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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BAL at NE | BUF at MIA | CIN at CLE | DAL at DEN | DET at CHI | GB at MIN | NYG at KC | NYJ at NO |
| OAK at HOU | SD at PIT | SEA at IND | STL at SF | TB at WAS | TEN at JAX | ||
Week 4 Game Recap: New York Giants 27, Kansas City Chiefs 16
New York Giants
| QB Eli Manning, Pass: 20 - 34 - 292 - 3 TD / 1 INT |
Eli Manning's love affair for Steve Smith continued this week, as he hit his favorite target another 10 times against the Chiefs to account for half of his completions and almost as much of his yardage. Manning found Smith twice in the first half for touchdowns against what was believed to be a challenging Kansas City secondary, but they proved to be no match for Smith's ability to get open in between defenders. He later added a third touchdown pass as rookie Hakeem Nicks made a highlight reel catch and run down the left sideline for a 54-yard score. Manning had to leave the game in the fourth quarter due to a bruised right heel, but he is already considered probable for next week's game against Oakland.
| RB Brandon Jacobs, Rush: 21 - 92 - 0, Rec: 1 - -4 - 0 (1 targets) |
Jacobs ran with his usual power and burst through the line, pushing the Chiefs backwards on several occasions. Jacobs had three gains of 10 or more yards, including two over 15 yards apiece. Jacobs shared the ball with Ahmad Bradshaw (21 carries to 12) in their normal committee approach. He ran with strong power and on the occasions where he broke through the Chiefs' front seven, he was able to rumble into the secondary to get bigger yardage. Jacobs did not get many scoring chances against the Chiefs as the Giants scored mainly via the pass in Week 4. Look for Jacobs to build upon this performance next week at home versus the Raiders.
| RB Ahmad Bradshaw, Rush: 12 - 64 - 0 |
Bradshaw was questionable coming into the Week 4 game at Kansas City, but he showed no signs of an ankle issue on his dozen carries. Bradshaw shared the workload with Brandon Jacobs, although it was interesting that Bradshaw had zero catches out of the backfield (Jacobs had one for a short loss). Bradshaw looked quick through the hole all day as he continued to post 5-plus yards per carry performances. Look for even more next week against the Oakland Raiders.
| RB Madison Hedgecock, Rec: 1 - 9 - 0 (1 targets) |
Fullback Madison Hedgecock caught one ball for nine yards in Week 4 against Kansas City to close out the third quarter. Hedgecock's value remains as a lead blocker for either Brandon Jacobs or Ahmad Bradshaw.
| WR Steve Smith, Rec: 11 - 134 - 2 (16 targets) |
Don't look now, but the top wide receiver in the NFL so far in both touchdowns and yardage is Steve Smith -- and he doesn't play for the Panthers. The New York Giants have discovered their top wideout and he was there all of last season just waiting for his chance. Smith had another 10 catches against the Chiefs, his second double-digit performance in the last three weeks. He got open in the zones between the corners, linebackers and safeties all day, including twice over the middle that produced the first two touchdown for New York on the day. The chemistry is there with Eli Manning and Smith will likely see a large number of targets every week from Manning going forward.
| WR Hakeem Nicks, Rec: 1 - 54 - 1 (3 targets) |
Rookie Hakeem Nicks returned to the lineup in Week 4 against Kansas City. He made the most of his one catch, grabbing a short pass from Eli Manning near midfield and the making a great run down the sideline, including making one deep defensive back miss, and scampered all the way for a 54-yard touchdown. As Nicks returned to action, Domenik Hixon was deactivated, which should illustrate some of the depth chart levels at wideout. Nicks appears to be the WR3 for New York.
| WR Mario Manningham, Rec: 1 - 43 - 0 (8 targets) |
Manningham did not display the sure hands that made him a popular waiver wire pickup in September. Manningham dropped at least three balls in the first half. His only catch was a nice deep ball down the sideline that he also nearly dropped as he made an athletic juggling catch for 43 yards. He was blanketed well by the Chiefs' corners but he should have had a better day if he had snagged more of the catchable balls thrown in his direction. With the return of rookie Hakeem Nicks, Manningham may start to slide back down the depth chart and might make for a "sell high" trade candidate.
| TE Kevin Boss, Rec: 4 - 41 - 0 (5 targets) |
TE Kevin Boss took a back seat to the wide receivers again as far as who gets the most targets in the New York passing attack. Boss did grab a big 24-yard grab in the second quarter that helped set the Giants up for a field goal before halftime. Most of Boss' value is in run blocking right now, but on occasion he can pick up 5-15 yards over the middle for Eli Manning. With the emergence of Steve Smith, Boss's targets have shrunk a good deal. Boss also suffered an ankle injury that has his week 5 status in doubt.
