Monday Night Football Predictions: Giants vs. Rams

The Super Bowl favorites will look to put their season-opening loss behind them when the Los Angeles Rams take on the New York Giants in their Week 2 Monday night football game. The Rams have some egg on their face after telling everyone who would listen that they had figured out a lifehack for their Week 1 game against San Francisco in Melbourne, Australia, only to lose by 20 points. Now, the Rams will try to avoid an 0-2 start against the upstart Giants, so let’s get into the Monday night football predictions.

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Monday Night Football Matchup Preview

There’s no doubt that the Los Angeles Rams should be a medium favorite on NFL Monday night. The Rams are still extremely talented, but there is reason to be cautious after their Week 1 performance coupled with their travel back from Melbourne to Los Angeles. Additionally, Matthew Stafford didn’t play well, and the Rams’ front seven was gashed by San Francisco.

Meanwhile, the New York Giants have to be feeling great after their upset win over the Dallas Cowboys to start the season. Jaxson Dart was sublime, completing 23 of 29 passes for 230 yards and three touchdowns, and the Giants defense was able to shut down the Cowboys’ offense

Team Records & Recent Form

Big Blue is flying high after Week 1. The Giants are tied with the Philadelphia Eagles atop the NFC East with a 1-0 record, and this team looks much improved under John Harbaugh.

Conversely, the Rams are all alone in the cellar of the NFC West after one game. Arizona, San Francisco, and Seattle won their openers, leaving the Rams with longer NFC West odds and Super Bowl odds than they had a week ago.

Key Injuries & Roster Updates

The big news here is the injury to Myles Garrett. Los Angeles’ major offseason acquisition made the Rams Super Bowl favorites with a bullet, but he suffered a knee injury that required surgery in the season opener. Garrett does not have a definitive timetable to return, so the Rams are really hoping that former superstar Aaron Donald will be ready for Monday Night Football. Donald was the best defensive lineman in the game when he retired at the end of the 2023 season, and he still has an incredible physique.

Other Rams’ defenders are dealing with injuries too as linebackers Omar Speights and Nate Landman are questionable, alongside defensive backs Kam Curl and Kamren Kinchens.

The Giants have seven players listed as questionable for their Monday Night Football showdown against the Rams. Defensive backs Paulson Adebo, Deonte Banks, and Greg Newsome II, offensive tackles Andrew Thomas and Francis Mauigoa, defensive end Chauncey Golston, and linebacker Micah McFadden are all tagged as questionable.

Storylines to Watch

A loss for the Los Angeles Rams would lead to serious questions about their status as Super Bowl contenders. Fans and the media are willing to write off their poor performance in Australia, but an 0-2 start would send the talking heads into a tizzy.

If the Giants were to pull off the upset for the second straight week, people would start to float the idea of this team being a real contender. We have already seen New York’s Super Bowl odds drop from 70-1 to 50-1 following their Week 1 win, and another victory would see more people backing Big Blue.

Monday Night Football Odds

We have already seen decent movement surrounding the NFL odds for this game. The Los Angeles Rams were favored by 8.5 points over the New York Giants in a lookahead line last week. That line fell to 7.5 on Sunday afternoon, and now the Monday night football odds have the Rams favored by a flat 7 points.

Point Spread Odds

Los Angeles Rams -7 vs. New York Giants

Moneyline Odds

New York Giants +295
Los Angeles Rams -340

Over/Under Odds

Over/Under 48 Points

Monday Night Football Predictions

A lot of people will be backing the Rams as part of their Monday night football picks, but this is a bit of a tricky spot. Jet lag is still a distinct possibility even though the Rams flew in and out of Australia quickly, and there are serious concerns about this team’s pass rush with Garrett out of the lineup.

Winner Prediction

Los Angeles Rams

Score Prediction

Los Angeles Rams 24, New York Giants 23

X-Factor of the Game

The New York Giants have a real shot at pulling off the upset in this game, and Cam Skattebo could have a big night. San Francisco ran the ball 30 times for 174 yards, averaging 5.8 YPC, against the Rams’ front seven last week. Skattebo did not appear to have any lasting effects from his injury, and he rushed for 81 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries against Dallas on Sunday Night Football.

