We welcome the month of December while simultaneously closing the door on Week 13 with an inter-conference matchup as the New York Giants head to Foxborough to take on the New England Patriots. The Giants will be getting Jaxson Dart back from a concussion while the New England Patriots look to earn their 10th straight win ahead of their Bye week. They are limping into this matchup and will be without two starting offensive linemen. It’s a must-win game if they want to hang on to the top seed in the AFC playoff picture. Let’s take a look at the latest NFL DFS Monday Night Football Playbook as we enter the home stretch for the season!

 

 

 

NFL DFS Monday Night Football Playbook; Giants vs. Patriots Game Preview

Week 13 wraps up with a matchup featuring a pair of young, phenomenal quarterbacks. Jaxson Dart is back from injury while the Giants are riding a six-game losing streak and sitting at 2-10. At this stage there’s obviously no chance they make the playoffs. But it’s that point in the season where the organization wants to get a better look at their younger assets. Additionally, it’s an opportunity for Mike Kafka to really audition himself as the next head coach for the Giants as the head coaching pool isn’t as flush with promising candidates like it was a year ago.

Dart’s presence obviously brings another level of excitement to watching the Giants offense. Jameis Winston is obviously a capable quarterback, but Dart is the future and he’s the shiny new toy the fanbase wants to see. Dart gives them a better chance of winning, which may compromise their draft position. But again, this is a chance for all players to showcase themselves and it’s an audition for Kafka as well.

The New England Patriots are currently riding a nine-game winning streak and are poised to reclaim the AFC East crown. The last few wins were likely a bit closer than they’d like to admit. They only beat the Atlanta Falcons by one point in a very sloppy offensive effort. They beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers by five points, but again, there were growing pains. And even last week against the Cincinnati Bengals, who had to start Joe Flacco, the Pats only won by six points and the offensive line took a beating.

This game has the potential to turn into a shootout with two very young and talented quarterbacks on display. Both defenses have been rather beatable over the course of the season so let’s see if this game can give us a glimpse into what the future looks like for these two offenses. Let’s dig into the latest NFL DFS Monday Night Football Playbook to dominate the last game of Week 13!

 

 

 

Giants vs. Patriots Notable Injuries & Inactives

The New York Giants are set to get starting quarterback, Jaxson Dart, back after missing two weeks with a concussion. So the injury report for New York is mostly filled with defensive players. As of Sunday night, only Kayvon Thibodeaux has been ruled out for this game. Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles, Korie Black, Swayze Bozeman, and Victor Dimukeje are listed as questionable.

Week 12 was a costly one for the New England Patriots offensive line. Rookie first-round pick, Will Campbell, was placed on IR with a knee injury that is fortunately not season-ending. Additionally, the Patriots will be without Jared Wilson on the interior portion of the offensive line. And on the defensive side, the Patriots are listing Harold Landry and Khyiris Tonga as questionable for our MNF DFS picks.

 

 

 

NFL DFS Showdown MVP/Captain for Monday Night Football, 12/1

Drake Maye, QB, New England Patriots – DraftKings: $11,800 | FanDuel: $13,200

Drake Maye has been outstanding this season in his second year and he’s riding the wave of his 71% completion rate. For fantasy football, it certainly feels like he’s had more floor performances than ceiling. Per DraftKings scoring, he hasn’t even returned 20+ fantasy points since Week 8 against Cleveland but I’m still keeping him in this section.

Maye hasn’t recorded the 300-yard bonus yet on DraftKings this season but it’s not like he hasn’t been close by any means. He’s thrown for 250+ yards in five straight games and he still possesses rushing upside if the game script calls for it. Entering Week 13, Maye ranked 2nd among qualified quarterbacks in EPA/Play (0.26), 4th in success rate (52.6%), 1st in completion percentage over expected (9.1%), and he’s 6th in average depth of target (8.9) so the passing upside is certainly there. With New England having an implied team total of 27 points this is a great spot to get exposure to their starting quarterback just ahead of their Bye week.

Now you may have noticed for the NFL DFS Monday Night Football Playbook, we don’t include the Defense/Special Teams section like we do for Thursday and Sunday’s Showdown Playbooks. But I will acknowledge that with the injuries to the already suspect New England offensive line, the Giants D/ST works well in lineups that don’t include Drake Maye. I still believe in Maye’s potential to break the slate, but the O-line injuries are a concern.

