Summer has turned to winter. The days are short and cold. The nights are long and even colder. Christmas has come and gone, and in less than a week we will ring in a new year. As we do so we bid goodbye to the 2016 fantasy football campaign.
In fact, in many leagues the season is already over. Week 16 brought with it Championship Week. The final battle has been waged. A victor has been crowned.
Some IDP leagues, however, run all the way through Week 17. There’s still one all-important contest to go – a game for all the marbles. Win and you are a champion. Lose and in many respects everything that came before was for nothing.
Whether you’re planning for this week’s final matchup or just not quite ready to say goodbye to fantasy football for the year just yet, there’s something for you in this final edition of IDP Nation in 2016. I’ll be getting to the players I like (and don’t like) just as I have every week this season – but before I do, let’s put a bow on the season that was and hand out some (imaginary) hardware with the 2016 IDP Nation Awards.
DEFENSIVE LINEMEN
THE MVP: Khalil Mack – DE, Oakland Raiders: It’s fitting that in a season lost to injury for J.J. Watt of the Houston Texans that Mack would slide right in behind him as the No. 1 defensive lineman. Mack started the season slow, but an eight-game stretch with at least one sack in October and November helped spur Mack to the top finish up front by a wide margin. It’s no longer just Watt’s world – Mack has staked a claim to being the first IDP drafted in 2017.
THE STEAL: Danielle Hunter – DE, Minnesota Vikings: I beat the drum pretty hard for Hunter over the summer, but I’ll freely admit I didn’t expect the 22-year-old to finish second among defensive linemen. Despite playing only about half of Minnesota’s defensive snaps for much of the year, Hunter topped 50 tackles and added 12 sacks. That sort of production for the price of a DL3 is the kind of value that wins IDP leagues.
THE BUST: Muhammad Wilkerson – DE, New York Jets: There were any number of defensive linemen who disappointed in 2016, largely due to injury. But among the high-end options entering the year who didn’t miss significant time, it’s hard to single out a bigger bust than Wilkerson. After getting his big contract MoMo’s sack production fell off a cliff in 2016 – from 12 a season ago to 3.5 in 2016 – his lowest total since his rookie season in 2011.
LINEBACKERS
THE MVP: Kwon Alexander – ILB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers: IDP owners who spent a high pick on Lavonte David over the summer were half right, anyway. Right team, wrong linebacker. Alexander managed to avoid the suspension that ruined the end of his rookie season and took a big step forward in Year 2. His 102 solo tackles lead the NFL after 16 weeks, and no linebacker has posted more fantasy points this season.
THE STEAL: http://www.nbcsports.com/edge/player/NFL/8300/Zach-BrownZach Brown – ILB, Buffalo Bills: For much of the offseason there was no guarantee that Brown would even start for the Bills. Reggie Ragland’s season-ending injury opened a door for Brown, and he charged through it. His numbers tailed off a bit late in the season, but for much of the year Brown led both the NFL in tackles and all IDP linebackers in fantasy points. He still leads all AFC linebackers in both categories.
THE BUST: D’Qwell Jackson – ILB, Indianapolis Colts: I’m normally loathe to penalize players for getting hurt. Injuries are beyond their control. But when a player creates his own absence by getting himself suspended that’s another story altogether. Spending the end of the season watching the Colts miss the playoffs is a fitting end to Jackson’s 2016. After leading the AFC in stops in both 2014 and 2015 the 33-year-old’s level of play fell way off this year, and he’ll finish the season well outside the top 50 linebackers in fantasy points.
DEFENSIVE BACKS
THE MVP: Landon Collins – S, New York Giants: If there was a defensive back entering 2016 who appeared to have the perfect situation to post huge numbers, Collins was the guy – a stout tackler playing behind a suspect group of linebackers. But Collins has surpassed my wildest expectations. The second-year pro doesn’t just lead all defensive backs in both tackles and fantasy points – he’s the top IDP overall in most scoring systems through 16 weeks.
THE STEAL: Kurt Coleman – S, Carolina Panthers: I’ll freely admit I was wrong about Coleman in 2016. I thought his sixth-place finish last season was a fluke year – the kind common to defensive backs. And over the first half of the season at least I appeared to be spot-on. From Week 11 on, however, it was a different story entirely. No defensive back in fantasy football has more points over that span, and as things stand right now Coleman has actually bettered his finish from a year ago.
THE BUST: Corey Graham – S, Buffalo Bills: This may seem a bit harsh, especially since a late surge has thrust Graham inside the top 30 fantasy defensive backs this season. But after a 96-solo 2015 campaign Graham has spent more time in center field this year. The 10th-year veteran has only 80 total stops in 2016, and Graham has 40 fewer solos this year than last. Not what IDP owners who drafted Graham as a DB1 were hoping for.
