2012 IDP Fantasy Football Week 7: Linebacker (LB) Rankings

Seahawks rookie Bobby Wagner continues to come on strong after  winning a three-down role a couple weeks ago. I pointed out last week that his matchup against the Patriots was a big test to see what his value would be going forward and if he would be trusted on third downs going forward.

Test results came back well as Wagner helped his team in a victory over the Patriots and he posted seven solo tackles and seven assisted tackles in the game.

This weeks matchup against the 49ers is a terrific play for not just Wagner, but K.J. Wright, Patrick Willis and NaVorro Bowman. We should have a heavy run game on both sides, and Wagner should get a few opportunities to shoot the gap and sack Alex Smith in the backfield.

What Did We Learn From Week 6

Starting to get a little ticked with Donald Butler after a couple of down weeks. He's still in a good situation, but the Chargers have been in some wild games. And when the game scripts call for heavy passing from the opposite team, we need to downgrade his ranking going forward.

The big news of the week is Ray Lewis going down for the season. Hopefully, Lewis won’t be done for his career, but there were some troubling things on tape form him in recent games. For one, he’s on the ground a decent amount of time, and he’s also had trouble shedding blockers and making plays.

That’s really not much of a concern for fantasy owners or the Ravens at this point because he won’t be back, but we did see his replacement, Dannell Ellerbe. I like Jameel McClain as a better option for tackles, but both will be active this week against the run-heavy Texans.

Sean’s Week 7 Watch List

Based on snap counts, we should like A.J. Hawk as the top linebacker for tackles after the loss of D.J. Smith. Hawk should be a serviceable LB3 or LB4, but I must admit, I’m a little bummed about Smith going down. He was a great late-round pick for me this year.

Colin McCarthy played in each of the Titans' previous games and it appeared we could trust him again as at least a LB2 going forward with a long week of rest. Unfortunately, he was seen walking in a boot again early this week. That's not a good sign and it’s worth holding him out of your lineup until we see him back at full practices.

This could be a lost season for McCarthy, but let’s see if he can get back on the field this Sunday and see how he performs.

1	Daryl Washington	@ Vikings
2	Patrick Willis	Seahawks
3	London Fletcher	@ Giants
4	Chad Greenway	Cardinals
5	Bobby Wagner	@ 49ers
6	James Laurinaitis	Packers
7	NaVorro Bowman	Seahawks
8	Sean Lee	@ Panthers
9	Luke Kuechly	Cowboys
10	DeMarcus Ware	@ Panthers
11	Jameel McClain	@ Texans
12	Jerod Mayo	Jets
13	Lavonte David	Saints
14	Stephen Tulloch	@ Bears
15	Mason Foster	Saints
16	Paul Posluszny	@ Raiders
17	David Harris	@ Patriots
18	Curtis Lofton	@ Bucs
19	D’Qwell Jackson	@ Colts
20	Jerrell Freeman	Browns
21	Philip Wheeler	Jaguars
22	Michael Boley	Redskins
23	Rey Maualuga	Steelers
24	Perry Riley	@ Giants
25	Vontaze Burfict	Steelers
26	Larry Foote	@ Bengals
27	Dannell Ellerbe	@ Texans
28	Jon Beason (I)	Cowboys
29	Clay Matthews	@ Rams
30	Paris Lenon	@ Vikings
31	Brian Urlacher	Lions
32	Nick Barnett	Titans
33	James Harrison	@ Bengals
34	Colin McCarthy (I)	@ Bills

Week 7 IDP Rankings – QB | RB | WR | DL | DB |