2012 IDP Fantasy Football Week 1: Defensive Back (DB) Rankings

With Terrell Thomas done for the season and Prince Amukamara working his way back from another leg injury, the Giants are forced to start Michael Coe opposite Corey Webster. With depth at corner a big concern, New York may turn to Antrel Rolle to play down against slot receivers in nickel personnel.

This is a big deal, because it would allow the Giants to possibly be creative with Rolle close to the line of scrimmage, and since he’s down where the action is, his odds of activity are higher.

New York has one of the better pass rushes in the game, but they can be taken advantage of if the rush doesn’t get to the quarterback. With Eli Manning and the offense tossing up around 30-plus points a game, we can bet opposing teams will find themselves outside of base personnel and into more three-receiver sets.

This, of course, means the Giants will stay in nickel more often, something that was common (and around the league) last year.

While Rolle may not get the respect he deserves in IDP drafts, he’s likely to be a regular DB2 performer and should have the role to deliver consistent production.

Sean’s Watch List

Patrick Chung continues to battle injuries, but he should be on the field against the Titans. I still like him as a regular DB2 option when healthy, but I want to watch if he has to come out of the game regularly, or if he appears to be favoring an injury during the game.

A couple defensive backs that failed to make my top 30 but could find their way on soon would be Erik Coleman of the Lions and Taylor Mays of the Bengals.

Coleman won a starting job almost by default because of injury. He’s in an interesting situation and could hold regular DB3 value for us.

Mays has the skill set to be a solid DB2, and if Rey Maualuga doesn’t get his act together, we could see the third-year strong safety have a breakout year. The problem with Mays is his pass-protection skills—because he’s a big guy, he tends to struggle to turn his hips and run with the receiver.

As long as he holds down a regular starting job, he is worthy of a roster spot and may be an option for your lineup Week 1.

Finally, I want to see what William Moore does against the Chiefs. I don’t like the Falcons' linebacker situation outside of Sean Weatherspoon, and with Curtis Lofton gone, we could see Moore benefit.

1	Tyvon Branch	Chargers
2	Eric Berry	Falcons
3	Morgan Burnett	49ers
4	Antoine Bethea	@ Bears
5	Charles Woodson	49ers
6	Bernard Pollard	Bengals
7	Kam Chancellor (I)	@ Cardinals
8	George Wilson	@ Jets
9	Jason McCourty	Patriots
10	Roman Harper	Redskins
11	Mark Barron	Panthers
12	Quintin Mikell	@ Lions
13	William Moore	@ Chiefs
14	Eric Weddle	@ Raiders
15	Antrel Rolle	Cowboys
16	Charles Tillman	Colts
17	Alterraun Verner	Patriots
18	DeAngelo Hall	@ Saints
19	Patrick Chung	@ Titans
20	Earl Thomas	@ Cardinals
21	Troy Polamalu	@ Broncos
22	Dawan Landry	@ Vikings
23	Craig Dahl	@ Lions
24	Yeremiah Bell	Bills
25	Devin McCourty	@ Titans
26	Kyle Arrington	@ Titans
27	LaRon Landry	Bills
28	Kurt Coleman	@ Browns
29	Charles Godfrey	@ Bucs
30	Cortland Finnegan	@ Lions

Week 1 Rankings – QB | RB | WR | DL | LB |