IDP Wednesday: Week 13

By: Justin Curry (12/02/2009)

Hello everyone and welcome to another IDP Wednesday. This week, I would like to simplify things a bit and really concentrate on one of the sections I've been bringing to you for the majority of this year - The Favorable & Formidable Fives.

In this weeks post, I would like to not only breakdown who the top and bottom five teams are over the course of the year, but also do the same for the previous three weeks of games. The goal is to use these four charts to give you a better understanding of the value that can be gained from them and do some analysis using the following for each position:

1. The Good - Which DLs, LBs and DBs play teams that have been favorable over the course of the year and over the last three weeks.
2. The Bad - Which teams should you stay away from this week as they seem to have been bad for not only the last three weeks, but also over the course of the whole year.

So with that said, here are the four charts which will be followed by my analysis on what this should mean for a handful of players this week:

Favorable & Formidable (Entire Year)

Favorable (Ordered w/ Best Team to Play First & Weekly Opponent)

Rank	DL	Opp.	LB	Opp.	DB	Opp.
1	GB	BAL	NO	WAS	NO	WAS
2	NYJ	BUF	NE	MIA	NYG	DAL
3	NE	MIA	IND	TEN	CAR	TB
4	JAC	HOU	MIA	NE	DEN	KC
5	SF	SEA	CAR	TB	SEA	SF

Formidable (Ordered w/ Worst Team to Play First & Weekly Opponent)

Rank	DL	Opp.	LB	Opp.	DB	Opp.
1	DAL	NYG	ATL	PHI	OAK	PIT
2	NYG	DAL	GB	BAL	SF	SEA
3	ATL	PHI	DEN	KC	BUF	NYJ
4	MIN	ARI	BUF	NYJ	IND	TEN
5	IND	TEN	SD	CLE	CLE	SD

Favorable & Formidable (Last Three Weeks)

Favorable (Ordered w/ Best Team to Play First & Weekly Opponent)

Rank	DL	Opp.	LB	Opp.	DB	Opp.
1	NE	MIA	DAL	NYG	STL	CHI
2	NYJ	BUF	TB	CAR	DEN	KC
3	ATL	PHI	BAL	GB	CAR	TB
4	BAL	GB	IND	TEN	NE	MIA
5	STL	CHI	PHI	ATL	SEA	SF

Formidable (Ordered w/ Worst Team to Play First & Weekly Opponent)

Rank	DL	Opp.	LB	Opp.	DB	Opp.
1	CAR	TB	SF	SEA	DAL	NYG
2	MIA	NE	MIN	ARI	SF	SEA
3	WAS	NO	CIN	DET	IND	TEN
4	IND	TEN	DEN	KC	NYJ	BUF
5	OAK	PIT	BUF	NYJ	OAK	PIT

DL Analysis:

The Good - If you look closely at these charts you will notice that two teams have been in the Favorable portion, not only the last three weeks, but also over the course of the year - the New England Patriots and the New York Jets. With that said, you have to like Aaron Schobel and Randy Starks chances to have good days this week.

*Note - Buffalo is just outside the top five in both favorable chart categories and I expect big days from Shaun Ellis and Marques Douglas, as well.

The Bad - The Indianapolis Colts have been brutal all year for the DE position. If you were thinking of playing Kyle Vanden Bosch because he has had a sack for two straight weeks and are in a sack-heavy league (he should have 2 or 3 tackles, though), I would think about it again.

LB Analysis:

The Good - As bad as the Colts have been for DEs this year, they have been a pot of gold for the LB position. If you have Keith Bulluck or Stephen Tulloch, I would argue they are must plays this week.

The Bad - As you can tell from the charts above, the Denver Broncos and the Buffalo Bills have been a death sentence to LBs this year and over the last three weeks. Though I think David Harris will be fine, don't be surprised if the other linebackers (Bart Scott, Calvin Pace, and Demorrio Williams) don't shine.

DB Analysis:

The Good - There are three teams that have been good to safeties all year and their names are the Carolina Panthers, the Denver Broncos, and the Seattle Seahawks. If you're in need, Tanard Jackson, Michael Lewis, and Mike Brown all statistically look to be in for productive days.

The Bad - I gave you three good ones above, now the three at the opposite end of the spectrum are the Oakland Raiders, the San Francisco 49ers and the Indianapolis Colts (this one surprises me). Anyway, though I think Jordan Babineaux might be alright, I don't know if I feel the same optimism for Chris Hope or any of the the Pittsburgh Steelers secondary, so be forewarned.

Well, that's it for another installment of the IDP Wednesday. Hope you enjoyed and are as excited as I am about playoffs starting next week!!! See you next Wednesday.

Justin Curry