What are Showdown and Single-Game contests?
Showdown and Single-Game slates are contests where you are draftking a DFS lineup for a single game. They are front and center on Monday, Thursday and Sunday nights, where the prize pools can easily be up in the 7 figures. Salary caps are the same as classic contests; however a lineup in these contests consists of fewer players.
How to build a winning DraftKings showdown lineup?
There are a few guidelines that consistently apply to winning lineups in showdown and single-game contests. First, build a roster around how you think the game script might go. Will this be a run heavy game? Will kickers and DST play much of a factor? Second, use Vegas totals to help validate your game script. A Vegas total of 40 points or less suggests it will be a slower-paced, defense heavy game. We would expect in this case RB1, QB1, and DST to lead in scoring. Finally, more often than not, you should be rostering a QB, RB, or WR in the captain slot. A TE often just doesn't have the upside that a WR has, and a strong performance from a kicker or DST are both uncommon, and very difficult to accurately predict. Ready to jump into a showdown slate? Head over to our DraftKings Showdown Optimizer and start building lineups today!
How does DraftKings showdown scoring work?
DraftKings NFL Showdown scoring is conveniently the exact same as scoring in classic slates, which uses the PPR scoring method. The biggest difference in scoring is that since showdown slates have kickers, you should brush up on how kicker points work (40-49 yard field goals are worth four points, 50-plus yard field goals are worth five points on both DraftKings and FanDuel). The other critical factor when it comes to scoring is the Captain slot. The Captain slot will give you 1.5x Fantasy Points when you roster a player in this spot, at a cost of 1.5x salary. Strategically you'll want to put the biggest scorers in this slot, which is usually going to be a QB, RB, or WR.
How does the Captain slot work in DraftKings Showdown contests?
The Captain slot is one of 6 available slots, the other 5 being FLEX slots. The captain slot is often the most important slot to roster, as it awards 1.5x fantasy points, at a cost of 1.5x salary. You only can put one player in this slot, and it can be any player in the roster. Because it's so critical to racking up points, you'll want to put a position which has a higher likelihood of a break out performance. More often than not, this is going to be a QB1, RB1, or WR1.
How does the MVP slot work in FanDuel Single-Game contests?
The MVP slot is one of 5 available slots, the other 4 being FLEX slots. The MVP slot is similar to DraftKings in that it awards 1.5x fantasy points; however it costs the exact same as a regular slot. Because of this, it is even more critical than on DraftKings to select a high performing player in this slot, as the points are all upside relative to the cost. Because FanDuel has less slots in their single-game contest vs a showdown slate, there is less margin of effort, and the MVP slot is an even more critical slot.
How many players can you roster from each showdown team?
Both FanDuel and DraftKings require that you roster at least 1 player from each team. With 5 slots available on FanDuel, that means you have a choice of a 4-1 or 3-2 split to decide from. Based on historical data, a 3-2 split produces the optimal lineup roughly 2/3rds of the time. When it comes to DraftKings showdown slates, the optimal splits willl be the 3-3 and 4-2 split option. A 5-1 split should generally be avoided unless the game is expected to be a heavy one-sided blowout.
