Giants receiver Victor Cruz turned in a modest stat sheet on Monday night, but the his team pulled out its first win of the season.
Victor Cruz logged just 50 yards for fantasy owners, but led the Giants in receiving during win
The Giants No. 1 receiving threat posted a modest total in the team’s first win of the season on Monday night. We break down the fantasy implications.
Al Bello
Cruz finished the evening with a team-leading five catches for 50 yards as the Giants adhered to a conservative game plan. It was obviously the correct one, since the Vikings could get nothing going on offense and suffered from special teams gaffes that gave the Giants excellent field position throughout the game. In a game where there wasn't much wealth to be had, Cruz took the biggest cut in the receiving game.
Fantasy Spin: It was a puzzling game for the Giants receivers as a whole, who combined for fewer catches than the team’s backs and tight ends, against a Vikings team with an ailing secondary.
Despite the modest total, the Giants remain in desperation mode at 1-6 and will frequently call Cruz's number early and often going forward. They are in no position to deprive their best skill player of the football, and Cruz remains a high-upside WR1. That will certainly be the case versus an Eagles defense in Week 8 that has a secondary that can be exploited, and it will also be a game that will warrant Eli Manning and the passing game to open things up a bit more.
