To say Giants fans were unhappy with the off-season would be a gross understatement of epic proportions. As an organization, they seem to be stuck in purgatory, pretending they can contend, but constructing a roster ill-suited to do so. It’s never easy to rebuild or even retool in New York, but the Giants of the past have always been the stable brother of New York football teams. Chaos is usually reserved for little brother Gang Green. However, in recent years, dysfunction has crept into an otherwise historically sound minded organization. Sometimes bad football can lead to good fantasy football. Garbage time points are still points after all. The question remains, how capable will the G-Men be at all in 2019?
Joe has just gotten started, but he’s making his way through all 32 NFL Team Previews.
2019 New York Giants Fantasy Preview
KEY LOSSES: Odell Beckham WR, Olivier Vernon LB, Landon Collins FS, Jamal Brown G, B.W. Webb CB
Impact: How do you replace a talent like Odell Beckham in an offense? Frankly, you don’t. The Giants knew the risk of investing big money in Beckham last year, and it didn’t take long to feel the cap repercussions from that move. Odell had his share of antics, injuries and disappointing moments. However, his mere presence on the field as a playmaker is now removed. That puts a greater onus on the talents of Saquon Barkley and others. Losing a veteran defensive talent like Landon Collins hurts. Losing him to another team in the division is salt in the wound. Olivier Vernon leaves the linebacking corps very suspect.
KEY ADDITIONS: Golden Tate WR, Antoine Bethea FS, Markus Golden DE
Impact: Golden Tate’s underwhelming performance after being dealt mid-season to the Eagles can be written off completely. Learning a new offense on the fly is difficult for even a capable veteran. Tate had always been a steady PPR presence for the Lions, catching 90-plus balls 4 of the last 5 years. Eighty catches for 800 yards and 5 TDs seems like the most you can hope for in this offense. However, should Eli Manning give way to Daniel Jones, that ceiling could crumble. Markus Golden had 12.5 sacks in 2016 for the Cardinals, but has played just 15 games the last two years. Antoine Bethea was brought in to replace the leadership lost when Landon Collins left, but at 35, he’s certainly lost a step.
DRAFTED PLAYERS OF FANTASY NOTE: Daniel Jones QB, Dexter Lawrence DT, Deandre Baker CB
Impact: GM Dave Gettleman’s job rests on the Daniel Jones pick. Jones was “his guy.” If he’s right, the noise will disappear. If he’s wrong, the repercussions will run him out of town. They didn’t want to wait and missed out on some high-end defensive talent to make the preemptive Jones selection. Taking a QB that high means there’s pressure for him to see serious playing time in 2019. Scouting reports range from “all the tools, despite not facing top talent” to “he’s a pedestrian at best.” My personal take is you need to see how he adapts to a higher level of competition before we react one way or another. Because of that, I don’t recommend him as a dynasty league rookie draft pick. Dexter Lawrence was often overshadowed by his teammates at Clemson. Deandre Baker has talent, but character issues and joins the rest of this group as potential boom or bust picks in a very suspect draft for the Giants.
OFFENSIVE OUTLOOK: The Giants own the best fantasy asset in the game in Saquon Barkley. Eli Manning will continue to be a liability in the pocket, so Sterling Shepard, Golden Tate, and Evan Engram need to step up and keep defenses honest. If they’re successful, then Barkley will continue to be an unstoppable force. The Giants O-Line is still below average though, and with the Daniel Jones prophecy waiting in the wings this team could either be a collective fantasy value or a complete bust. It all comes down to the cost with this team. The supporting cast may fall very far in drafts, and if they do they’re worth some shares.
DEFENSIVE OUTLOOK: The Giants had the 24th ranked defense, and there’s little reason to believe they won’t maintain that poor ranking. They could even fall further. They have no particular strength or fantasy appeal.
2019 OUTLOOK: It’s sad to see this storied franchise fall on uncertain times. They’re clearly behind the Eagles and Cowboys in terms of talent and the Redskins have some intriguing young studs who could develop quickly and scoot by them as well. A last-place finish in the NFC East seems like a distinct possibility.
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