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In the Trenches - Week 2

morgan burnettEach week I’ll be using data from PFF and around the web to give some insight into IDP fantasy football, and how using these metrics can lead to finding undervalued players, potential breakouts and sleepers.

This week I want to look at how you can find hidden value with defensive backs, in particular safeties, as well as knowing which style of safety to avoid.

In-the-box Safeties

One of PFF’s signature statistics, which can be very revealing for fantasy purposes, is the percentage of run snaps a safety plays within eight yards of the line of scrimmage. This means the safety had dropped down into the box to help stuff the running game, and has an increased chance of making a tackle.

Looking at the data from the past few seasons we can see a correlation between players frequently buzzing the line of scrimmage, and those who rack up the most fantasy points.

2013 – Top 12 Fantasy Safeties
(safeties playing 50%+ of run snaps averaged 34.9% of snaps within 8 yards of the LoS)

Player

Pts

8yd %

Barry Church

203

44.2

Antrel Rolle

190.5

51.1

Eric Berry

188

69.7

TJ Ward

184

65.7

Bernard Pollard

172.5

53.7

Earl Thomas

172

12.8

Troy Polamalu

162

79.8

Eric Weddle

158.5

46.3

William Moore

157

35.1

Antoine Bethea

156.5

37.3

Tashaun Gipson

154.5

31.9

Reshad Jones

150.5

36.8

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Ross Miles is a Lead Writer for Pro Football Focus Fantasy. Follow him on Twitter –@PFF_RossMiles

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