Giants-Cowboys Week 10 fantasy outlook: Back the Boys

The New York Giants’ fantasy outlook for the rest of the season will likely include only one player each week. Fortunately, it’s a player who was drafted highly in most leagues. Perhaps Darren Waller can get back to being relevant if and when he returns from his hamstring injury, but I wouldn’t hold my breath about that.

That means these articles are going to be more about the opponent’s fantasy prospects than the Giants’. But that’s okay, because fantasy football players are, by definition, decision-makers about all NFL players and not just their preferred team’s. (It’s actually why I resisted the lure of fantasy football for so long ... but once I got sucked in, there’s no turning back.)

Start ‘em

• QB Dak Prescott: Prescott has had a bounce back season so far this year, rarely putting the ball in harm’s way (second-lowest turnover-worthy play rate in the NFL) and performing well with or without pressure. He’s had a few fantasy clunkers but has scored 24.88, 29.06, and 27.36 points over the last three weeks. The Giants allow the eighth-fewest fantasy points to quarterbacks, but I don’t see them being able to stop the Prescott-to-Lamb connection.
• RB Saquon Barkley: he’s the only Giants player worth starting at this point. Barkley scored 14.30 PPR points last week and has had 13.80 PPR points or more in five of his six games this season.
• WR CeeDee Lamb: Lamb has scored 18.70, 41.00, and 27.10 PPR points over his past three games. He’s a must-start anyway, but against a reeling Giants team, expect the trend to continue.
• Cowboys’ defense: their defense scored 40.00 fantasy points against the Giants in Week 1. Enough said.
• K Brandon Aubrey: Aubrey is the fifth-ranked kicker on the season, and the Cowboys’ offense has an opportunity to put up many points against the Giants.

On the fence

• RB Tony Pollard: Pollard has scored fewer than 10 PPR points in four of his eight games this season. He did have 21.20 points in Week 1 against the Giants, which makes him a starting possibility, but he’s not as much of an automatic start as his ADP would have suggested.
• TE Jake Ferguson: Ferguson has scored 10+ PPR points four times, but he’s also had three games under six points. Still, he scored 22.10 points last week against Philadelphia on 10 targets (seven receptions). On the flip side, the Giants’ defense has allowed the second-fewest fantasy points per game to tight ends.

Sit ‘em

• The rest of the Giants’ offense: There’s no one else there worth starting. Wan’Dale Robinson is the closest shot, but he’s seen only eight targets over the Giants’ past three games.
• Giants defense: considering how they imploded against the Raiders, it’s difficult to trust that they’ll be able to get any sacks on Dak Prescott and limit the Cowboys’ point total.
• WRs Michael Gallup and Brandin Cooks: Neither one has shown any fantasy reliability, and both have scant value.

Around the NFL

• QB Kyler Murray’s return should boost the fantasy outlook for several Cardinals players. To boot, Arizona also opened the 21-day practice window of running back James Conner, who had three strong games to start the season before faltering in his last two prior to the injury. Things are looking up for WR Hollywood Brown, who has cooled off considerably after a great four-week stretch. Rookie WR Michael Wilson (if he plays) and TE Trey McBride also have a chance to see a boost in fantasy points. Still, overall, Murray has been a productive fantasy player throughout his career and should be rostered.
• WR Diontae Johnson has clearly usurped George Pickens’ spot as the Steelers’ No. 1 receiver. Pickens is highly disgruntled, as evidenced by his “free me” tweet and removal of all things Steelers from his social media accounts. Pickens had not been the most consistent fantasy player anyway, posting two games with 20+ PPR points before Johnson’s return but also two under 10 points. With Johnson back, keep Pickens out of your lineup until there’s evidence that he can still be a factor. Johnson should be the starter.
• What to make of Bills WR Gabe Davis? After posting 23.70 PPR points on nine receptions in Week 8, Davis was completely shut out by the Bengals. TE Dalton Kincaid has become Josh Allen’s second-favorite target, while WR Khalil Shakir has suddenly been productive in back-to-back games. With the way Buffalo’s offense has struggled at times this season, Davis has a low floor on a week-to-week basis.
• Stay away from the Texans’ backfield. RB Dameon Pierce has struggled all season, while Devin Singletary had a poor performance in Pierce’s absence. With C.J. Stroud balling, it’s evident that Houston’s offense is going to run through their passing game. With that in mind, WRs Nico Collins and Tank Dell are good options, while Robert Woods and Noah Brown are possible deeper FLEX plays depending on the week.
• Can you trust QB Joshua Dobbs this week? Coming in cold for rookie Jaren Hall without having practiced or even knowing his teammates’ names, Dobbs led the Vikings to a thrilling comeback victory over the Falcons, scoring 21.92 fantasy points in the process. Facing a Saints defense that allows the eighth-fewest fantasy points to quarterbacks, though, Dobbs might not be able to pull off the same magic. Dobbs has been up and down throughout the season, and I would expect that to continue in Minnesota until proven otherwise. (That did not prevent me from picking him up on waivers, though.)
• RB Keaton Mitchell is likely a popular waiver wire pickup this week after he posted 20.40 PPR points against the Seahawks last week. A word of caution, though: this backfield can become a committee mess in a hurry. Gus Edwards was just establishing himself as the primary back with Justice Hill a distant second, but the game script against Seattle muddied the waters. Hill had 13 touches in the game compared to 10 for Mitchell and just five for Edwards, but Edwards scored two rushing touchdowns, bringing him up to six in the past three games. I would not insert Mitchell into starting lineups until we see what his role is this week against Cleveland, whose defense allows the third-fewest PPR points to running backs.

Possible starting/streaming options due to injury

• WR Romeo Doubs, GB: Doubs is always a streaming option because Christian Watson gets injured so often, forcing him to miss whole and partial games. Watson was a full participant in practice on Wednesday, though.
• WR Kyle Philips, TEN: If Treylon Burks misses this week, Philips has drawn eight targets in two games with Will Levis and could be the No. 2 option behind DeAndre Hopkins. This is obviously a deep sleeper pick.
• WR Quentin Johnston, LAC: With Josh Palmer on injured reserve, Johnston is the Chargers’ new No. 2 receiver. It didn’t translate against the Jets, but the Lions’ defense is more mediocre against receivers.
• RB Zach Charbonnet, SEA: Kenneth Walker didn’t practice on Wednesday due to a chest injury.
• WR Brandon Powell, MIN: K.J. Osborn is in concussion protocol, while T.J. Hockenson is dealing with a rib/oblique injury.
• WR Tyler Boyd, CIN: Ja’Marr Chase is dealing with a back injury, and Tee Higgins has a hamstring.