Fantasy Football: 5 bold predictions for Week 12
By Nick Villano
Bold Prediction No. 4: Buy into Saquon Barkley
The New York Giants were dreadful on Monday Night Football against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The team was so bad, they left offensive coordinator Jason Garrett in Tampa. He was fired on Tuesday, and the Giants are looking to move forward with a new offense. That offense will likely be conservative at first while Joe Judge tries to figure everything out, and that means leaning more on star running back Saquon Barkley.
Barkley was dreadful for fantasy owners on Monday night. That could have been predicted. He is coming back from a stint on the COVID-19 list, he hasn’t played since Week 5, and he was taking on the best rushing defense in the league. This week, he’s a lot luckier with his matchup.
The Giants will look to make a statement against the Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles have been much better on the field in the last few weeks, but the rushing defense still leaves something to be desired. They allow north of 26 fantasy points per game to the running back position, and based on Monday’s snap count, the Giants are going full throttle into Barkley’s production.
Mark Ingram was able to average 5.5 yards per carry last week despite the Saints losing for much of the game. Javonte Williams and Melvin Gordon were both averaging more than five yards per carry the week before. Barkley should have his first “big” game in a long time.