Defensive Upgrades/Downgrades by Brian Roberson and Tom Nadratowski Every week, FootballGuys.com's resident Individual Defensive Player (IDP) Gurus - Brian Roberson and Tom Nadratowski- will be providing you with immediate opinions on what players are stepping up their play, which ones are falling down on the job and which players just happened to have a horseshoe in their pocket for one game. ** Some players with asterisks have been kept on this week's list as holdovers from last week because they were on a bye last week and we didn't want you to forget about them. DEFENSIVE LINEMEN Upgrades Julius Peppers CAROLINA (Roberson) - Peppers was on the downgrade list back in week four. He must be a footballguys.com subscriber! He has been playing extremely well-especially for a rookie since then and is worth an immediate pickup. An added bonus-Carolina's defense finds themselves on the field an awful lot. Marco Coleman JACKSONVILLE (Roberson) - Coleman just got back into the Jaguar lineup and he made a heck of a return. He is a solid pickup this late in the season because he should have fresh legs. If you get him, you'll want to start him against running teams. Pat Williams BUFFALO (Roberson) - Williams hit a nice stride in the second half of 2001 and appears close to doing the same this season. Recommend a pickup if you're in a pinch at the position headed down the stretch. Aberrations Mike Rucker CAROLINA (Roberson) - Rucker managed only 1 solo tackle this time out against the Falcons. For whatever reason he just didn't get it done. Don't be in a rush to drop Rucker just yet. He's one of the better DL's for getting solo tackles week in and week out. Guys are allowed to have an off week every so often. Downgrades Courtney Brown CLEVELAND (Nadratowski) - Brown had the opportunity to seriously pad his sack total against a Texan team that was allowing sacks faster than the French allowed tank divisions to capture territory. But he came up very small with only two tackles. If he can't get a sack against a terrible line like the Texans, exactly whom will he sack against? Trade him for whatever value he still has left. Grant Wistrom ST. LOUIS (Nadratowski) - Wistrom has been playing very poorly lately. He hasn't gotten a sack in three games. He's having good performances, but they have been very erratic. If you can live with that inconsistency, then keep starting him and hope he'll break out of it. LINEBACKERS Upgrades Al Wilson DENVER (Roberson) - Wilson is breaking from the norm as a Denver linebacker and we in the IDP community can say "it's about time!" Wilson has been all over the field benefiting from a front four that eats opposing linemen and keeps them off Wilson. He's an active, fast linebacker who is growing smarter and is over pursuing less and less. He is the best LB on a good Denver team. Not available in your league, he's a target for a late season trade if you need a LB. Aberrations Bernardo Harris BALTIMORE (Roberson) - Harris is just filling in for Ray Lewis while he's hurt. Do not waste a pickup on Harris unless you see news where Lewis is out for more than two more weeks. Will Witherspoon CAROLINA (Roberson) - Witherspoon was playing for Mark Fields on Sunday. He hasn't officially taken Fields' job but is close to doing so. Because of this, if you're in a deep league, you'll want to take a long look at him. If not, stay informed of the situation with Mark Fields Downgrades Dwayne Rudd CLEVELAND (Roberson) - It's debatable as to whether Rudd is actually on the field or not after the opening snap. The NFL.com gamebook says he's the starting weakside backer but you'd be hard pressed to find him in the stat sheet after the game. We've downgraded him before but it's worth another downgrade just to be sure you're hearing us! Ed Hartwell BALTIMORE (Nadratowski) - Hartwell has been doing yeoman's work filling in for Ray Lewis. But that is going to end very soon, probably next week, when Lewis returns. He'll be a #2-#3 LB for you when Lewis is back, just like he was before. Move him if you don't need him. DEFENSIVE BACKS Upgrades Corey Harris DETROIT (Roberson) - Harris seems to score in spurts and has been spurting big numbers the past three weeks. Recommend an immediate pickup if you have to start at least two defensive backs. Probably was given up on earlier in the year. Downgrades Coy Wire (Roberson) - Wire has proven way too inconsistent to be on your roster. He's a rookie. Sometimes he'll be in the right place and sometimes he'll be lost. Look for other DBs in the meantime. Wire has used up all his chances. Adrian Wilson ARIZONA (Nadratowski) - Wilson had a tremendous game against the Cowboys. But the odds of him repeating those kinds of numbers are small. He'll go back to his ballpark after this week - about 5-1-0 per game. Nate Clements BUFFALO (Nadratowski) - As with Wilson, Clements benefited from the benefice of a rusty QB. But at least with Wilson, you'll get tackles because he's a safety. Clements isn't as consistent there, and will go back to being an average fantasy player this next week.