Ramses Barden, the newest Kevin Ogletree and Brian Hartline of the season, exploded onto the scene last night on Thursday night football. Barden was given an opportunity to shine as WR's Hakeem Nicks and Domenik Hixon were both out for the Giants. Eli Manning continues to impress this year, racking up over 1000 yards through three games. And his receivers and TE's are reaping the rewards. Here, I will take a look at whether breakout Barden should warrant a roster spot or not.
PRO's
- Barden is a 6'6" 230lb. match-up nightmare at WR who can run a 4.5 - 40.
- He is a former third-round pick out of little known D1AA Cal Poly. (Giants think highly of him)
- He has averaged more than 13 yards per reception in limited NFL game time.
- The Giants have had lots of injuries and high rate of turnover at the receiving positions over the past few seasons.
- Even when the Giants receivers are healthy, the G-Men run lots of 3 WR sets and Eli loves to spread the ball around.
- NFL.com compared him to Vincent Jackson and Brandon Marshall entering the 2009 draft.
- He broke Jerry Rice's NCAA record (26) by scoring touchdowns in 32 games during his college career.
CON'S
- Has played in just 20 career games over four seasons, which speaks volumes for a former third-round pick.
- Nearly doubled his reception and yardage total for his career in Thursday's breakout performance.
- Hakeem Nicks, Victor Cruz, Martellus Bennett, Domenik Hixon, and Ruben Randle should all continue to contribute when healthy and with regular time on the field.
- Martellus Bennett will keep stealing red zone looks from all of the aforementioned receivers. He has one in all three games this season.
- Barden has limited open field speed, and seems to have trouble dominating small cornerbacks.
- Has been characterized as lazy at times, and seems to need improvement with his hands.
All in all, I'd say that Barden will keep improving as a receiver on this Giants team. Last night may be a fluke, as we saw with Kevin Ogletree in week one. But just like K.O., Barden has the skill set and is in the right place to put up at least half-way decent fantasy football numbers. My advice here is to put in a waiver claim in 12 team and deeper leagues, and wait and see if he clears waivers in 10 team and shallower leagues. Barden just may continue to put up big numbers - a 60-600-4 line on the season may not be unattainable. Just don't be too surprised if the other receivers in New York start to bump him off of those numbers a bit when healthy.
PRO's
- Barden is a 6'6" 230lb. match-up nightmare at WR who can run a 4.5 - 40.
- He is a former third-round pick out of little known D1AA Cal Poly. (Giants think highly of him)
- He has averaged more than 13 yards per reception in limited NFL game time.
- The Giants have had lots of injuries and high rate of turnover at the receiving positions over the past few seasons.
- Even when the Giants receivers are healthy, the G-Men run lots of 3 WR sets and Eli loves to spread the ball around.
- NFL.com compared him to Vincent Jackson and Brandon Marshall entering the 2009 draft.
- He broke Jerry Rice's NCAA record (26) by scoring touchdowns in 32 games during his college career.
CON'S
- Has played in just 20 career games over four seasons, which speaks volumes for a former third-round pick.
- Nearly doubled his reception and yardage total for his career in Thursday's breakout performance.
- Hakeem Nicks, Victor Cruz, Martellus Bennett, Domenik Hixon, and Ruben Randle should all continue to contribute when healthy and with regular time on the field.
- Martellus Bennett will keep stealing red zone looks from all of the aforementioned receivers. He has one in all three games this season.
- Barden has limited open field speed, and seems to have trouble dominating small cornerbacks.
- Has been characterized as lazy at times, and seems to need improvement with his hands.
All in all, I'd say that Barden will keep improving as a receiver on this Giants team. Last night may be a fluke, as we saw with Kevin Ogletree in week one. But just like K.O., Barden has the skill set and is in the right place to put up at least half-way decent fantasy football numbers. My advice here is to put in a waiver claim in 12 team and deeper leagues, and wait and see if he clears waivers in 10 team and shallower leagues. Barden just may continue to put up big numbers - a 60-600-4 line on the season may not be unattainable. Just don't be too surprised if the other receivers in New York start to bump him off of those numbers a bit when healthy.
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