Under The Radar IDPs for Week 3 (2023)
Back again looking for starter play for backup prices this week with Under the Radar IDP’s. Last week we loved George Karlaftis, and he got home. Will Anderson Jr. is now appropriately in the top 25 over at FantasyPros, meaning I can’t use him as a gimme anymore. Kareem Jackson got himself ejected in the second quarter, but we did find a few LBs who had some success, like Kwon Alexander and Cody Barton. Old friends Dax Hill and Jessie Bates are long gone, now finding themselves in the top 20 area.
As the weeks move on, weekly rankings will become more accurate, and thus harder to find the hidden gems buried deep in the rankings. With that said, here are some Under The Radar IDPs for Week 3 (2023) to be on the lookout for using FantasyPros ECR Rankings.
Defensive Line
Uchenna Nwosu DL34
Denico Autry DL38
Travon Walker DL39
Andrew Van Ginkel DL58
David Ojabo DL67
First up is Uchenna Nwosu, who played an impressive 80% percent of snaps last week. That is a high number for a pass rusher who gets to face off against the rookie Bryce Young this week. He’s gone down 6 times already and fumbled. I expect Seattle to be a tougher test for the rookie signal caller, and being sacked 4+ times is not out of the question, and I like Nwosu to get one of them.
Deshaun Watson has seen the grass plenty to start his 2023 season, and Denico Autry faces the middling QB this week. He’s got the playing time and the Browns are averaging 4.5 sacks per game on Watson so far. If that holds up, there’s a good chance Autry benefits this week. If the boo birds come out in Cleveland this week, it could be a double sack day for someone.
In a similar situation is Travon Walker of the Jacksonville Jaguars, facing off against the Texans who have already allowed their quarterback to get pummeled 11 times this season. The Jaguars should be in control of this one and it could get a great IDP day for a lot of Jacksonville players.
Still somehow buried is reborn Andrew Van Ginkel, who is a changed man playing on the line of scrimmage. Miami looks great and hosts visiting 0-2 Denver. The Dolphins know how to score quickly, and the Broncos could be staring at the wrong end of 0-3 before halftime. Confidence ruined that Russel Wilson could right the ship, the defense could feast on their failures. I like the Dolphins to win this one and Wilson to see plenty of turf in desperate attempts to keep up.
Listed as an LB6 or lower in bigger leagues, David Ojabo is a forgotten man. The Ravens look great and face the Colts this week. It’s unknown at this time if we’ll see Anthony Richardson or Gardner Minshew, but Ojabo is worth a flier as a guy who is getting 70% percent playing time at DE for a winning team. The Ravens pose a tough threat to the young Colts, and Ojabo is a guy who could get some points this week for you.
Linebackers
Azeez Al-Shaair LB32
Cody Barton LB38
Terrell Bernard LB45
Robert Spillane LB47
Azeez Al-Shaair is what we thought he would be this year, a guy on the field all 3 downs. There’s only so many of those, so even though he was quiet last week, expect him to rebound back to normal against Cleveland this week.
We talked about Cody Barton last week and the playing time was there again. He’s on the field every play, and that usually leads to points. LB38 is pretty low for a guy who’s playing every down. If his numbers heat up, he’ll be a league winner this year.
Buffalo trusted Terrell Bernard with the LB2 job, and so should we. Though playing next to Matt Milano and not quite an every snap guy, there are points to be had for Bernard. He’s cheap and could see plenty of opportunities against the Commanders.
About 20 spots below teammate Divine Deablo, we find Robert Spillane, who is giving you as good or better production. LB47 is just too low for him, and he is the guy to own right now in Las Vegas. He racked up points last week, and I expect him to do the same against his former team, the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Defensive Backs
Camryn Bynum DB43
K’von Wallace DB54
Geno Stone DB61
As we move to defensive backs, really all these guys find themselves in similar situations. I begin to wonder if some people are giving it their best effort on a week to week ranking at DB when guys about to get clear cut playing time are still in the 40s or 50s for the weekly ranking.
Camryn Bynum is outsourcing Harrison Smith and is now the safety to own in Minnesota. Guys like K’von Wallace and Geno Stone just played every snap in place of their injured starters’ place and will do so for the next few weeks. Stone had a monster game, and Wallace will be taking the place of IDP favorite Buddha Baker.