New York Giants: Sterling Shepard is the Giants’ biggest x-factor in 2018
By Kyle Morello
The New York Giants offense has a lot of weapons. Odell Beckham Jr, Saquon Barkley, Evan Engram, Sterling Shepard, and so on will help the Giants put up points this season. But, who will be the most impactful?
Everyone obviously knows about star wide receiver Odell Beckham, Jr. and his immense talent for the New York Giants. He has, in my opinion, the best raw talent in football at the wide receiver position.
Also, everybody knows about the number two overall pick in this year’s draft, running back Saquon Barkley. He has the ability to change the entire landscape of the Giants offense and give them the running game they have been craving since their last Super Bowl win.
Even with the aforementioned stars, the one player who will make or break the Giants offense in 2018 is wide reviewer Sterling Shepard.
Shepard could very realistically have a thousand yard season and be a breakout star for the Giants this year
In his third year out of the University of Oklahoma, Shepard is the “other” starting wide out for the Giants.
According to Pro Football Reference, Shepard averaged 12. 4 yards per reception, which was just 1.1 yards lower than Beckham Jr’s 2016 Pro Bowl season.
Despite the fact that this level of production was with Beckham Jr. hurt, it still shows he can be a trustworthy receiver Eli Manning can throw to and get solid production out of.
Chances are opposing defenses will zero in their respective game plans on stopping Odell and Saquon.
In addition, causing fits for Eli Manning with different defensive schemes to make him as uncomfortable as possible. They may even look to stop tight end Evan Engram before looking to stop Shepard.
Shepard could very realistically have a thousand yard season and be a breakout star for the Giants this year.
We have seen production from him as a prominent part of the offense before. And with the focus on the other pieces of the offense, I am sure Eli will look his way a lot in the 2018 season.
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You all heard it here first: Sterling Shepard will be the breakout stud for the Giants offense, if not the entire NFL, in 2018.