Sit/Start Week 3: Reviewing All the Fantasy Relevant Players In Every Single Game

Giants at Buccaneers

 

Game Info

Kickoff: Sunday, September 22nd at 4:05 pm EST

Location: Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, FL

Betting Odds: TB -6.5, 48 Total via Oddsshark

Network: FOX

Sleeper Spotlight: Daniel Jones

 

New York Giants

 

Quarterbacks:

• Eli Manning (Sit)
• Daniel Jones (Sit, Hold)

 

Can Eli Manning just retire, please? It’s all but a guarantee Eli will be the worst quarterback ever to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, so just get it over with already. Performances like last week’s 37.8 QB rating aren’t exactly helping Eli’s legacy. Why didn’t the Giants give Daniel Jones any reps last week? Did they think they were still in that game? Don’t make me laugh. 

Head coach Pat Shurmur recently announced that Daniel Jones will get the start this week after he acknowledged “what we’ve done hasn’t been good enough.” Gee, Pat, do ya think? At the very least, it should be exciting to finally see what Jones can do with a whole game. I imagine the Buccaneers defense will try to get in the rookie quarterback’s head with plenty of pressure. If Jones can play smart and quickly enough, he may have some success against an exploitable Bucs secondary. 

 

Running Backs:

• Saquon Barkley (Start, RB1)

 

Saquon Barkley is a stud and you’re going to start him pretty much no matter what. After just two weeks of football, it’s looking like Barkley is everything fantasy owners hoped he would be. He should be capable of an RB1 performance against Tampa but I wouldn’t be surprised if he is limited to more of an RB2 performance. The Buccaneers defense was very impressive last week and completely took Christian McCaffrey out of the Panthers’ game plan. I expect Todd Bowles to do everything in his power to stop the run again this week. That means bringing plenty of pressure with his front four. That being said, don’t overthink it. Barkley is still an elite talent and you would be crazy to bench him. He always has that big-play upside.

 

Wide Receivers/ Tight Ends:

• Sterling Shepard (Start, WR2/FLEX)
• Bennie Fowler (Sit)
• Evan Engram (Start, TE1)
• TJ Jones (Sit)
• Cody Latimer (Sit)
• Cody Core (Sit)

 

Fantasy players with Sterling Shepard on the roster will be happy to have him back if he is cleared from his concussion in time for kickoff. Shepard should bounce back well against Tampa’s bad secondary. I have him listed as a WR2/FLEX only because I have no idea how often Daniel Jones will look his way. Bennie Fowler had himself a pretty good game last week but his target share was mainly due to the absence of Shepard. He had twice as many targets last week as he did in Week 1. I wouldn’t be comfortable starting him.

I think Evan Engram should have a strong showing this week against a Buccaneers secondary that was bottom-10 against tight ends last year. His roughly-10-point-PPR performance last week is essentially his floor when you consider his consistent weekly target share. I would feel comfortable with Engram in my starting lineup even with the uncertainty at quarterback. 

TJ Jones, Cody Latimer, and Cody Core all looked pretty well last week but not good enough to be fantasy relevant. One of the three could randomly “boom” for a week but they will remain very touchdown-dependent and nobody wants to spend half their week considering which irrelevant Giants receiver might catch a touchdown. 

 

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

 

Quarterback:

• Jameis Winston (QB2 but fringe QB1 given matchup)

 

Jameis Winston had himself a much better Week 2 than Week 1. He made some good improvements but he still isn’t quite into the QB1 territory many were expecting from him this year. Winston isn’t a very sexy option, but I think he could be a smart last-minute pickup if you’re desperate for a quarterback. I said the same thing about Josh Allen last week and he put up 22 points against the Giants. It’s beginning to look like you can start most quarterbacks against the Giants with confidence. That being said, nothing is a guarantee with Winston at the helm. He could throw four touchdowns or four interceptions just as easily.

 

Running Backs:

• Peyton Barber (Start, RB2)
• Ronald Jones (Sit)
• Dare Ogunbowale (Sit)

 

It was The Peyton Barber Show for the Buccaneers last week. Head coach Bruce Arians said the team would ride the hot hand but many fantasy players thought Ronald Jones still had a shot going into Week 2. Barber ended up with 23 carries to Jones’ four. If the Buccaneers continue to give Barber the lion’s share then he should be a solid lock for RB2 production this week. He finished with a respectable 15 points last week against a pretty good Panthers defense. He should ball out against a Giants team that just got run over by the Bills. I own Barber in a few leagues but I’ll likely wait on starting him unless I need to. I don’t trust this Buccaneers backfield just yet. I don’t want to start Barber thinking he’s a sure thing until I see him with plenty of carries for a second consecutive week. But, hey, fortune favors the bold. Also, Dare Ogunbowale isn’t worth the time it takes to spell his name. I have no clue why anybody is still hyping him up. 

 

Wide Receivers/ Tight Ends:

• Mike Evans (Start, WR1)
• Chris Godwin (Start, WR1)
• Cameron Brate (Sit)
• O.J. Howard (Sit and panic)
• Breshad Perriman (Sit)

 

Many fantasy players have been frustrated with Mike Evans’ first two performances this year but I wouldn’t panic just yet. He is still Winston’s first read and he is still getting plenty of targets. Evans was also targeted three times in the red zone last week. He will get his eventually, and a game against the pathetic Giants is just what the doctor ordered. Chris Godwin had a fantastic game last week and I think he is just as likely to have another WR1 performance. His sure hands and smart plays have earned Winston’s trust which means he should see consistent targets throughout the season. 

O.J. Howard and Cameron Brate owners have got to be thinking that maybe, just maybe, Bruce Arians simply doesn’t utilize his tight ends. We all know that Howard has plenty of talent, but you can’t keep putting the guy into your lineup when he’s barely part of this offense. If you’re starting one of these tight ends you either have no other options or much bigger huevos than me. Don’t even think about starting Breshad Perriman. The guy couldn’t catch a cold last week. It’s worth noting that one of his missed catches was in the end zone and right through his hands.

 

-Ryan Kruse (@ryanpkruse)