Fantasy Football and NFL News, Rumors and Injury Updates

New York Giants Week 19 Fantasy Analysis

January 11, 2008 @ 11:15:29

By Jack Douglas
Edited by Herija C. Green

New York Giants Fantasy Matchups - Week 19

Opponent: at Dallas Cowboys

Victorious over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (9-8) last week in the Wild Card game, the Giants (11-6) seek to improve on their season record of 8-1 in away games as they take on the Cowboys (13-3) in the third game this season between these long-time rivals. Amazingly, this marks the first time these teams have played in the playoffs, and Dallas sports a 52-35-2 all-time record against New York. None of that will matter too much this Sunday, though, if you believe the Giants are playing their best ball while the Cowboys are sputtering a little and dealing with injuries. The Giants hope quarterback Eli Manning can continue his solid play of the last two games and running back Brandon Jacobs can continue to be the workhorse he has been for most of the season. Wide receivers Amani Toomer and Plaxico Burress (ankle) will seek to come up big against a Dallas team that played them well in the second game between these teams, but one that was torched by the two receivers in Week 1.

Quarterback

Table: Per-Game Statistics - Weeks 15-18

Player	G	Comp/G	Att/G	Pass Yds/G	Pass TDs/G	INTs/G	Rush Yds/G	Rush TDs/G	PH
Eli Manning	4	17	32	182.8	1.75	0.75	3.5	0.00	+

Manning is a strong play this week against the Cowboys. In two games against the Cowboys this season, Manning averaged 274 passing yards and 2.5 touchdowns per game. Manning is coming off of two very good games in a row and looks ready to be productive this Sunday in Dallas.

Table: Opponent vs. Position

Team	G	Comp/G	Att/G	Pass Yds/G	Pass TDs/G	INTs/G	Rush Yds/G	Rush TDs/G
Cowboys	3	20	33	211.3	1.00	0.33	17.0	0.00

The Cowboys are about average against opposing quarterbacks. They will be at home, but Manning has moved the ball well against them this season. In the last month (three games), Dallas has yielded almost 30 more passing yards per contest than Manning has averaged.

Running Back

Table: Per-Game Statistics - Weeks 15-18

Player	G	Util/G (%)	RZ Util/G (%)	In-5 Util/G	Rush Yds/G	Rush TDs/G	Rec/G	Rec Yds/G	Rec TDs/G	PH
Brandon Jacobs	4	24.50 (37.81)	3.25 (21.88)	0.25	94.0	0.75	2.75	24.0	0.50	X
Ahmad Bradshaw	3	12.67 (14.66)	4.00 (20.20)	0.33	75.0	0.33	0.67	3.3	0.00	N/A

Jacobs has come into his own this season, rushing for 1,011 yards and four touchdowns. He has battled various injuries much of the season but appears healthy at this time. The Giants are not bashful about handing him the ball, as he has averaged more than 24 utilizations per game in the last four games. He rates as a high-end No. 1 level running back this Sunday against the Cowboys.

Despite being a rookie and starting the season as no better than the fourth option at running back for New York, injuries and stellar play by Bradshaw have moved him to the No. 2 position on the Giants. In the last three games, he has averaged 75 rushing yards per game and has one touchdown run overall. He makes a nice change of pace for Jacobs and is averaging 6.4 yards per carry. Bradshaw is a No. 2 level running back this Sunday in Dallas.

Table: Opponent vs. Position

Team	G	Att/G	Rush Yds/G	Rush TDs/G	Rec/G	Rec Yds/G	Rec TDs/G
Cowboys	3	22.3	94.3	0.67	5.67	38.3	0.00

The Cowboys are a middle level defense against enemy running backs. The Giants running backs should present a touch challenge for them this Sunday.

Wide Receiver

Table: Per-Game Statistics - Weeks 15-18

Player	G	Targets/G (%)	RZ Targets/G (%)	In-5 Targets/G	Rec/G	Rec Yds/G	Rec TDs/G	PH
Amani Toomer	4	7.25 (11.19)	1.50 (10.10)	0.25	4.00	53.5	0.25	X
Plaxico Burress	4	8.00 (12.35)	2.25 (15.15)	0.75	3.00	40.8	0.50	++
Sinorice Moss	1	8.00 (3.09)	1.00 (1.68)	0.00	5.00	53.0	0.00	N/A
Steven Smith	4	3.00 (4.63)	1.00 (6.73)	0.00	1.75	16.5	0.00	N/A

Toomer is coming off a fine game last week against the Buccaneers, catching seven passes for 74 yards and one touchdown. In the first game against the Cowboys, he caught nine passes for 91 yards and no touchdowns. In the second contest, he pulled in just three receptions for 37 receiving yards. He is a No. 2 or No. 3 level receiver with a strong play this Sunday against the Cowboys.

