Week 8 could have been a slow week for news with so many teams on bye, but injuries took to their toll on several teams. There were many shifts in playing time and the depth charts as a result, which we'll cover below in this week's edition of IDP risers and fallers.
Risers
Bertrand is a repeat from the Week 8 article, but he's worth revisiting due to some new context. He replaced Divine Deablo – who is currently on injured reserve with a fractured forearm – and played 100 percent of defensive snaps in Atlanta's loss to Miami. Bertrand delivered nine tackles and should be very productive for at least the next three games.
Ifeatu Melifonwu 
/ Dane Belton
Melifonwu and Belton are both safeties who have the chance to benefit in the short term from injuries to players ahead of them on the depth chart. Belton got that chance in Week 8 with Jevon Holland (knee) sidelined, logging 98 percent of defensive snaps and eight tackles. The severity of Holland's injury isn't clear, but he did not practice in any capacity in the Giants' loss to the Eagles on Sunday.
Melifonwu has seen some drastic swings in playing time throughout the season, but he easily logged a season-high defensive snap rate of 91 percent in Week 8. That came after Ashtyn Davis suffered a quad injury on a special teams snap early in Sunday's win over Atlanta. Melifonwu logged only five tackles, but he's worth
Week 8 could have been a slow week for news with so many teams on bye, but injuries took to their toll on several teams. There were many shifts in playing time and the depth charts as a result, which we'll cover below in this week's edition of IDP risers and fallers.
Risers
Bertrand is a repeat from the Week 8 article, but he's worth revisiting due to some new context. He replaced Divine Deablo – who is currently on injured reserve with a fractured forearm – and played 100 percent of defensive snaps in Atlanta's loss to Miami. Bertrand delivered nine tackles and should be very productive for at least the next three games.
Ifeatu Melifonwu / Dane Belton
Melifonwu and Belton are both safeties who have the chance to benefit in the short term from injuries to players ahead of them on the depth chart. Belton got that chance in Week 8 with Jevon Holland (knee) sidelined, logging 98 percent of defensive snaps and eight tackles. The severity of Holland's injury isn't clear, but he did not practice in any capacity in the Giants' loss to the Eagles on Sunday.
Melifonwu has seen some drastic swings in playing time throughout the season, but he easily logged a season-high defensive snap rate of 91 percent in Week 8. That came after Ashtyn Davis suffered a quad injury on a special teams snap early in Sunday's win over Atlanta. Melifonwu logged only five tackles, but he's worth considering as a stream given Miami's short week and the likelihood that Davis remains sidelined for Week 9.
Williams was active for the first time since Week 3, and the Jets didn't ease him into the role. He played 88 percent of defensive snaps and also racked up a season-high seven tackles. Williams should be the Jets best linebacker and likely their most valuable fantasy IDP player overall moving forward.
Clark is similar to Melifonwu and Belton because he's deriving his opportunity from injury. The difference is that DeShon Elliott is expected to miss most, if not the entirety, of the rest of the regular season. Clark was the choice over Jabrill Peppers to replace Elliott in Week 8, making him an add to consider for at least the short term.
Carson Schwesinger (ankle) was yet another key defensive player to suffer an injury in Week 8. He is expected to miss time but not be placed on injured reserve. That leaves some uncertainty as to how many games Schwesinger will actually miss, as the Browns are set to enter their bye week. For now, Diabate is a speculative waiver addition for deeper leagues. Devin Bush was already a reliable IDP contributor, but he could turn in elite production so long as Schwesinger is sidelined.
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Mickens and Hancock are both speculative plays as rookie safeties for teams that have either struggled in the secondary or not settled on true starters. The Chargers are thin at the position since dealing Alohi Gilman to Baltimore, as seen in Week 8 when both Derwin James and Tony Jefferson suffered injuries. Mickens has already started to see his playing time tick up – he played 73 percent of defensive snaps and nabbed his first career interception Thursday – and that could be expedited if either of James or Jefferson is forced to miss additional time.
The situation in Buffalo is even more open. The Bills desperately have tried to get consistent play from their entire secondary this season, including the safeties. That's even more the case with Taylor Rapp on IR. Jordan Poyer is likely to be the beneficiary for now and can be a streamer, but Hancock is the more intriguing player in the long term for fantasy IDP purposes.
Fallers
Martin was active for the second consecutive week in Sunday's loss to the Texans, but he didn't see a defensive snap even after Dee Winters suffered a knee injury. Instead, Curtis Robinson became a snap-for-snap replacement for Winters. Consider Robinson as a streaming option if Winters is ruled out for Week 9, but in the meantime, Martin continues to have a very disappointing rookie campaign.
The 49ers' safety corps has been an interesting one to follow in recent weeks. Ji'Ayir Brown first replaced Jason Pinnock at strong safety. It was expected that Sigle would ultimately displace Brown to pair with Malik Mustapha, but instead Sigle's snap rate has directly corresponded to Mustapha's. In Week 8, Sigle played zero defensive snaps while Mustapha jumped to 100 percent. Sigle's promising rookie season has hit a major speed bump.
Henley opened the season as expected, logging at least seven tackles in five of his first six games. However, he's combined to record only six stops in his last two games. This is likely a short-term issue, but it's worth monitoring Henley's downturn in production.
The Eagles' linebacker corps looked like a messy timeshare that was highlighted in last week's article. Week 8 suggested that Campbell is going to be in a rotational role, as his defensive snap rate fell to a season-low 44 percent. Meanwhile, Nakobe Dean's jumped to 74 percent, his highest rate since returning from his knee tear.
