DT Deep Dive
***2023 Week 7 Rankings***
Welcome to the Week 7 edition of the DT Deep Dive! It is officially byemaggedon but there is no shortage of good (and great) DT options this week.
For the season, the model is performing very well. Tier 1 > Tier 2 > Tier 3 > Tier 4 with only one exception (% over 10pts in Tier 2). Accuracy against projections sits at 68.82% with a 31.06% massive hit rate. The top end of my rankings are outperforming "Expert X" and FantasySharks in terms of % of top players identified, are second in terms of avg pts, and in third for FantasyPros accuracy. Full 2023 season and weekly results available here.
Week 7 sees a new entrant to the Ideal Tier, an old favorite dropping through the ranks, and 38 overall recommended plays among 102 options.
Good luck!
Week 7 DT Streamers (outside the top 30 rostered on MFL)
Week 6 - David Onyemata (11) and DaQuon Jones (.5), Season-long average at 12.4.
David Onyemata, ATL
Onyemata had a lackluster Week 6 but still topped 10 points for the 4th time in 6 weeks this season. Great snaps, great grades, and a good matchup having me sticking with him this week.
Alim McNeil, DET
McNeil only registered 1 QB hit last week but grades out as as PFF's DT9. That plus his consistently playing more than 70% of snaps has me giving him one last last chance.
Week 6 DT Rankings
Disclaimer 1: My model is performing well, but don't take these as gospel. Sometimes I even start a lower ranked guy who is more proven if the rest of my roster is in a place where I need to be risk averse (especially this early in the season).
Disclaimer 2: Check for guys who are out. There may even be 1-2 ranked guys on IR if they had enough snaps this year. I'll catch some of these when doing data entry but not all.
Here is the full list of 102 DTs rated this week. Note - tiers are sorted so higher in tier = better.
TIER 1 - IDEAL (guys you would start in any format and even consider in DL leagues that don't explicitly require DT)
Aaron Donald LA
Dexter Lawrence II NYG - 21 pressures with 0 sacks and plays 100% of pass rush snaps. The talent is too good for me to move off of him.
David Onyemata ATL
Chris Jones KC
DeForest Buckner IND
Christian Wilkins MIA
Vita Vea TB - Snaps have long kept Vea out of my top tier but he played 63% or more snaps in 3 of 5 games this year giving me more confidence to play him
TIER 2 - SOLID (players are also expected to perform well and you can usually start to find some potential streamers in this group)
Jonathan Allen WAS
Alim McNeill DET
Ed Oliver BUF - We were all frustrated by the output last week but pass rush talent plus an 81% snap share keeps him in Solid territory.
Zach Allen DEN
Jalen Carter PHI - If he is back, I am not sure what his snap share will look like but he has the talent to put up big numbers even in a limited role.
Daron Payne WAS
Leonard Williams NYG
Grady Jarrett ATL
TIER 3 - SOLID - DEEPER (mostly relevant in 16 team leagues, leagues where you have to start 2 DT, or leagues with very deep benches).
Justin Madubuike BLT
Michael Pierce BLT
Kenny Clark GB
Sebastian Joseph-Day LAC
Roy Robertson-Harris JAX
Montravius Adams PIT
DeMarcus Walker CHI - Aiden O'Connell was sacked 58 times the last time he started a game. While that is a bit of an exaggeration, Walker is the Bears best pass rusher and is in a great spot this week.
Harrison Phillips MIN
Zach Sieler MIA - I was a big fan of Sieler last year but mediocre grades so far this season has me concerned for his hitting his ceiling consistently.
Larry Ogunjobi PIT
Calais Campbell ATL
Jonah Williams LA
Jonathan Harris DEN
Javon Hargrave SF
Dalvin Tomlinson CLV
Jonathan Bullard MIN
Justin Jones CHI
Kobie Turner LA - Turner actually outgrades teammate Williams but a snap share that is 20% lower drops him here.
Dre'Mont Jones SEA
Logan Hall TB
Milton Williams PHI
Arik Armstead SF - PFF's 2nd highest graded DT in true pass rush sets is not seeing the field enough to capitalize in a consistent manner but remains a player who can pop in any given week.
Maurice Hurst CLV
TIER 4 - AVOID (players who did not have strong enough snap counts in Week 1 to warrant consideration in leagues other than Best Ball that you are managing in-season)
Jarran Reed SEA
Bilal Nichols LV
Devonte Wyatt GB
Kevin Strong ARZ
Lawrence Guy Sr. NE
Deatrich Wise Jr. NE
John Jenkins LV
Adam Butler LV
Nathan Shepherd NO
Bryan Bresee NO
Broderick Washington BLT
Javon Kinlaw SF
Mario Edwards Jr. SEA
Keion White NE
Eric Johnson IND
T.J. Slaton GB
Keeanu Benton PIT
Da'Shawn Hand MIA
Khalen Saunders NO
Andrew Billings CHI
Gervon Dexter Sr. CHI
Kevin Givens SF
Christian Barmore NE
Taven Bryan IND
Karl Brooks GB
Morgan Fox LAC
Fletcher Cox PHI
Jordan Davis PHI
Jonathan Ledbetter ARZ
Greg Gaines TB
Mike Greene TB
Benito Jones DET
Davon Godchaux NE
Jerry Tillery LV
Malcolm Roach NO
Austin Johnson LAC
Dante Stills ARZ
Rakeem Nunez-Roches NYG
Travis Jones BLT
Shelby Harris CLV
Jordan Elliott CLV
Bobby Brown III LA
John Cominsky DET
Colby Wooden GB
D.J. Jones DEN
Mike Purcell DEN
Nick Williams LAC
Armon Watts PIT
Adam Gotsis JAX
Angelo Blackson JAX
Folorunso Fatukasi JAX
Jeremiah Ledbetter JAX
John Ridgeway WAS
A'Shawn Robinson NYG
Jordan Phillips BUF
Tim Settle BUF
Scott Matlock LAC
DeMarvin Leal PIT
Tershawn Wharton KC
Derrick Nnadi KC
Raekwon Davis MIA
Leki Fotu ARZ
Dean Lowry MIN