This article is part of our IDP Analysis series.
RISING
Kwon Alexander, LB, TB
Alexander wasn't handed anything as a fourth-round pick, but the rookie earned a starting role nonetheless, and he's flying high after totaling 11 tackles, one interception, and one sack against the Falcons on Sunday. The rookie has started all seven games, posting 49 tackles (29 solo), one sack, two interceptions and a forced fumble to this point. With 4.55 speed, Alexander has the range to play three downs and his sideline-to-sideline athleticism should allow him to produce efficiently with the abundance of snaps he's earned.
Stephone Anthony, (3-4) ILB, NO
Anthony started the year at a modest pace, posting just 16 tackles in the first three weeks, but the super athletic first-round pick out of Clemson hit a new gear from that point onward. After posting 11 tackles against the Giants on Sunday, Anthony has 40 tackles in his last five games, adding a sack and an interception over that span. At 6-foot-3, 243 pounds with cornerback-like athleticism, Anthony has all it takes from a talent standpoint to make a three-down, sideline to sideline impact. He looks like a solid LB2 going forward in most leagues.
Antwon Blake, CB, PIT
You always worry about a potential benching when this is the case, but Blake has been targeted often enough in coverage to pile up an unusually high tackle total for a cornerback, concluding the first eight games of 2015 with 49 tackles and two interceptions (one returned for a touchdown). At nearly
RISING
Kwon Alexander, LB, TB
Alexander wasn't handed anything as a fourth-round pick, but the rookie earned a starting role nonetheless, and he's flying high after totaling 11 tackles, one interception, and one sack against the Falcons on Sunday. The rookie has started all seven games, posting 49 tackles (29 solo), one sack, two interceptions and a forced fumble to this point. With 4.55 speed, Alexander has the range to play three downs and his sideline-to-sideline athleticism should allow him to produce efficiently with the abundance of snaps he's earned.
Stephone Anthony, (3-4) ILB, NO
Anthony started the year at a modest pace, posting just 16 tackles in the first three weeks, but the super athletic first-round pick out of Clemson hit a new gear from that point onward. After posting 11 tackles against the Giants on Sunday, Anthony has 40 tackles in his last five games, adding a sack and an interception over that span. At 6-foot-3, 243 pounds with cornerback-like athleticism, Anthony has all it takes from a talent standpoint to make a three-down, sideline to sideline impact. He looks like a solid LB2 going forward in most leagues.
Antwon Blake, CB, PIT
You always worry about a potential benching when this is the case, but Blake has been targeted often enough in coverage to pile up an unusually high tackle total for a cornerback, concluding the first eight games of 2015 with 49 tackles and two interceptions (one returned for a touchdown). At nearly a triple-digit tackle pace, Blake is worth deploying as a DB1 until further notice, as he's putting up tackle production that even most safeties don't match. His value is even higher in leagues that give points for passes defended, as he has seven already.
Chris Conte, S, TB
Conte was generally regarded as an underdog to beat out D.J. Swearinger for the starting safety role next to Bradley McDougald prior to the season's start, but it appears Conte's past experience with coach Lovie Smith paid off. Conte has not only started alongside McDougald, he's also been a productive IDP in doing so, totaling 45 tackles in seven games. He also has four tackles for loss, two forced fumbles, and one interception. Conte is unlikely to turn into a good real-life safety, but as long as he's starting in the Lovie defense, there's some subtle triple-digit tackle potential here.
FALLING
Rahim Moore, S, HOU
A former UCLA star, Moore was selected in the second round of the 2011 draft and was expected to take over a starting safety role for the long term in Denver. He headed to Houston in free agency this year, though – seemingly as a somewhat desirable target – and was inked in as a starter at one of the Texans' two safety spots. After six games, though, he was removed from the defense entirely. Moore didn't so much as suit up against the Titans on Sunday, and now it's hard to see why he should see the field again beyond a handful of rotational snaps here and there.
Paul Worrilow, LB, ATL
Once known for his elite rate of tackle production, somehow posting 264 tackles over the course of 26 starts, Worrilow is probably better known at this point as the guy who barely established himself as the leader of an underwhelming Atlanta linebacker rotation. Instead of 10 tackles per game, Worrilow is barely averaging over six per game in 2015, concluding the first eight games with just 51 tackles. That leaves him on pace to fall short of his 2014 tackle total of 142 by 40 tackles. Worrilow is closer to an LB3 than an LB2 as long as he remains on his current course of barely hitting triple-digit tackles.
Kyle Williams, DT, BUF
Williams is one of the league's better linemen when healthy – both in real life and IDP terms – but a knee injury is set to cost him Buffalo's next two games. With Williams out, Marcell Dareus ought to make a push for 80 percent or more of Buffalo's snaps after playing around the 70 percent mark most of the year.
Jordan Hicks and Mychal Kendricks, (3-4) ILB, PHI
Hicks and Kendricks both have the skills to make an IDP impact when their playing time is at the right level, but playing time could be an issue the rest of the way with Kiko Alonso (knee) making his return against the Cowboys on Sunday. There was already a three-man rotation in play between Hicks, Kendricks, and DeMeco Ryans, and as a starter pre-injury, Alonso will obviously push for a considerable snap count now that he's physically able. A four-man rotation between two starting positions is rather unprecedented, but it's the situation Philadelphia has to deal with now that there are four starter-level talents in town.
