Week 18 IDP Waiver Wire: You Should Already Have Drue Tranquill
This is It. Get What You Need.
This list of IDP waiver wire pickups is sorted by position, and then by priorty.
This week's list focuses primarily on recently emerging options, but it's quite possible you shouldn't go after any of them.
Check the Free Agent Finder for your synced league to see if any waiver targets make sense for you -- or if you should just roll with what you've got.
Bradley Chubb, Edge, Miami Dolphins
Bradley Chubb 
DL10 on
Chubb just delivered his first multi-sack game of the season. It was the fourth time among the past seven games that he logged 2+ QB hits, though.
None of that makes him a lock to deliver in Week 18, but the Patriots have allowed 3 sacks to three of their past four opponents. Drake Maye has also taken the league’s eighth-highest sack rate for the season.
Austin Booker, Edge, Chicago Bears
Austin Booker
DL17 on
This guy opened 2025 as a relative nobody: a fifth-round pick in 2024 who ranked 10th among Bears with 10 total pressures for his rookie season.
Booker then didn’t play a snap until Week 9 of this year, but that’s because a knee injury in Week 2 of the preseason landed him on IR. The Bears even slow-rolled his return a bit.
“More than anything, I think we felt completely good about the guys we had up,” HC Ben Johnson said in October. “I think he is progressing along nicely, and I think he’s going to be able to help us.”
He was right. Booker has delivered at least 1 QB hit in seven of his nine appearances. That has included 3.5 sacks over just the past three games.
Now comes a regular-season finale against a Lions offense that allowed 8 sacks over the past two weeks, and 3+ in four of its past six games. Even if the Bears decide they care more about resting some starters than preserving the No. 2 seed vs. the No. 3, Booker could remain in play.
His opportunity arose from the team sustaining multiple injuries to clear a path, and Booker’s still probably not vital enough to the team’s success to get the VIP treatment.
A.J. Epenesa, Edge, Buffalo Bills
A.J. Epenesa
DL68 on
We don’t yet know whether the Bills will rest starters for Sunday’s finale, but I’d bet on them at least limiting playing time for plenty of key players. On defense, that could easily include edge starters Greg Rousseau and Joey Bosa.
If either guy turns up as inactive ahead of Sunday’s game, Epenesa would likely see a large playing-time boost. His 46% snap rate for the season points to a player the team would be willing to keep on the field in such a game.
Epenesa also ranks third on the team in total pressures for the season, according to Pro Football Focus, behind Rousseau and Bosa. And Week 18 holds a matchup with the Jets, who will let your defense do whatever it wants.
That has included allowing 18 sacks in the four games with Brady Cook as primary QB.
Drue Tranquill, LB, Kansas City Chiefs
Drue Tranquill
LB34 on
Tranquill tallied his fourth straight game of 9+ total tackles in last week’s loss to the Broncos. His 7 solos in that contest marked his second-largest number in that category for any game this season.
That game marked the third straight with at least 90% playing time for Tranquill, who sits at 87% snap share for the season.
For some reason, Tranquill still sits less than 10% rostered across Sleeper IDP leagues.
Jihaad Campbell, LB, Philadelphia Eagles
Jihaad Campbell
LB35 on
The Eagles look like a strong candidate to rest starters this Sunday, but Campbell shouldn’t rank among that crew. He opened this season starting alongside Zack Baun but has slipped almost completely out of the defensive rotation since Nakobe Dean got back to full health.
Dean’s a virtual lock to miss Week 18 with the hamstring injury that kept him out last week. And Baun would certainly leave the field before Campbell in a resting situation. (He sat out last year’s finale in the same scenario.)
So we could see the first-round rookie closing out his debut campaign as the top LB in a high-upside matchup with Washington.
Campbell returned to 93% playing time in Dean’s absence last week and presents cross-category upside against the Commanders. He’s a LB3 with upside in this week’s rankings.
Derrick Barnes, LB, Detroit Lions
Derrick Barnes
LB28 on
Barnes saw his playing time trend downward since early November, from a high point of 100% in weeks 9 and 10 down to 69% in two straight games before last week.
But the Week 17 loss to Minnesota -- which knocked the Lions out of the playoffs -- vaulted him back to 98% snap share, his third-highest rate of the season. The primary driver: LB Alex Anzalone leaving early with a concussion.
No matter how serious his symptoms, Anzalone shouldn’t play this week. And if he goes inactive, then we should get another game of near-full playing time for Barnes. That certainly doesn’t guarantee numbers. He tallied just 5 total tackles (1 solo) last week.
But the Bears’ run-favoring offense ever since their Week 5 bye presents positive tackle conditions this week. And Barnes ranks second among all non-edge LBs in pass-rush chances, according to PFF. That adds big-play upside to Barnes’ profile.
Dane Belton, S, New York Giants
Dane Belton
DB2 on
Injuries to safety starters have boosted Belton’s role in recent weeks. He has gotten all the way up to 98% playing time in five of the past nine contests. But Belton has even tallied 8 tackles and a sack on just 71% playing time twice among the past four games.
Playing without Tyler Nubin in the finale should keep Belton at full usage and deliver plenty of opportunity against a Dallas offense that has boosted DB scoring all season.
Belton lands inside the top 5 of our Week 18 DB rankings.
Julian Love, S, Seattle Seahawks
Julian Love
DB9 on
Love returned from injury for the past four games. His playing time has gone:
- 31%
- 82%
- 97%
- 100%
Two weeks ago included 8 tackles, his most since Week 1. And Sunday’s game produced his first INT of the year (but his sixth pass defensed among his past six appearances).
The Seahawks playing for the NFC’s No. 1 seed this week, so there’s incentive to keep starters involved. San Francisco hasn’t been overly friendly to DB scoring but presents opportunities.
Love knows. He racked up 10 tackles (8 solo) and a sack in their Week 1 meeting.
