IDP 101: The Dynasty Pros Way

by Bob Miller

 

IDP (Individual Defensive Player) leagues are growing more and more in popularity. If you are, or planning to play in an IDP League, now is the time to get familiar with:

  1. How to play
  2. How to prepare
  3. Who to target
  4. When to target certain players

If you have never played in an IDP league, they can be confusing if you just jump into one without knowing what you are getting yourself into. Here at Dynasty Pros Football, we have devised a scoring system that is currently used by thousands of IDP Leagues today. So, if you are starting a new league from scratch or are having trouble with calibrating your scoring system, feel free to use ours.

 

Dynasty Pros IDP Scoring Table:

Action Points Action Points
Tackle1Forced Fumble2
Assisted Tackle.5Fumble Recovery3
Sack4Defensive Touchdown6
Tackle for Loss3Blocked FG/Extra Point2
Interception5Blocked Punt2
Pass Defended1Safety4
Kick Return Yards.10 per yardPunt Return Yards.10 per yard

How to Play

The best place to start is knowing your IDP League scoring setup, and what positions are designated for each player. That then allows you to understand what players best fit your team. For example: Joey Bosa may be designated a LB in real life, but your fantasy league may designate him as a DE. That designation can drastically change how he is valued.

 

 

How to Prepare

The next step is to create a ranking system that is unique for you. One website may tell you one thing and another website may tell you another, so do your research and use what is best for you. We offer a well thought out ranking system, so take a look and see if it helps you.

https://dynastyprosfootball.com/defensive-lineman-rankings/

 

 

Who to Target and When to Target Them

This can be tricky, that is why it is important to do your research and understand your league’s player designation and scoring system.

 

 

Defensive Lineman

Elite defensive ends are where we would recommend you start, since there are very few of them. Our recommended scoring system rewards 4 points for a sack and 3 points for a tackle for loss. This makes players like Nick Bosa, Myles Garrett, and Maxx Crosby extremely valuable and possible league winners, so target them before you target guys at other defensive positions. One of the main focuses of an NFL Defense is pass rushing and sacks, as it should be in IDP Leagues as well.

 

 

Dual Eligible Edge Rushers

What's one of the most exciting plays on defense? Sacks, of course. So, if you are playing IDPs, then sacks need to be rewarded as well. Players like Micah Parsons and TJ Watt are far more valuable in the Dynasty Pros Scoring System. Some websites that rank IDPs may not even have them in their top 20 overall. That's crazy. How can a player like TJ Watt, the 2021 league leader in sacks (22.5) not be ranked as an elite IDP in other IDP rankings? Why even play with IDPs if you don't reward big plays?

Keep an eye on dual eligible players as you can use them as a defensive lineman or linebacker. That increases their value as well.

 

Linebackers

Linebackers are next. Make sure to rank your Linebackers in a tier ranking. This allows you to properly value them and know who you should target first. Tackles reward 1 point each and assisted tackles earn you .5 points. Linebackers Roquan Smith and Foyesade Oluokun are in Tier One (possibly the only LBs in tier one) and are considerably more valuable than Tier Two linebackers like Frankie Luvu and Nick Bolton. When drafting linebackers you'll want to target the ones who accumulate a lot of tackles. Those are mostly your inside linebackers.

 

 

Defensive Backs

Defensive Backs should be down on your list, unless someone like Derwin James, Jalen Pitre, or Marcus Jones are available. Safeties tend to be more rosterable over Cornerbacks in IDP leagues because of tackle opportunities.

Cornerbacks also have value in our scoring system as well with interceptions being 5 points and passes defended are 1 point each. Cornerbacks tend to be more "Hit or Miss" since they get less opportunities to make plays. Our scoring system also uses return yards, so defensive backs who are returners should be rostered.

 

New England Patriots Cornerback Marcus Jones was used in multiple ways last season and put up 190.5 fantasy points. He finished number one for all defensive backs. Let's take a look at his stats:

DEFENSIVE STATS

Tackles Tackles for Loss Passes Defended Interceptions Touchdowns
392721

OFFENSIVE STATS

Receptions Rec Yards TDs
4781

SPECIAL TEAMS STATS

Kick Returns Kick Return Yards TDs Punt Returns Punt Return Yards TDs
276450293621

As you see, Marcus Jones was used in many different ways. With our scoring setup, Jones piled up 190.5 fantasy points vs only 93.5 on Sleeper's default IDP settings. We should be getting those fantasy points.

As a matter of fact, last season five of our top ten scoring defensive backs were actually cornerbacks. Take a look:

 

  1. Marcus Jones, CB (190.5)
  2. Jalen Pitre, S (174)
  3. Demond King, CB (160.4)
  4. L'Jarius Sneed, CB (155.5)
  5. Keisean Nixon, CB (148.4)
  6. Isaiah Simmons, S (144.5)
  7. Rayshawn Jenkins, S (143.5)
  8. Jalen Ramsey, CB (143.5)
  9. Talanoa Hufanga, S (142)
  10. Donovan Wilson, S (141.5)

 

As you see above, cornerbacks provide plenty of value in our set up. If you choose to use our scoring, you can draft them with confidence.

 

 

I hope this article helps your IDP League. Be sure to keep up with defensive players in an IDP league as much as you would offensive players. There could be some studs left on the waiver wire if people aren't paying close enough attention. You could be a big time winner if you are keeping tabs.