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The face of IDP has changed in recent years. With the advent of “True Position” (or some variation thereof), 3-4 rush linebackers like T.J. Watt of the Pittsburgh Steelers are now classified alongside defensive linemen. It was a seismic shift to the IDP landscape.
With that said, one thing has not changed. The scoring in the majority of IDP leagues still favors tackles. And that means that linebackers are the foundation of a successful defensive roster. Their ability to pile up stops makes them both the highest-scoring and most consistent defensive position in fantasy football.
It’s simple, really—build a strong cadre of linebackers, and your IDP team will probably succeed. Draft a group of linebackers that fails to live up to their draft slots, and your fantasy team could be in trouble.
RELATED: See Defensive Linemen Who Will Decide IDP Leagues here >>
“True Position” threw a bit of a wrench into that exercise as well. Granted, quite a few rush linebackers had minimal value with eligibility at that position. But some (like Watt) were still viable IDP assets. The depth at linebacker took a hit.
The changing face of the NFL has also taken a toll. With defenses playing more and more subpackages and more teams featuring three-safety looks, the number of true every-down linebackers who rarely leave the field has decreased. Many linebackers now play under 75 percent of their teams’ snaps. That makes those linebackers who do stay on the field that much more valuable—you can’t make a tackle from the sidelines.
Linebackers are the defining position of IDP—the kings of the format.
And these are the linebackers who (for better or worse) are going to decide leagues in 2024.
Fred Warner, San Francisco
Warner is one of the most consistently excellent linebackers in the NFL—the sixth-year veteran has never had fewer than 118 tackles in a season, and in each of the past three years, Warner has surpassed 130 total stops. As a matter of fact, when Jordan Dajani of CBS Sports compiled rankings of the top 20 off-ball linebackers in the NFL, the 27-year-old Warner topped the list.
“Last year,” he said, “the versatile defender became the only player over the last 25 seasons to record 125 tackles, four interceptions, and four forced fumbles in a season. In all, Warner recorded 132 combined tackles, 2.5 sacks, a career-high 11 passes defensed, four interceptions, and four forced fumbles in 2023, which earned him his third First Team All-Pro nod and third Pro Bowl appearance as well. His coverage ability gives the already-talented 49ers defense some flexibility, and he's proven to be a playmaker at virtually every level of the field. Warner is the best linebacker in the NFL.”
The problem with Warner is that while he’s a fantastic NFL linebacker, it hasn’t always translated into IDP production. Warner’s excellence in coverage costs him tackle opportunities at the line of scrimmage. His 15 percent missed tackle percentage last year tied a career-high. And while his early ADP is inside the top-5 linebackers he has never finished a season that highly in fantasy points and has cracked the top-10 just once.
Azeez Al-Shaair, Houston
Al-Shaair was a trendy breakout pick from many IDP analysts last season (most assuredly including this one—if The Godfather wasn’t driving that bandwagon, he was riding shotgun), and while Al-Shaair’s 84 solo stops weren’t jaw-dropping, he added 79 assists and finished inside the top-15 in fantasy points. Now Al-Shaair is reunited with DeMeco Ryans in Houston, and Ryans told reporters that he expects an even better season from the sixth-year pro in 2024.
“The thing with Azeez that stood out for me last year was his first time getting an opportunity to play full-time as a starter,” Ryans said. “He had been in a backup role when we were there in San Francisco for a while, and he showed that he was capable of running the show and could stay healthy throughout the year. So, he was durable, he was a playmaker, he was physical, he was a leader of that defense. So, excited to add not only Azeez as a player but Azeez as a leader. I think he’s grown as a leader, and I’m excited to work with him again.”
Al-Shaair joins a Texans defense that he knows inside and out already from his time in San Fran with Ryans—a defense that made Blake freaking Cashman a fantasy starter in 2023. If it can do that for a middling talent like Cashman, it can make Al-Shaair a top-10 fantasy asset—especially since, given Al-Shaair’s contract, he’s just about a mortal lock to be the defensive play-caller and an every-down player.