Jaxson Dart, QB, New York Giants – DraftKings: $10,000 | FanDuel: $12,400

While I am a Patriots fan and believe in Drake Maye’s upside long-term, I will acknowledge that if he were 100% healthy that Dart might have the higher ceiling on the slate. His style of play is more aggressive and he has shown a willingness to put the game in his hands and make plays on his own.

That style of play is arguably what may put him at risk of getting hurt every week as he missed the last two games with a concussion. In four games from Weeks 7-10, Dart had three performances with 27+ fantasy points on DraftKings. Prior to getting hurt he had a rushing touchdown in five straight games and he’s certainly more willing to run the ball on his own than Maye has been.

You have to really like the kid’s upside but also wonder if the organization wants to reign him in and teach him to be a bit more conservative. This is a team that’s already lost Cam Skattebo and Malik Nabers for the season. They can’t handle a season-ending injury to their new franchise quarterback. Fortunately, Mike Kafka has shown some creativity with his play calling and I’m curious to see what he draws up for Dart.

Wan’Dale Robinson, WR, New York Giants – DraftKings: $9,000 | FanDuel: $10,600

For the longest time, Wan’Dale Robinson was not a huge threat. He’s a good, efficient operator out of the slot but never really was a target deep down field. But given how the season has played out for New York, he’s been called upon for a larger, more integral role. And there’s been no denying that he’s thrived.

In five of his last six games, with both Jaxson Dart and Jameis Winston under center, Robinson has seen at least nine targets. The touchdown equity hasn’t been very noteworthy because Dart’s been running for one seemingly every week he’s been a starter. Now I am somewhat nervous about listing him as a Captain candidate because, even with all the volume, he only has three performances this season with more than 16 fantasy points per DraftKings scoring. At the end of the day, he’s still one of Dart’s most reliable pass catchers and has a chance to put up some big numbers against a team that’s about to play its 13th straight game and could certainly use the Bye week.

TreVeyon Henderson, TE, New England Patriots – DraftKings: $8,000 | FanDuel: $11,800

He’s certainly a better value on DraftKings than FanDuel, but that may just lower exposure a bit on FD since Rhamondre Stevenson returned last week. But despite Stevenson’s return, Henderson’s usage was still promising.

Hendo still had 21 total touches and played 64% of the offensive snaps and the Giants have bled a lot of production to opposing running backs lately. In Week 12, Jahmyr Gibbs exploded for 264 total yards and three touchdowns. Christian McCaffrey recorded multiple touchdowns against this defense and Saquon Barkley, in a revenge game, also scored twice. Overall, in New York’s last five games, they’ve allowed 10 total touchdowns to opposing running backs and Henderson’s a great candidate to have a huge game as a Captain recommendation for our NFL DFS Monday Night Football Playbook.

 

 

 

Mid-Tier & DFS Value Plays for Monday

Stefon Diggs, WR, New England Patriots - DraftKings: $8,800 | FanDuel: $11,400

There is a slight birthday narrative with this play as Diggs celebrated his 32nd birthday on Saturday so maybe Drake Maye tries to feed him a touchdown as a gift. Afterall, Diggs found the end zone in three straight games from Weeks 8-10 but saw just three targets last week in a smash spot against the Cincinnati Bengals.

This is a nice get right spot for Diggs ahead of the team’s Bye week. It all depends on the kind of volume he gets in this matchup. Diggs can certainly find himself in a game with 8-to-12 targets. But there are also a few dud performances like Week 12 so I’m hesitant to list him as a Captain recommendation.

We’ve already touched on how the Giants have bled heavy production to opposing running backs lately. But in Week 12 they gave up 149 yards and a touchdown to Amon-Ra St. Brown. Prior to that, Christian Watson scored twice on this defense in Week 11, and in Week 10 Rome Odunze found the end zone with 86 receiving yards. Needless to say, the G-Men struggle to contain the opposing offense’s WR1.

Tyrone Tracy, RB, New York Giants – DraftKings: $7,600 | FanDuel: $9,400

Despite having to split the backfield touches with Devin Singletary, Tracy has played incredibly well the last two weeks while Jameis Winston was the starter for the G-Men. He rushed for 150 yards combined in both games while adding 119 receiving yards and he comes into this game with 15+ touches in three consecutive games.

