The Worksheet, a comprehensive fantasy football preview by Rich Hribar, breaks down everything you need to know about the Week 16 matchup between the Giants and Vikings.
Find a breakdown of every Week 16 NFL game in our Worksheet Hub.
| Minnesota | Rank | @ | NY Giants | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| -3.0 | Spread | 3.0 | ||
| 23.5 | Implied Total | 20.5 | ||
| 20.6 | 25 | Points/Gm | 21.4 | 22 |
| 21.9 | 13 | Points All./Gm | 28.3 | 29 |
| 55.8 | 30 | Plays/Gm | 64.6 | 6 |
| 61.6 | 14 | Opp. Plays/Gm | 63.4 | 27 |
| 5 | 27 | Off. Yards/Play | 5.3 | 18 |
| 5 | 8 | Def. Yards/Play | 6.0 | 30 |
| 40.97% | 25 | Rush% | 46.19% | 10 |
| 59.03% | 8 | Pass% | 53.81% | 23 |
| 50.29% | 31 | Opp. Rush % | 43.24% | 17 |
| 49.71% | 2 | Opp. Pass % | 56.76% | 16 |
- The Vikings allow a league-low 2.5 plays per game of 20-plus yards.
- The Giants have allowed 4.3 plays of 20-plus yards per game, 31st in the league.
- The Giants are last in the NFL in EPA as a rush defense (-43.0).
- The Giants are allowing 106.9 fantasy points per game, 30th in the league.
- The Vikings have allowed a touchdown on 12.7% of opponent drives over the past six weeks, 3rd in the league.
- 45.8% (27 of 59) of the scoring plays against Minnesota have been touchdowns, the 2nd-lowest rate in the league.
Trust = spike production for that player
Quarterback
Jaxson Dart: Dart was back in the QB1 circle last week, closing the week as the QB10 (22.1 points).
He completed only 55.6% of his passes (20 of 36), his lowest rate since Week 7, but he threw 2 touchdowns and rushed 9 times for 63 yards.
He had three designed runs on Sunday after 0 in Week 13.
The Giants were hyper-conservative with Dart before the bye, so it was encouraging to see him drop back and scramble here.
That said, he left the game again for two snaps after he was evaluated for his fifth concussion.
Dart said afterwards that he feels “singled out” by the NFL due to his playstyle, but it is clear that the league and the team are on alert because of it.
This is a spot to proceed with caution for fantasy, leaving Dart as a QB2.
Minnesota has been hot defensively.
They have not allowed a QB1 scoring week since Week 8.
Over their past seven games, the Vikings have allowed a 58.2% completion rate (5th), 6.4 Y/A (10th), and a league-low 1.4% touchdown rate.
They have not allowed a passing touchdown since Week 10.
The Vikings are now first in the league in pressure rate (44.5%).
When pressured, Dart has completed 42.7% of his passes (26th) for 5.9 Y/A (21st) and a 23.5% sack rate (23rd).
J.J. McCarthy: After ending last week as the QB7 (23.5 points), McCarthy has put together back-to-back top-10 scoring weeks.
A week after completing a season-high 69.6% of his passes against Washington, McCarthy had a season-high 10.4 yards per pass attempt against Dallas on Sunday night.
He threw 2 touchdown passes while rushing for 15 yards and another score.
McCarthy has taken advantage of good matchups, but it is still encouraging that he's been able to do so for gamers using him as an upside QB2.
Gamers were picking him up based on his playoff schedule.
He gets another favorable matchup here.
The Giants are 29th in passing points allowed (16.3 per game).
If there is anything to note here, the Vikings have been conservative in the past three games with McCarthy, which forces efficiency.
They have thrown the ball 2.5% below expectations in those games.
That might be part of the sauce in coaxing out his best play since he operated that way in college, but we are still looking more at the matchup here to provide a path to production.
Running Back
To continue reading this article
and gain access to The Worksheet as well as all of Rich's regular fantasy content, click below to learn more about our Fantasy Package.
Learn More
More Week 16 Fantasy Breakdowns From The Worksheet:
| Matchup | Time |
|---|---|
| Rams @ Seahawks | Thursday Night Football |
| Eagles @ Commanders | Saturday -- 5 p.m. ET |
| Packers @ Bears | Saturday -- 8:20 p.m. ET |
| Chargers @ Cowboys | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Bills @ Browns | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Chiefs @ Titans | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Bengals @ Dolphins | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Jets @ Saints | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Vikings @ Giants | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Bucs @ Panthers | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Jaguars @ Broncos | Sunday -- 4:05 p.m. ET |
| Falcons @ Cardinals | Sunday -- 4:05 p.m. ET |
| Steelers @ Lions | Sunday -- 4:25 p.m. ET |
| Raiders @ Texans | Sunday -- 4:25 p.m. ET |
| Patriots @ Ravens | Sunday Night Football |
| 49ers @ Colts | Monday Night Football |
