible team of writers received five total writing awards and 13 award nominations by the Fantasy Sports Writers Association, tops in the industry! Congrats to all the award winners and nominees including Best NFL Series, MLB Series, NBA Writer, PGA Writer and Player Notes writer of the year. Be sure to follow their analysis, rankings and advice all year long, and win big with RotoBaller! Read More!
Top 100 Individual Defensive Players - Week 5
| Tier | Rank | Player Name | Position |
| 1 | 1 | Cory Littleton | LB |
| 1 | 2 | Luke Kuechly | LB |
| 1 | 3 | Bobby Wagner | LB |
| 1 | 4 | Blake Martinez | LB |
| 1 | 5 | Joe Schobert | LB |
| 2 | 6 | Devin Bush | LB |
| 2 | 7 | John Johnson | DB |
| 2 | 8 | Jordan Hicks | LB |
| 2 | 9 | Leighton Vander Esch | LB |
| 2 | 10 | Lavonte David | LB |
| 2 | 11 | Deion Jones | LB |
| 2 | 12 | Khalil Mack | LB |
| 3 | 13 | Harrison Smith | DB |
| 3 | 14 | J.J. Watt | DL |
| 3 | 15 | Shaq Thompson | LB |
| 3 | 16 | Jaylon Smith | LB |
| 3 | 17 | Tremaine Edmunds | LB |
| 3 | 18 | Zach Cunningham | LB |
| 3 | 19 | Danielle Hunter | DL |
| 3 | 20 | Landon Collins | DB |
| 3 | 21 | Myles Garrett | DL |
| 3 | 22 | Shaquil Barrett | LB |
| 3 | 23 | Jamie Collins | LB |
| 3 | 24 | Vonn Bell | DB |
| 4 | 25 | Darius Leonard | LB |
| 4 | 26 | Joey Bosa | DL |
| 4 | 27 | Budda Baker | DB |
| 4 | 28 | Shawn Williams | DB |
| 4 | 29 | Jordan Poyer | DB |
| 4 | 30 | Demario Davis | LB |
| 4 | 31 | Danny Trevathan | LB |
| 4 | 32 | Calais Campbell | DL |
| 4 | 33 | Roquan Smith | LB |
| 5 | 34 | Eric Kendricks | LB |
| 5 | 35 | Jabrill Peppers | DB |
| 5 | 36 | Jayon Brown | LB |
| 5 | 37 | Aaron Donald | DL |
| 5 | 38 | Kwon Alexander | LB |
| 5 | 39 | Jamal Adams | DB |
| 5 | 40 | Justin Reid | DB |
| 5 | 41 | Patrick Onwuasor | LB |
| 5 | 42 | Thomas Davis | LB |
| 5 | 43 | Ronnie Harrison | DB |
| 5 | 44 | Terrell Edmunds | DB |
| 5 | 45 | Cameron Jordan | DL |
| 5 | 46 | Antoine Bethea | DB |
| 5 | 47 | Quincy Williams | LB |
| 6 | 48 | Anthony Walker | DB |
| 6 | 49 | Jessie Bates III | DB |
| 6 | 50 | Todd Davis | LB |
| 6 | 51 | Sam Hubbard | DL |
| 6 | 52 | Kyle Fuller | DB |
| 6 | 53 | Hasean Clinton-Dix | DB |
| 6 | 54 | Myles Jack | LB |
| 6 | 55 | Matt Milano | LB |
| 6 | 56 | Darnell Savage | DB |
| 6 | 57 | Carlos Dunlap | DL |
| 6 | 58 | Fred Warner | LB |
| 6 | 59 | Minkah Fitzpatrick | DB |
| 6 | 60 | Demarcus Lawrence | DL |
| 7 | 61 | Kevin Byard | DB |
| 7 | 62 | Cameron Heyward | DL |
| 7 | 63 | Haason Reddick | LB |
| 7 | 64 | Jordan Whitehead | DB |
| 7 | 65 | Anthony Hitchens | LB |
| 7 | 66 | Chris Jones | DL |
| 7 | 67 | Neville Hewitt | LB |
| 7 | 68 | Whitney Mercilus | LB |
| 7 | 69 | Montae Nicholson | DB |
| 7 | 70 | Johnathan Joseph | DB |
| 7 | 71 | Devin White | LB |
| 7 | 72 | Jonathan Joseph | DB |
| 7 | 73 | Jadeveon Clowney | DL |
| 7 | 74 | Tahir Whitehead | LB |
| 7 | 75 | Everson Griffen | DL |
| 7 | 76 | Bradley McDougald | DB |
| 7 | 77 | Eric Weddle | DB |
| 7 | 78 | Kendall Fuller | DB |
| 8 | 79 | Chandler Jones | LB |
| 8 | 80 | Khari Willis | DB |
| 8 | 81 | Clayton Geathers | DB |
| 8 | 82 | Stephon Gilmore | DB |
| 8 | 83 | Kyle Van Noy | LB |
| 8 | 84 | Mark Barron | LB |
| 8 | 85 | Rashaan Evans | LB |
| 8 | 86 | DeForest Buckner | DL |
| 8 | 87 | Dre Kirkpatrick | DB |
| 8 | 88 | C.J. Mosley | LB |
| 8 | 89 | T.J. Watt | LB |
| 8 | 90 | Devin McCourty | DB |
| 8 | 91 | De'Vondre Campbell | LB |
| 8 | 92 | Justin Simmons | DB |
| 8 | 93 | Robert Quinn | DL |
| 8 | 94 | Nick Vigil | LB |
