The Land of the Free (Safety)

Traditionally, there’s been a bias against the free safety as a productive contributor in IDP formats.  For the most part, the bias was justified.  Linebackers and strong safeties are the tackle machines and cornerbacks chipped in with both tackles and big plays.  Meanwhile, the free safety roamed center field helping the cornerbacks in deep coverage and occasionally stopping the long run. The strong safety was the defensive back to own because he was usually the extra linebacker who played close to the line of scrimmage and made a lot of tackles with enough coverage responsibility to net some big plays. Free safeties generally had a decent value in big-play formats but minimal value in tackle-heavy leagues.

Times have changed, my friends. In my oldest tackle-heavy league, more than half of the top 15 defensive backs so far this season are free safeties – Danieal Manning, Darren Sharper, Brian Dawkins, Eric Weddle, Dashon Goldson, Antoine Bethea, Oshiomogho Atogwe, and Antrel Rolle.

Weddle and Atogwe are not surprises on the list since they both finished in the Top-5 among defensive backs last season. Neither one is having as strong a season in 2009 but both are still major contributors at DB.

In other instances, underwhelming play in the other defensive backfield positions have helped the free safety become the primary playmaker behind the front seven. In Chicago, the lack of a playmaking strong safety, as well as injuries and ineffectiveness at the cornerback position (opposite Charles Tillman), on the Bears has given Manning opportunites to contribute. Manning’s considered the team’s best defensive back and one of the Bears’ best athletes so an opportunity was all he really needed to shine. 

In Arizona,  opposing teams often engage in shootouts with the Cardinals which leads to a ton of opportunities for the defensive backs to make plays.  The inconsistency of cornerbacks Dominique Rogers-Cromartie and Bryant McFadden and the disappearance of Adrian Wilson as an IDP stud at strong safety has given Rolle a chance to really make a difference.

In San Francisco and New Orleans, there are excellent strong safeties present in Michael Lewis and Roman Harper, respectively. However, the pass coverage by the 49ers’ corners have been brutally bad and Goldson has had to help out – a lot.  The Saints have had opponents behind in most games and that’s caused the defensive back to be in pass coverage most of the game. The team’s lost its starting cornerbacks, Tracy Porter and Jabari Greer, which has made the wily veteran Sharper even more valuable playing deep.

The loss of Bob Sanders (again) and season-long injuries to Kelvin Hayden and Marlin Jackson have forced the Colts to play journeymen, third-stringers, and rookies at the cornerback positions and the average Melvin Bullitt at strong safety. Bethea, clearly the best defensive back on the team at this point has been forced to be Mr. Everything for the Colts this season and it’s resulted in big numbers.

As for the venerable Brian Dawkins, he’s surprised me since I expected him to be largely irrelevant after moving on from Philadelphia. However, I was wrong and Dawkins has been a huge contributor to the Broncos’ season. Renaldo Hill has been a disappointment at SS and Champ Bailey is no longer the shutdown corner he once was. Dawkins has turned back the clock for one last great season.

The point is that things can change in IDP, and often do, extremely quickly. Pay attention to the trends and the stars that come out of nowhere since the players I just listed are the kind of draft selections and waiver-wire pickups that can win you a title.