Frankie Luvu, Washington
Full disclosure—Luvu has been one of The Godfather’s favorite NFL players over the past couple of seasons. It’s been a delight to see his emergence and watch him fly around the football field like his hair is on fire. And after watching tape of Luvu (at the behest of former teammate DeAngelo Hall), former Washington great London Fletcher told the Get Up podcast that he’s sold on the 27-year-old, too.
“He said, ‘Fletch, you’re going to love him. You are absolutely going to love him. He is my type of player, he is our type of player.’ He really sets the tone,” Fletcher shared. “Just looking at the tape, him as a blitzer, he was their best pass rusher and best blitzer for the Panthers last year. And that’s one of the elements he brings to this defense. The physical intensity.”
The problem isn’t Luvu. It’s that after signing Luvu, the Commanders also brought in veteran Bobby Wagner, who paced the NFL with 183 total tackles last year and hasn’t had fewer than 138 tackles since all the way back in 2017. Add in the possibility that Luvu is used as a quasi-edge by a Commanders team with legitimate questions at that position, and it isn’t going to be easy for Luvu to justify his asking price after two big years in Carolina.
C.J. Mosley, NY Jets
Mosley’s first season with the Jets was a disaster—nine tackles in two games before a groin injury ended his season. Then, he opted out of the 2020 COVID-19 season. But since then, the 32-year-old has been a machine—three straight seasons with over 150 total tackles. Mosley took a pay cut this offseason to help afford the Jets cap relief, and he told reporters that was an easy decision for him to make.
“It’s not always about the money and the pay cut and all that stuff, but sacrifices come with many different ways when you talk about sacrificing for your team and your teammates. It’s just one small gesture, but it goes a long way. When I say I don’t care about the money when I get on the football field, I just want to win and win with my teammates.”
Mosley is a pro’s pro. He’s been consistently productive over the past three years, topping 95 solos twice. He has missed just a single game over that span. He has two top-10 fantasy finishes over that span and hasn’t finished outside the top 15. And yet Mosley is barely being drafted inside the top 20 at his position. Mosley’s old (by football terms)—not dead. And he’s substantially undervalued.
Lavonte David, Tampa Bay
When I run the Butkus Division draft at the King’s Classic next month, it will be wearing a red David jersey—he’s one of the best linebackers of his generation and a sure-fire Hall of Famer. Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht told reporters that the 13-year veteran is literally the archetype for what Tampa looks for in a player.
"He is the poster child literally for us," stated Licht. "We have a picture of a silhouette in our draft room that says, 'I am that man.' It is the person that we want in a player – the traits, or some of them that we just said – and it does not show his face, but it is Lavonte. He is the one that we look for every year. He is the standard."
However, as great as David’s career has been, his LB16 fantasy finish in 2023 was his best in years—due in part to how excellent David is in coverage (one of the best ever at the position), he has topped 125 total tackles just once since 2015—last year. Like Fred Warner, David is a far better NFL player than IDP option. But people draft the name too early anyway.
Jordan Hicks, Cleveland
The linebacker position in Cleveland has been an injury-riddled revolving door in recent years, but the Browns hope to have stabilized the position with Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and free agent addition Jordan Hicks. Hicks told reporters that he believes the veteran and youngster can shore up the biggest weakness on the NFL’s best defense in 2023.
I’ve seen his game over the years just continue to excel,” Hicks said. “And you watch him, he’s all over the place, right,” he said. “Just his ability to understand how to attack the ball, how to just use his natural ability, his instincts to find the ball. And obviously his speed and strength is out of the God given, something you can’t teach. So excited to get around him. I’m excited to get around the entire group.”
This Browns fan loves Owusu-Koramoah. Perhaps a little too much. But it won’t be even a little surprising when (not if) Hicks out-points JOK in 2024—just as he did in fantasy points per game. There are genuine durability concerns, but Hicks will be calling the plays for a Jim Schwartz defense he knows well (from Philadelphia) that is loaded with talent. LB2 production for an LB4 price tag is exactly the kind of linebacker that decides IDP leagues.
Gary Davenport (“The Godfather of IDP”) is a two-time Fantasy Sports Writers Association Football Writer of the Year. Follow him on Twitter (Can't make him call it X) at @IDPSharks.
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