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Coming off a bye week and a tie, the Bengals face the 5-3 New York Giants to end the NFL week. Both teams have stud wide receivers and are part of tight divisional races. Which players look like good bets to provide you with fantasy value this weekend? If you’re still waiting to decide on which players on the Giants and Bengals to start and sit, here’s our advice.
ABSOLUTELY START THESE PLAYERS
A.J. Green (Bengals TE) is a must start for the ninth consecutive week. He leads the NFL with 112 yards per game, and is third in standard fantasy scoring per week.
FAVORABLE MATCHUP
Tyler Eifert (Bengals TE) produced a nine catch, 102 yard performance in London, capped off with a touchdown. If there was any doubt, he is clearly back. He has a favorable matchup by the sheer fact that he is a great tight end who is seemingly back to full strength.
Odell Beckham (Giants WR) is currently fifth in standard scoring among wide receivers, but that average is boosted by an insane Week 6 outburst against the Ravens. Otherwise, he has been good, but not great, averaging less than 65 yards per game. He is pretty close to a must start, but the Bengals have done a solid job this year against some good receivers, such as Antonio Brown, Brandon Marshall, Eric Decker, Pierre Garcon, and Desean Jackson.
Eli Manning (Giants QB) has a favorable matchup, facing a Bengals pass defense that has been prone to giving up a lot of fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks. But that being said, Manning is currently outside of the top 15 in fantasy scoring, and isn’t a great option unless you are looking for a bye week filler.
MEH, IF YOU MUST
Giovani Bernard / Jeremy Hill (Bengals RB) are going against a Giants defense that is not great, but has done a solid job of stopping opposing running backs. They held Ezekiel Elliott to 51 rushing yards on 20 carries, and haven’t given up more than 87 rushing yards to a running back all season. With Bernard and Hill splitting the load, it could be a disappointing day for either of them in fantasy scoring.
UNFAVORABLE MATCHUP
Andy Dalton (Bengals QB) goes against a Giants’ defense that has only allowed three touchdowns to eight interceptions over the past four weeks. Granted, three of those games were Case Keenum, Carson Wentz, and Joe Flacco, but those defensive numbers are still rather impressive.
SIT
Larry Donnell (Giants TE) - Yes, the Bengals have struggled to stop tight ends, but Donnell only has 92 yards and one touchdown on the season. In a desperate streaming situation, he may be a deep, deep flier.
Rashad Jennings / Paul Perkins (Giants RB) form an ugly tandem in a backfield that is one to be avoided if at all possibly in fantasy. You have to go back to Ahmad Bradshaw in 2012 to find any fantasy relevance in the Giants’ backfield.