Will Eli Manning’s Return Help Anyone’s Daily Fantasy Value?

The benching of Eli Manning caught the world by surprise and likely helped usher head coach Ben McAdoo out the door a little quicker than had Eli remained the Giants QB. But McAdoo is out and the team’s defensive coordinator, Steve Spagnuolo.

Now the question is whether Eli Manning will get his job back or if the Giants will continue to tank the remainder of the season and play Geno Smith and Davis Webb.

Rumor has it….

According to ESPN, the team will be handing the offense back over to Eli. Had McAdoo remained in charge, Geno Smith would have likely gotten another start. In his opinion, Smith had done nothing to prevent himself from starting again.

Not exactly a ringing endorsement.

Smith wasn’t bad (21-34 for 212 yards and a touchdown). He did not throw an interception, but he did have a pair of fumbles (both lost).

So—should daily fantasy players care?

Not really.

With the injuries the Giants offense has been afflicted with this season, there just isn’t enough talent on the team that anyone should care about. Orleans Darkwa had started to look promising with three consecutive games of 70+ yards but had 30 and 32 the last two weeks. Sterling Shepard has had two good fantasy days the entire season and is not expected to have another.

The only person that was remotely worth starting before and could be worth starting going forward is rookie tight end Evan Engram.

Someone has to excel, right?

Engram had his best day of the season with Smith Sunday (seven receptions for 99 yards and a touchdown). But the only thing that was really any different was the fact that he caught most of the balls thrown his way (he was targeted eight times).

The previous six weeks saw Manning look his way 51 times, but he caught only 25 of those passes (four for touchdowns).

With their struggles in the running game, if Eli gets the Giants offense into the red zone he will likely look Engram’s way early and often for the rest of the season. He will not get you Travis Kelce or Rob Gronkowski type numbers but he’s not going to have their price tag either.

It Sounds Crazy, But Corey Coleman Could Be a Good Start Sunday (really)

If there is one thing most daily fantasy and traditional fantasy players know, it’s to stay away from the graveyard that is the Cleveland Browns. Their 0-11 record says it all—they are not very good. The defense has shown some promise at times and has kept some game within reach. But Deshone Kizer is erratic at best.

You simply can’t count on the Browns offense to produce—which makes it hard to believe that Browns wide receiver Corey Coleman could be a good start this week.

Crazy, right?

If the fact that he is on the Browns is not enough reason not to start him, who the Browns are playing should be. The Los Angeles Chargers don’t have the best pass defense in the NFL, but the secondary has been stingy against big name receivers this season. They are ranked No. 21 in the league for points allowed to wide receivers (19.6).

So, that’s why you shouldn’t start him.

But why should you?

Since returning to action a few weeks ago, Coleman has been playing well. But being on the Browns has allowed his production to fly under the radar. In four games he has 15 receptions (31 targets) for 206 yards and a touchdown.

Average that out, and it doesn’t sound like much. But what makes Coleman intriguing is that he was targeted on nearly 30 percent of Deshone Kizer’s passes (18 of 63) the last two weeks.

That’s a pretty significant number.

With a per catch average of 16 yards in those two games, he sees a lot of downfield passes. That means his numbers could go from nice but meaningless for daily fantasy play to a darn good start. If he can catch a couple more passes, that is.

Start him?

Starting Coleman comes with an element of risk because he does play for the Browns. But Kizer does have potential and can make the deep throws. Also, the Browns are planning on having Josh Gordon on the field as much as possible Sunday. Gordon’s presence could loosen up the coverage on Coleman and give him the window he needs to break a play wide open.

So, should you start him? He’s a ‘boom or bust, ’ but if you do, at least he will not cost much.

Dede Westbrook Worth Starting In Your Daily Fantasy Lineup?

Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Dede Westbrook got some attention a couple of weeks ago when he predicted a 200+ yard day in his NFL debut. While many scoffed at his claim, the possibility was not unrealistic. With his speed (4.3 in the 40-yard dash), it was not hard to imagine him breaking away from coverage and making some big plays.

