Week 5 IDP Hits

By Matt Schauf 10:45am EDT 10/9/22

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I’ve been tracking the playing time for Lions rookie LB Malcolm Rodriguez since he opened the year in the starting lineup. It quickly jumped from 60% in the opener into the 70s but has stayed short of 80% each of the 3 games since.

Rodriguez has delivered solid tackle numbers despite that relative limitation, though. He ranks 24th among LBs in total tackles, despite tying for just 41st at the position in total snaps.

My hesitation to start him in Week 4 because of the playing-time limitation (and thus missing out on an 11-tackle game) got me wondering just how many LBs are actually playing 80+% of their team’s snaps so far.

Well, here’s the list …

C.J. Mosley – 100%
Logan Wilson – 100%
Foye Oluokun – 100%
Zaire Franklin – 100%
Christian Kirksey – 100%
De’Vondre Campbell – 100%
Roquan Smith – 100%
Nicholas Morrow – 100%
Demario Davis – 100%
Devin White – 100%
Lavonte David – 100%
Fred Warner – 100%
Dre Greenlaw – 100%
Bobby Wagner – 99.6%
Mykal Walker – 99.6%
Jordyn Brooks – 99.3%
Divine Deablo – 98.5%
Eric Kendricks – 98.2%
Cole Holcomb – 97.7%
Tremaine Edmunds – 97.4%
Matt Milano – 97.4%
Patrick Queen – 97.2%
Devin Lloyd – 97%
Rashaan Evans – 96.3%
Kamu Grugier-Hill – 96.3%
Nick Bolton – 96.3%
Jerome Baker – 96.3%
T.J. Edwards – 96.1%
Tae Crowder – 96%
Alex Anzalone – 95.5%
David Long – 95.4%
Zaven Collins – 93.2%
Frankie Luvu – 93%
Bobby Okereke – 91.5%
Myles Jack – 90%
Micah Parsons – 87.8%
Leighton Vander-Esch – 87.8%
Cody Barton – 87.2%
Jordan Hicks – 87.1%
Pete Werner – 85.1%
Willie Gay Jr. – 84.1%
Jamin Davis – 80.9%
Ja’Whaun Bentley – 80.6%
Shaq Thompson – 80.5%
Drue Tranquill – 80.2%

That’s 45 total non-edge LBs who have played at least 80% of their team’s defensive snaps so far (in games played). Of those, 35 have played at least 90%. That’s fewer than 3 LBs per roster in a 12-team IDP league.

The evolving defensive landscape has commonly left no more than 1 “full time” non-edge LB per team. And some teams don’t even employ 1 LB throughout every defensive package.

That adds value to the LBs who do stay on the field through everything. But it also adds value to players like Rodriguez and Pete Werner, who are putting up numbers on snap shares that would have made them risky to trust not that long ago.

Now let’s get to some further playing-time notes …

• Packers rookie LB Quay Walker looks poised to join that group. He has played 85% and 86% of snaps the past 2 games after overcoming a Week 1 shoulder injury.
• Chargers LB Drue Tranquill played every snap in the Week 4 win at Houston. His other 3 games have checked in at just 60%, 84% and 78%, though. We’ll have to treat him as more of an 80% player than 100% until the elevated share becomes a trend.
• Jets LB Kwon Alexander played 92% of snaps last week in Quincy Williams’ absence. He’s a lower-level IDP option against the Dolphins today.
• Raiders LB Divine Deablo has likely benefited from Denzel Perryman missing a lot of time. Perryman went down with an ankle sprain in Week 1. He returned last week but left early with a concussion. Perryman is expected to play today. The Raiders have also this week signed Blake Martinez to the active roster, from the practice squad. It’s tough to know how much playing time we can expect from all involved, given that we have yet to see all these guys play together in a game.
• Playing time has climbed for Steelers LB Devin Bush the past 2 weeks. He went from 51% and 46% in the 1st 2 games to 76% and then 83%. The first of those came against a run-favoring Cleveland offense. The 2nd came in a game where Pittsburgh lost “box” safety Terrell Edmunds early. So it’s tough to know whether the elevated playing time is a trend or situation-driven. Bush remains a shaky IDP play vs. the Bills in Week 5.
• Seahawks LB Cody Barton looks like a solid IDP bet for his playing time listed above. But his snap share fell to 62% last week. Perhaps that was just a 1-game blip. But Barton has graded terribly in both run defense and pass coverage, according to Pro Football Focus. So don’t be surprised if Barton’s role is changing, amid a defense that needs to fix its issues quickly. Try not to use Barton in Week 5 if you can help it.