The New York Giants will face the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 8. Here’s fantasy football start-sit advice for every Giants skill player who has the potential to make a fantasy impact during the game.
Looking for more lineup advice? Head over to our Week 8 Fantasy Start-Sit Cheat Sheet, where we cover every fantasy-relevant player in every game.
Daniel Jones, QB
I thought Jones did a good job of completing two-thirds of his passes last week against the Eagles given the pressure he was under (sacked seven times, more takedowns than he had in his previous three games combined). Those completions, however, did no damage, and things don’t project to get any better this week against maybe the best defense in the NFL.
Jones’ mobility is his path to putting together top-15 weeks, but did you know that he only has one game this season with four points as a rusher? I expect him to be on the run regularly this week with a spy preventing his ability to impact the game with his legs and that’s a problem — his out-of-pocket completion rate sits at a career-low 44.4% with just 16.7% of such attempts resulting in a first down.
Jones had a run of viability in Weeks 2-5, and he might be able to put together another stretch. I just don’t think it starts this week. After this week, the Giants get the Commanders and Panthers — assuming that the team stands by him, Brock Purdy/Jordan Love managers should have Jones identified as a great streamer with their starter’s bye week approaching.
Devin Singletary, RB
After missing nearly a month, Singletary returned just in time to see his offensive line get bullied for 60 minutes. His six touches against the Eagles totaled just 21 yards against the Eagles, but that’s not my primary concern. The touch count was the result of the game flow, but the fact that he didn’t get a carry until New York’s fourth drive was a red flag.
I don’t think there are many usable weeks left for the Giants’ backfield and even fewer for Singletary. Tracy is my highest-ranked NYG RB this week, but neither of them ranks inside of my top 30 at the position.
Tyrone Tracy Jr., RB
The rookie got New York’s first carry last week, but little can be gleaned from the blowout loss at the hands of the Eagles.
Breece Hall scored 26.1 PPR points on Sunday night in Pittsburgh, the first running back to reach 20 points against the Steelers this season. That said, they’ve allowed at least 17.5 PPR points to a running back in each of the past four weeks (in addition to Hall, Alexander Mattison, Rico Dowdle, and Jonathan Taylor all got there). The run defense might be a touch overrated, though that’s more noteworthy in future weeks than this one.
I like the idea of holding Tracy as I still think he leads this backfield down the stretch, but in a committee in an offense with an implied total of 15 points, there’s no way to feel good about plugging in Tracy this week.
Darius Slayton, WR
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.
Malik Nabers, WR
After two straight DNPs (concussion), Nabers had a 13-yard catch on New York’s first play from scrimmage in Week 7, and we were rolling.
Or not.
Nabers saw seven more targets for the rest of the game but picked up just 28 yards. If you need a silver lining, the rookie posted a 29.6% target share and led the team in receiving yards. I would have taken those notes to the bank if you gave them to me pre-game, but the Giants couldn’t keep the Eagles out of their backfield (eight sacks), giving New York’s passing game no chance to support a single asset.
In theory, better times are ahead. But counting on a bounce back when facing T.J. Watt and Company is a dangerous way to live. The floor is low for the Giants’ offense as a whole, but with Nabers as the clear-cut alpha, there are two matchup notes that have me running him out there as a fine WR2 this week.
Through seven games, the Steelers are allowing the third-highest percentage of yards gained against them to come through the air (72.8%). Playing into that statistic is the fact that a league-high 14.3% of deep passes against them results in touchdowns.
Nabers is typically a fantasy producer who comes with plus marks in both quality and quantity. I’m not confident he gets both in this tough spot, but I think he has a good chance at checking one of those boxes, which should be enough to reward you for your trust.
Wan’Dale Robinson, WR
Robinson is boring, but he’s largely been effective in PPR formats with at least five catches in each of his past five games. With Malik Nabers back on the field against the Eagles last week, it was Robinson who led the team in targets.
Of course, his 1.9 aDOT capped his upside, but you’re not rostering Robinson in search of a seven-catch, 175-yard, three-touchdown performance. You’re looking for double-digit points and moving on.
He’s been good for that more often than not, and I think he can sustain that level of success over the next two months, — but not this week.
Steelers against the slot
- Completion percentage: seventh
- Passer rating: third
- Interception rate: second
The Steelers rank fifth in average time of possession this season, making this a potentially low-quantity, low-quality spot for New York’s slot machine.