IDP Analysis: Week 2 Matchups

IDP Analysis: Week 2 Matchups

This article is part of our IDP Analysis series.

Here's a look at IDPs who have favorable Week 2 matchups. IDP formats can be quite different, so we'll list players of varying levels. Some will be players found on the waiver wire while in other leagues players will be automatic starters.

DEFENSIVE LINE

Ezekiel Ansah, Lions at Giants- Ansah recorded just one tackle Sunday against the Cardinals, but he has an excellent chance to notch his first sack against the Giants on Monday night. In the season opener, the the Giants' offensive line was consistently under siege by an undermanned Cowboys' front seven. The Giants' rushing attack is also underwhelming, so there should be plenty of Eli Manning dropbacks, regardless of game script.

Robert Quinn, Rams vs. Redskins-
After a couple of sub-par seasons thanks to injuries, Quinn started this season with a sack against the Colts. Defensive coordinator Wade Phillips' 3-4 defense has moved Quinn from a defensive end to a edge-rushing linebacker, and Quinn could be ready to re-join the ranks of the league's elite pass rushers. Defensive tackle Aaron Donald ended his holdout, and with the amount of attention he'll draw from offensive coordinators should allow Quinn more room to operate as he looks to build upon his strong start to the season. He'll face a pass-heavy Washington offense Sunday, so it wouldn't be a surprise if he notched another sack this week.

Geno Atkins, Bengals vs. Texans-
The Texans allowed an incredible 10 sacks in Week 1 to Jacksonville, which was without

Here's a look at IDPs who have favorable Week 2 matchups. IDP formats can be quite different, so we'll list players of varying levels. Some will be players found on the waiver wire while in other leagues players will be automatic starters.

DEFENSIVE LINE

Ezekiel Ansah, Lions at Giants- Ansah recorded just one tackle Sunday against the Cardinals, but he has an excellent chance to notch his first sack against the Giants on Monday night. In the season opener, the the Giants' offensive line was consistently under siege by an undermanned Cowboys' front seven. The Giants' rushing attack is also underwhelming, so there should be plenty of Eli Manning dropbacks, regardless of game script.

Robert Quinn, Rams vs. Redskins-
After a couple of sub-par seasons thanks to injuries, Quinn started this season with a sack against the Colts. Defensive coordinator Wade Phillips' 3-4 defense has moved Quinn from a defensive end to a edge-rushing linebacker, and Quinn could be ready to re-join the ranks of the league's elite pass rushers. Defensive tackle Aaron Donald ended his holdout, and with the amount of attention he'll draw from offensive coordinators should allow Quinn more room to operate as he looks to build upon his strong start to the season. He'll face a pass-heavy Washington offense Sunday, so it wouldn't be a surprise if he notched another sack this week.

Geno Atkins, Bengals vs. Texans-
The Texans allowed an incredible 10 sacks in Week 1 to Jacksonville, which was without left tackle Duane Brown. However, the entire line had no answer for the Jaguars, and it didn't help that Houston had to abandon the running attack after halftime. The Bengals might not notch 10 sacks, but Atkins, after posting a sack and seven tackles against the Ravens last week, should be able to do plenty of damage on Thursday night.

Jurrell Casey, Titans at Jaguars-
The Titans were finally able to use the formula they believe will help them win as they ran the ball often and relied on defense in the season opener. This is just the type of game in which Casey can thrive, not only by totaling more stops than usual, but when Blake Bortles drops back to pass, Casey should have a great chance to break through the OL and pick up a sack.

LINEBACKER

T.J. Watt, Steelers vs. Vikings- Watt had an outstanding NFL debut with two sacks, an INT and seven tackles against the Browns. As we move to Week 2, he faces the average-at best offensive line of the Vikings, and the Steelers will certainly look to deploy their newest weapon to continue his dominance from last week.

B.J. Goodson, Giants vs. Lions-
Against the Cowboys' combination of rushing and short pass attempts, Goodson piled up an exceptional 18 tackles in the season opener. He faces the Lions in Week 2, and even though they won't likely be as run-heavy as Dallas was, they'll certainly deploy a short-passing attack as a staple of their offense along with their running game, so Goodson should be in line for another solid effort.

Demario Davis, Jets at Raiders-
Davis got the season off to a strong start with 14 tackles against a Bills offense that is heavily reliant upon its rushing attack. Although he faces an Oakland offense that certainly could choose to attack through the air, it's likely the Raiders will use their excellent offensive line to run the ball with frequency. Also, if the Raiders play with a lead in the second half, they could go almost exclusively with the run. As a result, Davis has a strong matchup this week.

C.J. Mosley, Ravens vs. Browns-
In Week 1 against the Bengals, Mosley added an INT to his eight tackles, but his tackle numbers could've been better had the Bengals not been forced to abandon the run in the second half. This week, he faces a Browns' offense that will try to establish the run and has a mobile QB who'll take off and run on occasion. This could be a big week for Mosley in a home game.

DEFENSIVE BACK

D.J. Swearinger, Redskins at Rams- After starting the season with five tackles against the Eagles, Swearinger faces a Rams' offense that's much more likely to attack the short-to-intermediate areas of the field while also attempting plenty of rushes. If so, Swearinger could post one of the top totals in tackles at DB this week.

Matthias Farley, Colts vs. Cardinals-
The Colts are simply awful on offense without Andrew Luck, and solid opponents likely will run frequently as they play with a lead. After Farley compiled 10 tackles last week in such a game script against the Rams, he has a great chance of posting double-digit stops for the second consecutive week.

Tyrann Mathieu, Cardinals at Colts-
The Colts are a mess on offense and likely will be that way until Andrew Luck returns. In the meantime, Indy lacks a consistent downfield passing attack, which should compress the field for the Arizona secondary. That should allow Mathieu to pile up a solid number of tackles while also having a chance to flash his big-play ability and maybe adding a takeaway as well.

Kurt Coleman, Panthers vs. Bills-
The Bills likely will continue to lean heavily on their rushing attack and short passing game as they lack playmakers at WR. That should allow Coleman to have a busier-than-usual afternoon, which should at least result in a high number of tackles, but he also could be in position to add a big play, especially if Buffalo is playing from behind in the second half.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jim Coventry
Coventry was a finalist for the FSWA football writer of the year in 2022. He started playing fantasy football in 1994 and won a national contest in 1996. He also nabbed five top-50 finishes in national contests from 2008 to 2012 before turning his attention to DFS. He's been an industry analyst since 2007, though he joined RotoWire in 2016. A published author, Coventry wrote a book about relationships, "The Secret of Life", in 2013.
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