Everyone has been asking all week: Gary who? Regardless of which team he has been on in the past few seasons, be it the Carolina Panthers or the Cleveland Browns, Barnidge has been buried on the depth chart playing behind Pro-Bowl tight ends in Greg Olsen and Jordan Cameron. Now, he finally gets his chance on an offense that really does not have any primary pass catchers.
Can we take another look at his stats from last week against Oakland? He finished with 6 catches for 105 yards and a TD. He set a career-high in catches and yards and almost matched his total yardage from last season (156 receiving yards). And, he did this with the old arm of Josh McCown under center.
This week, McCown will more than likely be responsible for throwing him the ball again. It will be up to Barnidge to prove that he was not a one-week wonder and show that he can produce every week, especially against a strong defense like the Chargers have this season. While it may be a tough match up, Barnidge would need to put up a respectable line to make himself relevant in fantasy land, especially in deeper leagues.
Prediction: 5 receptions, 50 receiving yards