Giants vs Rams Showdown DFS: EMac's Week 2 MNF Top-10

New York Giants Overview

Shout out to the Giants who took care of business last Sunday night against the visiting Dallas Cowboys. New head coach John Harbaugh leaned into the strength of his players with a bruising rushing attack lead by Cam Skattebo and keeping second-year signal-caller Jaxson Dart within schemed parameters and designed runs. This is a very physical style and likely to take a toll over the next 17 weeks.

Surprisingly mid-training camp acquisition Najee Harris was inactive, though that could change tonight after Tyrone Tracy Jr. had only two offensive plays in the opener. It is interesting to note that he did have a carry on each of his offensive snaps, totaling 14 rushing yards.

Skattebo was on the field for 61% of the snaps, while fullback Patrick Ricard was second with a 54% snap-share. Ricard of course came over from Baltimore, so Harbaugh is well aware of how to employ him for maximum effectiveness, which is almost entirely as a blocker. He did have one target, but that is just noise as in his last 46 games he has only 15 for 9/82/2, along with one carry for three yards.

Devin Singletary had the other four targets that were allocated to the backfield, converting all four for 22 yards and a score. He had 16 yards on four carries as well, but it is tricky to infer much from this development. If Harris is active, Singletary could lose work do the multi-faceted veteran and we need to remember that Skattebo had 17 targets in his four healthy games as a starter. Additionally, Singletary’s salary jumped from $4,400 on FanDuel to $7,200 and he went from $1,400 to $3,000 on DraftKings.

Dart was efficient from the pocket, finishing with three touchdown passes for the second time in his 13 career starts, converting on 23 of 29 (79.3%) for 230 yards, with another 54 on 11 carries.

Malik Nabers was on the field for just over half the offensive action as he returned from a devastating knee injury suffered last season. He looked solid and we should see his playing time increase. Rookie Malachi Fields led the way with a 72% snap-share, with veteran Darnell Mooney second among the wideouts at 57%, with Braxton Berrios and Odell Beckham Jr. getting 17% and 16%, with no targets. Nabers had nine of the 15 targets to the position, with Fields at four and Mooney earning two.

Isaiah Likely, another former Raven, had eight targets, though he was only on the field for 49% of the action, though he did have two red zone opportunities, leading the team across the main receiving categories with 8/78/2. Theo Johnson played two fewer snaps than Likely, getting one target while Chris Manhertz (35% snap-share) did not have any. While it was under a different coaching staff, Johnson did lead the team with five receiving touchdowns last season.

It will be interesting to see how these various skill position workloads shake out over the next few games, barring an injury shakeup.

Rookie kicker Dominic Zvada did not have any field goal attempts, though he did convert all four of his extra point attempts. He was a UDFA out of Michigan, spending time in training camp or on practice squads with Atlanta, Pittsburgh and New York. He had a pedestrian senior season, though he was the Big-10 Kicker of the Year as a junior.

The G-Men did not have any sacks against Dallas, though they did have one interception. Tonight they have their work cut out for them against last season’s top scoring offense, helmed by the reigning NFL MVP.

Los Angeles Rams Overview

The Rams were soundly thrashed in Australia, and while they should get a lift from Aaron Donald coming out of retirement, having last played in 2023. He is now in his age-35 season and unlikely to play anywhere near his three-time Defensive Player of the Year accolades. Myles Garrett will miss the next four games after having arthroscopic knee surgery and reserve wideout and kick returner Jordan Whittington is doubtful with a quad injury.

However, the big news will be the status of Puka Nacua who is questionable with a hip/groin injury having not practiced since returning from Australia. It sounds like we may not have actionable information on this until inactives are released about 90 minute prior to kickoff.

If Nacua is out, then Davante Adams and the running game will be tasked with picking up the slack. If he plays, there will be questions about effectiveness and added in-game injury risk. The first two weeks of the season have seen a plethora of key players lost to injury and while going 0-2 would not be a good start in what looks to be a very competitive NFC West, it is a long season and there is no reason to rush Nacua back before he is ready. Stay tuned!

Focusing first on the backfield, Kyren Williams was on the field for 64% of the snaps, Blake Corum 23% and then Ronnie Rivers had some mop-up duty with eight (13%) plays, seeing five carries for 19 yards, with one target for a five-yard reception. That is a mirage and it would be a shock if he gets more than a touch or two in a competitive game tonight.

Williams gets the nod in the passing game as the best blocker and that accounted for his extra on-field presence as the Rams tried to make a comeback against San Francisco. Corum had 10 carries on his 14 snaps, though no targets or red zone opportunities. We know that the high-value touches will still be earmarked for Williams as long as he produces, but in closer games or those where Los Angeles is ahead, Corum will get a sizable portion of the committee’s overall workload. He is very much in play on DraftKings ($4,600) and a viable click on FanDuel ($7,600). Williams has double-digit DraftKings points in his last 10 games, though without a touchdown, he is hard to justify on either site.

