FanDuel Single-Game Daily Fantasy Football Helper: Week 2 Monday Night

The Week 2 Monday night game is a matchup between the New Orleans Saints and Las Vegas Raiders.

On Online Sportsbook, New Orleans is a 5.5-point road favorite with a total set at 48.5.

Per our oddsFire tool, the public backing the Saints and the over. On the spread, 77% of the bets and the money is on the Saints. With the total, 71% of the bets and 63% of the money is coming in on the over.

For those unfamiliar, single-game slates feature five flex spots with identical scoring to the main slate. However, kickers are included in these contests, and there is an "MVP" roster slot. The MVP receives 1.5-times his total fantasy points, making this spot crucial.

This past offseason our Brandon Gdula did a deep dive on single-game strategy. It's worth checking out before you make your lineups.

Alvin Kamara, Saints ($14,000)

The slate's top-projected player, per our model, is Alvin Kamara, who we forecast to score 19.6 FanDuel points. The Raiders were gashed for 134 total yards and 2 scores by Christian McCaffrey in Week 1, while Kamara started his campaign with 68 total yards and 2 touchdowns versus the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The Raiders should be a much softer matchup for Kamara than Tampa was, and even though Kamara is usually busy as a pass-catcher, he may be asked to do more receiving work than usual with Michael Thomas out.

We peg Kamara to amass 112 total yards and 0.93 total touchdowns. He's a great MVP option, and I'm guessing he'll likely be the chalk MVP pick.

Drew Brees, Saints ($16,000)

You already know this, but Drew Brees has some crazy home/road splits. A season ago, he threw for just 196.4 yards per game in five contests away from home. And he didn't look so hot in Week 1, registering 160 passing yards and 2 scores in the home win over Tampa Bay.

But all of that -- plus Thomas being out -- may scare away the masses from using Brees in the MVP slot, and he could have a big game Monday.

Even with the low yardage totals on the road in 2019, he had 10 tuds in those five games, and this Vegas D gave up 270 yards and a touchdown to Teddy Bridgewater in Week 1. Oddsmakers are expecting New Orleans to score plenty of points, too, handing the Saints a 27.00-point implied total.

Using Brees in the MVP slot could backfire in a big way, but it can be a savvy pivot off the likely Kamara MVP chalk.

Derek Carr, Raiders ($13,000)

This isn't a good matchup for Derek Carr, but quarterbacks are always worth a look on single-game slates.

Carr didn't have to do too much against Carolina in Week 1 as Josh Jacobs ($13,500) ran wild, but that should be different in this one with Vegas an underdog.

With Henry Ruggs (9,500) looking iffy and Thomas out, we have to spend some salary somewhere. I'm interested in Carr more than Jacobs because Jacobs wasn't nearly as productive in losses as a rookie, averaging 80.0 rushing yards -- compared to 98.3 in wins -- and just 1.1 catches per game in defeats.

The Saints' defense looked good in Week 1, but we project Carr for 16.4 FanDuel points, the third-most of the slate.

Latavius Murray, Saints ($7,500)

In a game in which New Orleans is projected to see a positive game script, there's a lot to like about Latavius Murray at this salary.

Murray out-carried Kamara in Week 1 (15 to 12), and he out-rushed him, too (48 to 16). In 2019, Kamara and Murray both had the same number of carries (14) inside the 10-yard line. On top of all that, with Thomas sidelined, Kamara might end up being split out wide more than usual, potentially opening up more snaps and opportunity for Murray.

Using both Kamara and Murray could give you a unique build.

Bryan Edwards, Raiders ($7,000)

Bryan Edwards didn't do much of anything in Week 1 (one target for nine yards), but he played 75 percent of the snaps. With Ruggs in doubt, Edwards could be the Raiders' number-one receiver on Monday night.

Edwards generated some buzz in camp, and if you're building a lineup under the assumption of a Vegas loss, he makes sense. I like both Edwards and Hunter Renfrow ($7,500) over the high-salaried Darren Waller ($11,500). The Saints allowed just 9.0 FanDuel points per game to tight ends a campaign ago.