IDP Green Dot Update: Week 6

In IDP leagues, no position is more important than linebacker—the reality is that in most leagues, if you don't have a strong group of linebackers, you're done. Roasted. All over but the crying. Linebackers are usually the highest-scoring and most consistent defensive players in fantasy. By a wide margin.

The reason for that is tackles. Linebackers who rack up big-time tackle numbers have both a high fantasy ceiling and a high floor. And while talent is, of course, a factor in which linebackers pile up gaudy numbers of stops, there's another major consideration—opportunity.

The key to opportunity for most linebackers is simply being on the field. Snaps. It's hard to tackle a guy from the sideline—unless you are Mike Tomlin.

That joke stays in this column for eternity. Forever.

The problem is that in this day of nickel sets as the base defense, the age of three off-ball linebackers on the field most of the time is long since over. As a matter of fact, with many NFL teams playing either more dime or three-safety looks, there are quite a few situations in which just one off-ball linebacker is on the field for a team.

Often, that lone linebacker is wearing a sticker on his helmet—the green dot that signifies that the player is wearing the helmet communicator on defense and making the defensive play calls. That player very rarely leaves the field, and while teams sometimes use a safety in that capacity, the overwhelming majority of NFL teams give that assignment to a linebacker.

As the number of every-down linebackers decreases each year, identifying the green dot linebackers is valuable information for IDP managers. To provide those managers with that information, once again in 2025 at Footballguys, we'll be maintaining an updated list of both who is wearing the green dot for all 32 NFL teams and who the other three-down linebackers are.

There will also be notes to keep fantasy managers apprised as to why any changes to the list happened--whether due to injury or performance, the dot can (and will) change hands.

It's Week 6 of the 2025 campaign, and the NFL's three-down linebackers have been thrown into a blender relative to the start of the season. Injuries continue to mount. Teams are moving the green dot around in an effort to improve defensive performance. And at least one three-down linebacker was abruptly shown the door this week.

The NFL comes at you fast.

It comes at IDP managers just as rapidly, and between banged-up players and bye weeks, folks need to know which linebackers will be staying on the field in Week 6.

You know what that means.

Table time.

Note: Here at Footballguys, we set the benchmark for three-down linebackers at a 75 percent snap share. Linebackers listed with an asterisk (*) may not hit that benchmark on a weekly basis this season.

Notes

Baltimore Ravens

The Ravens have been absolutely eviscerated by injuries of late. With Roquan Smith and safety Kyle Hamilton sidelined last week against the Houston Texans, youngster Teddye Buchanan was thrown to the wolves and assumed play-calling duties. The rookie played 100 percent of the snaps and paced the team with 15 tackles, while Trenton Simpson played all but four snaps and had 10 stops and a sack. Hamilton should be back Sunday against the Rams, but both Buchanan and Simpson (while Smith is sidelined) are firmly on the IDP radar.

Buffalo Bills