Week 2 of the 2014 fantasy football campaign is underway. We've already seen the debut of Thursday Night Football and an AFC North affair between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens. The game featured some big stat lines from players on both teams, including Pittsburgh linebacker Ryan Shazier and Baltimore safety Matt Elam. It's a good start that's sorely needed by IDP owners who were let down by their "stud" players last week. From Arizona Cardinals defensive end Calais Campbell to Minnesota Vikings outside linebacker Chad Greenway, any number of prominent individual defensive players had disappointing debuts a week ago. And that's why the theme of this week's intro to Studs and Duds is this: Stay the course. Week 2 is not the time to go panic-dropping players or sitting your stars. Bad weeks are just a fact of life with IDPs, and nine times out of 10 things will average out over time. Now, if one of your weekly starters has another bad game, that's a different story. Once is a fluke. Twice is a trend. Three times in a row is... Well, let's just hope we don't get to three times in a row. Let's just take deep breath, relax and look at this week's player recommendations with IDP Studs and Duds. Each week during the 2014 campaign I'll point out some Individual Defensive Players who could be set to exceed expectations this week (Studs) and some that for whatever reason are riskier plays than usual (Duds). This isn't necessarily to say that every "Stud" is a must-start (it depends on your other options) or that every "Dud" should be glued to your bench (just that the odds of a letdown week are greater than usual). All right! Tell them what they've won Don Pardo! STUDS Chris Clemons -- DE, Jacksonville Jaguars (at WAS): Clemons was solid in his debut with the Jaguars last week, racking up four tackles, a sack and a forced fumble. This weekend's matchup in the nation's capital sets up well for another nice game, as only two NFL teams allowed more fantasy points to defensive lineman in Fantasy Sharks Default IDP Scoring last year than Washington. Olivier Vernon -- DE, Miami Dolphins (at BUF): After making three tackles and adding his first sack of 2014 last week against the Patriots, Vernon will face former college teammate Seantrel Henderson Sunday in Buffalo. Not only does that matchup favor Vernon, but the Bills were IDP's top matchup for defensive linemen in 2013. Muhammad Wilkerson -- DE, New York Jets (at GB): Wilkerson was one ...

If you've read much of my stuff here at Fantasy Sharks or at IDP Manor , then you know that I'm a huge proponent of waiting to draft defensive backs in Individual Defensive Player (IDP) leagues. It's a drum I beat loudly and often. Were it a horse, it would long since have shaken its mortal coil, yet I continue to beat away. You get the point. The logic behind the philosophy is simple. Partly it's because the vast majority of defensive backs are wildly unpredictable from one year to the next. Mostly, it's because the late rounds of IDP drafts are littered with upside options at the position. Many times, that upside comes in the form of young players who are either coming into their own as professionals, moving into a situation that sets them up well for a big bump in IDP production or a combination of the two. Such is the case with this fistful of second-year safeties. Only one of these five young defensive backs is being drafted among the Top 20 at the position according to average draft position data at My Fantasy League . Two are being selected outside the Top 40. Yet all five have the potential to serve as solid fantasy starters (or more) in 2014. Before we get to the good stuff, a quick note: You won't find Jacksonville's Jonathan Cyprien or Arizona's Tyrann Mathieu on this list. Cyprien finished 2013 as a Top 20 defensive back in Fantasy Sharks Default IDP Scoring . Mathieu was a Top 10 player for much of the season before getting hurt. You can't break out if you already broke out. No San Francisco's Eric Reid either. It's certainly no knock on Reid as a player, and he may well prove me wrong. But Reid's big play numbers are going to need to be fantastic to compensate for the dearth of tackle opportunities behind the 49ers' front seven. Something to bear in mind while considering Antoine Bethea this season. Just sayin'. Now let's dance! Don't lie. You know that's the jam. Matt Elam, SS, Baltimore Elam's breakout season was actually supposed to already have happened. Elam was one of the most highly-touted safeties of last year's class, the first draft pick in 2013 of the defending Super Bowl champion Baltimore Ravens. Well, things didn't exactly go as planned. Elam was unable to beat out veteran James Ihedigbo for the starting job at strong safety, and while the former Florida star did make 15 starts for the Ravens at free safety in 2013, Elam's 77 tackles weren't enough to make much of a fantasy dent. There are big changes coming in...

