The only Giants receiver worth rostering in fantasy football

The New York Giants were one of the big surprises of the 2022 NFL season, going 9-7-1 with over 2,500 rushing yards en route to a wildcard playoff berth. Fast forward to 2023, and Big Blue's offense looks anemic and uninspired, and their offensive line can't stop a parked car. Combine that with a scoring defense ranked 30th, and things are looking rather bleak.

The Giants' only noticeable fantasy football performances came in the second half of their Week 2 matchup with the Arizona Cardinals, where they were down 20-0 at halftime. Daniel Jones, Darren Waller, Saquon Barkley, and Isaiah Hodgins all turned in serviceable stat lines, while Darius Slayton continued to fly under the radar.

After playing just 67 percent of the snaps against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 1, the fifth-year receiver has seen that number jump to 82 percent in Week 2, and then up to 84 percent in Week 3. Slayton has led the Giants in receiving in all but one season since the start of his career, but inconsistencies and a weak supporting cast have hindered his success for fantasy football players.

The 26-year-old has caught three passes in all three games so far this season, and has seen five, six, and six targets in those games. In addition, Slayton leads the Giants wide receivers in route participation (79 percent), target share (17 percent), air yards (35 percent, next closest is 14), and 3rd and 4th down targets (19 percent).

However, only 63 percent of his targets have been deemed catchable, whereas Wan'Dale Robinson and Parris Campbell boast a figure of 80 percent or higher. Those two work in the short area, as evidenced by their average-depth-of-target of 4.2 yards and 3.56 yards. The state of the Giants' offense isn't conducive to fantasy success, but the potential is still there.

If the numbers show us anything, it's that Slayton is the closest of the Giants receivers to fantasy football relevance. No. 86 is the one guy that Daniel Jones seems willing to push the ball to at any distance beyond five yards, and that chemistry has been there for some time now.

Until Big Blue's blocking improves exponentially, it's hard to recommend any of their players in fantasy football on a weekly basis, sans Barkley. Until then, Slayton is worth a speculative add, and could take off if their air attack can clean up its mess.