Thursday Night Fantasy Football Starts and Sits: Redskins at Giants
Here are the Starts and Sits for Week 3 Thursday Night action between the Redskins and Giants.
STARTS
WR: Odell Beckham, Jr., NYG
There's the guy we know. After a quiet Week 1, Beckham blew up in Week 2 with a 7-146-1 line. He's a no-brainer WR1 start every single week, and for DFS players, he's just a slight step behind Antonio Brown and Julio Jones as one of the top receivers going.
RB: Shane Vereen, NYG
The Redskins defense has been tough on opponents so far this season, allowing less than 75 total rushing yards in the first two weeks against Miami and St. Louis. So why is a running back that's part of a committee situation listed as a start? Good question, dear reader.
Here's the thought process. Through two games, Vereen has already racked up 12 catches for 122 yards, with most of his damage coming on third down. Vereen received more total touches than Rashad Jennings last week, and it seems unlikely that the Giants will keep banging their head against the wall facing a tough front seven. That should lead to the Giants getting the screen game going with Vereen or using him on little swing passes out of the backfield in lieu of a true running game.
Unless your lineup is loaded, Vereen deserves FLEX consideration in PPR leagues as New York's second option in the passing game. He can be benched in standard leagues.
TE: Jordan Reed, WAS
Reed has been a stud through the first two weeks, raking in 13 of 17 targets for 145 yards and a score. With DeSean Jackson still sidelined, Reed is a top option in the passing game and the beneficiary of a successful ground game that has linebackers and safeties sucked into the box. Reed should get off against a Giants pass defense that has allowed the most yards in the league so far this season. Play him with confidence as your starting tight end.
WR: Pierre Garcon, WAS
There will be weeks where Garcon is hurt by Kirk Cousins, but this shouldn't be one of them. Garcon has been seeing a steady diet of targets (15 through two weeks) and is functioning as the top receiver for the Redskins offense. Garcon has always been a valuable PPR option, and it's clear Cousins trusts him in short-yardage throwing situations. Here's guessing the Giants load the box and try to slow down Washington's run game, which should open up opportunities for Garcon on the outside against a dreadful secondary.
SITS
QB: Eli Manning, NYG
Manning and this offense is much better than what we've seen so far this season, but Washington has a surprisingly strong defensive unit. More importantly, they absolutely grind down the clock on offense with their running game, which would limit the upside of any quarterback, slumping or not. Manning is still a back-end QB1 option with all the injuries and uncertainty (Tony Romo, Jay Cutler, Drew Brees, etc.), but I'll be staying away in DFS and targeting a better matchup.
QB: Kirk Cousins, WAS
I truly hope you aren't in a situation where you have to play Kirk Cousins. If you're a Romo owner, look elsewhere on the free agent wire, like Ryan Fitzpatrick against the Eagles or hope that Tyrod Taylor is available. The Redskins have been playing everything close to the vest so far this year, limiting risks for Cousins and as a result, capping his already low fantasy ceiling. Look elsewhere.
RB: Alfred Morris and Matt Jones, WAS
I know, I know. I just spent 500 words hyping up Washington's ground game, and now I'm telling you to sit both guys who will be toting the rock. Normally, Morris would have the green light all the way, but Jones mucked up the picture with his breakout Week 2 performance (19-132-2) where he earned just three less snaps than Morris. This is evolving into a true timeshare, with Jones likely getting most of the passing down work when the Redskins fall behind.
There will be weeks where both can have value, but it's tough to fully trust Jones quite yet until we see if the workload is similar to last week. As for Morris, he should still get the goalline work as the veteran in this committee, which has value. I'd lean with Morris being slightly more productive against the Giants, but if you can, I'd give this another week to play out, especially with the Giants being much more vulnerable through the air than on the ground.
RB: Rashad Jennings and Andre Williams, NYG
This is a much more confident "sit" than Morris/Jones. The Redskins are tough against the run, and this has been a total timeshare. Vereen should continue to see plenty of snaps, eating away at both Jennings and Williams's value in this one. The matchup just isn't good enough to justify playing either of these backs.
TE: Larry Donnell, NYG
You shouldn't be in a situation where you have to play him before the bye weeks roll around. Starting Donnell is just praying for a touchdown, as he doesn't see the volume of targets or have the speed to gain big chunks of yards. Leave him on your bench, unless you're desperate.
WAS D/ST, NYG D/ST: While both are decent options, typically you can stream a defense (hello, Atlanta against Brandon Weeden) in a much better matchup. While Manning and Cousins are both prone to mistakes, neither defense is a top-10 option this week.
