DraftKings Monday Night Football Showdown Lineups: What to do if Puka Nacua Plays or Sits
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Week 2's Monday Night Football showdown features the New York Giants looking to continue their mometum as they head to Sofi Stadium to take on the Los Angeles Rams, who are looking to flip the switch after their week 1 loss to the San Francisco 49ers.
The biggest status to watch in the lead up to Monday Night Football is Puka Nacua's availability. Nacua is trending the, "wrong way," per NFL insider Adam Schefter and is questionable heading into the NFC clash. NFL insider Jay Glazer expects Nacua to suit up against the Giants, but the Rams wide receiver has to, "show something," in warm ups to convince the Rams to let him play.
With the uncertainty surrounding Nacua, DFS players should have plan if Nacua is available or if the All-Pro is out for the game. These DraftKings lineups factor in what DFS could do if Nacua is a go or if the Rams wide receiver is out for Monday Night Football.
Lineup if Puka Nacua is Not Available
Players | Salary |
|---|---|
Jaxson Dart (Captain) | $14,700 |
Matthew Stafford | $10,000 |
Kyren Williams | $9,600 |
Malik Nabers | $9,000 |
Colby Parkinson | $3,600 |
Terrance Ferguson | $1,800 |
Davante Adams is the obvious benefactor if Nacua were to miss the contest. In the lone game Nacua missed last season, Adams feasted with 26.5 PPR points in week 7 against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Even with the standout numbers without Nacua showcased this last season, this lineup will fade the projected highly-owned Adams.
Adams had a rough week 1, only hauling in half of his six targets for 26 receiving yards. What stood out the most for week 1 was Adams getting subbed out near the goal line. Adams relied heavily on red-zone work to boost his Fantasy production last season. It’s a one game sample size, but I’m willing to fade a high-owned Adams in the event that Nacua is out.
Davante Adams played ONE of seven snaps inside the 10 yard line last night.
— Underdog (@Underdog) September 11, 2026
In 2025, ELEVEN of his TDs came from inside that range 🕊️ pic.twitter.com/Upa0hBq1WC
Parkinson and Ferguson make this lineup as value pieces thanks to the Rams’ continued emphasis of using 13 personnel. The Rams ran nearly 37% of their plays out in week 1 of 13 personnel, which gives a snap-count bump to Parkinson and Ferguson. Parkinson played 77% of the snaps in week 1 and Ferguson checked out at 51% of the snap in week 1. With a large snap share at a discount salary, fitting both Parkinson and Ferguson allows this lineup to fill in studs, while having high-upside value in the Rams tight ends.
Kyren Williams will be the last Rams of this lineup as he dominated the snap count of the Rams backfield over Blake Corum. Williams accounted for 64% of the snaps in week 1, 25 more than Corum. Where Williams shined the most was in the red zone, where he had four touches compared to Corum’s zero.
Jaxson Dart and Malik Nabers will be the Giants in this lineup. The Rams struggled to stop the passing attack, specifically from the wide receivers in week 1. In a spot where Isiah Likely could be over owned following an impressive week 1, prioritizing Nabers could pay off here. Nabers finished with nine targets in week 1, the most on the Giants. Dart’s mix of passing and running makes the Giants QB a viable captain in this showdown.
Lineup if Puka Nacua is Available
Players | Salary |
|---|---|
Malik Nabers (Captain) | $13,500 |
Puka Nacua | $11,400 |
Matthew Stafford | $10,000 |
Jaxson Dart | $9,800 |
Colby Parkinson | $3,600 |
Davis Allen / Tutu Atwell | $1,600 / $800 |
If Nacua were to suit up in this game, he needs to be in the lineup. Nacua’s target share is too hard to ignore and needs to be in a lineup even if he’s a bit banged up.
Nabers moves into the captain slot here to fit everyone in and for his high upside. Nabers seemed to get more comfortable in his first action after a torn ACL. Week 2 could be the real return for Nabers, which could pay off with the Giants receiver at captain.
Malik Nabers said he was "rusty" in his Week 1 return and felt that he could have scored "probably two" TDs, via @SNYGiants:pic.twitter.com/hcGOe8953B
— Underdog NFL (@UnderdogNFL) September 17, 2026
Davis Allen and Tutu Atwell will be the last men in, depending on contest selection. In single entries, Allen is worth playing, given the Rams utilization of 13 personnel. Atwell will serve as the large-field GPP play. Atwell didn’t play a snap last game, but all Atwell needs is a few snaps in a game with his explosiveness to be a slate breaker.
Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
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Jeff Salcedo is a writer for Fantasy Sports on SI with extensive experience covering the NFL, MMA, NBA, and soccer. A dedicated fantasy sports enthusiast, he has competed in fantasy leagues and daily fantasy sports (DFS) contests for more than a decade. Before joining Fantasy Sports on SI, Salcedo worked as a senior sports reporter for BYU's student newspaper, The Daily Universe.
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