Winter is coming. OK, maybe I'm being overly dramatic (or blatantly stealing afamous tag line) due to the bitter cold and first snow here in Michigan. Let mebegin again. The fantasy football playoffs are coming. That's actually just as dramatic an opening for IDP ownersas the original. Regular season games are dwindling down and it is make it orbreak it time for a lot of teams. Finding the sleeper candidates to step in and help lead ateam to a late season victory can be vital to getting into the chase for thechampionship. Here at 53 Deep we take this task very seriously and havecombed over the matchups to deliver the players that we believe have the chanceto step up this week. Without further ado... DEFENSIVE LINEMEN Jason Hatcher, DE,WASHINGTON vs. Tampa Bay (48): Hatcher notched his fourth sack of theseason in week nine and will benefit from the bye week to hit the field a bitmore refreshed this week. He will also benefit from lining up against aBuccaneers offense that has allowed eight sacks to defensive linemen in theirlast three games. Desmond Bryant, DE,CLEVELAND vs. Houston (49): Bryant has battled a wrist injury for themajority of the season but looked as good as he has all year last week. He putup six total tackles and a pair of sacks while playing 42 snaps. The Texanswill be rolling out Ryan Mallett at quarterback this week and he is not exactlyfleet of foot. Look for Bryant to continue his hot streak by getting to theinexperienced Mallett at least once this week. Osi Umenyiora, DE,ATLANTA at Carolina (59): Umenyiora is coming off his most productive gameof the season finishing with three total stops along with a pass defended and 1½ sacks. He's playing mainly a pass rushing specialist role and averaging 24snaps per game. Look for him to do plenty of damage this week even on a limitedsnap count. The Panthers just allowed nine sacks in Week 10 and have given up14 in the last two games. For at least one week we will see the Umenyiora ofdays gone by. Sharrif Floyd, DT,MINNESOTA at Chicago (44): In the last two games the Bears have allowed 22total tackles as well as 2 ½ sacks and two forced fumbles to defensive linemen.Floyd has racked up 18 total stops and 2 ½ sacks in his last three games andhas become a disruptive interior force for the Vikings. The Bears offense isout of sync and Floyd should be able to create pressure up the gut this weekmaking life miserable for Jay Cutler. LINEBACKERS Christian Kirksey,ILB, ...

If I had a stick and a white handkerchief I would be tempted to start waving that bad boy right about now. Another week and more devastation to the linebacker position. Jerod Mayo is now out for the year and Danny Trevathan barely had time to make a tackle before getting hurt...again. It's a "Travishamockery" I tell ya! Yeah, I stole that from a commercial starring the awesome Bob Odenkirk (Better Call Saul). Well, quitting is never an option, so we once again head to the waiver wire to plug the holes in our lineups due to the continuing onslaught of injuries. This is where it gets interesting folks as Week 7 approaches and teams make the necessary moves to either bolster lineups (for those 6-0, 5-1 teams) or try and save seasons (for the 1-5, 2-4 squads). Here is a look at some players we like this week to help lead IDP teams to victory... DEFENSIVE LINEMEN Kyle Williams, DT, BUFFALO vs. Minnesota (44): The Vikings are a top matchup for allowing fantasy points to the DL position and Williams is due for a big game. He's playing his second game since sitting out a week with a knee issue and will bring interior pressure this week alongside DT Marcell Dareus . In the last two games, Minnesota has allowed 10 sacks including four to the DT position. This is a great week to start Williams as the Vikings allow pressure on 20.5% of their drop backs and give up three sacks per game. Jeremy Mincey, DE, DALLAS vs. New York Giants (56): The Giants allowed Philadelphia to sack quarterback Eli Manning eight times last week. Four of those sacks went to defensive linemen and Dallas will be pinning their ears back this week. Mincey is coming off his best game of the season last week against Seattle where he put up four total tackles and was credited with five quarterback hurries according to Pro Football Focus. Look for Mincey to rack up his first sack of the season against a reeling Giants offense. Jared Crick, DE, HOUSTON at Pittsburgh (64): Crick has started five of six games at DE while playing 60% of the defensive snaps. He's put up solid tackle numbers with 23 total stops and has added 1 ½ sacks. This week he will be getting after Ben Roethlisberger behind a Steelers line that is allowing 2.8 sacks per game. With J.J. Watt drawing the attention of the offensive line his direction, look for a big day for the kid from Nebraska. Desmond Bryant, DE, CLEVELAND at Jacksonville (48): Bryant has struggled thorough a wrist injury for much of the season and ...

