The Giants made the playoffs in 2016 on the strength of their defense and not their offense, which was great for them, but not so much for Fantasy owners. We want points scored and don't want to celebrate points allowed.
The Giants defense was outstanding and finished second in the NFL in points allowed with 284, which trailed only the Patriots (250). But they had the No. 27 offense, and it showed in how some of their main Fantasy options played, aside from Odell Beckham.
He was his usual dominant self with 101 catches for 1,367 yards and 10 touchdowns on 169 targets, and Beckham finished as the No. 4 Fantasy receiver in standard leagues. Sterling Shepard also played well as a rookie with 65 catches for 683 yards and eight touchdowns on 105 targets, but he was just the No. 34 Fantasy receiver in standard formats.
Despite quality production from those two receivers, it was a down year for Eli Manning, who finished as the No. 20 Fantasy quarterback. The running game was also non-existent between Rashad Jennings, Paul Perkins and Shane Vereen, and Victor Cruz ended his Giants tenure with a thud.
Cruz was released in February, and the Giants replaced him with an upgrade in Brandon Marshall, who will now start opposite Beckham. And while the addition of Marshall and first-round rookie tight end Evan Engram should help Manning -- he's now back on the radar as a low-end No. 1 Fantasy quarterback -- Marshall will definitely impact Shepard in a negative way, which makes him just a late-round pick in the majority of leagues.
Marshall could also hurt Beckham's production, but he's still the No. 1 receiver for the Giants and should remain a Fantasy stud. He should be drafted in the first five or six overall picks in all formats, and Beckham is working on his fourth year in a row of at least 91 catches, 1,300 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns, which should happen.
Marshall should be drafted in Round 6 or later in most formats, and we hope he continues his trend of playing at a high level in his first season with a new team, which happened with the Bears (2012) and Jets (2015). But he could also struggle as the second fiddle to Beckham, and Marshall is just a No. 3 Fantasy receiver at best coming into this year.
The biggest question for the Giants will be at running back, and Perkins is expected to start, with fourth-round rookie Wayne Gallman from Clemson also in the mix, as well as Vereen returning from his twice-torn triceps as the third-down back. All eyes will be on Perkins because he could be a breakout candidate as the starter, and he's worth drafting in Round 5 in standard leagues and after Round 6 in PPR.
The Giants have an amazing defense with guys like Landon Collins, Janoris Jenkins, Jason Pierre-Paul, Olivier Vernon and Damon Harrison, among others. And hopefully the offense will return to form to help the Giants make another playoff run in 2017.
Sleeper: Eli Manning
The addition of Marshall and Engram gives Manning arguably the best receiving corps of his career with Beckham and Shepard. And Marshall (6-foot-4 and 230 pounds) gives Manning his biggest threat at receiver from a size and skill standpoint since Plaxico Burress (6-foot-5, 226 pounds), who last played for the Giants in 2008. The Giants also added a much-needed piece on the offensive line with right tackle D.J. Fluker, and Manning should bounce back from last year's down campaign when he was the No. 20 Fantasy quarterback. He only passed for 4,027 yards, 26 touchdowns and 16 interceptions, which was the first time in the past three years that he's been under 4,400 passing yards and 30 touchdowns. He should get back to that level with a better offense around him, and he's an easy quarterback to wait for on Draft Day in all leagues. Manning will likely be drafted as a high-end No. 2 Fantasy quarterback with a late-round pick, but he could easily deliver a top 10 finish in 2017.
Breakout: Paul Perkins
Perkins wasn't great as a rookie in 2016, but his potential role this year is what makes him a breakout candidate. With Jennings gone, Vereen better suited as a third-down back and coming off an injury-riddled season and Gallman a rookie who will have to prove himself, Perkins could be headed for a heavy workload. He started to take on more work toward the end of last season, and he showed he's capable of being a decent Fantasy running back. Perkins closed 2016 with four games in a row with double digits in carries and had 62 carries for 271 yards (4.4 yards per carry) over that span. He had 21 carries for 102 yards (4.9 yards per carry) in Week 17 at Washington and averaged at least 4.5 yards per carry in his final three outings. He needs to improve as a receiver (only 15 catches for 162 yards for the season), but he might be limited in that aspect of his game if Vereen is healthy. And he failed to score a touchdown for the year, but that will come if he gets the work expected as a starter. Perkins is worth drafting in Round 5 in standard leagues and after Round 6 in PPR. This could be a big season for Perkins if the Giants commit to him as the starter all year.
Bust: Brandon Marshall
There are differing opinions on Marshall this year. Some Fantasy analysts believe he'll lead the Giants in touchdowns since he's been a great red-zone threat throughout his career, and he is similar in stature to Burress, who was a favorite target for Manning. Others believe Marshall, 33, started to fade last year with the Jets when he was a disaster with 59 catches for 788 yards and three touchdowns on 128 targets. I don't expect him to repeat last year's performance, especially since Manning is a huge upgrade over the dumpster fire he had at quarterback with the Jets in 2016. But Marshall also will be No. 2 at receiver for the first time in his career because of Beckham, who actually has more red-zone touchdowns over the past three years than Marshall (19-18). Along with Engram and Shepard, Marshall might not get the usual allotment of targets he's used to (he's averaged 145 a year during his career), especially with Beckham still expected to get fed quite a bit. Marshall's early Average Draft Position is the No. 25 receiver off the board, which is too soon. He's a mid-range No. 3 Fantasy receiver this season worth drafting in Round 6 or later.