It's the calm before the storm. With the combine and pro days all wrapped up, and free agency winding down, it's time to play the waiting game until the 2014 NFL draft gets rolling on May 8. That hardly means there's nothing to talk about, however. We've got an entire month to speculate about this year's incoming rookie class, including college football's top defensive stars. We've already hit the defensive linemen and the linebackers , so let's wrap up our look at best and worst-case IDP landing spots for this year's rookie class by peering into the murky cloud that is trying to figure out defensive backs. Calvin Pryor, S, Louisville Best Case: Arizona Cardinals With Yeremiah Bell reportedly set to retire and Tyrann Mathieu coming back from a torn ACL, there's more than a little uncertainty at the back end of the Arizona defense. At least one draftnik believes the Cardinals may look to address that uncertainty by adding Louisville safety Calvin Pryor. Pat Kirwan of CBS Sports writes of the Cardinals making Pryor the 20th overall pick, saying, "Pryor is a hard-hitting safety and a Day 1 starter. Pryor was in on 218 tackles in 38 games. He also forced nine fumbles and picked off seven passes." More importantly to IDP owners, a landing spot in Arizona would likely mean a starting job at strong safety (and potential IDP DB2 value) right out of the gate. Worst Case: undefined undefined undefinedundefinedundefined undefined undefined undefined Baltimore Ravens It may seem a bit odd for the Baltimore Ravens to go the safety route in the first round for a second consecutive year. However, one of Kirwan's colleagues at CBS thinks that could happen. Dane Brugler wrote of the pick, "Could the Ravens go safety in back-to-back years? Why not, that's one possibility with James Ihedigbo not coming back. Pairing Pryor with Matt Elam would give Baltimore options in the deep half." That may be all well and good for the Ravens and even Pryor, but coach John Harbaugh also showed last year with Elam that he won't rush a young player onto the field who isn't ready, and that would add more than a little uncertainty to Pryor's short-term fantasy outlook. Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, S, Alabama Best Case: Pittsburgh Steelers From an IDP perspective, Clinton-Dix faces something of an uphill battle in the NFL. Not because he isn't a very talented young defensive back, but because of the way he'll probably be utilized at the professional level. However, there are a ...

Welcome to The Lowdown for Week 15. This is my little corner of the fantasy football universe-- feel free to pull up a chair and stay a while! Grabbing a Tiger by the Tail You know, there's a reason old adages become old adages: they speak to some sort of universal truth; they save us the pain and suffering of having to prove those adages through personal experience. Take, for example, the old adage "Don't grab a tiger by the tail;" its age-old wisdom still applies today. It basically means that you should be very wary of the consequences of your actions. Unfortunately for Ravens' rookie DB Matt Elam, it looks like he's hell-bent on re-proving that adage via his ridiculous actions this week. Elam found it necessary to call out Lions' All-Universe WR Calvin Johnson: "He's pretty old, so I don't know how physical he'll be," Elam said. "He's a big guy, but he's older. I guess when they get older they're not going to be as physical, you know what I'm saying? We're going to have to be physical, make him uncomfortable." -- NFL.com Ugh. Why do I get a mental image of Elam embedded face-down into the Detroit turf Monday night, with several tracks of cleat marks running up and down his back? Not that you needed to hear this from me, but if you have Megatron, get set for a big game; it wouldn't surprise me if the big guy puts up 200+ yards on the Ravens. Washington Gridlock When you usually hear about Washington gridlock, images of Barack Obama and Rand Paul come to mind, of Republicans and Democrats refusing to work together. This week, however, gridlock in the U.S. Capitol brings to mind how much of an unrepentant (fill-in the blank) Mike Shanahan is. Shanahan is practically begging owner Dan Snyder to fire him (and his dopey son Kyle) by benching QB Robert Griffin III for the remainder of the season... and by having a 24-37 record as Redskins' coach... and by having a sparkling personality. Of course, Shanahan wants to be fired, since he'll still be due the final year of his contract (what's better than getting paid millions to just sit at home?); and Snyder can screw his coach over by making him play out his contract--which if Shanahan tanks, will negatively impact his reputation and ability to get another gig. Ah, the Circle of Life... The irony is that the Redskins can't even benefit from this miserable season, because their 2014 first round pick in the draft (a likely top-3 choice) belongs to the Rams as the result of... the RG III ...

