IDP advice: 3-down linebackers around the league

No matter the position in fantasy football, playing time is one of the biggest drivers of success. In IDP leagues, a lot of linebackers shuffle on and off the field, but a precious few are full-time, three-down linebackers, and those players have the most opportunities for fantasy success.

Each week in this space, we’ll take a look at the linebacker situations around the league to identify the key playing time considerations and shifting jobs for IDP fantasy players to take advantage of. Check out the chart at the bottom for the full breakdown. First, a few notes on some standout situations.

Cleveland Browns — With Christian Kirksey now on IR, rookie Mack Wilson stepped in and played all 64 snaps at LB in Week 3.

Dallas Cowboys — Joe Thomas went from only 2 total snaps in Week 2 to playing 30 total snaps in Week 3, almost exclusively in subpackages.

Denver Broncos — With a healthy Todd Davis back on the field, Josey Jewell saw a decrease from playing 100% of snaps in Week 2 to about 80% in Week 3.

Detroit Lions — With a healthy Jarrad Davis back on the field, Jahlani Tavai saw a small decrease from playing about 66% of snaps in Week 2 to less than half of the snaps in week 3. Most of his snaps are in subpackages, but he also played the very few snaps the Lions had in base packages as well.

Indianapolis Colts — With Darius Leonard injured, Rookie Bobby Okereke stepped in and played 54 of the 60 snaps.

Jacksonville Jaguars — Myles Jack left the Thursday night game with an injury and Najee Goode took over his role to finish out the game.

New York Giants — Alec Ogletree left the game with an injury and Tae Davis saw the field for the first time since getting injured in Week 1. We still need to see a full game with both healthy, but for now it looks like Davis is on the field for about one-third of the snaps, mostly in subpackages.

Los Angeles Chargers — Denzel Perryman, who is now healthy, saw the field for the first time this season and played about 60% of snaps.

Washington — In base packages, Montez Sweat saw a slight decrease in Week 3 while OLB Ryan Kerrigan saw a slight boost.

Check below for the breakdown for each team.

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