The Perfect SNF DFS Showdown Lineup on DraftKings Featuring Adam Thielen

Get ready for the Falcons vs. Vikings DraftKings showdown slate with top DFS picks, strategy insights, and lineup tips to help you cash big in Week 2.

Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen (19) during warmups prior to the game against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. | Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

On Sunday night, DraftKings has a single-game showdown for an NFL matchup, with a smaller overall prize ($250,000) due to a smaller window to fill the event. This week’s contest between the Atlanta Falcons and Minnesota Vikings has a $15 entry fee, requiring 87,145 teams to sell out.

On Thursday night, 21 teams put in the same rosters, leading to each entry taking home $59,071.43. Here’s a look at the winning team: 

DraftKings

The winning margins in these showdown contests are minimal, and there can be wide scoring changes with each touchdown. The second-best roster (14 the same) scored 128.48 fantasy points, but each team only won $1,142.86. 

Based on my projections for this game, I had Tucker Kraft rated the highest in this matchup based on his fantasy points per $1,000. 

Shawn Childs

Romeo Doubs hit the winning ticket, and he was projected to be the best value, highlighted in this paragraph in my Thursday Night Showdown writeup.

Shawn Child

Romeo Doubs led the team in wide receiver snaps (34 – 75%) in Week 1, and he looks mispriced ($4,000) by DraftKings in this matchup. He only needs a 4/40 day to deliver a 2X outcome for his salary investment. Doubs averaged 9.52 fantasy points in PPR formats last year.

I had both Jayden Daniels and Jordan Love in my perfect lineup for that game, but I couldn’t get off Josh Jacobs and Terry McLaurin, leading me in the wrong direction to fill my other two roster slots.

In my Falcons/Vikings game preview article, I showed some DraftKings prop lines and player writeups to show their potential value in this matchup.

Last week, Atlanta deserved a better outcome vs. the Buccaneers, but their kicker missed a late-game tying field goal. They’ll have Darnell Mooney back in the starting lineup against the Vikings, helping Michael Penix Jr. move the ball. Bijan Robinson remains a beast at running back, and Kyle Pitts showed more life in Week 1.

Minnesota looked lost offensively for three quarters against the Bears, and the fantasy market was losing faith in J.J. McCarthy and the potential season-long value for Justin Jefferson. Three late touchdowns by their young quarterback and a victory have Vikings’ fans excited again for their 2025 season outlook. Jordan Mason looked good running the ball, but Aaron Jones was the better fantasy running back on the Vikings in Week 1.

Here’s a look at this week’s top skill players:

Quarterbacks

Shawn Childs

In this matchup, it would only be fitting for Kirk Cousins to come off the bench to beat his former team later in the game. Both quarterbacks rate below the desired 2X value required to be a captain in a showdown format. I have Michael Penix Jr. as a much weaker option due to his lower value running the ball (surprised to see him have an over/under of 8.5 rushing yards at DraftKings), and the ceiling of Bijan Robinson in the Falcons’ offense.

J.J. McCarthy should get out of the gate faster in this matchup, while needing at least two combined touchdowns to land on the winning ticket in this showdown slate. His salary ($9,400) is favorable when considering that Minnesota should throw the ball much more than 20 times in this game.

Running Backs

Shawn Child

I have Bijan Robinson projected to score a touchdown in this game, and scoring tends to lead down the winning path in showdown slates. In Week 1, there were 17 rushing touchdowns scored by running backs, 10 of which I gave a 100% chance of scoring (all top-name players). The Falcons’ top back has scored more than 20.00 fantasy points in nine of his last 11 starts, including one at Minnesota (20.10).

Jordan Mason must reach paydirt to fill his salary bucket, with at least seven other fantasy points. Based on his running success last week, he fits into a live option on this showdown ticket. There was a minimal adjustment to the salary for Aaron Jones coming into this matchup, keeping him in the mix on this slate. His pass-catching helps his floor, and Minnesota will give him some scoring chances.

Wide Receivers

Shawn Childs

Justin Jefferson didn’t rate well for me in this game, but he still has the most explosiveness in the passing game for both teams. The Vikings struggled to get him the ball deep downfield against the Bears, but they did miss out on a potential long score to Jalen Nailor when J.J. McCarthy threw his pick-6. Jefferson would be hard to knock off this ticket due to the lack of players with a chance to score than 20.00 fantasy points. In 2024, he dusted the Falcons for seven catches for 132 yards and two touchdowns in Week 14 at home, which screams of a captain play.

Michael Penix Jr. gave Drake London 15 chances last week, but they only connected on eight passes for 55 yards. He came out of the game banged up (shoulder), but London isn’t listed on the injury report. The Vikings held him to five catches for 70 yards on 10 targets last season. D.J. Moore broke free multiple times in Week 1 for potentially long catches against Minnesota, but Caleb Williams either didn’t see him or threw an off-target pass. London is a volume receiver, and Atlanta will look his way many times in this game. He has an excellent chance of landing on the winning ticket in this matchup.

The Falcons will have the services of Darnell Mooney in this game. Last year, he revived his career in Atlanta after losing his way in his final two seasons with Chicago. His movements in open space create winning catch windows, giving him an interesting combination of explosiveness and floor value. Mooney only has 16 touchdowns over his 76 games in the NFL. After missing much of August with his shoulder issue, his timing with Michael Penix Jr. could be off in his first game back.

Adam Thielen and Jalen Nailor are live backend fillers on this showdown slate based on their lower salary. The Vikings had Nailor on the field for 88% of their plays in Week 1, compared to 57% by Thielen.

Tight Ends

Shawn Child

Kyle Pitts rated better in this game than T.J. Hockenson, partly because of his lower salary. He played well in Week 1 (7/59 on eight targets), but his opportunity should be less with Darnell Mooney back on the field. At the same time, the Vikings’ second wideout should draw more attention from defenses. Pitts still has a high ceiling at tight end, and hopefully, he builds his 2025 resume in this game.

Minnesota failed to get T.J. Hockenson involved in Week 1 (3/15 on four targets) while being on the field for 80% of their plays. He only had four catches for 45 yards on five targets against the Falcons. Atlanta’s defense has to be planning to slow down Justin Jefferson, which should be a win for Hockenson. He is also a player who has had lower grades in scoring value in his career (23 touches over 83 games). 

I’m a fan of the Vikings kicker (Will Reichard) due to his big leg (made a 59-yard field goal in Week 1), and the Vikings should grade well in scoring this year. He landed on the winning ticket on Monday night, and I could see the same thing happening in this showdown slate.

Atlanta flipped kickers this week, giving Parker Romo a chance to play against his former team. He had 91.7% of his 12 field goals last year, with only one successful chance from 50 yards or more.

The Perfect Sunday Night Football DFS Showdown Lineup

DraftKings