Team news: New York Giants | Page 19

The Giants listed WR Wan'Dale Robinson (knee) as doubtful for Sunday's opener vs. Dallas -- and added TE Darren Waller to the injury report with a hamstring. He's questionable.

Related Players: Parris Campbell, Daniel Bellinger

The Giants' under team total is looking pretty enticing right about now. Presumably, the slot role will be pretty well locked down by Parris Campbell while Robinson is on the mend and offers a reasonable floor for very desperate fantasy managers. This is Waller's first stint on the injury report this week, so hopefully, that is more of a precaution.

A few injury updates I’ve gathered:

• WR Wan’Dale Robinson: ACL. Expecting him to be activated from PUP by the Tuesday deadline.

• WR Cole Beasley: Quad. He’s close to 100%. Ford-Wheaton injury boosts Beasley’s odds for a roster spot.

Related players: Isaiah Hodgins, Darius Slayton, Sterling Shepard, Parris Campbell, Jalin Hyatt, Jamison Crowder

The Giants have a crowded receiving room, and Robinson will need some time to get up to speed, so it remains to be seen what kind of role he'll start with and eventually get to on the Giants. Robinson has played most of his time in the slot and that area of the room is especially crowded, and includes the rookie Hyatt. Robinson was having the best game of his young career last season in Week 10, catching nine balls for 100 yards on 13 targets before tearing his ACL.

Diontae Johnson, George Pickens, and Allen Robinson will be the Steelers’ starters, with Calvin Austin holding down punt return duties and Miles Boykin adding speed and special teams duties at the back of the rotation.

Related Players: Gunner Olszewski

A forgotten piece in Fantasyland, Robinson has the ability to make some noise in 11 personnel, which the team figures to use extensively. In typical redraft leagues, he figures to be a guy coming off and back on waiver wires throughout the season, but makes for a great pick deep in best ball leagues, particularly when you have Kenny Pickett on your roster.

Texans RB Dameon Pierce played every snap of the first two drives with starters, including all 3rd-downs. A change from last year, when Pierce only played on about 25% of 3rd-downs.

Devin Singletary then came on and played every snap of the third drive with starters.

Related players: Mike Boone, Dare Ogunbowale

It's tough to read into how much this will matter once the season starts. There are many in the fantasy world who are saying to stay away from Pierce, probably more when it comes to his dynasty value. Singletary is likely to have a big role in the offense as well, but if he takes away passing down value - that would obviously hurt Pierce. The good news is there isn't a whole lot to worry about fantasy value-wise behind Pierce and Singletary.

OC Mike Kafka said early in camp that it was “too early to tell” if Sauqon Barkley would be more of a receiver but “we’re practicing all kinds of things with people at every position.”

But it appears that the brain trust might be reconsidering because Barkley has been an early read on more passes — returning to a plan that was unveiled in May 2022 but scrapped before the season for reasons that Barkley declined to share on the podcast.

Related players: Matt Breida, Gary Brightwell, James Robinson, Eric Gray

The story pointed out the irony in Barkley potentially getting his wish to show that he can be a Christian McCaffrey-type dual threat is that the contract he finally agreed to — one-year, $10.1 million with an additional $909,000 in incentives — pays extra for a would-be career-high 1,350 rushing yards and for 65 receptions. But increased receptions, the story said, likely means fewer carries — making it difficult to hit both markers — to manage Barkley’s workload and keep him healthy. For fantasy purposes, an increased workload in the passing game would give a bump to Barkley's value in PPR leagues. Barkley had 91 receptions his rookie season but then 52 in 2019, 41 in 2021 and last year he had 57. He was injured most of 2020.

The Giants and star RB Saquon Barkley agreed to terms on a new 1-year deal worth up to $11M, as Barkley gives himself a chance to beat the franchise tag. He gets a $2M signing bonus. Bottom line: Barkley is coming in & will be at training camp.

Related Players: Matt Breida, Eric Gray

With no holdout looming, this locks Barkley into a top-10 fantasy RB. He still remains a little questionable as a mid-first-round option but should be targeted if he's dropping much further than that.

The Giants are signing WR Cole Beasley. He reunites with Brian Daboll, his former offensive coordinator with the #Bills, and adds another veteran target for Daniel Jones.

Year 12 in the NFL for Beasley back in the NFC East.

Related Players: Parris Campbell, Wan'Dale Robinson, Jamison Crowder

It isn't likely that Beasley carries any fantasy value himself but if he makes the team, he could eat into some snaps for the plethora of other slot receivers the team has. At the least, this at least brings a little more veteran presence for Daniel Jones.

Saquon Barkley said recently at his camp that he will not make a "definitive declaration" about what he's going to do for the 2023 season until we get to the July 17th deadline for franchise-tagged players to get a long-term extension. Per Rapoport, there is still room for a deal. Talks are "back on" for a possible extension beyond the franchise tag.

Related Players: Matt Breida, Eric Gray, Gary Brightwell

This is a positive spin after Barkley mentioned less than two weeks ago that he would consider sitting out the entirety of the 2023 season if he needs to. A long-term deal for the running back entering his sixth year seems unlikely, but there's no doubt that Barkley remains one of the most talented backs in the league when healthy.

It was mostly Parris Campbell working out of the slot, Darius Slayton and Isaiah Hodgins out wide, and Darren Waller all over the field with the first-team offense. That’s in part because Sterling Shepard (knee) and Wan’Dale Robinson (knee) worked on the side as part of their rehab from torn ACLs.

Related Players: Jalin Hyatt

Campbell, who was signed this offseason as a free agent, is destined for a significant role regardless. The Giants think he can do more than be the 68-catch player he was with the Indianapolis Colts last season if he’s healthy in this offense. This spring only validated what they thought they could be getting.

This usage has sent a clear message about third-round rookie Jalin Hyatt, who is "coming along slowly and working primarily with the third-team offense."

The Giants are bringing rookie wide receiver Jalin Hyatt along slowly. The third-round pick mostly worked with the third-team offense this spring. Wide receivers coach Mike Groh dismissed concerns about Hyatt’s limited route tree in college, while acknowledging that it’s a big adjustment for any rookie receiver to transition to the NFL.

Related Players: Isaiah Hodgins, Darius Slayton, Sterling Shepard, Wan'Dale Robinson, Parris Campbell

The article would go on to mention that Hyatt "could" have a role as a deep-threat specialist as a rookie but that it will be an "uphill climb" for him to unseat an established veteran. In Underdog drafts, Hyatt is currently coming off the board as the WR70 around guys who have already proved they can be valuable at times in fantasy, such as; K.J. Osborn, DJ Chark, and Marquez Valdes-Scantling.