The downside for this matchup is that the New England Patriots don’t give up much production to opposing running backs. According to Mike Clay of ESPN, the Patriots have allowed the fewest yards and touchdowns to opposing running backs. It’s not pretty and this is a tough price tag to swallow, but the volume should be there and he’s made an impact in the passing game which elevates his floor.

Kayshon Boutte, WR, New England Patriots – DraftKings: $6,800 | FanDuel: $6,400

I’m skipping over Hunter Henry, but I’m not opposed to playing him especially when he can put up stat lines similar to last week against the Cincinnati Bengals where he caught 7-of-10 targets for 115 yards and a touchdown. But that’s his absolute ceiling. Per DraftKings scoring, Henry only has two games returning over 12 fantasy points this season and he’s dependent on touchdowns. For that reason, I’d almost rather play Henry at Captain or avoid the play.

A similar argument can be made for Boutte, but we did touch on how recently wide receivers have thrived against this Giants secondary. Boutte returned from injury last week but finished with just two receptions for 15 yards. That may not sound like much, but Boutte still played 80% of the team’s offensive snaps. You can pick and choose whether you want to go with Boutte, Henry, or even Mack Hollins in this range. Drake Maye distributes the ball evenly, so it helps to balance exposure among the New England pass catchers.

Theo Johnson, TE, New York Giants – DraftKings: $5,800 | FanDuel: $5,800

Johnson is a much better value on FanDuel than DraftKings. As is the case with tight ends, Johnson is a bit reliant on touchdowns. However, with the mounting injuries for New York, Johnson is getting more involvement in the offense and his floor for fantasy football has risen.

In six of his last nine games Johnson has either recorded 65+ receiving yards or he’s found the end zone. In that span he’s averaging 11.2 fantasy points per game in PPR formats and he has at least three receptions in six straight games. The ceiling isn’t worthy of playing him at Captain. However, at this price tag you can play him at a flex spot with output ranging from 10-to-15 fantasy points.

 

 

 

NFL DFS Dart Throw Bargains

Devin Singletary, RB, New York Giants – DraftKings: $4,600 | FanDuel: $8,200

You can certainly consider Rhamondre Stevenson for this slate, especially when Stevenson is $1,000 cheaper on FanDuel. Both Stevenson and Singletary find themselves in shared backfields. Stevenson has the better matchup in comparison to Singletary, but I’m not as sold on his volume and workload with TreVeyon Henderson showing vast improvements of late.

Singletary, despite being so affordable, has 30 carries over the last two weeks. And if we expand the sample size a bit further, he’s touched the ball 10+ times in four straight games. He hasn’t been as exciting or productive as Tracy but we don’t need him to be. If he can manage 8-to-12 touches Monday night and get a short yardage touchdown, then he’s easily paying off this price tag. But like we mentioned in Tracy’s section, this isn’t an easy matchup.

DeMario Douglas, WR, New England Patriots – DraftKings: $4,000 | FanDuel: $4,600

Pop Douglas is not much different from the other Patriots pass catchers such as Hunter Henry, Kayshon Boutte, and Mack Hollins. But he is significantly cheaper at the very least.

For the most part, Douglas will see fantasy production barely even eclipse eight fantasy points. Volume is low and we run the risk that he may only play 10-to-15 offensive snaps. But for a $4,000 receiver we have a player who has 30+ receiving yards in five straight games. In two games this season he’s gone for over 70 yards. There is some big play potential with Pop and if he finds the end zone on a big catch and run, he’s likely making the optimal lineup.

Isaiah Hodgins, WR, New York Giants – DraftKings: $3,600 | FanDuel: $4,000

Hodgins has only appeared in two games with New York, but he’s seen six targets in back-to-back games as the team appears ready to move on from Jalin Hyatt. Hodgins has turned his dozen targets into seven receptions for 99 yards and a touchdown in two games. That’s not awful production for a cheap pass catcher on the team that could be trailing in the second half.

Hodgins may not see much action in two-wide receiver sets so he may mostly be relegated to third-down usage and three-receiver formations. Regardless, for a pass catcher this affordable he’s seen good volume in two games and he’s made a strong impression on Mike Kafka and could provide some cheap production for our Giants vs. Patriots DFS picks.

 

 

 

Giants vs. Patriots DFS Player Pool, 12/1

Player Pool

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