Eyes of the Guru IDP Info: Week 7

There are many moving parts as we close in on the halfway point of the fantasy regular season. Several more players were added to the casualty list, but at least we are starting to see a trickle of players getting back to practice after being out for a while. Whether you lost players or not, there are some opportunities this week.

Guru's IDP Notes: Arizona Cardinals

If Krys Barnes is available in your league, grab him. Kyzir White lasted 21 plays before leaving Sunday's game with a knee injury. As of Wednesday afternoon, we are still awaiting updates from the Cardinals on their injured players, but the fact that White was unable to return indicates that he will likely miss some time.

As usual, Barnes stepped right into the lead role and was highly productive. He led the team in tackles, going 8-1 on 74% of the snaps. With the Chargers coming to town this week, Barnes has a great matchup and is in line for a strong game. Don't hesitate to plug him in if White misses time.

Sean Murphy-Bunting made an early exit with a neck injury. That put rookie Max Melton in the game for his biggest share of playing time to date. Melton totaled a season-best of four solo stops on about 65% of the action. We are still awaiting an update on Murphy-Bunting's status for this week and beyond. The Chargers are a poor matchup for corners but if Murphy Bunting misses more time, Melton could become a decent addition.

Guru's IDP Notes: Atlanta Falcons

With Troy Andersen on the shelf for week six, Nate Landman returned from injury and was right back in the starting lineup. A quality outing that saw him post eight combined stops with a pair of forced fumbles on just under 80% of the snaps, will have some managers looking hard. Be aware that Andersen has a shot at playing this week. It's been a while since Landman and Andersen were available at the same time, so it's unclear how or if playing time would be divided. The only thing we do know is that Andersen will have a significant role if he's available.

Matthew Judon's snap count was back up to 74% in week six but it did nothing for his production. Early on it looked as if he might break the spell of Atlanta's struggling pass rush. Judon has done next to nothing since week two though. The time has probably come to move on.

The Falcons have grand expectations for rookie tackle Ruke Orhorhoro, who is starting to see some action. He played 12 snaps in week 5 and jumped to 22 in week six. His playing time has, so far, come mostly at the expense of David Onyemata. Orhorhoro has the tools and skill set to become a productive option for us down the road.   

Guru's IDP Notes: Baltimore Ravens

We saw a different Washington offense in week six. This version handed the ball to a running back 9 times and threw 35 passes in a strongly contested loss. Thus, what we had expected to be a great matchup for Roquan Smith turned out to be a dud. Fortunately, his high floor kept Smith from being a bust. With the emergence of Sean Tucker and Bucky Irving, the Buccaneers look like a strong matchup this week.  

Guru's IDP Notes: Buffalo Bills

The Bills' defense was as healthy in week six as they had been since week one. Terrell Bernard returned in week five, and the secondary got Taylor Rapp and Taron Johnson back for Monday's game. All eyes are on Ed Oliver this week. The stud defensive tackle has not practiced since coming up lame with a hamstring during the Thursday practice before week five.

Buffalo's linebackers are good starts against a Titans offense that allows an average of 19.4 tackles and a splash play to the position. They are currently the second-best matchup in the game for linebackers.

Likewise, if you have Oliver, watch the practice reports later in the week and play him in this one if he suits up. The interior line positions are averaging 10.8 tackles and just shy of a sack against Tennessee, making them the fifth-best matchup for the position.  

Guru's IDP Notes: Carolina Panthers

Xavier Woods was 7-2 with a pass breakup in week six and is putting some games together lately. He is 19-7 with a pick and a pair of pass breakups over the last three outings. I'm not sure what to think about this. On one hand, Woods is in year eight and has one good fantasy season on his resume (2021). On the other hand, Woods has that one good season to his credit and is on a bad team playing backups at the linebacker positions. With a string of quality matchups over the next month, he could prove a solid addition. 

Trevin Wallace had another highly productive game in his second as a starter. This time he included good tackle totals (6-3) with a forced fumble and a recovery. The dip into the splash play columns is a good sign and he looked better on the field in general this time around. I like his chances of a big game versus the Commanders this week.  

Injuries have the Panthers thin at the edge position. DJ Johnson covered 90% of the snaps last week, and Charles Harris 76%. These guys will never be household names, even in households of IDP managers, but they are getting plenty of volume. With injuries and the looming bye-mageddons on the schedule, volume might be enough to get them in our lineups as spot start fliers.  

Guru's IDP Notes: Chicago Bears

Kyler Gordon was 5-2 and well on the way to a big game before going to the locker room with a hamstring about halfway through the game. Josh Blackwell took over for the second half and had an interception, but he was not as involved as Gordon. Coach Eberflus said that Gordon went for an MRI on Monday but the results have not yet come back.

Jaylon Jones stood in for Tyrique Stevenson and had a big statistical day at 9-1. Stevenson was limited in practice last week before being inactive, so he should make it back after this week's bye.

Guru's IDP Notes: Cincinnati Bengals

The Bengals looked like a different defense with all their linemen back. With Zach Carter's release last week, Cincinnati turned to a three-man rotation at tackle with B.J. Hill seeing 70% of the action and the rest divided almost equally between Sheldon Rankins and Kris Jenkins Jr.. Hill went 3-4-0 and knocked down 2 passes against the Giants. Cleveland is a mediocre matchup in general, but Hill's fresh legs and high snap count could turn into a productive game.

Having the interior line back is a big deal for Cincinnati's linebackers. It will go a long way toward keeping the second-level players clean. This is a particularly good thing this week as the Bengals face the division rival Browns, who are giving up the most fantasy points to linebackers.    

Vonn Bell has been quiet, including a two-tackle game versus the Giants last week. Interestingly, he is beginning to lose snaps to second-year man Jordan Battle. Nothing is imminent here, but it is a situation to monitor. Battle produced four combined tackles on 14 plays.

Guru's IDP Notes: Cleveland Browns

The Browns are a disaster yet again. The fire sale has already started with Amani Cooper shipped to Buffalo. Will they sell off the good components of the defense next? Or will they try to stay competitive on that side of the ball as they work their way through Deshawn Watson purgatory?  

Jordan Hicks missed week six. We're not sure if the elbow, rib, or triceps injury or the combination of the three is keeping him off the field. We will watch for a return to practice this week, but don't count on it.

Meanwhile, Devin Bush started week five and put up good numbers at 8-2, while playing every snap. Fantasy managers were happy with that production but apparently, the coaching staff was not so impressed. Bush made another start versus the Eagles but this time around he went 1-3 on 55% while Mohamoud Diabate was 5-2 on 74% of the snaps.

Injuries to the starters left Cleveland with Rodney McLeod Jr. and D'Anthony Bell as the safeties. McLeod has at least twelve fantasy points in three straight games and a strong matchup with the Bengals this week.