Rueben Randle, Odell Beckham's Updated Fantasy Outlook After Victor Cruz Injury

The New York Giants will have to make do without star wide receiver Victor Cruz for the foreseeable future. The former Pro Bowler left New York's Week 6 contest against the Philadelphia Eagles with a torn patellar tendon, according to the team's official Twitter account:

It's a costly injury, and Giants quarterback Eli Manning will have to make do with the remaining weapons around him if he is to salvage this franchise's roller-coaster season. Fantasy football owners should also be closely monitoring wide receiver Rueben Randle and rookie wideout Odell Beckham Jr., who stand to take on much larger roles in the offense in Cruz's absence.

Matt Rourke/Associated Press

Beckham finally made his NFL debut last week against the Atlanta Falcons, picking up four catches for 44 yards and one touchdown. His production stalled a bit in the Giants' flat performance against the Eagles, recording just two catches for 28 yards.

However, Eric Galko of the Sporting News was closely tracking Beckham and noticed that he was doing a fine job of getting separation against the Eagles' cornerbacks on a variety of routes:

Manning didn't have many opportunities to look his way, throwing the ball just 23 times, but he will be looking for Beckham early and often this season. Rookie wide receivers are usually a mixed bag, and even ones drafted as high as Beckham (12th overall in 2014) can struggle. That being said, he should receive plenty of targets and could become a very dependable WR3 with a strong upside in PPR leagues.

As much as Beckham may benefit, Randle stands to come away with the lion's share of Manning's looks. Randle was already getting more targets than Cruz coming into Sunday night's matchup.

Week	Randle	Cruz
1	3	6
2	7	10
3	10	6
4	10	10
5	10	6

He's more of a possession receiver, averaging just 8.2 yards per catch. But with tight end Larry Donnell's production falling off a cliff after his three-touchdown outburst against the Redskins, Randle should see double-digit targets from here on out. He's a must-start WR2 with a huge amount of potential in PPR leagues.

The Giants' offense has been hot and cold all season, so it remains to be seen which wideout emerges as more of a scoring threat. Beckham is a more dynamic athlete, but Randle is a polished veteran and already has Manning's trust.