Plugging the Gaps: IDP Waiver Wire for Week 10
Harold Jones-Quartey, Strong Safety
I apparently have an affinity for defensive backs with hyphenated last names, because the Chicago Bears’ Harold Jones-Quartey is the third such player I’ve recommended over the past two weeks. It’s not without reason, though; Jones-Quartey has been a quietly steady contributor for the Bears’ secondary, often dropping into the tackle box to help in run support. He’s on-pace for 86 total tackles this year, as well as two stuffs. While he’s not a big-play safety (no sacks or interceptions yet in 2016), he can be a solid play at a normally inconsistent position.
Against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, he should maintain his steadiness and has a chance to add some cheap big-play points to boot. Quarterback Jameis Winston has the fifth-highest interception rate in the league, and the team as a whole ranks 12th-highest in stuff rate allowed in the run game. Jacquizz Rodgers was the biggest perpetrator of that dive, but undrafted rookie Peyton Barber won’t do a lot to drop their rate in that category. The Bucs have allowed an average 11.2 fantasy points to strong safeties over their past three games.
Jones-Quartey is available in 95.3% of ESPN IDP leagues, and we project him for 5.69 tackles, 0.12 interceptions, 0.10 passes defended, and a total score of 6.63 fantasy points in Week 10.
