Closing out the Week 2 NFL slate, the New York Giants will face the Los Angeles Rams in the Monday Night Football matchup.
New York produced an impressive 28-20 win over the Dallas Cowboys to start their season, with some real momentum on their side. In contrast, the Rams dropped their season opener 27-7 to the San Francisco 49ers in concerning fashion. After entering the season as the Super Bowl favorite, Los Angeles has plenty to clean up as they suit up in the United States for the first time this year.
Looking at the odds, the Rams enter as 6.5-point favorites with -290 moneyline odds on DraftKings Sportsbook. The Giants are +235 to pull off the upset, with the game total set at 47.5 points.
There are plenty of ways to get involved beyond backing a side or total. Let’s take a look at my top three favorite player props for the Week 2 Monday Night Football matchup.
Giants vs. Rams NFL Player Prop Bets for Monday Night Football
Kyren Williams Over 15.5 Receiving Yards (-114)
It was a disappointing season opener for Kyren Williams, along with the rest of this Rams attack. The Notre Dame product was limited to just 41 rushing yards on 11 carries in the loss. Williams did, however, find a way to make his mark in the passing game, pulling in three receptions for 24 yards. The Pro Bowl running back is a capable pass catcher, coming off a season-high 281 receiving yards last year, or 16.5 per game.
The Giants did an excellent job slowing the Cowboys’ rushing attack in the season opener, limiting Javonte Williams to 41 rushing yards. Dallas tallied just 69 rushing yards overall. Williams did find a way to get involved in the passing game, catching all five of his targets for 31 yards through the air and a touchdown.
This New York defense is strong at the line of scrimmage, but a bit vulnerable through the passing game. While Williams is not as talented of a pass-catcher out of the back field as some of the top running backs in this category, he is capable, and the matchup plays to his favor. Including last season’s final three regular-season games and the playoffs, Williams has tallied 15+ receiving yards in seven straight games. Given how the Cowboys were able to attack this area of the Giants’ defense, expect Sean McVay to have this circled and give Williams a fair amount of chances out of the backfield. The 15.5 receiving yard prop line is low enough that the 26-year-old could surpass it in just one catch, and expect at least three opportunities during the offensive attack tonight to clear this number.
Isaiah Likely Over 4.5 Receptions (+110)
In his first game with the New York Giants, Isaiah Likely made quite the statement. The former Ravens’ standout pulled in all eight targets for 78 yards through the air and two touchdown scores. John Harbaugh brought Likely with him over from Baltimore and rewarded him with a strong contract and larger role. With Mark Andrews no longer in front of him on the depth chart, Likely has a more notable role and looks eager to capitalize on this.
We backed Likely over 3.5 receptions in the Week 1 matchup on DraftKings Network, and I am going back to the well in Week 2. Linebackers are the biggest weakness of this Rams’ defense, and expect the Giants to challenge them throughout. Likely is filling an early role as the safety blanket for Jaxson Dart in the flow of the attack. With Malik Nabers still dealing with some effects of his offseason knee surgeries, Odell Beckham Jr. not being a consistent contributor in years, Malachi Fields settling in during his rookie season, and Darnell Mooney still adjusting to his new team and system, there is a clear need for Likely.
Across his four seasons in Baltimore, Likely tallied 1,568 receiving yards and 15 touchdowns. This was allowed while never playing more than 60% of the offensive snaps in a season and logging 44% or fewer in two of these four years. The Coastal Carolina product was a more prominent part of the Giants’ attack than was the case with the Ravens, and expect this to carry into Week 2 with another favorable matchup. Expect a clear effort to put the ball in his hands and for Likely to pull in over 4.5 receptions for the second straight week.
Terrance Ferguson to Record an Anytime Touchdown (+240)
It was an ugly offensive performance from all parties in Week 1, and the Rams will go back to the drawing board for Week 2. This is especially the case with Puka Nacua’s status uncertain, and Matthew Stafford struggling to find his footing. Terrance Ferguson was a non-factor in the season opener, failing to pull in the only target sent his direction and finishing without a catch. But Ferguson was still featured in quite a few two- and three-tight-end sets, with these especially prominent in the red zone.
The 23-year-old came on strong in the home stretch of last season. After selecting him with the 46th overall pick in the draft, he climbed up the pecking order across the season in a loaded tight end room that includes Colby Parkinson and Tyler Higbee. Ferguson finished with just 11 receptions on 25 targets for the year, but turned these into 231 receiving yards and three touchdowns. He tallied give receptions for 87 yards and two touchdowns in the final two regular season games. Ferguson is a deep ball threat at a position in which this is rare, and this is especially favorable against this Giants’ defense.
While the raw defensive metrics were promising, advanced numbers tell a different story from Week 1. The Giants ranked 28th in EPA per drop back, and New York will be missing two starters in the secondary this week. Their defensive success should largely be attributed to New York winning the time of possession battle 36:40-23:20 and limiting the Cowboys’ chances of doing damage. Stafford is coming off an MVP season, and it is too premature to have major concerns after one bad game played on a different continent. McVay is one of the top offensive minds in the sport, and he has gone back to the lab to find new ways to maximize this offense. Ferguson was wildly underutilized in Week 1, and expect an effort to correct this in a defensive matchup that favors his outlook. Especially with Nacua’s health uncertain, count on the big-play tight end hearing his name called more frequently tonight and reaching the end zone for the fourth time in his young career.
