NFL's Week 3 saw some of the better field performances from rookies that we have witnessed this season but it didn't exactly translate to fantasy production. Funny how IDP works that way. Patrick Peterson, for instance, had his best coverage of the season in week 3 but accompanied that with his lowest tackle count on the year. Still, he did redeem himself in the eyes of the fantasy participants with an interception. How did other rookies fare now that they're getting into the general swing of things?
| Team | Player | Snaps | PFF Rating | Tackles | Assists | QB Rush-PR-Hit | Other |
| Arizona Cardinals | CB Patrick Peterson | 69/69 | 1.6 | 1 | 1 INT | ||
| Arizona Cardinals | NT David Carter | 12/69 | -0.4 | 1 | 5-1-1 | ||
| Arizona Cardinals | OLB Sam Acho | 3/69 | -0.1 | 1-0-0 | |||
| Baltimore Ravens | DT Pernell McPhee | 30/67 | -1.1 | 1 | 21-1-0 | ||
| Buffalo Bills | DT Marcell Dareus | 49/75 | -0.1 | 1 | 30-0-1 | ||
| Carolina Panthers | DT Sione Fua | 40/63 | 0.2 | 2 | 12-0-0 | ||
| Carolina Panthers | DT Terrell McClain | 40/63 | -0.8 | 1 | 1 | 22-0-0 | |
| Cleveland Browns | DE Jabaal Sheard | 66/76 | 5.6 | 1 | 1 | 36-8-0 | |
| Cleveland Browns | DT Phil Taylor | 49/76 | -0.8 | 4 | 2 | 24-1-0 | 1 Sack |
| Cleveland Browns | CB Buster Skrine | 4/76 | 0.6 | ||||
| Denver Broncos | SLB Von Miller | 60/63 | 3.2 | 3 | 1 | 26-0-0 | 1 Sack |
| Denver Broncos | FS Rahim Moore | 62/63 | 0.7 | 1 | |||
| Green Bay Packers | OLB Jamari Lattimore | 3/58 | -0.2 | 3-0-0 | |||
| Houston Texans | DE J.J. Watt | 63/72 | 0.9 | 3 | 42-2-0 | 1 TFL | |
| Houston Texans | OLB Brooks Reed | 20/72 | -0.9 | 1 | 10-0-0 | ||
| Indianapolis Colts | DT Drake Nevis | 45/72 | 1.1 | 1 | 1 | 27-3-0 | |
| Indianapolis Colts | LB Adrian Moten | 1/72 | 0 | ||||
| Indianapolis Colts | FS Joe Lefeged | 47/72 | 1.6 | 2 | 1 INT | ||
| Jacksonville Jaguars | FS Chris Prosinski | 11/65 | 0.1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| Kansas City Chiefs | DE Allen Bailey | 29/72 | -0.7 | 23-0-0 | 1 BP | ||
| Kansas City Chiefs | OLB Justin Houston | 36/72 | -2 | 3 | 1 | ||
| Kansas City Chiefs | CB Jalil Brown | 4/72 | 0 | ||||
| Miami Dolphins | CB Jimmy Wilson | 20/65 | 1.4 | 1 | 1 INT 1 PD | ||
| Minnesota Vikings | DT Christian Ballard | 7/75 | -0.3 | ||||
| New Orleans Saints | DE Cam Jordan | 49/70 | 0.7 | 2 | 1 | 25-0-0 | |
| New Orleans Saints | SLB Martez Wilson | 13/70 | -0.9 | 1-0-1 | |||
| New York Giants | SLB Jacquian Williams | 43/79 | -0.2 | 10 | 6-1-0 | 1 TFL | |
| New York Giants | MLB Greg Jones | 9/79 | -0.4 | ||||
| New York Jets | DE Mo Wilkerson | 38/67 | -2.4 | 1 | 18-0-0 | ||
| Oakland Raiders | CB Chimdi Chekwa | 53/78 | -1.1 | 2 | |||
| Philadelphia Eagles | SLB Casey Matthews | 34/53 | -2.6 | 3 | 3-0-0 | ||
| Philadelphia Eagles | WLB Brian Rolle | 16/53 | 2 | 2 | 4-1-0 | ||
| Pittsburgh Steelers | DE Cameron Heyward | 9/63 | 0.7 | 2 | 6-2-0 | ||
| Pittsburgh Steelers | CB Cortez Allen | 3/63 | 0 | ||||
| St. Louis Rams | DE Robert Quinn | 54/83 | 2.7 | 38-4-3 | |||
