2023 Fantasy Football IDP: Defensive Line Rankings & Tiers

• Micah Parsons tops the charts: The Cowboys’ star edge rusher heads into Year 3 with the chance to reach his full potential as a pass-rusher.

• Maxx Crosby isn’t far behind: The combination of snaps played, tackles and pass-rush prowess could allow Crosby to repeat as the top IDP edge in 2023.

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Estimated Reading Time: 12 minutes

Breaking fantasy football rankings down into tiers helps fantasy managers better understand what separates each group and how to value each player. A commonly referenced metric throughout these tiers will be a player’s production versus expected profiles, and you can read more about that here.

Be sure to check out the rankings page for updates.

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Preferred Scoring for 2023 IDP Fantasy Football Rankings

Tier 1: Elite Pass Rushers with Ideal Snap Volume

Micah Parsons is one of the league’s elite pass rushers, having posted a 92.0-plus pass-rush grade and 14 sacks in each of the past two seasons. After transitioning to a near full-time edge role in 2022, he was still able to put up decent tackle numbers relative to his position because he rarely left the field, playing nearly 54 defensive snaps per game on average, sixth at his position.

The Cowboys star is heading into Year 3 of his career, which could very well be his most productive season so far, given that edge defenders generally take two years to truly hit their stride.

Maxx Crosby finished as the top IDP edge defender in 2022, leading the position in snap volume (96%) and tackles (57) to go with his 12.5 sacks. His snap volume and high-end pass-rush metrics aren’t going anywhere in 2023, and there’s an argument to be made that he should be the top IDP drafted. Still, there will be plenty of drafts in which Crosby goes after Nick Bosa, T.J. Watt and Myles Garrett, once again making him one of the best values in drafts.

Bosa, Garrett and Watt continue to prove their worth as Tier 1 IDP edge options. Bosa (90.9) and Garrett (93.5) both earned career-high pass-rush grades in 2022 and look primed for double-digit sacks once again in 2023.

Last season, Watt posted his lowest pass-rush grade (71.5) since his rookie year, though he was battling injuries that kept him out of seven games. His most likely outcome is a bounce-back to the elite edge that fantasy managers have grown accustomed to, especially if he gets back to playing a significant volume of snaps.

Tier 2: More Top-End Pass Rushers With Excellent Opportunities