IDP Start-Sit, Studs and Duds: Week 9

The calendar has turned to November. We are into the second half of the fantasy regular season. And while it can be tempting to do so, IDP managers have to be leery of looking too far ahead.

It's understandable to want to take a peek down the road—especially after a hot start. IDP managers cruising along at 6-2 or 7-1 have at least pondered what their league's trophy would look like on the shelf. Sure, the kid's soccer trophy would have to go. But I mean, it was for soccer.

At the other end of the spectrum, there's the group wallowing at 3-5 or worse—some of whom are already peeking ahead all the way to 2027. Sure, they were supposed to go on a cruise next June to celebrate their 20th anniversary. But the Wi-Fi on those ships can be spotty, and you can't do draft prep in a Conga Line.

But IDP managers need to have the laser-sharp focus of the 4-4 clubs with no margin for error. They need to be present in the present. Live in the now. Focus only on the week that's ahead of them.

Because it ain't over until it's over.

Those teams that seem destined for not just a playoff spot but also a first-round bye? Lose two or three games in a row and all of a sudden destiny becomes doubt. Flip the script, and a 3-5 team is .500 after 10 weeks and back in the mix.

The only thing that really matters in Week 9 is getting a win—in Week 9. And IDP Studs and Duds is here to make sure you give the week a big fat k.i.s.s.

Keep it simple, stupid.

Each week during the 2026 season, I'll point out some Individual Defensive Players who could exceed expectations this week (Studs), as well as some that, for whatever reason, are riskier than normal (Duds).

This isn't necessarily to say every "Stud" is a must-start (it depends on your other options) or that every "Dud" should be glued to your bench (just that the odds of a letdown week are greater than usual).

Week 9 is a two-team bye week. The Pittsburgh Steelers and Tennessee Titans aren't playing, so no T.J. Watt or Payton Wilson.

Numbers in parentheses denote ranking in fantasy points allowed to that position in 2026 in The Godfather's Default IDP Scoring. 

IDP Stud of the Week

EDGE Carl Granderson, New Orleans (vs. Cleveland) (1)

After a somewhat slow start to his eighth professional season that saw the 29-year-old manage just one sack over his first three games, Granderson has been on quite a heater of late—1.5 sacks in each of the last three games. Per Grant Chachere of SI, Granderson and batterymate Chase Young have been a bright spot for a Saints defense that has struggled this year.

"Though Young draws much of the spotlight, Carl Granderson is quietly putting together a standout year as well," he wrote. "Across seven contests, the experienced defensive end has registered 25 tackles alongside 5.5 sacks, highlighted by a 1.5-sack effort versus Pittsburgh. Granderson's current trajectory puts him on track for roughly 13 sacks, setting up a potential career mark. Combined, Granderson and Young have racked up 12.5 sacks, forming one of the few reliable highlights for New Orleans' defense."

Granderson isn't just piling up the sacks—he has 14 total tackles and half a dozen quarterback hits over that three-week span. Now, Granderson will take on a Cleveland Browns team that has surrendered a whopping 33 sacks—10 more than any other team. Shedeur Sanders potentially starting for the Browns is just the icing on the cake.

IDP Dud of the Week

LB Devin Lloyd, Carolina (vs. Denver) (31)

Lloyd got $45 million over three seasons to be the leader in the middle of Carolina's defense this year, and over the first month of the 2026 season, no linebacker had more fantasy points. The attaboys rolled in, with edge rusher Jaelan Phillips calling Lloyd the best linebacker he's ever played with while talking to reporters.

"He's a force to be reckoned with, and I've been saying this since OTAs that he's the best football player I've played with," Phillips said. "Truly honored to be on the field with him and just excited to keep seeing what he does, and he just encourages all of us to play better, be better, lifts everybody up around him, and so it's a blessing to be on the same field with him."

However, Lloyd is also a big play-reliant fantasy linebacker, and those have dried up of late—he ranks outside the top-50 linebackers since Week 5. Don't be fooled by Lloyd's LB10 ranking for the season—especially headed into the AFC's worst fantasy matchup for linebackers this year.

Week 9 IDP Studs

EDGE Nik Bonitto, Denver (at Carolina) (2): Bonitto has been cold of late, with just two stops and no sacks over his last two games. He'll heat back up this week against the Panthers—Carolina has allowed 11 sacks over the past two weeks alone.

EDGE Josh Hines-Allen, Jacksonville (at Baltimore) (5): It's been a down year for Hines-Allen—the eighth-year veteran has just two sacks for the season. But the Ravens were a top-five fantasy matchup before all their quarterbacks got hurt, and now they're rolling out an undrafted rookie under center.