| San Diego Chargers | CB Marcus Gilchrist | 33/57 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| San Francisco 49ers | OLB Aldon Smith | 20/57 | -0.9 | 17-1-0 | |||
| Seattle Seahawks | MLB K.J. Wright | 33/74 | 1.6 | 1 | 1-0-0 | ||
| Seattle Seahawks | CB Richard Sherman | 4/74 | 0 | ||||
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | DE Adrian Clayborn | 43/69 | 5.1 | 1 | 1 | 33-3-1 | 1 Sack, 1 FF |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | LB Mason Foster | 69/69 | 1.2 | 3 | 14-0-1 | 1 Sack | |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | DE Da'Quan Bowers | 23/69 | -1.5 | 20-1-0 | |||
| Tennessee Titans | DT Jurrell Casey | 37/68 | 2.5 | 2 | 17-1-1 | ||
| Tennessee Titans | OLB Akeem Ayers | 49/68 | 0.2 | 4 | 1 | ||
| Tennessee Titans | DT Karl Klug | 35/68 | 3.7 | 25-2-1 | 1 BP | ||
| Tennessee Titans | MLB Colin McCarthy | 5/68 | 0 | ||||
| Washington Redskins | OLB Ryan Kerrigan | 69/69 | -0.6 | 2 | 26-4-0 | 1 Sack, 1 FF | |
| Washington Redskins | NT Chris Neild | 15/69 | -0.8 | 1 | 6-0-0 |
Fab Five (Top 5 IDP Rookie Performances of the Week)
1. NY Giants LB Jacquian Williams: 10 tackles 1 TFL; Even though the rookie out of USF only play in 43 of the team's 79 snaps, he still dominated the stat sheet. It was a huge breakout performance from a guy who only had 3 tackles coming in to the game. If he repeats this performance next week he will become a hot commodity in fantasy leagues.
2. Indianapolis Colts S Joe Lefeged: 1 tackle 1 assist 1 int 1 PD; Once again, Indianapolis shows that they know how to find defensive backs late in the draft, or in Lefeged's case, in undrafted free agency. With Melvin Bullitt going down for the season due to an injury, Lefeged looks to be the logical replacement after getting more snaps and performing substantially better than his competition David Caldwell, who finished the game versus Pittsburgh with 22 less snaps and still allowing 100 yards in completion (including a TD) his direction. If you are in need of a defensive back, Lefeged could be a sleeper.
3. Houston Texans DE J.J. Watt: 4 tackles 1 tfl 1 sack; Just an average day at work for J.J. Watt. With a rookie high 42 pass rushes, Watt actually underproduced with just 2 pressures and 1 sack, but his snap percentage and just the sheer fact that they send him at the QB so often can only lead to a positive fantasy outcome.
4. Denver Broncos LB Von Miller: 3 tackles 1 assist 1 sack 1 FF; Von Miller doesn't belong on this list because it doesn't serve him justice. Miller isn't just a top 5 defensive rookie week in and week out, he's currently the #1 ranked 4-3 OLB on the year here at PFF with a +12.6 rating. Not bad for a LB that some predicted would struggle his rookie year.
5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers DE Adrian Clayborn: 2 tackles 1 sack 1 FF; After two weeks of disappointment, the former Iowa Hawkeye finally showed by the Bucs took him in the 1st round. Still, he won't be facing Falcons LT Sam Baker (-14.1 on the year) every week so temper your expectations about Clayborn a bit.
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