Strength in Numbers: Actionable Week 6 Stats

We’re going to get a lot of stuff wrong, but sifting through usage metrics can help us work through what matters and what doesn’t. That’s the goal of this article: to break down the most actionable takeaways from each week in a concise, numbers-filled format and work through what’s important. Let’s get right to it:

1. With Malik Nabers and Darius Slayton out, the Giants turned to Lil’Jordan Humphrey as their WR2 instead of Jalin Hyatt or Beaux Collins. Humphrey ran 31 routes vs. 20 for Hyatt, while Collins played just four snaps as the clear WR4. Humphrey actually led the Giants with eight targets, but Wan’Dale Robinson remains the unquestioned WR1 still with 32 routes and a 26.9% target share.

2. Cam Skattebo out-snapped Tyrone Tracy Jr. 49-21, out-routed him 16-9, out-carried him 19-4, and was far more effective with his carries. PFF’s Nathan Jahnke noted that Skattebo even played eight of 12 third downs, an area Tracy controlled before his shoulder injury. Granted, it was Tracy’s first game back, but Skattebo has taken New York by storm and seems to be the clear workhorse for the Giants. Week 7 will be telling as to just how far ahead Skattebo is, but the rookie can be started with confidence.

3. Troy Franklin fumbled early. He ended up running just 23 routes on 33 dropbacks, while Pat Bryant matched Franklin with a 58% snap rate and trailed him slightly with 19 routes. Bryant had surpassed Marvin Mims Jr. in playing time in Week 5 and remained ahead of him this week, with Mims running as the WR4 again with 15 routes. Sean Payton is liable to change his WR rotation at a moment’s notice, but it seems like Bryant is surging right now, while Franklin has lost his grip on the WR2 role and Mims remains a rotational piece.

4. Jaleel McLaughlin was active over Tyler Badie on Sunday and had one carry. The real surprise was J.K. Dobbins out-carrying RJ Harvey 14-2 (Dobbins only managed 40 yards after multiple weeks of high-end efficiency). Per Jahnke, Harvey and Dobbins split pass-down duties, but Harvey out-targeted Dobbins 4-1. Harvey has been more involved in the pass game than Dobbins so far, but he has made zero progress on the early-down role outside of one game where Denver blew out Cincinnati. Dobbins is a fantasy starter; Harvey is a frustrating hold.

5. Breece Hall has out-carried Isaiah Davis 23-2 in two games since Braelon Allen went down. Davis is still playing, especially in clear passing situations, but Hall has absorbed the Allen rushing role in addition to the role he already had.