Week 2 of the preseason has just ended and things are certainly heating up on the Individual Defensive Player (IDP) landscape. Roles are beginning to take shape and depth charts are slowly coming into focus. There will still be some shuffling as injuries and poor performances may cost players their jobs but we can more clearly begin to evaluate the fantasy potential of the top end talent in each division. The AFC North has long been considered a tough bruising defensive division dominated by the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens as the Cincinnati Bengals look to close the gap. Surprisingly, the division isn't as chocked full of IDP studs as one may have been led to believe. The sums of the parts of the defenses equate to nice NFL overall rankings as opposed to IDP value. With all that being said, let's take a look at some names that can help lead IDP owners to the promised land. LINEBACKERS 1. D'Qwell Jackson, WILB, Cleveland: The stars are aligning for Jackson to have a monster 2013 fantasy campaign. New defensive coordinator Ray Horton will look to utilize him in much the same way he did Daryl Washington in Arizona. Jackson will have the luxury of a healthy Phil Taylor, Ahtyba Rubin and Desmond Bryant to keep him clean and able to get after the ball carrier. Horton will also look to take advantage of Jackson's physicality and athleticism with blitz packages. A statline of 100-plus tackles and a top 10 fantasy finish are on tap for Jackson this season. 2. Lawrence Timmons, ILB, Pittsburgh: Timmons finished last season with 106 total tackles, six sacks, three interceptions and two forced fumbles. Those are very nice fantasy totals but it's the way he amassed them that keep his owners scratching their heads. He racked up five of his six sacks in the season's final three weeks and 47 of his total tackles in the last six weeks of 2012. That inconsistency is what makes him a bit of a wildcard selection on draft day. Outside linebackers James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley both struggled last season and Timmons was moved around the defense quite a bit early in the year before settling in and putting up the nice finish he had. He could finish with LB1 numbers if he picks up where he left off or as low as LB3 production if he's shuffled around the defense again this season. This ranking shows that I'm leaning towards the former. 3. Vontaze Burfict, WLB, Cincinnati: Burfict led the Bengals in total tackles last season despite playing only 57 snaps ...

Week 15 of the 2011 fantasy football season is here, which means while some have called it a year after a disappointing season while others have either begun or are continuing a playoff run that they hope will conclude with an Individual Defensive Players (IDP) Championship. To help you prepare for another week's action here's a look at my Top 30 defensive linemen, linebackers and defensive backs for Week 15 of the 2011 season in IDP leagues. These rankings are based on Default IDP Manor Scoring, which awards one point for solo tackles, ½ point for assisted tackles; two points each for fumbles forced and recovered; four points for interceptions, sacks and safeties; six points for defensive touchdowns; and one point for passes defensed. It's a balanced scoring system, so if your IDP league is especially tackle-heavy or big play-heavy some players may move up (or down) a few spots. DEFENSIVE LINEMEN 1.) Jason Pierre-Paul, New York Giants vs. Washington 2.) Terrell Suggs, Baltimore at San Diego 3.) Jared Allen, Minnesota vs. New Orleans 4.) Trent Cole, Philadelphia vs. New York Jets 5.) Julius Peppers, Chicago vs. Seattle 6.) Andre Carter, New England at Denver 7.) Chris Clemons, Seattle at Chicago 8.) Justin Smith, San Francisco vs. Pittsburgh 9.) Kyle Vanden Bosch, Detroit at Oakland 10.) Elvis Dumervil, Denver vs. New England 11.) Jason Babin, Philadelphia vs. New York Jets 12.) Will Smith, New Orleans at Minnesota 13.) Charles Johnson, Carolina at Houston 14.) Cliff Avril, Detroit at Oakland 15.) Robert Mathis, Indianapolis vs. Tennessee 16.) Darnell Dockett, Arizona vs. Cleveland 17.) Jeremy Mincey, Jacksonville at Atlanta 18.) Haloti Ngata, Baltimore at San Diego 19.) Chris Long, St. Louis vs. Cincinnati 20.) Israel Idonije, Chicago vs. Seattle 21.) Jabaal Sheard, Cleveland at Arizona 22.) Ndamukong Suh, Detroit at Oakland 23.) Calais Campbell, Arizona vs. Cleveland 24.) J.J. Watt, Houston vs. Carolina 25.) Greg Hardy, Carolina at Houston 26.) Justin Tuck, New York Giants vs. Washington 27.) Ray Edwards, Atlanta vs. Jacksonville 28.) Lamarr Houston, Oakland vs. Detroit 29.) Michael Johnson, Cincinnati at St. Louis 30.) Desmond Bryant, Oakland vs. Detroit LINEBACKERS 1.) D'Qwell Jackson, Cleveland at Arizona 2.) Paul Posluszny, Jacksonville at Atlanta 3.) London Fletcher, Washington at New York Giants 4.) Ray Lewis, Baltimore at San Diego 5.) Curtis Lofton, Atlanta vs. Jacksonville 6.) James Laurinaitis, St. ...

