The New York Giants will face the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 8. Here’s the latest fantasy football news and advice to help you with your lineups this week and moving forward, especially regarding WR Darius Slayton.
Is Darius Slayton Playing in Week 8?
Slayton is not listed on the injury report this week, so barring any setbacks, he is on track to play this weekend.
We’ll continue to monitor the Giants’ injury report. You can also visit and bookmark our NFL Injury Tracker and Fantasy News Tracker for the latest updates.
Should You Start or Sit Darius Slayton in Week 8?
We’ve seen a handful of receiver handcuffs emerge throughout this season, and Slayton is firmly on that usage plan. Impactful backups don’t always occur at the WR position (i.e. the Texans post-Nico Collins landing on IR), but Slayton has proven himself as the logical plug-and-play option in the absence of Malik Nabers.
- Weeks 1-4 (with Nabers active): 10 catches on 15 targets
- Weeks 5-6 (with Nabers inactive): 14 catches on 22 targets
With the outstanding rookie back in the fold for Week 7 against the Eagles, Slayton garnered just three targets, netting one catch for 11 yards.
At the end of the day, every one of these situations is unique. Due to the struggles of this offense as a whole and no reason to label Nabers as vulnerable to another injury (head injuries are obviously to be taken seriously, but he’s not at risk of a flair-up the same way a player coming off of an ankle sprain would be), I’m fine with cutting ties with Slayton in a roster crunch.
I’d rather try to catch lightning in a bottle with the Patriots or Browns in terms of quarterback changes or go to Tampa Bay with their rash of WR injuries.
Are you looking for start/sit advice for other players in your lineup? Read our Week 8 Fantasy Start-Sit Advice Cheat Sheet for every fantasy-relevant player in every game.
Darius Slayton’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 8
Slayton is projected to score 7.5 fantasy points in PPR formats. This includes 2.7 receptions for 38.5 yards and 0.2 touchdowns.
Check out the free PFN Fantasy Start-Sit Optimizer for the latest projections and advice for your lineups this week.
Darius Slayton’s Week 8 Fantasy Ranking
Our Weekly Consensus PPR Rankings are below — both positional and overall. They were last updated at 6:00 AM ET on Thursday, January 2. If you're in a Superflex league, make sure you check out our Weekly Consensus Superflex Rankings.
Week 18 WR PPR Rankings
1) Ja'Marr Chase | CIN (at PIT)
2) Amon-Ra St. Brown | DET (vs. MIN)
3) Justin Jefferson | MIN (at DET)
4) Mike Evans | TB (vs. NO)
5) Puka Nacua | LAR (vs. SEA)
6) Brian Thomas Jr. | JAX (at IND)
7) Ladd McConkey | LAC (at LV)
8) Drake London | ATL (vs. CAR)
9) Terry McLaurin | WAS (at DAL)
10) Jaxon Smith-Njigba | SEA (at LAR)
11) Malik Nabers | NYG (at PHI)
12) Tee Higgins | CIN (at PIT)
13) George Pickens | PIT (vs. CIN)
14) Davante Adams | NYJ (vs. MIA)
15) Courtland Sutton | DEN (vs. KC)
16) Jauan Jennings | SF (at ARI)
17) Jordan Addison | MIN (at DET)
18) Tyreek Hill | MIA (at NYJ)
19) DJ Moore | CHI (at GB)
20) Nico Collins | HOU (at TEN)
21) Zay Flowers | BAL (vs. CLE)
22) Jameson Williams | DET (vs. MIN)
23) Garrett Wilson | NYJ (vs. MIA)
24) Jaylen Waddle | MIA (at NYJ)
25) DK Metcalf | SEA (at LAR)
26) Deebo Samuel Sr. | SF (at ARI)
27) Jalen McMillan | TB (vs. NO)
28) Adam Thielen | CAR (at ATL)
29) Calvin Ridley | TEN (vs. HOU)
30) Keenan Allen | CHI (at GB)
31) Jakobi Meyers | LV (vs. LAC)
32) Jayden Reed | GB (vs. CHI)
33) Cooper Kupp | LAR (vs. SEA)
34) Josh Downs | IND (vs. JAX)
35) Marvin Harrison Jr. | ARI (vs. SF)
36) Michael Pittman Jr. | IND (vs. JAX)
37) Quentin Johnston | LAC (at LV)
38) Darnell Mooney | ATL (vs. CAR)
39) Romeo Doubs | GB (vs. CHI)
40) Khalil Shakir | BUF (at NE)
41) Jerry Jeudy | CLE (at BAL)
42) Rome Odunze | CHI (at GB)
43) Rashod Bateman | BAL (vs. CLE)
44) DeMario Douglas | NE (vs. BUF)
45) Wan'Dale Robinson | NYG (at PHI)
46) Dontayvion Wicks | GB (vs. CHI)
47) Olamide Zaccheaus | WAS (at DAL)
48) Jalen Coker | CAR (at ATL)
49) Xavier Worthy | KC (at DEN)
50) Nick Westbrook-Ikhine | TEN (vs. HOU)
51) DeAndre Hopkins | KC (at DEN)
52) Hollywood Brown | KC (at DEN)
53) Brandin Cooks | DAL (vs. WAS)