GUYS I LIKE IN WEEK 17
Calais Campbell – DE, Arizona Cardinals (at LA): The Redbirds may have disappointed in 2016 but Campbell hasn’t. He remains one of the more underrated 3-4 defensive ends in football, largely because he’s never had a double-digit sack season.
Kony Ealy – DE, Carolina Panthers (at TB): Ealy didn’t take the step forward in 2016 that many expected after his huge game in Super Bowl 50. But the youngster draws a top-five fantasy matchup with the Buccaneers to close things out.
William Hayes – DE, Los Angeles Rams (vs. AZ): It’s been a miserable season for the Rams and their defensive line, but that miserable season ends against a Cardinals team allowing the most fantasy points to the position.
Jerrell Freeman – ILB, Chicago Bears (at MIN): Freeman’s four-game suspension was a real bummer, but he returned last week, just in time to help fantasy owners hopefully win a title. No team in the NFC has allowed more fantasy points to linebackers than the Vikings.
http://www.nbcsports.com/edge/player/NFL/3366/C.J.-MosleyC.J. Mosley – ILB, Baltimore Ravens (at CIN): Having either Mosley or Zachary Orr in starting lineups in Week 17 is most assuredly a good thing. The Ravens close against the Bengals, who have been a gold mine for linebackers in the season’s second half.
Paul Posluszny – ILB, Jacksonville Jaguars (at IND): It’s entirely possible this will be Posluszny’s final game in a Jaguars uniform. He’ll make it a good one against a Colts squad giving up the most fantasy points to linebackers in 2016.
Kurt Coleman - S, Carolina Panthers (at TB): Coleman’s second-half surge has been keyed in large part by a string of excellent matchups. That string has one more left in it.
T.J. McDonald – S, Los Angeles Rams (vs. AZ): The Cardinals have been an exercise in extremes in IDP leagues this season. IDP-wise they’ve been a horrible matchup for linebackers – but for defensive backs it’s been a much different story.
Keanu Neal – S, Atlanta Falcons (vs. NO): The Falcons still have plenty to play for Sunday as they attempt to earn a first-round bye against a Saints team that has given up the most fantasy points to defensive backs this year.
GUYS I DON’T LIKE IN WEEK 17
Carlos Dunlap – DE, Cincinnati Bengals (vs. BAL): If you’re still playing and have Dunlap odds are you’re starting him. But the Ravens aren’t an especially good DL matchup, and Dunlap has only two sacks since Week 7, even if one came against the Ravens back in Week 12.
David Irving – DE, Dallas Cowboys (at PHI): Irving’s been on quite the tear of late for the Cowboys, but it’s unknown who will play how many snaps in a meaningless game against an Eagles team that’s 29th in fantasy points allowed to defensive linemen.
Cameron Wake – DE, Miami Dolphins (vs. NE): Wake has a strong case for Comeback Player of the Year honors in 2016. But there’s no guarantee he’ll even play in this bad matchup given that Miami is locked into the No. 6 seed.
Alec Ogletree – ILB, Los Angeles Rams (vs. AZ): Ask Sean Lee’s fantasy owners what can happen when your star linebacker draws a rotten matchup. And in 2016 fantasy matchups don’t get any worse for the position than the Arizona Cardinals.
http://www.nbcsports.com/edge/player/NFL/4152/Joe-ThomasJoe Thomas – ILB, Green Bay Packers (at DET): That lousy matchup that cost many Lee owners a championship came last Sunday night against the Lions. This game may have huge NFL stakes, but IDP-wise it draws more winces than oohs and aahs.
Tahir Whitehead – ILB, Detroit Lions (vs. GB): Whitehead’s been all over the place of late – good in bad matchups and bad in good ones. He’s a hard player to trust against the Packers, who have been a poor IDP matchup all season long.
Jahleel Addae – S, San Diego Chargers (vs. KC): The Chiefs still have a chance to both win the AFC West and earn a first-round bye. But that isn’t going to suddenly make Kansas City a good matchup in the secondary.
Sean Davis – S, Pittsburgh Steelers (vs. CLE): The Steelers may rest some starters Sunday, but that isn’t the reason I’m down on Davis in Week 16. No, it’s for the same reason it’s been for any DB facing the Browns – the Cleveland offense really rather sucks.
D.J. Swearinger – S, Arizona Cardinals (at LA): With Tony Jefferson out for the season with a shoulder injury Swearinger will spend more time in the box in this game. It’s just too bad it couldn’t come in a better fantasy matchup.
And with that, IDP Nation is finished – at least where the 2016 campaign is concerned. It’s my hope that you had at least half the fun reading my work at Rotoworld this season as I had writing it, and that the information contained within helped you enjoy some measure of success in your IDP leagues.
It’s been a true pleasure – one that I hope to have the honor of partaking in again next year.
