IDP Draft Blueprint: The Godfather's Step-By-Step Guide

Playing in an individual defensive player (IDP) league adds a whole new level of strategy and fun to fantasy football. But it can also be intimidating for fantasy managers unfamiliar with the format. On some level, that's understandable--they aren't sure when to take defensive players, and no manager wants to be the one who's left with a crippling deficiency on offense because they jumped the gun on IDPs. Or the team that waits too long to address the IDPs and winds up with a defense that looks like the 1981 Baltimore Colts.

They allowed over 33 points per game on the way to a 2-14 record.

Just as in "standard" fantasy leagues, balance and value are the keys to a successful IDP draft. Knowing the optimal time to target each position on both sides of the ball. Getting players in spots where they have a good chance of outperforming their draft day price tag.

Fill a roster with players like that (preferably on both sides of the ball, and it's jackpot time.

Of course, if that were easy, every manager would do it every draft. No two IDP drafts are the same. Generally speaking, the elite IDPs in a fairly standard setup with tackle-heavy scoring featuring a couple of starters on the defensive line, at linebacker, and defensive back (with maybe a flex spot or two thrown in) will come off the board somewhere between Round 4 and Round 6. Scoring and roster requirements can change that significantly, though, and it only takes a manager or two to hit defense early and spur the first big run on IDPs (more on that in a bit). As important as balance and value are in IDP drafts, flexibility is equally vital.

Still, there is a blueprint of sorts that can be useful in IDP drafts. By dividing the draft into sections and approaching each one with a plan for which positions to address, fantasy managers can assemble a defensive unit that is more than capable of contending for the postseason—without neglecting the offense to a detrimental extent.

Could the flow of a draft force adjustments to this blueprint? Oh yeah. No two drafts are the same, and the other managers in leagues seem to relish screwing up even the best-laid plans. Some people.

Scoring and lineup requirements matter as well—the more IDPs a league starts and the higher those defensive players score, the more managers will have to accelerate addressing defensive players.

Still, in one of those "standard" IDP formats we mentioned, follow this blueprint, and even if this is your first IDP draft ever, you should come out of draft day in good shape.

At least, that's what I keep telling myself.

IDP Draft Blueprint Step 1: Getting Offensive (Rounds 1-6)

It can be tempting to target an elite IDP—to anchor your defensive squad with a defensive star like Indianapolis Colts linebacker Zaire Franklin or Cleveland Browns edge rusher Myles Garrett. Assuming they stay on the field, both are good bets to be productive fantasy assets in 2025.

However, you don't need to be the first manager to draft an IDP. Or the second. Or the third. You don't have to be a trend-setter on defense to put together a competitive fantasy roster. With that said, there is one thing IDP managers do need to do.

A round or two after a handful of elite IDPs have trickled off the board, the first big run on linebackers will take place. Unless your league starts a large number of IDPs or the scoring favors defense (almost) as much as offense, it likely won't happen this early. In the Huddle IDP Expert League (a long-standing industry league with a fairly vanilla IDP setup), the first IDP (Roquan Smith of the Baltimore Ravens) came off the board last year at 6.02. Five linebackers were drafted in the following round.

Do not get "Frozen" out of that run.

OK, that was just mean. I'm sorry.

Not really.

Linebackers are the bedrock of success in IDP leagues, and with more teams playing three-safety looks or running more dime sets, the number of true every-down linebackers has diminished. In most leagues, IDP managers will go as far as their linebackers take them. If you are picking at the front of Round 5 and a handful of linebackers have already been drafted, it's a good idea to seriously consider taking one.

Like, for realsies.

Generally speaking, though, the early rounds of the draft should be about hitting the offensive side of the ball. Whether you plan to go "Zero RB," "Hero RB," "Robust RB," or some other VBD-related strategy, spend the first half-dozen or so rounds on offense. Get dependable running backs. Load up on wide receivers. Draft a high-end tight end or quarterback. And then buckle up—because IDP time is coming.

IDP Target: LB Zack Baun, Philadelphia (Rounds 5-6)

After spending most of his career in New Orleans as a part-time edge rusher, Baun moved to off-ball linebacker last year with the Eagles and thrived--151 total tackles, 3.5 sacks and the most fantasy points of any linebacker in the NFC in The Godfather's Default IDP Scoring. Baun isn't going to come cheaply, but given the questions around him at linebacker in Philadelphia, another 150-plus tackle season is a real possibility.

IDP Draft Blueprint Step 2: Lining Up Linebackers (Rounds 7-12)

OK, the time has come to address the defense. It doesn't necessarily have to be with the first pick in this section of the draft. Draft flow plays a significant role in that—IDP managers need to let the value come to them. But it may well be that seventh-rounder that's the first defensive pick (ala The Huddle IDP League a year ago), but what's important here is accomplishing three things.

That's right, three—using half your picks in this portion of the draft on IDPs isn't a bad idea.

The most important goal is to lock down two of those every-down linebackers who were mentioned earlier. Linebackers aren't just the highest-scoring defensive players in most IDP leagues--they are the most consistent thanks to the all the tackles they pile up each and every week. Linebackers are the foundation of IDP lineups, and in leagues with four-plus starters (any "flex" spots should be linebackers where possible), having an every-down guy in each spot can give managers a nice edge.

The second is to procure one high-end starter on the defensive line. The advent of "True Position" and the inclusion of 3-4 rush linebackers with 4-3 defensive ends has deepened the available pool at the position greatly—what used to be IDP's shallowest position now offers some solid later-round values. But there's still something to be said for having one starter you can roll out every week without a second thought.

IDP Target: LB Jamien Sherwood, NY Jets (Round 9-10)

All Sherwood did in his first season as the "green dot" linebacker for the Jets last year was pile up 158 total tackles, lead the league with 98 solos, and finish his fourth season as LB9. The Jets saw enough to give the 25-year-old a bag of cash, but Sherwood is regularly being selected outside the top-10. Fantasy managers looking for a stacked linebacker corps or who want to target an elite edge rusher should absolutely have him on their radar.

IDP Target: EDGE Maxx Crosby, Las Vegas (Rounds 8-9)

Crosby missed five games last year, and the lack of a proven edge rusher at the opposite end of the line is a legitimate concern. But that injury may get IDP managers a slight discount on Crosby in drafts, and in both 2022 and 2023, the seventh-year veteran was an absolute monster--two years with at least 89 tackles and 12.5 sacks. Those tackle numbers give Crosby an IDP floor that can be hard to come by on the defensive line.

IDP Draft Blueprint Step 3: Master the Middle (Rounds 13-18)

This is the point in IDP drafts where things can get dicey for novices—in large part because, where many standard drafts are wrapping up here, most IDP leagues are only halfway home. Draft-day fatigue can set in. But this is also the area of the draft where some of the biggest values can be had if IDP managers are willing to be flexible.