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Cowboys at Giants
By: Jay Pounds (@jaypoundsnfl)
Dynasty Owners, can you believe we are almost finished with Week 3 already? Time sure does fly when you’re having fun and I don’t know about you, but for me as an adult, fantasy football has become my proverbial toy store and I can never quite get enough. It is certainly sad to see the year already flying by, but I won’t let my emotions get the best of me as we have some football to talk about.
What to Watch For
In the third Monday night matchup of the year, I will be watching the Giants team extremely close as they are one of the more surprising 2-0 teams in recent memory. Brian Daboll has done a fine job in the Big Apple through 2 weeks of play and Saquon Barkley ($7,217,000) finally looks like Saquon Barkley again. The only real disappointment for the Giants through almost 3 weeks of play has been their star signing from last season, Kenny Golladay ($18,000,000).
On the other side of the ball, I will be watching for a few different things but none more important than how Cooper Rush ($977,500) will play in his second straight start after having a promising debut. I will also be looking to see how the target share will playout for the Cowboys and paying close attention to the running back position in Big D. As much as I hate to say it about my former beloved Buckeye Ezekiel Elliot (15,000,000), it does not seem he is ever going to get back to the Zeke many of us grew so fond of. Expect a heavy dose of both Ezekiel Elliot and Tony Pollard ($796,945) in tonight’s game.
Expect an old school approach to this game with Dallas looking like the team that adapted to the new age NFL a fraction of a second quicker than their opponent, giving them a slight edge when the clock hits triple 0’s.
Over/Under Predictions – Cowboys
| Player | Position | Salary | Projected Points | Over/Under |
| Cooper Rush | QB | $977,500 | 17.1 | Over |
I like Rush heading into tonight’s matchup and expect him to score slightly more than his projected total. Limiting turnovers will be key.
| Player | Position | Salary | Projected Points | Over/Under |
| Tony Pollard | RB | $796,945 | 10.1 | Over |
It seems Pollard’s role is growing, and I see no reason it stops tonight when he hits the over. I’m taking the over for the guy who may lead this Dallas RB committee before long if he doesn’t already.
| Player | Position | Salary | Projected Points | Over/Under |
| CeeDee Lamb | WR | $3,502,503 | 15.0 | Under |
I am expecting a good game for Lamb, but he does not quite hit the over. Look for him to finish in the 11.0 to 14.0 Dynasty Owner fantasy point range.
| Player | Position | Salary | Projected Points | Over/Under |
| Noah Brown | WR | $1,187,500 | 7.8 | Over |
The surprising star of the Cowboys’ receiver room this year should hit the over again as he and new starting quarterback Cooper Rush have a ton of chemistry.
| Player | Position | Salary | Projected Points | Over/Under |
| Dalton Schultz | TE | $10,931,000 | 9.9 | Under |
I am not sure that Schultz will play in tonight’s matchup but either way I am not expecting a huge game after the injury. Schultz will have an impact if he plays, but it may not show on the stat sheet.
Over/Under Predictions – Giants
| Player | Position | Salary | Projected Points | Over/Under |
| Daniel Jones | QB | $6,416,014 | 19.3 | Under |
I am not expecting much from Daniel Jones tonight and I don’t think the Giants will either. If Jones can pick his spots and play smart, they’ll have a shot to win the game, but that recipe doesn’t involve him hitting the over.
| Player | Position | Salary | Projected Points | Over/Under |
| Saquon Barkley | RB | $7,217,000 | 19.4 | Under |
Saquon has looked good in 2022 and I think that continues in tonight’s matchup, but I don’t see him exploding for a 20-point performance. I am expecting Barkley to finish in the 14.0 to 18.0 Dynasty Owner fantasy point range.
| Player | Position | Salary | Projected Points | Over/Under |
| Sterling Shepard | WR | $10,250,000 | 11.9 | Over |
A touchdown saved Shepard from a bad Week 1, and he performed ok by his standards in Week 2. He leaves no doubt in Week 3. Smash the over on Shepard tonight.
| Player | Position | Salary | Projected Points | Over/Under |
| Richie James | WR | $1,065,000 | 9.5 | Under |
Richie James has had a respectable start to the season, and I expect him to have his name called in tonight’s game. Unfortunately for anyone playing him, I don’t see him hitting double-digit Dynasty Owner fantasy points.
| Player | Position | Salary | Projected Points | Over/Under |
| Daniel Bellinger | TE | $1,113,276 | 2.8 | Over |
Smash the over on rookie tight end Daniel Bellinger in tonight’s matchup! Why you ask? No, it is not because I am expecting a big game, but because he only has to score 2.9 Dynasty Owner fantasy points to hit the over. It’s the equivalent to one of your teachers giving you a passing grade for showing up and writing your name on a test.
