Fantasy News & Analysis

Immediate fantasy football takeaways from NFL Week 2 Thursday Night Football

Landover, Maryland, USA; Washington Football Team quarterback Taylor Heinicke (4) drops back to pass against the New York Giants during the first quarter at FedExField. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

The Washington Football Team defeated the New York Giants 30-29 to kick off the second week of the NFL season. All eyes were on Saquon Barkley after his limited playing time in Week 1, as he's coming off a short week.

PFF's fantasy football recap focuses on player usage and stats, breaking down all the vital information you need to achieve fantasy success in 2021.


Click here for more PFF tools:

Rankings & ProjectionsWR/CB Matchup ChartNFL & NCAA Betting DashboardsNFL Player Props toolNFL & NCAA Power Rankings


New York Giants at Washington Football Team

New York Giants Snaps Routes Run Targets Carries
WR
Sterling Shepard 64 38 10 1
Kenny Golladay 58 34 8 0
Darius Slayton 39 24 6 0
Kadarius Toney 19 10 0 0
C.J. Board 6 3 0 1
TE
Kyle Rudolph 49 22 2 0
Kaden Smith 32 9 2 0
Chris Myarick 7 0 0 0
HB
Saquon Barkley 58 26 3 13
Devontae Booker 10 6 1 2
Elijhaa Penny 3 0 0 2
Total 69 38 32 26
Washington Football Team Snaps Routes Run Targets Carries
WR
Terry McLaurin 71 50 14 0
Dyami Brown 62 45 6 0
Adam Humphries 50 40 8 0
Cam Sims 8 4 0 0
DeAndre Carter 6 3 0 1
Dax Milne 4 2 0 0
TE
Logan Thomas 71 46 7 0
Ricky Seals-Jones 7 4 1 0
John Bates 1 1 0 0
HB
Antonio Gibson 43 22 2 13
J.D. McKissic 31 24 6 4
Total 71 50 44 19
Table Notes
  • Snaps include plays called back due to penalties like offensive holding or defensive pass interference. The other three stats have these plays removed.
  • Targets may differ from official NFL sources. The most likely discrepancy would be from a clear throw-away pass, where the NFL may give the target to the nearest receiver, while this data will not.
  • Carries are only on designed plays. Quarterback scrambles won’t count for the total number of carries in the game.

Buy low on Antonio Gibson: Fantasy managers were not happy when J.D. McKissic scored a touchdown to end the first half, or when he caught a 56-yard pass in the fourth quarter. Gibson had some promising usage outside of the two-minute drill, playing in more second-and-long and third-and-medium plays than usual. It’s been a slow process, but Gibson is gaining a larger role in the offense. The stat sheet just didn’t show it today due to a high percentage of Washington's snaps coming in two-minute drills, but he played in over 80% of snaps outside of the two-minute drills

Start Saquon Barkley: Barkley has been more involved in the offense in each of the last two games. He was much closer to his usual dominance in snaps but didn’t see as many touches as usual against Washington. Now that the former All-Pro running back will have a week and a half of rest before his next game, he should be closer to 100%.

Start Sterling Shepard: The Giants' top wide receiver was undervalued coming into fantasy drafts, which made him one of the biggest waiver-wire additions earlier in the week after a top-10 fantasy finish in Week 1. Shepard didn’t score a touchdown, but he was a clear favorite in targets. Along with his 10 targets, there were three more that didn’t count due to various defensive penalties. He should remain a PPR machine each week.

Monitor Kadarius Toney: The first-round rookie missed the entire preseason and was limited in practice before Week 1 due to a hamstring injury. The Giants only used him for five snaps in the first game. He saw an extended role tonight, mostly splitting time with Darius Slayton. This makes Slayton droppable despite the touchdown catch. Toney can be a speculative add in deeper leagues.

Slow down the Dyami Brown hype: Brown played in 51 of 55 snaps in Washington’s first matchup. He had a more successful day receiving tonight but also was on the field less often. All six wide receivers for Washington saw at least a few snaps. Adam Humphries also saw a lower percentage of snaps. Chances are those two receivers will be rotating snaps in two weeks if Curtis Samuel is ready to play.

Subscriptions

Unlock the 2023 Fantasy Draft Kit, with League Sync, Live Draft Assistant, PFF Grades & Data Platform that powers all 32 Pro Teams

$31 Draft Kit Fee + $8.99/mo
OR
$89.88/yr + FREE Draft Kit