Best Bets for Monday Night Football

The New York Giants +7 is one of my Monday night football best bets. There hasn’t been a lot to cheer for in the Big Apple in recent years, but John Harbaugh seems to have lit a fire under this offense. Jaxson Dart looked great in the season opener, and his dual threat ability will make him especially dangerous early in the year. The Rams will have trouble stopping the run once more, and I am very tempted to take the Giants’ moneyline too.

Best Spread Bet

New York Giants +7

Best Moneyline Bet

New York Giants +295

Best Total Bet

Under 48 Points

Monday Night Football Player Props

This is a bit of a tougher spot for me as far as Monday night football player props are concerned. I was very confident in last week’s NFL Player Props, and I hit almost all of them. Bo Nix went well under his passing totals, Patrick Mahomes went under his passing total, Kenneth Walker III almost tripled his rushing total, and Travis Kelce went over his receiving total while finishing as the game’s leading receiver. Kenneth Walker III also found the end zone, so the only one of my NFL props that I missed was Kelce to score a touchdown.

Passing Props

Matt Stafford’s Over/Under is set at 244.5 Passing Yards, while Jaxson Dart’s Over/Under is set at 213.5 Passing Yards. I don’t have a good read on Stafford in this game, but I do believe that Dart will surpass his total. The Rams don’t have nearly as intimidating of a pass rush with Garrett injured, and Donald is a big question mark until he gets back on the field.

Rushing Props

I like Cam Skattebo Over 50.5 Rushing Yards and Jaxson Dart Over 30.5 Rushing Yards as well. Offenses are going to be able to move the ball via the ground game on this front seven, and Dart is more than happy to take off and run.

Kyren Williams has an Over/Under of 62.5 Rushing Yards, and Blake Corum has an Over/Under of 45.5 Rushing Yards for the Rams. This is a Running Back by Committee situation, so it’s tough to bet either side of these numbers.

Receiving Props

Unsurprisingly, Puka Nacua has the highest receiving total on the board at 86.5 Receiving Yards. Malik Nabers is the top option for the Giants with 65.5 Receiving Yards, while Isaiah Likely’s number is set at 45.5 Receiving Yards after last week’s big game. The only option I really like though is Davante Adams Over 44.5 Receiving Yards. Adams was only targeted six times last week, but I think Matt Stafford will look his way more often.

Anytime Touchdown Scorer

Jaxson Dart is still undervalued as a running threat, so Dart to run for a touchdown is my favorite play here.

Monday Night Football Betting Trends

There were no real NFL betting trends evident in Week 1. The Over cashed in 9 of the 16 games, as a handful of teams lit up the scoreboard. Similarly, the NFL ATS record of favorites was 9-7 in Week 1. Teaser bettors were largely unhappy though as 10 teams covered the number by more than double digits.

Against the Spread Trends

The first Monday Night Football game of the season saw the Kansas City Chiefs easily defeat the Denver Broncos at home as a short favorite.

Over/Under Trends

The Under is 1-0 in Monday Night Football games as last week’s tilt finished with just 41 points.

Head-to-Head Trends

It’s been 10 years since the Giants last beat the Rams. The Rams have won the last four meetings in this series, and two of those four wins were blowouts by 27 or more points. The Giants nearly knocked off the Rams on New Year’s Eve in 2023 though, losing by one point to the Rams after a failed two-point conversion attempt late in the fourth quarter.

How to Bet on Monday Night Football

Betting on Monday Night Football is just like betting the NFL on other days. The only thing to keep in mind is that this is the last game of the week, so many bettors will be looking to either solidify their winnings or break even after a bad Sunday.

Understanding NFL Betting Markets

It’s important to watch key numbers in the NFL. Games are very likely to be decided by a single score, so numbers like 3, 4, 6, and 7 are all important. The number 3 is by far the most important number of the bunch, and it takes a lot of action to move a spread onto or off of 3.

Tips for Betting Monday Night Football

Keep an eye on the injury report ahead of this game since so many players are currently listed as questionable.

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