The Giants.com crew is presented with four statements and must decide whether they are Fact or Fiction.
Rookie Dane Belton is the player you're most interested to see on Sunday
John Schmeelk: Fiction - It's Julian Love. There's no doubt he'll do just fine with the green dot and communicating to the rest of the defense, but what role/position will he play in the defense? He said when speaking to the media Wednesday that his role won't change, but he seems best suited to take over Xavier McKinney's single-high safety role than any other safety on the roster. If he is closer to the line of scrimmage, who plays centerfield, and does being on either the left or right side of the formation impact his ability to make pre-snaps adjustments?
Dan Salomone: Fact - THe fourth-round pick from Iowa recovered a fumble on the very first play of his career in Week 2, so the sky is the limit for him. Now he is in store for more with Xavier McKinney sidelined. "I think that he's a student of the game," defensive coordinator Wink Martindale said of Belton. "He takes it very serious as a profession. That's what jumps out at me. He's a really mature kid for being a rookie. I don't know if you all have had a chance to visit with him yet or not, but he's very quiet. You got to get him talking louder and things like that, but I just like how he approaches the game. The plays will come for him because he keeps doing the right thing. He's not an error repeater; he doesn't make the same mistake twice. I think as a rookie, he's ahead of the game."
Lance Medow: Fiction – Dane Belton is right up there, considering he'll be asked to help replace Xavier McKinney, but let's put Kenny Golladay ahead of Belton on the players to watch list. Golladay has missed the past four games with a knee injury and is returning to a receiving corps that could use a boost. How many snaps does Golladay get? How does he look coming off the injury? Will he make an immediate impact? Those are just some of the questions that will be answered Sunday.
Matt Citak: Fiction – Belton is set to take a larger role on defense now that Xavier McKinney is out for at least the next four games, but let's turn the spotlight on Wan'Dale Robinson. The rookie wide receiver played in three games following his knee injury that sidelined him for over a month. After catching three passes for 37 yards and a touchdown on just 15 snaps in Week 6, Robinson saw his playing time increase to 69 percent in the past two games. Following the bye, Robinson could be looking at even more playing time in an offense starved for pass-catchers. Robinson could easily lead the team in targets for the rest of the season, and it should start with Sunday's game.
Darius Slayton will lead the Giants in receiving yards for the third consecutive game
John Schmeelk: Fiction – Let's go back to the Wan'Dale Robinson bandwagon. The Texans play a lot of Cover-2, which should open up some shallow zones in the middle of the field. It might be difficult to get Slayton open down the field against two-high coverages. There might also be opportunities for Kenny Golladay to find some openings against the Texans' various zone on some deep in-cuts.
Dan Salomone: Fiction – The first half of the season was vintage Saquon Barkley on the ground, so what better way to start the second half than having one of those special games as a receiver?
Lance Medow: Fact – Darius Slayton has been by far the most consistent receiver in terms of production, especially over the last few weeks. That fact alone bodes well for him to pick up where he left off before the bye. On top of that, he's built great chemistry with Daniel Jones going back to their rookie year in 2019. Wan'Dale Robinson is another strong candidate but, at this point, take Slayton over the field.
Matt Citak: Fiction – See my previous answer above.
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The Giants will win the game if Saquon Barkley has more rushing yards than Houston's Dameon Pierce
John Schmeelk: Fact – It is truly going to be the battle of the running backs on Sunday. Total yards will be important, but the number of explosive plays that lead to touchdowns will be more critical. Both teams want to run the ball and have elite ball carriers to get it done. Barring big mistakes by either quarterback they will likely decide the winner.
Dan Salomone: Fact – It will have meant that the Giants imposed their will on the ground, which was the main variable in the winning formula from the first half of the season. Both running backs will be the focus of the opposing defense.
Lance Medow: Fiction – There's so much to read into this statement which is why it's hard to believe that one player outproducing another dictates the outcome of a game. Case in point, what if Saquon Barkley runs for 110 yards and Dameon Pierce has 109? Do you really think the difference of one yard is going to be the biggest factor in a team winning? It depends how big of a gap there is in production as well as several other components.
Matt Citak: Fact – As Wink Martindale said on Wednesday, Dameon Pierce "might be the angriest runner in the league." The rookie back is incredibly talented and has forced a league-high 26 broken tackles. Pierce also ranks third with 50 missed tackles forced and 403 rushing yards after contact. The Texans' offense starts and ends with their first-year back. However, Houston enters this matchup with the league's worst rushing defense. This is a prime matchup for Saquon Barkley to run wild, and with the Giants' defense having a lot more success this season than Houston's, it's fair to assume the Giants will emerge victorious if Barkley outgains Pierce.
Top to bottom, the NFC is better than the AFC at the midway point of the season
John Schmeelk: Fiction – Before the season, the thinking was the AFC would be a far better conference than the NFC, but it is much closer midway through the season than many thought it would be. The Eagles are in the top tier of the sport with the Chiefs and Bills. The Vikings, Giants and Seahawks are huge surprises that have buoyed the NFC, while the Cowboys and 49ers are the dangerous teams most people thought they would be. The issues with the Packers, Rams, and Buccaneers, however, keep the NFC a notch below the AFC, which sports strong teams like the Ravens, Dolphins, Jets, Chargers, Titans and Bengals. The NFC has only five teams over .500, while the AFC has eight.
Dan Salomone: Fact – It's pretty even with both East divisions making a case for best in the NFL, but the NFC boasts the last remaining undefeated and seven-win teams in the Eagles and Vikings. That's the tiebreaker.
Lance Medow: Fiction – The NFC East is the only division in the conference with multiple teams that showcase winning records. The Vikings are the only team to meet that criteria in the North and the Seahawks the lone squad in the West. All four teams in the NFC South are below .500. In comparison, all four teams in the AFC East are above .500 and the North and West divisions each have two. The AFC South is the only division with just one winning team. Based on records alone, there's a lot more depth in the AFC and teams like the Chiefs and Bills warrant consideration for two teams as close to a juggernaut that you'll find in the league.
Matt Citak: Fiction – It's tough to say "fact" on this one with the state of the NFC South, especially when you have a division like the AFC East with all four teams over .500. The NFC has the league's only undefeated team in the Eagles, along with the only one-loss team in the Vikings. But both the NFC South and West have struggled too much this season to give the nod to the NFC. There's also the fact that the AFC has the Bills and Chiefs, who still remain two of the best and most dangerous teams in the NFL.