Fantasy football advice, Week 15: Who to start/sit for Detroit Lions vs. New York Giants

With only four teams remaining in each fantasy league across the board, it’s not exactly a news flash to say that fantasy owners have to be at the top of their game. Several factors present themselves for the matchup between the Giants and Lions on Sunday, and fantasy owners will absolutely have to examine them closely to get the upper hand on their opponent. Let’s take a look:

Theo Riddick was a surprise scratch in Week 14, and is listed as doubtful for Sunday’s tilt with the Giants. With Zach Zenner already ruled out with a concussion, it leaves Dwayne Washington as the de facto lead back. However, the likelihood in this scenario isn’t that the Lions decide to feed Washington more carries than he can handle. Instead, it wouldn’t be a surprise for the Lions to stick to their strengths and throw the football with Matthew Stafford and rely on high-percentage shorter passes to move the sticks. It puts Golden Tate in a favorable scenario, as the game plan could feature a heavy dose of him. Tate and Stafford remain viable fantasy options as a result.

It would be asking a lot to trust Washington even with an expanded workload, and the same could be said for Marvin Jones and the touchdown-or-bust Anquan Boldin. Eric Ebron simply isn’t being targeted in the red zone enough to warrant an upside TE1 selection, and fantasy owners would be wise to fade much of the Lions’ offense against a Giants defense that is no pushover.

Odell Beckham isn’t going to be a candidate to sit, as he has been the only bright spot on this offense for much of the season. He is a no-brainer WR1 against a Lions secondary that has allowed the eighth most passing touchdowns and ranks 20th against the pass.

Eli Manning has upside in this matchup, but fantasy owners would likely prefer to start a quarterback with a higher floor than Manning, who hasn’t eclipsed 300 yards passing in a game since Week 6. Rashad Jennings and Paul Perkins can also take a seat on the bench, as can Shane Vereen if he is cleared in time. The Lions have the NFL’s 11th-ranked run defense, and have allowed just six touchdowns on the ground. Only the Ravens and Cowboys have allowed fewer.