• 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.
• On the verge of breaking out: Jaelan Phillips is on the fringes of being a Tier 1 edge defender and should be treated as such despite lower sack totals in 2022.
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 at the position for this coming season.
We will look at production versus expectation throughout these tiers, and you can read more about that here.
Be sure to check out the fantasy football rankings page for updates as the offseason progresses.
Preferred scoring for 2023 IDP fantasy football rankings
| Position | Solo TKLs | Assists | Sacks | TFLs | QB Hits | PBUs |
| DE/DI | 2.5 | 1.25 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| LB | 1.5 | 0.75 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| CB/S | 2 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Tier 1: Elite pass-rushers with ideal snap volume
| RANK | PLAYER | TEAM |
| 1 | Micah Parsons | DAL |
| 2 | Maxx Crosby | LV |
| 3 | Nick Bosa | SF |
| 4 | Myles Garrett | CLV |
| 5 | T.J. Watt | PIT |
| 6 | Haason Reddick | PHI |
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. With two years of NFL experience now under his belt, fantasy managers could expect to see him hit a new level of dominance in 2023.
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 a career-high pass-rush grade 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.
Haason Reddick jumped into the top tier this past season, backing up his strong sack totals with some exceptional pass-rush metrics over the past few seasons, giving IDP managers the stability to bank on once again.
Despite playing on his third team in three years, Reddick shouldered a heavy workload (74% of snaps), which should allow for some positive regression in his tackle numbers after delivering well below expectations in that department this past year.
Tier 2: More top-end pass rushers with excellent opportunities
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