Preseason Week 3 Fantasy Football Game Recap: New York Giants vs. New York Jets

• Aaron Rodgers and Randall Cobb make their New York Jets debuts: Cobb could be a bigger factor in the Jets’ offense than originally anticipated after Corey Davis’ retirement.

• The Giants’ third running back spot is unsettled: Eric Gray appeared locked into that role, but Jashaun Corbin and James Robinson both saw snaps before the fifth-round rookie.

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Randall Cobb starts for the Jets: Cobb joined Aaron Rodgers in making his New York Jets debut.

• Cobb was expected to be fifth on the depth chart heading into training camp, but Corey Davis surprisingly retired earlier in the week.
• Allen Lazard missed practice earlier in the week with an AC joint injury, which kept him out of this game. He is expected to be fine for Week 1.
• This left Garrett Wilson, Mecole Hardman Jr. and Cobb as the top wide receivers for Saturday’s preseason finale.
• It was surprising to see Cobb start over Hardman, considering both were free agent additions signed to one-year deals and Hardman makes more than Cobb.
• Since Hardman played 28 snaps over the first two games, it’s possible the Jets wanted Cobb to see more playing time in this game.
• There were some two-wide receiver sets with the starters where Wilson and Hardman were on the field instead of Cobb.
• Hardman’s value is still better than where it was a week ago without Davis, but it could be complicated if Cobb is a big part of the offense.
• Hardman continued playing late into the first half and ended up injuring his hand, so he left for the locker room early. His injury will be one to keep an eye on, as Cobb could end up third on the depth chart if the injury is serious.
• This potentially means Cobb could have some good games this season as well, which probably won’t help anyone in redraft unless another Jets wide receiver suffers an injury. But it could be helpful in DFS.

Eric Gray doesn’t start for the Giants: Gray had been a clear third on the depth chart, but both Jashaun Corbin and James Robinson received offensive snaps before him.

• Gray played most of the first half in the Giants’ second preseason game, playing behind Matt Breida. He stopped playing by halftime, while Corbin played from late in the second quarter until the end of the game. Robinson only received snaps in the fourth quarter.
• The three running backs were the only ones to play in this game, with all three seeing their first snaps in the first quarter.
• Gray is very likely to make the roster, given the Giants spent a fifth-round pick on him, but it’s surprising he didn’t start the game.
• It’s possible the Giants are looking to keep a fourth running back on the roster and, as such, gave them more opportunities in this game. But, ideally, if this was the case, Gray wouldn’t have played at all.

Miscellaneous Notes

• The Giants sat their starters and top backups, including quarterback Daniel Jones, running backs Saquon Barkley and Matt Breida, wide receivers Darius Slayton, Parris Campbell and Isaiah Hodgins, and tight ends Darren Waller and Daniel Bellinger.
• Second-year wide receiver Wan’Dale Robinson remains on the PUP list and could stay there to start the season.
• Running back Gary Brightwell and tight end Tommy Sweeney were other Giants who missed this game due to injury.
• Breece Hall and Dalvin Cook continued to sit out for the Jets due to injury. Michael Carter has become the clear third running back on the depth chart through the preseason, and that remained clear in this game.
• Sterling Shepard and Jalin Hyatt started but played only two drives each. They seem locked in as the backup outside wide receivers. Jamison Crowder or Cole Beasley could make the roster as the backup slot receiver — but only until Wan’Dale Robinson is healthy.

Table Notes

• Snaps include plays called back due to penalties, including offensive holding or defensive pass interference. The other three stats have these plays removed.

• Targets may differ from official NFL sources. The most likely discrepancy would be from a clear thrown-away pass, where the NFL may give the target to the nearest receiver, while this data will not.

• Carries are only on designed plays. Quarterback scrambles won’t count for the total number of carries in the game.