Monday's Madden showdown on DraftKings is a single-game slate, HOU @ LAR, and it locks at 12:00 p.m. ET (9:00 a.m. PT). The captain slot scores 1.5x points at 1.5x salary, and lineups work under a $50,000 cap.
The top of our model's ranking is crowded with LAR names. Matthew Stafford costs $10,600 and carries a ceiling of 29.9, well above his DraftKings average of 16.0. Puka Nacua is the priciest of the group at $11,000, with a 29.7 ceiling against an 18.2 average. Kyren Williams sits at $10,200 with a ceiling of 27.4. On the HOU side, C.J. Stroud is $9,200 with a 28.0 ceiling, and David Montgomery is $8,000 with a 25.4 ceiling.
The clearest value is Kayshon Boutte of HOU. At $5,000, he shows a ceiling of 34.1, the highest on our list, even though his DraftKings average is just 8.8. That gap makes him the best way to free up salary for the expensive spots. Dalton Schultz is a second HOU option at $6,200, with a 22.7 ceiling and a 9.3 average. Davante Adams of LAR costs $7,400 and has a 19.4 ceiling.
The crowd is likely to gather around Stafford, whose projected ownership is 67%. Stroud follows at 54%, and Williams and Nacua are both at 47%. Boutte projects at only 18% and Schultz at 20%, so both come in well below the heavy hitters. Montgomery and Adams are each at 30%.
Our model's top lineup uses $49,400 of the $50,000 cap. It puts David Montgomery in the captain slot at $12,000, then adds Kyren Williams at $10,200, C.J. Stroud at $9,200, Tank Dell at $6,800, Dalton Schultz at $6,200 and Kayshon Boutte at $5,000. It leans toward HOU and skips the most popular name on the slate in Stafford.
Set your lineups before the 12:00 p.m. ET lock.
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