undefinedundefinedundefinedundefinedundefinedundefinedundefinedundefined IDP CHEATSHEET: Week Twelve It's Week Twelve of the 2011 fantasy football season, which means the bye weeks are in the rearview mirror, there are a trio of games to enjoy on Thanksgiving Day, and the fantasy playoffs are just around the corner. To help you prepare for another week's action here's a look at my Top 30 defensive linemen, linebackers, and defensive backs for Week Eleven of the 2011 season in IDP leagues. These rankings are based on Default IDP Manor Scoring, which awards 1 point for solos, .5 points for assists, 2 points each for fumbles forced and recovered, 4 points for interceptions, sacks, and safeties, 6 points for defensive touchdowns, and 1 point for passes defensed. It's a balanced scoring system, so if your IDP league is especially tackle-heavy or big play-heavy some players may move up (or down) a few spots. Have a Safe and Happy Thanksgiving everyone! DEFENSIVE LINEMEN 1.) Jared Allen - MIN at ATL 2.) Terrell Suggs - BAL vs SF 3.) Trent Cole - PHI vs NE 4.) Chris Clemons - SEA vs WAS 5.) Julius Peppers - CHI at OAK 6.) Jason Pierre-Paul - NYG at NO 7.) Jeremy Mincey - JAX vs HOU 8.) Andre Carter - NE at PHI 9.) Justin Smith - SF at BAL 10.) Osi Umenyiora - NYG at NO 11.) Chris Long - STL vs ARI 12.) Calais Campbell - ARI at STL 13.) Haloti Ngata - BAL vs SF 14.) Greg Hardy - CAR at IND 15.) Kyle Vanden Bosch - DET vs GB 16.) Charles Johnson -- CAR at IND 17.) Jason Babin - PHI vs NE 18.) Ndamukong Suh - DET vs GB 19.) Will Smith - NO vs NYG 20.) Cliff Avril - DET vs GB 21.) Robert Mathis - IND vs CAR 22.) James Hall - STL vs ARI 23.) Ahtyba Rubin - CLE at CIN 24.) Darnell Dockett - ARI at STL 25.) Ray Edwards - ATL vs MIN 26.) Israel Idonije - CHI at OAK 27.) Justin Tuck - NYG at NO 28.) Michael Bennett - TB at TEN 29.) Desmond Bryant - OAK vs CHI 30.) Brian Robison - MIN at ATL LINEBACKERS 1.) Patrick Willis - SF at BAL 2.) Desmond Bishop - GB at DET 3.) Paul Posluszny - JAX vs HOU 4.) London Fletcher - WAS at SEA 5.) Nick Barnett - BUF at NYJ 6.) Brian Urlacher - CHI at OAK 7.) Derrick Johnson - KC vs PIT 8.) D'Qwell Jackson - CLE at CIN 9.) Navorro Bowman - SF at BAL 10.) David Hawthorne - SEA vs WAS 11.) D.J. Williams - DEN at SD 12.) Curtis Lofton - ATL vs MIN 13.) Pat Angerer - IND vs CAR 14.) Daryl Washington - ARI at STL 15.) Karlos Dansby - MIA at DAL 16.) James Laurinaitis - STL vs ARI 17.) Donald Butler - SD vs DEN 18.) Sean Weatherspoon - ...