54) Marvin Mims Jr. | DEN (vs. KC)
55) Parker Washington | JAX (at IND)
56) Amari Cooper | BUF (at NE)
57) Kayshon Boutte | NE (vs. BUF)
58) Tim Patrick | DET (vs. MIN)
59) Joshua Palmer | LAC (at LV)
60) Ray-Ray McCloud III | ATL (vs. CAR)
61) Andrei Iosivas | CIN (at PIT)
62) Devaughn Vele | DEN (vs. KC)
63) Marquez Valdes-Scantling | BUF (at NE)
64) Jalen Tolbert | DAL (vs. WAS)
65) Ricky Pearsall | SF (at ARI)
66) Calvin Austin III | PIT (vs. CIN)
67) Michael Wilson | ARI (vs. SF)
68) Keon Coleman | BUF (at NE)
69) Tre Tucker | LV (vs. LAC)
70) Jalen Nailor | MIN (at DET)
71) Jamison Crowder | WAS (at DAL)
72) Elijah Moore | CLE (at BAL)
73) Xavier Legette | CAR (at ATL)
74) Kendrick Bourne | NE (vs. BUF)
75) KaVontae Turpin | DAL (vs. WAS)
76) David Moore | CAR (at ATL)
77) Adonai Mitchell | IND (vs. JAX)
78) Mike Williams | PIT (vs. CIN)
79) Demarcus Robinson | LAR (vs. SEA)
80) Malik Washington | MIA (at NYJ)
81) Allen Lazard | NYJ (vs. MIA)
82) Alec Pierce | IND (vs. JAX)
83) Tyler Lockett | SEA (at LAR)
84) John Metchie III | HOU (at TEN)
85) Robert Woods | HOU (at TEN)
86) Darius Slayton | NYG (at PHI)
87) Van Jefferson | PIT (vs. CIN)
88) Troy Franklin | DEN (vs. KC)
89) Mack Hollins | BUF (at NE)
90) Tyler Boyd | TEN (vs. HOU)
91) Luke McCaffrey | WAS (at DAL)
92) Tutu Atwell | LAR (vs. SEA)
93) Kevin Austin Jr. | NO (at TB)
94) Dante Pettis | CHI (at GB)
95) Xavier Hutchinson | HOU (at TEN)
96) Ryan Miller | TB (vs. NO)
97) Greg Dortch | ARI (vs. SF)
98) DJ Chark | LAC (at LV)
99) Lil'Jordan Humphrey | DEN (vs. KC)
100) Michael Woods II | CLE (at BAL)
101) Cedrick Wilson Jr. | NO (at TB)
102) JuJu Smith-Schuster | KC (at DEN)
103) Devin Duvernay | JAX (at IND)
104) Justin Watson | KC (at DEN)
105) Tylan Wallace | BAL (vs. CLE)
106) Jahan Dotson | PHI (vs. NYG)
107) Josh Reynolds | DEN (vs. KC)
108) Ryan Flournoy | DAL (vs. WAS)
109) Trey Palmer | TB (vs. NO)
110) A.J. Brown | PHI (vs. NYG)
111) DeVonta Smith | PHI (vs. NYG)
New York Giants at Pittsburgh Steelers Insights
New York Giants
Team: The Giants haven’t won a Week 8 game in a decade (seven straight losses), but their last such win came in the state of Pennsylvania – the three-headed monster of Eli Manning, Peyton Hillis, and Victor Cruz led New York over Matt Barkley’s Eagles in 2013.
QB: Daniel Jones’ out-of-pocket completion rate sits at a career-low 44.4%, with just 16.7% of such attempts resulting in a first down.
Offense: The Giants have scored a touchdown on just 11.8% of their possessions this season (12.6% last season), putting them on pace for their worst showing since the 2003 team scored a touchdown on 11.2% of drives.
Defense: The Giants have intercepted just 0.5% of passes this season, a rate that is better than only the Jaguars (0.4%).
Fantasy: Malik Nabers didn’t produce for his fantasy managers in his return to action last week, and this is a tough matchup, but 72.8% of yards gained against the Steelers come through the air, the third-highest rate in the league).
Betting: New York has covered three straight long-rest games, and over tickets have come through for all three.
Pittsburgh Steelers
Team: The Steelers are starting drives, on average, on their 32.4-yard line, the fourth-best average starting field position in the NFL.
QB: Russell Wilson averaged 0.23 EPA per dropback in his Steelers debut. Justin Fields has hit that mark just five times in 46 career games (his high-water mark in his six Steelers games was 0.17).
Offense: The Steelers have scored 32 and 37 points in the last two weeks after averaging 18.4 PPG over their first five weeks. Pittsburgh will try to score 30+ points in three straight games for the first time since 2015 (had a six-game streak from Weeks 9-15 that year).
Defense: The Steelers have yet to allow a point in the third quarter this season (outscoring teams 46-0). Pittsburgh is the only team that has not allowed a point in any quarter this season.
Fantasy: Russell Wilson scored 24.9 fantasy points against the Jets on Sunday Night – his most fantasy points scored in a game in 400 days and the most a QB has scored against the Jets in 1,388 days (Tom Brady, Week 17, 2021).
Betting: The Steelers have covered seven of their past eight long-rest spots (average cover margin: +4.5 points).