Thursday Night Football this week doesn't inspire much for a scoring bonanza, as the Giants travel to play NFC East rival Washington (8:20 p.m. ET, NFL Network). Both teams failed to score at lest 20 points in Week 1 home losses to AFC West teams. The game has the lowest total of any Week 2 contest with a 40.5 over/under, also factoring in two good defenses. Even with all that said, there are still several no-brainer "starts" for your fantasy football lineups, as well as a few guys on the start 'em, sit 'em bubble.
With that in mind, here's a look at whom you should deploy and avoid on TNF, plus some DFS picks for FanDuel and DraftKings single-game slates:
MORE WEEK 2: Full start 'em, sit 'em | Sleepers | Busts
Giants: Who to start or sit in fantasy football on Thursday night
Sit: QB Daniel Jones
Jones produced 267 yards passing, 27 yards rushing, and a couple of TDs vs. Denver in the opener. That was good for a QB14 finish. But Washington's defense just held the Chargers' Justin Herbert to QB26 stats at home. Count on more of the latter in a tough turnaround spot for Jones.
TNF DFS LINEUPS: DK Showdown | FD single game
Start: RB Saquon Barkley
How healthy is Saquon? Logic would say he's a bit healthier recovering from the knee injury with another week passing. He received just 11 touches against the Broncos, so that was even more limited work than expected. Of course, you drafted him as an RB1, and he's better than what you might have at flex, at the very least. Let's just he gets a more regular role because the Giants' offense needs it.
TNF INJURY UPDATE: Saquon Barkley
Sit: WR Kenny Golladay
Golladay might be your best WR3 option, but if you have a decent alternative, you should opt for him. William Jackson III was decent in his debut as Washington's top corner, and the pass rush should get revved up with Chase Young to limit Jones' downfield passing. For what it's worth, the former Bengal Jackson did shut down the former Lion Golladay in their only meeting during the latter's rookie season in 2017.
WEEK 2 DFS LINEUPS: DraftKings | FanDuel | Yahoo
Sit: WR Sterling Shepard
Washington should also get a better game from Kendall Fuller in the slot vs. Shepard, who's still Jones' best all-around go-to guy. Overall, this isn't a great passing game matchup for the Giants.
MORE WEEK 2 DFS: Best values | Best values | Lineup Builder
Sit: TE Kyle Rudolph
Evan Engram is out again (what else is new?) with a calf injury. So, do you trust the former Viking to produce? No.
WEEK 2 STANDARD RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Running Back | Wide Receiver | Tight End | D/ST | Kicker
Sit: K Graham Gano
You can find better options for field goals and extra points.
WEEK 2 PPR RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Running Back | Wide Receiver | Tight End | D/ST | Kicker
Start: Giants DST
The Giants' defense was DST19 last week. They had two sacks against the Bronco,s but there was nothing else to see there. Hope they can get a turnover or two from Taylor Heinicke in a low-scoring game to pay off as a cheap streamer.
Washington: Who to start or sit in fantasy football on Thursday night
Sit: QB Taylor Heinicke
Heinicke knows the Washington system well, and WFT is high on his chances to succeed with Ryan Fitzpatrick (hip-IR) on the shelf. He did distribute the ball well to their playmakers against the Chargers with 122 yards and a TD on just 15 attempts. But he doesn't provide as much as a runner, and like Fitzpatrick, he's more of a deep-league single-QB streamer or lower-end superflex guy as a passer.
Start: RB Antonio Gibson
Gibson had a modest game against the Chargers with 23 touches for 108 yards. In two games as a rookie against the Giants, he combined for 22 touches, 110 yards and a TD. He will find the end zone with a bigger yardage performance.
Sit: RB J.D. McKissic
Stop trying to find PPR value from McKissic. Gibson is the main man, and Jarret Patterson is the better backup.
Start: WR Terry McLaurin
McLaurin has a tough matchup against James Bradberry on paper, but he posted seven catches, 115 yards, and a TD in the last meeting. He looked on point when Heinicke came into the Chargers game with an exceptional catch downfield. He will be a lot more productive than four-for-62 this week.
Sit: WRs Adam Humphries and Dyami Brown
There's no Curtis Samuel (groin) this week, but it's hard to trust Heinicke to feed players not named Gibson, McLaurin and the next guy much.
Start: TE Logan Thomas
Heinicke and Thomas hooked up for a TD in Week 1. The Giants gave up nine catches for 78 yards and a TD to the Broncos' tight ends.
Start: K Dustin Hopkins
Hopkins was a regular scorer last season and is off to a good start in this talented offense. He should be in play in 12-team leagues.
Start: Washington DST
Chase Young should want to channel his inner Von Miller to get his first sacks of the season, and Jackson had an interception in his team debut. Jones is a good bet to commit a turnover in every game. He lost a fumble to the Broncos. Denver was DST7 last week.
Giants vs. Washington: FanDuel single-game lineup
- MVP (1.5X): RB Antonio Gibson $12,500
- AnyFLEX: QB Taylor Heinicke $14,500
- AnyFLEX: WR Terry McLaurin $12,000
- AnyFLEX: WR Kenny Golladay $10,500
- AnyFLEX: TE Logan Thomas $10,000
This was all about loading up on Washington's principals. This construction left some money, so we're hoping Golladay can put up decent digits in garbage time.
Giants vs. Washington: DraftKings Showdown lineup
- Captain (1.5x): WR Terry McLaurin $13,500
- FLEX: QB Taylor Heinicke $10,200
- FLEX: RB Antonio Gibson $9,600
- FLEX: TE Logan Thomas $7,400
- FLEX: Washington DST $5,600
- FLEX: K Graham Gano $3,600
The Washington "Big Four" is present here, too. This time we could get the defense in there with the offense. We're not totally punting that last flex spot with a kicker, but if things play out right, we won't need much from Gano.
