Breaking down the DraftKings NFL Showdown slate for Thursday Night Football between the Giants and Washington in Week 2 with our DFS picks and lineup.
We’re onto Week 2 of the 2021 NFL season and that means Thursday Night Football will kick us off as the New York Giants visit the Washington Football Team. Both NFC East rivals enter the game after taking a loss in their first outing, though the home team looked substantially better. But if you’re playing the DraftKings NFL Showdown for Thursday night, how should you approach this game?
That’s somewhere we can help you. For those unfamiliar, a DraftKings Showdown game means you pick six players from one game with a $50,000 budget. You also get to pick a Captain for the contest who will earn your lineup 1.5X points — but will also cost 1.5X the salary. Thus, that’s an important spot to get right before you pick your remaining five FLEX spots.
So to help you navigate the Thursday Night Football DraftKings contests, we’re going through our plays and fades for the game before constructing a lineup that should cash.
DraftKings NFL Thursday Night Showdown plays for Giants-Washington
Taylor Heinicke ($10,200/$15,300) – Heinicke wasn’t lighting the world on fire last week when he came in after the Fitzpatrick injury. But he’s played well before and should have a gameplan for him with a loaded cast of receivers.
Antonio Gibson ($9,600/$14,400) – A lost fumble and no touchdown hurt GIbson last week but he’s clearly the workhorse for Washington with 20 carries and five targets last week. Expect a heavy dose of him, which is why he’s my favorite play as the fourth-highest priced player on the slate.
Terry McLaurin ($9,000/$13,500) – McLaurin only got four targets (and four receptions) in Week 1 but Heinicke targeted him seven times for six catches, 75 yards in the playoffs last year. We should see him made the focal point and could have a bounce-back performance.
Kenny Golladay ($8,200/$12,300) – After a concerning preseason and camp, Golladay looked good to start the year with four catches on six targets for 64 yards. Washington’s secondary isn’t elite and the Giants No. 1 receiver in name could pop.
Sterling Shepard ($8,000/$12,000) – However, instead of Golladay, I’d prefer Shepard for slightly cheaper. Catching seven of nine targets for 113 yards and a score, he’s healthy and is clearly the consistent go-to guy in the Giants passing offense.
Logan Thomas ($7,400/$11,100) – Thomas had just three targets last week but, again, Heinicke looked to him nine times in the playoff game last year. Throw in his red-zone usage and he’s an obvious play on Thursday.
Darius Slayton ($6,600/$9,900) – He only hauled in three (though for 65 yards) but Slayton garnered seven targets a week ago. That’s impressive as a perceived secondary pass-catcher, so he might be a good value on this slate.
Washington D/ST ($5,600/$8,400) – Washington has a fierce defensive front going against a bad offensive line with a fumble-prone quarterback behind it. That could be the recipe for forcing turnovers, which is what you wnat to see.
Giants D/ST ($4,200/$6,300) – New York’s defense wasn’t good against Denver but the perception is they should improve. Playing against a backup quarterback might hep them accomplish just that.
Kyle Rudolph ($3,200/$4,800) – Evan Engram is out again and, even though Rudolph had just two catches for eight yards in Week 1, he was targeted five times. He’s also a nice red-zone option, making his touchdown upside appealing.
Dyami Brown ($1,400/$2,100) – The rookie dominated reps in the slot and had four targets, even if he only turned them into one catch for a two-yard loss. Heinicke likes his slot receivers and Brown could emerge as a boom player at this low price.
DraftKings NFL Thursday Night Showdown fades for Giants-Washington
Daniel Jones ($10,400/$15,600) – Put simply, I’m not paying the highest price on this slate for the quarterback facing the better defense and who continues to have turnover problems. Maybe that’s over-simplified but it’s something I can’t stomach.
Saquon Barkley ($10,000/$15,000) – Not only is Barkley listed as questionable but he played limited snaps last week and I doubt that changes on a short week. This is too much to pay for a player who won’t likely get a full workload.
Adam Humphries ($4,800/$7,200) – Humphries got just two targets last week, so it’s hard to imagine he’s now going to break through with more favorable secondary pass-catchers in the Washington offense.
J.D. McKissic ($2,200/$3,300) – Some people might look at McKissic and remember last year when he was a PPR king for fantasy but he got just one carry and one target last week. Gibson seems to have fully taken over the Football Team backfield.
DraftKings NFL Thursday Night Showdown lineup for Giants-Washington
- Captain (1.5X) – Antonio Gibson, $14,400
- FLEX – Taylor Heinicke, $10,200
- FLEX – Terry McLaurin, $9,000
- FLEX – Sterling Shepard, $8,000
- FLEX – Darius Slayton, $6,600
- FLEX – Dyami Brown, $1,400
Having Brown in this lineup opens things up tremendously and this lineup still has $400 in remaining budget, meaning there’s some flexibility to shuffle things around if you so please.
Gibson is the clear captain play, though, as he’s the most proven commodity who is sure to dominate the work share at his position. The rest of the players all have upside either based on what we saw in Week 1 or, in Heinicke’s case, what he did in the playoffs a year ago.