As it turns out, he caught three of the six passes thrown his way in his debut game for 35 yards. He wasn’t anywhere close to his 200+ yard prediction. Last week he wasn’t much better with six receptions (ten targets) for 41 yards.

A case could easily be made that you should not even think about inserting Westbrook into your daily fantasy lineup. But, at the same time, a pretty compelling case could be made to start him.

The Case

Anyone that runs a 4.3 is bound to break a play wide open sooner than later. So far, he just hasn’t been able to get into open territory much. But he is getting plenty of opportunities. In two games, he has been targeted 16 times, or on 29 percent of the routes, he has run.

To put that into perspective, Antonio Brown has been targeted at the same rate. That tells us that the Jaguars are serious about giving him the chance to make a play. This week, against the Indianapolis Colts, the stage may be set for him to take advantage of those opportunities.

This week, the Colts secondary is going to be down its best player, Rashaan Melvin, and recently released Vontae Davis. Theoretically, it should be even easier to pass on them. Hurns is still injured. Lee had a bad day against Arizona but had been target 32 times in the previous three games. He has also been limited in practice.

Which means….

With the run game floundering in recent weeks, the Jaguars have been forced to lean a little more on the passing game. If they do so again this week, with the injuries to other guys, Westbrook could end up being the No. 1 option going up against a poor pass defense.

This will, of course, make him a very intriguing option for daily fantasy lineups.

Don’t Count Out Green Bay’s Receivers This Week

During a typical season, the wide receivers for the Green Bay Packers are advisable options in daily fantasy play. With Aaron Rodgers throwing the ball, you can’t go wrong. But for much of this season, it hasn’t been Rodger behind center. It’s been Brett Hundley.

Overall, he’s been terrible which would make the notion of starting any Green Bay receivers crazy. But this week, it may not be that crazy.

Why not?

Last week, against what was supposed to be a very stingy Steelers pass defense, he had a good game (17-26 for 245 yards and three touchdowns). That tells us that the Steelers defense has been overrated or that Hundley may be starting to find his groove.

If he happens to be finding his groove, he could be in for a big week this Sunday. That would, in turn, mean that his receivers are as well.

Why?

The Packers are traveling to Florida this week to take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Buyer Beware Player Of The Week: Oakland Raiders QB Derek Carr

When the Oakland Raiders gave Derek Carr a pretty hefty contract extension during the offseason, they hoped they would see him take his game to the next level this season. Suffice it to say, that hasn’t happened.

However, the last five weeks have seen him produce the kind of numbers daily fantasy players and Raiders fans love. His stat line from the Patriots game wasn’t great, but prior to that he threw for 300, 313, and 417 yards. While he only had 253 yards against the Broncos last week, he also had a pair of touchdowns.

With the Giants on deck this week, he should be in line for another great game, but that will probably not be the case.

But it’s not his fault.

The Giants are playing better, but they are still one of the worst teams in the NFL. If the Raiders are able to jump on top of them early, they could set the stage for a blowout—and a great daily fantasy day. But Carr is going to have a hard time making it happen because he isn’t going to have anyone to throw to.

Michael Crabtree is going to be suspended this week due to the fight he had with Broncos defensive back Aqib Talib last week. Chances are good Amari Cooper will be out as well. If the concussion doesn’t hold him out, his ankle injury could.

Without his two top receivers, it is hard to imagine Carr having a big day against the Giants. Seth Roberts and Cordarrelle Patterson are not scrubs but there’s a reason why they are not primary options every week.

But what about Jared Cook and Marshawn Lynch?

Cook will likely lead the team in receptions, but a quarterback needs more than his tight end to have a fantasy-worthy kind of day. Lynch will probably get a few more carries, but it is unlikely he’ll make a big dent in the passing game (ten receptions for 98 yards so far this season).

So, if you like your money, you may not want to start Derek Carr this week.