Despite being up 7-3 early in the second quarter, everything fell apart for the Rams as the 49ers posted 24 unanswered points. The offense was not able to sustain anything and it was clear that Garrett was hobbled by his knee soreness.

Hopefully 38-year-old Matt Stafford is able to get the passing game back on track, though that will be a tough row to hoe if Nacua is out. It has been four years since Davante Adams received Pro Bowl accolades and his fantasy relevance was carried by a league-leading 14 touchdown receptions.

If Nacua is out, along with Whittington, then Adams is going to have opportunities as the last man standing. Konata Mumpfield and Xavier Smith should each push for a 35% snap-share without Whittington and either is an acceptable tournament dart throw. Tutu Atwell was reacquired by the Rams in a late-August trade with Jarquez Hunter being sent to Miami. He was active, though saw no offensive action, which is likely to change tonight. Even one catch at $800 on DraftKings would be useful for the other lineup upgrades.

The tight ends will also benefit from Nacua being out as we have seen the 13-personnel package previously from coach Sean McVay. Colby Parkinson is the base-package option as the best blocker and above average receiver, having supplanted Tyler Higbee. Terrance Ferguson operates more as a receiver and while he did not convert his lone target, he was on the field the second most and his ridiculous 11/231/3 on 25 targets last year cannot be dismissed. Davis Allen is in his fourth season with the organization, and he will see the field a fair amount if the three-tight end set becomes a thing.

Harrison Mevis aka the Thiccer Kicker did not have any field goal attempts in Australia, though he was a solid 12-of-13 after taking over the role in the middle of last season, while being perfect on his six playoff opportunities.

The defense had one interception and no sacks, but the unit should be much better in SoFi Stadium and with the return of Donald buoying their spirits.

NFL DFS Week 2 MNF Showdown: Top-10

1. Jaxson Dart: What a wild ascent in the fantasy world.
2. Cam Skattebo: Hopefully he keeps out of harm’s way, well for the most part.
3. Malik Nabers: Reasonable salary and expectations are for an increasing workload.
4. Matt Stafford: Since the start of last year, he has 31 rushing attempts for zero yards. Keep in mind kneel downs count as quarterback carries. He has only one rushing touchdown in the last 131 regular season games, though he had two during the 2021 Super Bowl run.
5. Puca Nacua: Not practicing in over a week is scary, hopefully he waits until he is healthy rather than “giving it a go” like Saquon Barkley in his second half return yesterday after a first quarter stinger sent him to the locker room.
6. Davante Adams and Terrance Ferguson: This is the ranking if Nacua is out, if he plays then drop Adams to the bottom of this section and Ferguson to the top of the next.
7. Kyren Williams: Key cog, even if he does not have breakaway ability.
8. Isaiah Likely: Looks to be a key cog in the passing game on third downs and in the red zone.
9. Blake Corum: Needs a touchdown to make some noise, but should see plenty of touches between the 20s.
10. Harrison Mevis: The “Thiccer Kicker” has to be one of the best nicknames in the league.
11. NFL DFS Week 2 MNF Showdown: And the Rest

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Secondary Targets

• Devin Singletary: Significant salary increase makes it harder to back him, becomes very risky if Harris ends up being active over Tracy.
• Dominic Zvada: Waiting to see what the rookie can do on field goal attempts.
• Malachi Fields: Not bad for a debut, looks like he may consolidate the WR2 role by Thanksgiving.
• Los Angeles DST: Would be at the top of this section with a healthy Garrett.
• New York DST: Likely will need a scoop-and-score or pick-six to be relevant.

Lottery Tickets

• Colby Parkinson: Though he does not have the same upside potential as Ferguson, he is a steady presence who has no challenges to his playing time.
• Darnell Mooney: Savvy veteran, limited upside.
• Konata Mumpfield and Xavier Smith: Smith returns punts and kickoffs.
• Tyrone Tracy Jr. and Najee Harris: Wild card for playing time, only one is likely to be active.
• Theo Johnson: Should be on the field for half the snaps and that is all we can really ask for in the single-game format.
• Tyler Higbee and Davis Allen: Ranking if Nacua misses the game, otherwise they can be skipped by those crafting fewer than 20 lineups.
• Braxton Berrios: Kick returner, not much in the way of offensive playing time without in-game injuries.
• Tutu Atwell, Patrick Ricard, Chris Manhertz, Ronnie Rivers, CJ Daniels and Odell Beckham Jr.: All should get playing time, though it would be a surprise if any pop up like Laquon Treadwell or Tyquan Thornton did last night.

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