EDGE Danielle Hunter, Houston (at LA Chargers) (3): Hunter logged a sack his last time out, but he's still on pace to miss 10 sacks for the first season since 2021. He'll pick that pace up this week against Los Angeles—there isn't much going well for the Chargers in 2026.

LB Devin Bush, Chicago (vs. Tampa Bay) (2): Bush's numbers aren't blowing anyone away, but he's now quietly second on the Bears in tackles and tied for third in sacks ahead of a home tilt with a Tampa Bay Buccaneers team that has apparently decided that forward passes are too gimmicky.

LB Barrett Carter, Cincinnati (at Atlanta) (3): Carter has more or less been what fantasy drafters expected—a higher-end IDP LB3. He should be even more this week on the road against the Falcons—Atlanta is fourth in the league in both rushing yards and rushing attempts this year.

LB Drake Thomas, Seattle (vs. Arizona) (1): IDP managers shouldn't need this column to tell them to start Ernest Jones IV, but Thomas could crack the top-20 in their own right this week. This has the makings of a low-scoring, run-heavy game against a Cardinals team giving up the most fantasy points per game to linebackers in 2026.

S Caleb Downs, Dallas (at Indianapolis) (1): Downs has been inconsistent, but the rookie first-rounder has also shown flashes of the elite talent we saw at Ohio State and Alabama. Now Downs gets the best fantasy matchup in the league for safeties against Danny Nickels (he ain't worth a dime no more) and the Colts.

S Joshua Metellus, Minnesota (vs. Buffalo) (2): Metellus is doing his part in the Twin Cities this year—he's second on the team in tackles and on pace for his third 100-stop season in three years. He's also on a heater with 20 total tackles over the last two weeks, and that will continue Monday night against the Bills.

S Tykee Smith, Tampa Bay (at Chicago) (3): Smith hasn't matched his breakout 2025 this season—the third-year pro barely ranks inside the top-30 safeties for the season. But Smith has a good chance to get going in the Windy City—the Bears are (not surprisingly) an excellent matchup for safeties this season.

Week 9 IDP Duds

EDGE Maxx Crosby, Las Vegas (at San Francisco) (32): Last week against the New York Jets, Crosby logged his first full sack since all the way back in Week 1. Now he travels to take on the San Francisco 49ers, who have allowed an NFL-low seven sacks so far this season.

EDGE Tuli Tuipulotu, Los Angeles Chargers (vs. Houston) (24): Like everything else for the Chargers, Tuipulotu has disappointed—after 13 sacks a season ago, the 24-year-old has managed just three over his first seven games of the season, and it will be an uphill climb to notch No. 4 this week against the Texans.

EDGE Byron Young, Los Angeles Rams (at Washington) (25): Young has been a top-15 fantasy option for the season, but he's coming off a down week and draws a Washington Commanders team in Week 9 that has allowed just 16 sacks and the eighth-fewest fantasy points per game to edge rushers.

LB Akeem Davis-Gaither, Indianapolis (vs. Dallas) (29): The bloom may be coming off the rose with Davis-Gaither's IDP value—he's still wearing the green dot, but with rookie CJ Allen playing more, Davis-Gaither has moved from MIKE to WILL—and tackle numbers have dropped as a result.

LB Christian Elliss, New England (vs. Green Bay) (32): Elliss has been New England's most productive linebacker and sits just outside the top 20 at his position in fantasy points. But to this point in the season it hasn't really mattered who Green Bay starts in the backfield—the Packers can't run the ball.

LB Daiyan Henley, Los Angeles Chargers (vs. Houston) (30): The good news is that Henley is once again leading the Chargers in tackles. The bad news is—everything else. Henley barely has 40 tackles; fewer than half are solos, and this week's matchup with the Texans will likely just be more of the same.

S Cole Bishop, Buffalo (at Minnesota) (27): Bishop has quietly been a bargain for IDP managers this year, ranking inside the top-15 in fantasy points among safeties. But the Vikings aren't exactly giving opposing secondaries nightmares and have surrendered the sixth-fewest fantasy points per game to safeties.

S Kyle Hamilton, Baltimore (vs. Jacksonville) (32): Hamilton has essentially been as advertised this year—he's eighth in fantasy points among safeties at this point in the season. But a down week is coming—no team has given up fewer fantasy points per game to safeties than the Jaguars.

S Quentin Lake, LA Rams (at Washington) (30): Last year it was Kam Curl who blew up in the Rams secondary. This year it has been Lake, who is third in fantasy points among safeties for the year. Lake isn't immune to bad IDP matchups, though—and that's just what he has this week in D.C.

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 @IDPGodfather.

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