General IDP Strategy Question (1 Viewer)

[leesh]

When determining starting lineups, is there any reason to be concerned about starting two players from the same team?

For example, I currently have Keiaho (IND) at LB and I'm thinking about picking up Bullitt (IND) at DB. Part of me thinks they can both succeed given their matchup this week (@BAL). But another part of me worries about starting players from the same team because I feel like there are only so many defensive points to go around in the course of a game.

I know there are scenarios where multiple players might be able to score points on a given play (e.g. assisted tackles, FF & FR, sacks, etc). But I wonder how many of those happen in a game? How much consideration should be put into an IDP's team's defensive scheme? What about an IDP's matchup for the week?

I'd be curious to hear what others think.

 

[Jene Bramel]

Generally speaking, on average, an NFL team is going to get in the neighborhood of 49 tackle chances every game. Some teams are likely to get many more over the course of the season, some less. 49 shots at a tackle is enough for two players from the same team to have top scoring weeks and seasons.

Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs have often finished in the top 15 in recent seasons. Donnie Edwards and Rodney Harrison used to finish as the top overall players at their respective positions in San Diego earlier in the decade. Currently, Spikes/Willis and Dansby/Hayes are two groups in the top 20 LBs in FBG scoring. So, too, Bradley/Gaither and Jones/Jeanty. Some of those are flukes, but not all. Many of those pairs had very nice games during the same week. Add Michael Lewis and Quentin Mikell and Chinedum Ndukwe as top DB option with those LB pairs and the argument becomes clearer.

You want to consider the overall opportunity (which includes how competitive the surrounding cast is for tackles) and talent of the player in question. Ignore whether you're considering two guys from the same team. Each player is a separate decision. Is that player better than the next on the roster for this lineup slot?

When the trend shows what it does -- Indy defense can't get off the field easily, Balt offense (despite being a well below-average scoring offense) has racked up offensive snaps and rush attempts consistently against so-so matchups -- it looks very possible that the Colts could see well over 50 tackle chances this week. When that happens, there's plenty of room for more than one player to finish with six or more solos.