Golden Tate, Darius Slayton, Cody Latimer, Giants' Fantasy Stock After Week 9

The New York Giants fell 37-18 to the Dallas Cowboys on Monday night at MetLife Stadium, and the offense did not inspire any fantasy owners to trust them moving forward.

Appropriately, New York's final offensive play of the evening was a fumble by rookie quarterback Daniel Jones that resulted in Cowboys corner Jourdan Lewis returning it 63 yards for a touchdown. However, what we're interested in here is how Jones' arm impacts the fantasy stock of Giants skill players when maintaining possession.

It goes without saying that tight end Evan Engram should be viewed as an automatic start given how thin the position is in fantasy. The 25-year-old was second to running back Saquon Barkley among Giants receivers by catching six of his eight targets for 48 yards but no touchdowns. Engram is the team's leading receiver this season.

Behind him Monday were receivers Golden Tate, Cody Latimer and Darius Slayton with Latimer being the only Giants WR to find the end zone. Their contributions became more vital when Sterling Shepard was ruled out for this matchup with the Cowboys and placed back into the concussion protocol.

Below is a closer look at Tate, Latimer and Slayton's fantasy viability moving forward.

Golden Tate

The Giants tried to replace the gaping hole left behind by Odell Beckham Jr. by signing Tate in the offseason.

Tate has been limited to five games this season, as he begun the regular season serving a four-game suspension for violating the NFL's performance-enhancing substances policy. His best performance thus far came in Week 6 against the New England Patriots with six catches on nine targets for 102 yards and a touchdown.

It's his only touchdown this season.

Tate's debut coincided with Shepard's concussion on Oct. 6 against the Minnesota Vikings, which was the last game in which Shepard played. In Weeks 7 and 8, Tate led Giants receivers in targets with 11 and 10, respectively.

Against the Cowboys, Tate caught all six of his targets for 42 yards while producing opportunities for other Giants to score:

That may be helpful for the Giants offense, but it serves little to no purpose in fantasy.

Tate should be viewed as a flex option moving forward based on the fact that he has only eclipsed 20 points per reception in fantasy once this season.

Cody Latimer

Latimer saw just three targets against Dallas, the second-fewest among all Giants receivers, but he made the most of his few opportunities.

The 27-year-old notched two receptions for eight yards and a touchdown—his first of the season:

Latimer's performance was good for 8.8 points in standard PPR, a marginal impact at best. However, with Shepard set to miss more time, Latimer stands to gain the most moving forward:

Overall this season, Latimer was most targeted in Week 1. He saw seven targets but only caught three passes for 74 yards. Latimer has seen a drop-off in targets ever since. For that reason, it's wise not to lean on him in fantasy. If you need to take a chance on somebody because of a bye week or injury, though, Latimer could pay off as a waiver-wire pickup.

Darius Slayton

Slayton was a popular add on the waiver wire entering Week 9, but his Week 9 performance was not fruitful.

The rookie fifth-round receiver had perked fantasy owners' interest in Week 8 with two catches on five targets for 50 yards and two touchdowns that resulted in 19 PPR in fantasy. Slayton's other touchdown this season came in Week 5 against Minnesota. He hauled in four of five targets for 62 yards and a TD.

Reliability is an issue, though, given Slayton caught just one of his four targets for six yards against the Cowboys.

Slayton doesn't have a big enough portfolio to know for sure which version of him will more consistently show up Sunday, so adding him would be truly a hit-or-miss risk, depending some on New York's matchups.

Next week Slayton as well as Tate and Latimer stand to benefit from the New York Jets' ninth-worst passing defense. With that in mind, Slayton could be a beneficial waiver-wire add depending on which receivers on your roster are either injured or on bye in Week 10. If added, Slayton should be utilized in flex.

Fantasy stats via NFL Fantasy.