Dynasty Owner Games of the Week
Every week, I will pick at least one Dynasty Owner game that is close in score and will be decided during Monday Night Football. If you happen to find yourself in this situation on Sunday night, please get ahold of me on Twitter (@jaypoundsnfl) and I will gladly feature your game here.
Game 1 – League #27446
BucsFreak – Saquon Barkley in Starting Lineup left to play
Just Win Baby – Michael Gallup on Bench left to play
While you may have never guessed it by looking at the weekly scores, both Dynasty Owners here have a solid roster. I know one of the, will walk away happy with a win, but luck of the matchup is why either of these two have a shot this week. Hey, sometimes the luck of the draw is all you need to win a sketchy week. I am expecting this to be very tight when all is said and done but with the way the Dallas defense has been playing this season, I must go with the BucsFreak to hold on and pull off the victory. Just Win Baby has a shot if Saquon Barkley can bust off a big play or two, but that is a tough ask against this Dallas defense. I predict BucsFreak wins by 1.0 to 3,0 points, but this could all change if Michael Gallup ($11,500,000) does not take the field tonight. Long story short I think I would be more nervous than Giants backup QB Tyrod Taylor ($3,500,000) in a Chargers medical facility if I were either of these owners heading into prime time tonight.
Game 2 – League #27450
Shillelagh Law – No one left in Starting lineup or Bench to play
Adams Family – CeeDee Lamb in Starting Lineup and Daniel Jones on Bench left to play
In our second matchup of the week, we have another contest that is projected to finish extremely close with a final score of 119.23-118.27. While I tend to have a strong opinion on these matchups, I am having a lot of trouble picking this one but ultimately ended up going with Shillelagh Law. I am expecting a low scoring defensive game tonight, by 2022 standards at least. Had Dak Prescott ($40,000,000) been healthy I likely would have changed my tune here and while I am expecting Cooper Rush to play well again this week, I don’t think we see a huge CeeDee Lamb performance until Dak gets back to the field. The final reason I went against Adams Family is because I just can’t trust Daniel Jones against a good defense in a prime-time game.
Value of the Game Recap
If you all remember back to last week, we had two Monday night games and while I did pick a player for each game Bills WR Gabriel Davis ($998,595) was my choice in the first game and did not play. Because of that I am prepared to look the other way and throw that selection out the window. All jokes aside if I had gone with only one player for both games last week. it would have been Jalen Hurts ($1,506,292) as he has been playing lights out and has the ball in his hands way too much to pick against him in this format. I had Hurts for a 41.8 Dynasty Owner fantasy point game (DOFP) and the lowest Dynasty Dollar per Fantasy Point (DD/PT). Thankfully, he had another great week (37.3 Dynasty Owner fantasy points) helping me even out my Value of the Game record.
| Week 2 | Player | DOFP | Salary | DD/PT |
| Week 2 Winner | Jalen Hurts | 37.3 | $1,506,292 | $40,410 |
Overall Record: 1-1
Value of the Game
Week 3 Winner – Cooper Rush
| Jay’s Projected Stat Line | Passing Yards | Passing TDs | INTs | DOFP |
| Cooper Rush | 265 | 2 | 1 | 22.3 |
Another week, another Value of the Game. In Week 3. I am going to go with another quarterback as players at the position just have way too many chances to put up points throughout a 60-minute game. When you pair that with a sub $1,000,000 salary you tend to get a great “bang for your buck” as many like to say. In Week 2, I was worried about Cooper Rush looking wide eyed and in over his head, but he passed the test against a good Bengals defense and that performance has given me the confidence to select him for such a prestigious honor on the Dynasty Owner platform.
The other players I considered for tonight’s Value of the Game were Tony Pollard ($796,945), Noah Brown ($1,187,500) and Richie James ($1,065,000). Who would you have picked? Feel free to let me know on Twitter (@jaypoundsnfl).
Be sure to check out all our upcoming content this season. We will have several articles, podcasts, and the Livestream on Wednesday at 4 PM (Eastern) for everyone each week. Thank you all for reading and I hope your teams killed it this week. Stay safe out there and good luck on your 2022 Chase for the Ring!