Kansas City Chiefs
| QB Matt Cassel, Pass: 15 - 32 - 127 - 2 TD / 0 INT, Rush: 4 - 25 - 0 |
The New York Giants were all over Matt Cassel in Week 4, putting constant pressure and forcing him to step up or out of the pocket whenever he could. The Giants secondary played well even when he could get passes off and none of his receiving options could get open consistently. His first half numbers tell a better story (6-11 passing for 36 yards) of how ineffective the Kansas City passing game was against the Giants up until the final quarter after the game was decided. Better matchups do lie ahead (Dallas, at Washington, San Diego) so the ship may get righted soon, but for now Cassel is not a startable fantasy quarterback.
| RB Larry Johnson, Rush: 18 - 53 - 0, Rec: 3 - 1 - 0 (5 targets) |
Larry Johnson actually ran with better conviction and determination -- unfortunately he was up against the New York Giants in Week 4. The Giants limited Johnson to 54 total yards on 21 touches, but the numbers don't show how hard he did run behind his offensive line. He was able to get most of his yardage early in the game, posting 46 yards on just 10 first half carries. If Johnson can ever string together two halves like that again, he may once again become a viable fantasy RB2.
| RB Jamaal Charles, Rush: 2 - 24 - 0 |
Jamaal Charles entered the stat sheet early in Week 4, but not in a good category. Charles fumbled the opening kickoff, setting up the Giants for an early score and putting Kansas City out of the game almost before it even started. He added a meaningless 24-yard rush on the final play of the game, so until Larry Johnson gets benched (which could happen) keep Charles out of your fantasy lineup.
| RB Jackie Battle, Rush: 1 - 3 - 0 |
Jackie Battle had a meaningless 3-yard rush in the third quarter in Week 4. He is buried on the depth chart behind Larry Johnson and Jamaal Charles, so he has no fantasy value right now at all.
| WR Bobby Engram, Rec: 2 - 30 - 0 (5 targets) |
Veteran receiver Bobby Engram had a modest performance against the Giants, collecting two balls over the middle of the field for a combined 30 yards. Engram is in the mix for WR2 duties with the Chiefs, but right now the Kansas City passing game is barely strong enough to get Dwayne Bowe respectable numbers. Keep an eye on Engram as he is a capable possession wide receiver, but for now he only has very deep fantasy value.
| WR Mark Bradley, Rec: 2 - 19 - 0 (5 targets) |
Mark Bradley grabbed a two short passes against the Giants in Week 4, and he was also targeted deep but was overthrown. Bradley is a distant second or third on the wideout pecking order behind Dwayne Bowe and possibly even Bobby Engram, which makes him a very suspect fantasy option.
| WR Bobby Wade, Rec: 2 - 8 - 1 (5 targets) |
Bobby Wade played more than usual once again thanks to both Dwayne Bowe not being at full strength and also due to the big deficit on the scoreboard. He had five targets but did not do much with them. He'll likely head back to special teams and backup duties with Dwayne Bowe getting stronger and both Mark Bradley and Bobby Engram doing more with their chances.
| WR Dwayne Bowe, Rec: 1 - 11 - 0 (4 targets) |
Dwayne Bowe returned to the starting lineup for Kansas City in Week 4, but he did not look like the explosive receiver that he was prior to the hamstring injury. He dropped two balls and was missed on an end zone target by Matt Cassel. Bowe drew plenty of attention from the Giants secondary which did limit him to only one 11-yard catch. Bowe should do better next week as he heals further and faces a somewhat suspect Dallas Cowboy defense.
| TE Sean Ryan, Rec: 5 - 58 - 1 (7 targets) |
Sean Ryan made surprising contributions against the Giants in Week 4, catching a touchdown on a first and goal from the New York one-yard line in the fourth quarter. Ryan followed this up with a pretty 43-yard catch and run down the seam to put the Chiefs again in the Giants' red zone. While all of this production was long after the game had been decided, his late production may catch the coaching staff's attention and could lead to him contributing more sooner rather than later.