| 8 | 95 | Stephon Tuitt | DL |
| 8 | 96 | Tyrann Mathieu | DB |
| 8 | 97 | Adrian Amos | DB |
| 8 | 98 | Benardrick McKinney | LB |
| 8 | 99 | Frank Clark | DL |
| 8 | 100 | Mario Addison | DL |
Key Players to Watch
Jordan Hicks (LB, ARI) @Cincinnati
Hicks has recorded eight solo tackles in three different games, with a low of five in Week 3, adding up to a total of 28 on the year. He ranks third in the league behind only linebacker Blake Martinez and safety Tracy Walker, who is on a bye. Aside from the fact he's as much a high-floor play as you can get, he figures to be a solid season-long replacement for Darius Leonard owners who are likely frustrated playing the waiting game. A matchup with Cincinnati is too good to pass up this week, so get Hicks in your lineup wherever possible.
Roquan Smith (LB, CHI) @Oakland
After missing last week due to personal issues, Smith is back in action. The Raiders will have their hands full trying to ward off a motivated Khalil Mack, who faces the team that somehow decided it was a good idea to trade him before the start of last year. The Raiders haven't given up too many sacks on the year (eight) but Smith could sneak one in aside from racking up tackles as the team doubles Mack.
Jessie Bates III (S, CIN) vs Arizona
Facing the Air Raid could again be a defender's delight, as it was for Tracy Walker, Donte Jackson, and Shaq Griffin. Arizona runs the eighth-most plays per game (67) and Kyler Murray is airing it out 42.3 times per game. Shawn Williams is questionable with a knee injury, so it could fall to Bates to be the playmaker. He recorded three INT in his rookie year along with seven passes defended. His 20 tackles leave him one behind teammate Williams and puts him in the top 30 overall. Williams will also be a solid play if healthy but Bates might be the smarter pick this week.
Vonn Bell (S, NO) vs Tampa Bay
We know Jameis Winston's propensity to throw interceptions could return at any time, despite how effective he was last week. More importantly, Bell is tied for ninth among all DBs with 21 solo tackles. He's facing a team that runs the sixth-most plays per game and will push the ball downfield to its receivers rather than settling for dump-offs to running backs. Bell could be busy all afternoon with the chance to make a big play very likely.
Devin McCourty (S, NE) @Washington
It's tempting to say the McCourty can't record an interception in every single game this season as he has so far. Then again, he's facing the Redskins. We don't even know who will be at QB in Washington and apparently neither does Jay Gruden. The worst-case scenario here is that McCourty records another five-tackle game with a pass or two defended. For deeper IDP leagues, he's a high-upside streamer.
Jerry Hughes (DE, BUF) @ Tennessee
Finding a pass-rusher you can trust is getting harder and harder. Rule changes in the NFL protecting the quarterback undoubtedly have made an impact, as well as the increasing number of holding penalties we have seen. 14 teams haven't even reached the 10-sack mark yet and Buffalo is one of them, despite their excellent defense that has allowed the sixth-fewest points and third-fewest yards on the season. Maybe Hughes can get them going this week as they face the Titans, who have allowed 17 sacks, sixth-most in the league.
Check out all of RotoBaller's fantasy football rankings. Staff rankings are updated regularly for all positions and include standard formats, PPR scoring, tiered rankings and dynasty leagues.
