Bills vs Giants: Fantasy Football Worksheet, Week 2

• The Giants were an NFL-worst 1-6-1 against the spread at home in 2018.
• The 494 total yards allowed by the Giants in Week 1 were the most they’ve allowed in a season opener in franchise history.
• Devin Singletary played 45 snaps in Week 1 compared to 19 for Frank Gore and just two for T.J. Yeldon.
• 37 of Singletary’s snaps were pass routes (tied for fourth among running backs) while just two of Gore’s snaps were routes.
• Only Christian McCaffrey had more runs of 10-plus yards (five) than the four Singletary had in Week 1.
• Just 21.4% (6-of-28) of the completions allowed by Buffalo in Week 1 gained 10 or more yards, the lowest rate in the league.
• Evan Engram has at least five receptions in four straight games dating back to last season, the longest such streak for a tight end in the league.
• Engram has been the TE1, TE3, TE4, and TE1 over that stretch and a top-12 scoring tight end in six consecutive games going back to last season.

Trust (spike production for that player)

• Evan Engram: He’s the number one target in this passing game and has been on a tear of TE1 performances dating back to last season. It will be hard for him to match or beat the 14 targets he had a week ago, but with Sterling Shepard now in concussion protocol, the Giants could be down to just jamming their passing game through Engram once again.
• Saquon Barkley: Underused in Week 1, Barkley had 139 total yards on just 15 touches. The Bills have ranked 32nd in each of the past two seasons in the percentage of touchdowns allowed to running backs and allowed Le’Veon Bell to score the only touchdown against them in Week 1.
• Josh Allen: He always comes with a large gap between floor and ceiling, but the Giants’ defense may be an “all systems go” type of unit this season based on what they showed Week 1. The Giants allowed 8.0 yards per play in Week 1, 29th in the league. Allen will find himself near fringe QB1 status this week and is a higher-end QB2 at worst.

On the Cusp (proxy of a player’s average)

• John Brown: Brown led the team with 10 targets in Week 1, catching seven for 123 yards and a score. If that type of usage remains steady, Brown is in play as a weekly WR2/3 option. Outside of Janoris Jenkins, the back end of the Giants’ defense was completely lost all of Week 1. Brown will likely see Jenkins a lot, which will keep his expectations relatively in check, but nothing to run away from. 

Bust (down-week production for that player’s standards)

• Eli Manning: He has actually thrown for 300 yards in three straight games dating back to last season. But potentially down another receiving option against a Bills defense that was second in the league in passing points allowed per attempt in 2018 — and eighth in Week 1 — is not where we want to jam Manning in.
• Giants WRs: If Sterling Shepard plays, then he falls into the WR3 mix as the Bills let Jamison Crowder catch six-yard passes to his heart’s delight a week ago, but outside of Shepard, this is a rough matchup to chase the likes of Cody Latimer and Bennie Fowler.

If You Must (intriguing bench option or deeper league play) 

• Devin Singletary: His Week 1 usage showed the staff has plans for him in passing situations, but we need to see those opportunities carry over into trust in rushing situations as well. Singletary played nearly exclusively against sub-packages while the Bills were still using Frank Gore regularly on early downs while on script. In a game where the script may not call for as much sub work, Singletary is still in FLEX mode until his role inevitably blossoms.
• Cole Beasley: He’s boring and carries a low ceiling, but received nine targets (24.3%) and 34 pass routes compared to just 15 for Zay Jones if you need a break glass FLEX option.