IDP The Guru and The Godfather: Week 10

John Norton ("The Guru") and Gary Davenport ("The Godfather of IDP") are two of the most experienced and knowledgeable IDP analysts in the fantasy football industry.

And as we roll into Week 10, they are in the same boat as so many of you—trying to keep the train on the tracks.

Yeah. That's not good.

Injuries. Underperforming Zaire Franklins (not bitter at all about that). Bad beats. All have combined to leave many an IDP squad teetering on the brink.

The Guru and the Godfather are here to balance things out again—and set IDP managers back on course for the fantasy playoffs.

Surprise Stars

As is the case every year, a number of IDPs have come from nowhere to become viable weekly starters. If you had the benefit of 20/20 hindsight and a golden ticket that entitled you to claim any of those waiver wire wonders from the 2025 season, who would be your king of the scrapheap?

Guru: There are several strong candidates for this crown. My first reaction was to go with Eric Wilson, but after some thought, I'll roll with Barrett Carter. The guy is a tackling machine with at least eight stops in each of his four starts since replacing Logan Wilson. Granted, some of his success comes from the Bengals being so bad. On the other hand, Barrett has been somewhat of a silver lining. He's making most of the plays that he should and is clearly an NFL starting linebacker from a talent perspective. The team is committed to him after trading Logan Wilson, and there is no place to go but up for this defense. There will be a new defensive scheme and hopefully (if you're a Bengals fan) a completely different coaching staff in place for 2026. As it stands, Carter will be the focal point of it.

Godfather: Here we go. One question in, and the Guru is already stealing my guys. It's been that kind of week.

Carter (and Wilson, for that matter) are both good calls. But they aren't the only linebackers who have risen from obscurity to relevance—or even stardom. The loss of Fred Warner was a massive blow to both the San Francisco 49ers and IDP managers alike. But folks who were able to scoop Tatum Bethune off the waiver wire haven't missed a beat. Over the past month, Bethune has tallied a whopping 50 total tackles, logging at least 10 each and every week. Over that span, the 24-year-old has been a top-five fantasy option at his position in The Godfather's Default IDP Scoring.

As good as Carter has been for the Bengals, Bethune has been even better—at least from an IDP perspective.

Holding the Line

Let's get to winning some games in Week 10. Which under-the-radar defensive lineman is in position to wreck their opponent this week? Which prominent D-lineman is just going to be a wreck?

Guru: The Browns have been looking for someone to step up opposite Myles Garrett for a long time. Alex Wright is showing signs of becoming that guy. His playing time is on the rise with two fewer snaps than Garrett last week. Wright has at least four stops in each of the past four games, adding a pair of sacks and a forced fumble. This week, he gets a matchup with a Jets offense that has surrendered 20 sacks over the last four games and is in disarray at the quarterback position. Not to mention the somber mood that likely comes after trading away a couple of their best players.    

Harold Landry III of the Patriots is in a slump. He's put five solos and two assists in the tackle columns over the last four games and has not sniffed a quarterback since week seven. Now he gets a Buccaneers squad that is rested coming out of the bye, and has been rather stingy to edge defenders all year. Since week four, the edge position has averaged fewer than three solo stops, just over four assists, and 1.2 sacks against them. Many of us with Landry don't have the option to sit him, and he is unlikely to be a total bust, but expectations are low. 

Godfather: The Tennessee Titans are off in Week 10, so we can't just pick whatever edge-rusher is about to make Cam Ward cry. The Titans lead the league with 38 sacks allowed, but somewhat surprisingly, the 7-2 New England Patriots aren't far behind with 34. Tampa Bay Buccaneers edge-rusher Yaya Diaby hasn't had the season some IDP managers hoped, but the third-year pro has 10 total tackles and three sacks over his last three games. That hot streak continues in Week 10.

No quarterback in the NFC has been sacked fewer times this season than Sam Darnold of the Seattle Seahawks, who has been dropped just nine times in eight contests. Arizona Cardinals edge-rusher Josh Sweat is coming off a two-sack game against the Dallas Cowboys, and the 28-year-old is on pace to shatter his career-high in sacks. But Sweat's tackle numbers have been low (17 stops), and his odds of getting to Darnold just aren't good.

Linebacker Lineup