Week 1 of the 2026 NFL season wraps up with a battle of AFC West rivals on Monday Night Football, as the Broncos visit the Chiefs in Kansas City at 8:15 p.m. EDT.
FanDuel and DraftKings both offer DFS showdown contests for the single-game MNF slate. The featured GPP contest on DraftKings is the Monday Night Showdown, with $20 entries and $500K to first place; FanDuel's NFL Monday Night Special offers $15 entries and $150K to the winner.
Monday Night Football Starting Lineups
The Broncos are projected to start:
- QB Bo Nix ($9,800 DK, $11,800 FD)
- RB J.K. Dobbins ($6,400 DK, $8,800 FD)
- WR Jaylen Waddle ($9,000 DK, $9,600 FD)
- WR Courtland Sutton ($8,000 DK, $10,200 FD)
- WR Marvin Mims ($3,000 DK, $3,400 FD)
- TE Evan Engram ($3,400 DK, $4,800 FD)
- K Wil Lutz ($5,200 DK, $6,600 FD)
The Chiefs counter with a starting lineup of:
- QB Patrick Mahomes ($9,600 DK, $12,400 FD)
- RB Kenneth Walker ($10,600 DK, $10,800 FD)
- WR Rashee Rice ($9,400 DK, $11,400 FD)
- WR Xavier Worthy ($6,600 DK, $7,600 FD)
- WR Tyquan Thornton ($3,600 DK, $5,200 FD)
- TE Travis Kelce ($7,000 DK, $7,200 FD)
- K Harrison Butker ($5,000 DK, $6,200 FD)
For lineup information, keep updated with our fantasy football news page. Always consult our NFL Starting Lineups page for the latest starting lineup information prior to kickoff.
Our RotoWire NFL Optimizer will help you pinpoint top DFS targets, in addition to the players highlighted below.
Showdown DFS Roster Strategy
Both FanDuel and DraftKings have an MVP/Captain slot for showdown slates, followed by five flex positions. The MVP/Captain has a multiplier of 1.5X for both their fantasy production and salary. DraftKings lineups have a salary cap of $50,000, while FanDuel's is $60,000. DraftKings uses PPR scoring with bonuses for 100-yard receiving or rushing performances and 300-yard passing games, while FanDuel has 0.5 PPR scoring.
Paying up for projected top scorers as your Captain/MVP is usually worth it, though doing so requires taking a leap of faith on a bargain-bin option or two to round out your lineup. Taking the road less traveled with a cheaper player in the Captain/MVP slot helps improve the depth of your lineup and can pay off big in large GPP contests by giving your lineup more uniqueness, but this strategy lowers your floor, as a big game out of your Captain/MVP is a prerequisite to success in DFS showdown contests.
Starting QBs typically carry premium salaries, but it's usually worth it to deploy one or both of those options in your lineup. Starting WRs, RBs and TEs generally offer more upside than defenses and kickers, though the high floors of those last two positions can be useful to fill out a lineup if you aren't a fan of a game's skill position sleepers.
Quarterback
Patrick Mahomes is off the injury report, having made enough progress in his recovery from a torn ACL and LCL sustained in Week 15 of last season to make his return for the season opener. Conventional wisdom says to fade Mahomes coming off an injury and going against an elite defense, but the two-time MVP and three-time Super Bowl champion has managed to defy the odds before. Mahomes is certainly a viable MVP/Captain slot option for lineups that are going against the grain.
Bo Nix ranked eighth in the league in passing yards last season, and the 2024 first-round pick has generated substantial production with his legs, rushing for 786 yards and nine TDs through two NFL seasons. Denver's passing game could be even more potent following the offseason addition of WR Jaylen Waddle, but Nix sustained an ankle injury during the playoffs that required surgery to address, so he may not run quite as willingly in his return to game action. Nix is a viable MVP/Captain slot option, especially given head coach Sean Payton's tendency to spread the ball around on offense.
Running Back
The Chiefs made a splash by signing reigning Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker in the offseason. Walker is expected to be a three-down workhorse on his new team, with rookie fifth-round pick Emmett Johnson and 2025 seventh-round pick Brashard Smith on hand in change-of-pace roles. Walker topped 1,000 regular-season rushing yards twice in four seasons with the Seahawks, and he's likely to be among Monday's strongest fantasy performers, even against a Broncos defense that allowed the second-fewest rushing yards in the NFL last season.
