NFL
Jacksonville Jaguars vs New York Giants Preview
The Jacksonville Jaguars will open their season at MetLife Stadium where they will meet the New York Giants. The Giants come to this game having had one the worst seasons in their history after going 3-13, their worst since 1983. On the other side, the Jaguars made the playoffs for the first time since 2007 and reaching the AFC Championship (1999) under Giants former coach Tom Coughlin. While Doug Marrone has done an exceptional job with the Jags, the Giants start new journey with rookie head coach Pat Shurmur.
Odell Beckham Jr. vs Jalen Ramsey
A lot has spilled since the comments made by Jalen Ramsey to GQ magazine this past summer. For this reason, the matchup between Ramsey and Odell Beckham Jr. will be one of the most talked about stories in Week 1. Ramsey was quoted saying about Eli Manning:
“Eli [Manning]… It’s not really Eli. I think it’s Odell [Beckham, Jr.]. I won’t say Eli’s good, I’ll say Odell’s good. And their connection is good.”
However, the Jags defense as a whole is what Beckham needs to be concern for. Ramsey doesn’t travel and follow just one guy during a game. Nevertheless, Beckham will have a slight advantage over Ramsey given his burst and acceleration. If Manning is able to get a few balls over Ramsey, the Giants will have a slight edge over Jags putting some pressure on Blake Bortles.
But, Ramsey says there’s too much focus on matchup against Beckham.
“A lot of people are going to try and make it about me and him specifically. That’s not what it is about.”
“Football is a team game. Eleven guys out there for us, 11 guys out there for them. We going to have to come together and do what we gotta do to try and get a win. I’m going to try and do my part.
“… It’s 11 versus 11. It’s not me vs. him all game. I’ll be on him a fair amount; I’m sure other guys will be on him too.”
Giants Offense vs Jags Defense
The awaited debut of Saquon Barkley has been in every Giant fan minds and for good reason. The former Penn State running back has been regarded as one of the best coming out of college and why everyone was drooling over him in the NFL draft. In his junior year, Barkley ran for 1,903 yards from scrimmage, with 21 touchdowns. You add wide-out Beckham to the mix alongside tight end Evan Engram and you have a big offensive threat. Nevertheless, when you add Manning, one of the greatest quarterbacks in Giants history, you gain a formula for success.
However, in front of them they will have last season’s most prolific defense in the NFL. Ramsey is not all the defense in the Jags arsenal as they also have A.J. Bouye on the contrary side or Ramsey. The Jaguars’ defensive line includes Calais Campbell, Yannick Ngakoue, Malik Jackson and Marcell Dareus. In addition, the guys behind these guys in the depth chart are also pretty good and can lineup anywhere in the line.
However, last season Jacksonville struggled against the run and Giants have a great promise in Barkley. It is likely that despite having the on-air threat, they will instead run the ball up the Jaguars mouth.
Injury Report
The Jaguars will have a injury-free lineup while the Giants linebacker Olivier Vernon will be out. In addition, New York will be without another linebacker Tae Davis.
Fantasy Implications
Giants: If you own Beckham and Barkley, you should definitely play them. Rookie runningback ripped off a 39-yard-run in his debut against Cleveland in the preseason. However, that is all we saw from him during that game.
Jaguars: There is no doubt that the Jaguars defense should be played. However, against Barkley it may not be a good idea. Nevertheless, the Giants are not a team to trust as they are under a new coach and you can’t always trust a rookie runningback with the ball.
Photo credit Sarah via Flickr