Let's face it; it's not easy being a dynasty owner. We have to make decisions everyday about our team. When it comes to the rookie draft, our picks are crucial to the future of our team. Will a missed pick in the first round ruin our season? Probably not. But let's consider the alternative when we're picking in the middle of Round 1 of a 16-team league. Do you want to pick a prospect that's truly an uncertainty or a prospect that can give you fantasy points right off the bat? An Individual Defensive Player (IDP) prospect may be your choice. The rookie draft is a fun process that introduces our teams to new and exciting prospects. The first picks in an all-rookie draft may look like this: 1) Le'Veon Bell, RB, Pittsburgh 2) Montee Ball, RB, Denver 3) Eddie Lacy, RB, Green Bay 4) Tavon Austin, WR, St. Louis Picks 5-7 -- DeAndre Hopkins, WR, Houston; Gio Bernard, RB, Cincinnati; Cordarrelle Patterson, WR, Minnesota Who's the next prospect I can pick that I'd feel good about without feeling that I'm taking a huge gamble? It's an IDP prospect. Manti Te'o, LB, San Diego Te'o should be selected between Picks 7-10 and will be a tackling machine that can give you passes defended, forced fumbles, sacks and an occasional interception. Please put aside the BCS Championship game where he missed tackles and seemed out of sorts after discovering his online girlfriend was fake. Te'o's 40-time should also be disregarded. A good 40-time doesn't constitute on field productivity. London Fletcher is an example of this. I'm sure Fletcher's 40 time is not in the 4.5's but his productivity helped win many league championships last year. The fact is Te'o was still worth four fantasy points after the Alabama game despite that number being on the low side. Te'o has been working hard to gain the respect of his new teammates and I expect him to be a three-down linebacker and the No. 1 IDP linebacker. Here are Round 2 IDP prospects to consider: Matt Elam, S, Baltimore -- Late 1st-early 2nd round. Kevin Minter, LB, Arizona -- Early-to-mid-2nd round -- good replacement for the suspended Daryl Washington. Johnathan Cyprien, S, Jacksonville -- Mid-to-late 2nd round. Eric Reid, S, San Francisco -- Late 2nd round. Kiki Alonso, LB, Buffalo -- Early 2nd round -- primed for production at inside linebacker. Tyrann Mathieu, CB/S, Arizona -- if he wins a starting position -- extra points as a kick returner. Star Lotulelei, DT/DE, Carolina -- Late 2nd round -- could be the ...

It's time to look at the perennial late-round selection section known as the defensive back position from a rookie perspective. As my esteemed colleague Gary Davenport often points out (and correctly so), it is wise to wait on drafting the defensive back position. There is the biggest swing from year to year in the top scorers, and on a weekly basis there is no easier position to find plug-and-play options on the waiver wire. The defensive back position is the hamster (disposable pet) of Individual Defensive Player (IDP) formats, so go ahead and stock up on linebackers and defensive linemen before drafting the cornerback or safety position. That being said, there are some very intriguing rookie defensive back options heading into the 2013 season that should be solid dynasty selections as well as able to immediately contribute for their IDP owners. So let's get to it! 1. Jonathan Cyprien, SS, Jacksonville: Forget about the ‘he played for a small school' stigma that some have attached to Cyprien because the kid is the real deal. Cyprien is an aggressive ball hawking defensive back with the size, athleticism and willingness to come down in the box as a run-stopping safety. Big school, small school or no school, Cyprien was selected at the top of the second round by Jacksonville and will immediately assume a huge role on the defense. He steps right in as an every-down player for a defense that will be on the field plenty in 2013 and could realistically lead the Jaguars in tackles as a rookie. Cyprien has the range to handle coverage responsibilities in the middle of the field and flies to the ball with bad intentions. Cyprien has Top 15 fantasy defensive back potential in all IDP scoring formats while manning the middle of the Jaguars secondary in 2013. 2. Kenny Vaccaro, FS/SS, New Orleans: The Saints' safety duo of Malcolm Jenkins and Roman Harper struggled mightily last season and were repeatedly abused in coverage. Vaccaro offers an immediate upgrade in that department for the New Orleans secondary as well as the ability to be an in-the-box run-thumping safety. New defensive coordinator Rob Ryan will look to generate pressure with a myriad of blitz packages that will require the Saints secondary to be able to hang tough in coverage on an island. Vaccaro has that capability and will see the field a lot from Day 1, as early indications are that he will supplant Jenkins as the starting free safety in 2013. Eventually Vaccaro should slide into ...