Thursday night’s Patriots vs. Giants showdown was not the bloodbath we expected. With Saquon Barkley, Evan Engram, Sterling Shepard and Wayne Gallman ruled out, and rookie quarterback Daniel Jones in the primetime spotlight against the best defense in the league, the Giants came into this game as 17-point underdogs. They lost and fell to 2-4 on the season, but the 35-14 fina🔯l score is misleading, as the Giants were competitive through three quarters.
Here are six things you need to k⭕now for fantasy foo🍬tball:
1. Daniel Jones struggled, as anticipated
Daniel Jones had a pretty tough game. It is certainly forgivable since the rookie was without nearly all his top offensive weapons in Foxborough. He completed 15 of 31 passes for 161 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions. There were a number of passes that could have been picked off. Better fantasy🔯 days are to come for Danny Dimes.
2. Patriots dominate time of possession
We talk a lot about matchups as it relates to an opposing team’s defense, but an offense that controls the clock can also create an unfavorable situation for fantasy.
The Patriots were dominant in terms of time of possession on Thursday night: They controlled the ball for nearly 40 minutes. This is something fantasy owners need to keep in mind when facing the Patriots – not only is their defense top notch, but they limit opposing teams’ scoring opportunities by keeping them off the field.
3. Golden Tate, Darius Slayton have opposite nights
With few target options aꦯvailable for the Giants hobbled offense, Darius Slayton drew tight coverage from♍ the Patriots lights-out secondary. He caught three of his eight targets for 32 yards. Golden Tate, though, had six receptions on nine targets for 102 yards and a touchdown. This was a great game for Tate, who returned from suspension in Week 5, but temper expectations moving forward. He will have to compete for targets once Evan Engram and Sterling Shepard return to the field.
Slayton did have some good moments: he flashed his sub-4.4 40-yard speed and frequently outran his coverage. Shadowed by Stephon Gilmore, he almost reeled in a deep pass from Daniel Jones with 2:47 remaining in the fourth quarter. His production was undoubtedly hampered by Jones’ inaccuracy. He should be fun to watch rest of season as Jones improves, and may become fantasy-relevant if Sterling Shepard, who suffered his second concussion of the season against the Vikings, misses more time.
4. Jon Hilliman is no Wayne Gallman
Jon Hilliman was a popular waiver add this week after Saquon Barkley (ankle) and Wayne Gallman (concussion) were ruled inactive. The hope was that the sheer volume of work would result in fantasy production. However, the Giants were unable to get any momentum going on the ground. Hilliman had 11 carri♓es for 38 yards, and Eli Penny had three carries for six yards, for an abysmal 42 total rushing yards.
5. Josh Gordon suffered a knee injury
Josh Gordon was marked as questionable to return after twisting his knee during the second quarter. The injury happened on an attempted tackle on linebacker Markus Golden’s fumble return for a touchdown The injury initially seemed serious and he was escorted into the medical tent. He later returned to the sidelines, but did not play any more snaps. Gordon had one catch for seven yards before the injury.
The Patriots came into this game thin at receiver with Phillip Dorsett inact𓃲ive. They leaned heavily on Julian Edelman, who led the team in receiving with 113 yards and nine receptions on 14 targets. Jakobi Meyers, who caught all four of his targets for 54 yards on Thursday, could be a name to keep in mind if Gordon or Dorsett were to miss time.
6. Brandon Bolden is a touchdown vulture, falls into end zone
You hate to see it. Your running back marches down the field, only to have some guy named Brandon Bolden run it into the end zone. This is a concerning trend – he caught one touchdown on a 29 yard pass in Week 5 against the Redskins, and he vultured a goal-line carry in his only rush of the game in Week 4 against the Bills for a touchdown. He had three carries for 23 yards on Thursday night.
Bolden is not a guy you 🌄are rushing to add in fantasy, but the role he plays in this o🥀ffense may deplete the long-term value of Sony Michel, James White and Rex Burkhead.
Tom Brady also had two one-yard sneak touchdowns, further limiting what could have been a strong nigh꧙t for Michel.