Burress (ankle) is fairly healthy at this time and remains the most dangerous receiver on this team. In two games in 2007 against the Cowboys, Burress had a great first game, where he caught eight balls for 144 yards and three touchdowns. In the second game, battling injuries, he caught just four passes for 24 yards and no scores. For the year, Burress caught 12 touchdown passes and is a strong play as a No. 2 or No. 3 receiver this Sunday in Dallas.

Moss has started to play well as a third receiver this season, leading the team with five catches per game in the past month. He too is a strong play as a No. 3 option against Dallas.

Smith has seen minimal action and should be on the fantasy bench this Sunday.

Table: Opponent vs. Position

Team	G	Rec/G	Rec Yds/G	Rec TDs/G
Cowboys	3	11.33	138.0	1.00

The Cowboys are a middle-of-the-pack fantasy defense against opposing wide receivers. They are giving up 138 receiving yards and one touchdown per game in the last month (three games).

Tight End

Table: Per-Game Statistics - Weeks 15-18

Player	G	Targets/G (%)	RZ Targets/G (%)	In-5 Targets/G	Rec/G	Rec Yds/G	Rec TDs/G	PH
Kevin Boss	4	2.75 (4.24)	0.75 (5.05)	0.25	2.00	23.8	0.50	N/A

Boss is a weak play and low-end No. 1 tight end this week against the Cowboys. With the season-ending injury to tight end Jeremy Shockey (fibula), Boss has become the main tight end in this offense. He has responded fairly well but is still in his rookie season.

Table: Opponent vs. Position

Team	G	Rec/G	Rec Yds/G	Rec TDs/G
Cowboys	3	3.00	35.0	0.00

The Cowboys defense is tough against opposing tight ends. They have given up just 35 receiving yards per game to the position in the last four games and no touchdowns. They should provide a stern test for Boss this weekend.

Place Kicker

Table: Per-Game Statistics - Weeks 15-18

Player	G	FG/G	FG Att/G	XP Att/G	XP/G	Kick Pts/G
Lawrence Tynes	4	0.75	1.00	3.50	3.50	5.8

Tynes has averaged fewer than six points per game over the last month, which makes him no better than a low-end No. 1 kicker against Dallas.

Table: Opponent vs. Position

Team	G	FG/G	FG Att/G	XP Att/G	XP/G	Kick Pts/G
Cowboys	3	1.67	2.00	1.67	1.67	6.7

The Cowboys have been a fairly tough defense for opposing kickers to score against, but they are yielding a little more per game in the last month (three games) than Tynes has been averaging.

Defensive Team/Special Teams

Table: Per-Game Statistics - Weeks 15-18

Team	G	Off Pts Allowed/G	Net Yds Allowed/G	Sacks/G	INT/G	Fum Rec/G
Giants	4	23.8	303.5	1.75	1.25	0.50

The Giants have had one of the better fantasy defenses this season. In the last four games, they have been churning out turnovers at a decent rate. The sack total has slowed down to less than two per game, but they still bring lots of pressure on enemy quarterbacks and are capable of a big defensive game in any given week. In the last four games, they have a total of two defensive touchdowns and one special teams touchdown. This week, they may be made even more dangerous if the Dallas offense sputters due to injuries to quarterback Tony Romo (thumb) and wide receiver Terrell Owens (ankle). Still, they are among the lower-ranked defensive options for this weekend.

Table: Opponent Offense vs. Defense

Team	G	Off Pts/G	Net Yds/G	Sacks Allowed/G	INT Thrown/G	Fum Lost/G
Cowboys	3	10.7	264.0	1.67	1.67	0.00

The Cowboys have not lost a fumble in the last three games, but they have thrown a total of five interceptions. They are a good offense overall, but the possible interceptions and sacks could add up to solid fantasy production for the Giants this week. In the last month (three games), the Cowboys offense has somewhat sputtered, averaging less than 11 offensive points per contest during that span. However, they were a dangerous unit for most of the season, and the week off could pay significant dividends.

Author Bio

Jack Douglas

Jack Douglas is an attorney and a freelance writer who has been playing fantasy football and baseball since 1991. He has played in many different leagues using different rules and has captured several championships. He has been a KFFL Contributor since 2000