J.K. Dobbins is poised to get most of the rushing opportunities in Denver's crowded backfield while RJ Harvey ($7,400 DK, $8,200 FD) should lead Broncos RBs in targets. Jonah Coleman could also factor into the mix, but the rookie fourth-round pick will probably play a limited role. Dobbins has been effective when healthy and averaged 5.0 yards per carry last season, while the 2025 second-round pick Harvey mustered just 3.7 YPC. The Chiefs allowed only eight rushing TDs to RBs last season, which was tied with the Broncos for fourth-fewest in the NFL.
Wide Receiver
Jaylen Waddle projects to lead Denver's pass catchers after exceeding 1,000 receiving yards in three of five campaigns in Miami. Courtland Sutton paced the Broncos' passing game with a 74-1,017-7 line last season and has topped 1,000 yards in both of his seasons with Nix at QB. Waddle and Sutton should both feature in plenty of lineups against a Chiefs secondary that underwent an offseason makeover, which included the departure of star cornerback Trent McDuffie, whom KC replaced with rookie sixth-overall pick Mansoor Delane.
Pat Bryant ($3,200 DK, $2,400 FD), Troy Franklin ($2,800 DK, $5,600 FD) and Marvin Mims are all viable dart-throw options in Denver's WR room. Mims is listed as the team's third starting WR, but he's likely to be used primarily as a gadget option on offense while contributing as a return man on special teams. The 2024 fourth-round pick Franklin finished second on the team behind Sutton in catches, receiving yards and receiving TDs with a 65-709-6 line in 2025. Bryant reportedly impressed coaches in the offseason, and the 2025 third-round pick may well operate ahead of both Franklin and Mims.
Rashee Rice has been elite when available, with career per-game averages of 5.6 catches for 64.2 yards and 0.5 TDs in 28 appearances spread across three seasons with the Chiefs. Mahomes' top target is worthy of lineup consideration, even though Rice is likely to see a heavy dose of elite Broncos cornerback Patrick Surtain. Speedster Xavier Worthy is a boom-or-bust option, with game-breaking 4.21 speed that makes the 2024 first-round pick a threat to score any time he gets the ball in space. Worthy was bothered by a shoulder injury throughout his disappointing sophomore season.
Tyquan Thornton had a career-high 438 receiving yards last season. He is listed as the team's No. 3 WR, but rookie fifth-round pick Cyrus Allen ($4,000 DK, $1,600 FD) is the more exciting affordable WR option, as Allen drew some training-camp buzz for his chemistry with Mahomes. Jalen Royals and Nikko Remigio round out Kansas City's receiving corps.
Tight End
Travis Kelce remains among the game's top TEs at age 36, having recorded at least 823 receiving yards in each of the past 12 seasons. He has Mahomes' trust and could be called upon frequently on short passes as Mahomes tries to get the ball out quickly against Denver's elite pass rush. The Broncos gave up the ninth-most yards to TEs last season.
Evan Engram is coming off a disappointing first season with the Broncos, during which he contributed just 461 yards and one TD. The 32-year-old TE remains atop the depth chart but seems to have lost a step or two compared to his prime years. Backups Adam Trautman and Nate Adkins also return after combining for 243 yards and two TDs in 2025.
Kicker/DST
The Broncos ($4,800 DK, $6,800 FD) led the league with 68 sacks in 2025 while allowing the second-fewest yards per game (278.2) and third-fewest points per game (18.3). Denver's vaunted defense offers a nice floor here, especially with Mahomes likely lacking his usual mobility. The Chiefs ($4,400 DK, $6,400 FD) have been a reliably above-average defense under DC Steve Spagnuolo, but this unit is noticeably less talented on paper than Denver's defense.
Wil Lutz is coming off an accurate season during which he converted 28 of 32 field-goal attempts for the Broncos. Harrison Butker has been among the league's best kickers for years, with a career 88.4 percent field-goal conversion rate. If this game is a defensive battle featuring more field goals than TDs, both kickers could be viable lineup options despite lacking the upside of similarly valued skill players.
