Plugging the Gaps: IDP Waiver Wire for Week 5

Justin Tuck, Defensive End

The most prized fantasy asset in IDP always seems to be the 4-3 defensive end. With just under half of the teams in the league using a more traditional 4-3 front, this player is just getting harder to find out on the waiver wire. For the Oakland Raiders, though, they were just thrilled to get a discount on the then-32-year old Justin Tuck in free agency last offseason. Tuck rewarded their faith in him with his 7th career 5-sack season in 2014, as well as with 43 total tackles. He’s on pace to come near that again, with 13 total tackles and 1 sack through 4 weeks, and in Week 5 this currently top-10 scoring geezer could surprise fantasy owners.

Tuck gets to test himself against the Denver Broncos in Week 5. Denver is finally starting to hit their stride in terms of production, but still have given up the 12th-highest percentage of sacks on drop backs. Peyton Manning is playing in the pistol and shotgun again, so that number has dropped, but Tuck is a talented pass-rusher who can easily best whichever combination of shoddy offensive tackles the Broncos trot out, from rookie Ty Sambrailo (9 total pressures given up) to Ryan Harris (10 total pressures). Even if Manning evades being brought down, the running game should provide ample tackle opportunity once Denver puts the game out of hand and kills clock.

Tuck is available in 91.1% of ESPN IDP leagues, and we project him for around 3.0 tackles, a decent chance at a sack, and a total score of 4.21 balanced fantasy points in Week 5.