The Week 8 NFL schedule opens with a cross-conference game on ‘Thursday Night Football’ with the Los Angeles Chargers hosting the Minnesota Vikings. Kickoff is scheduled for 8:15 p.m. ET, and the over/under is 44.5 points. The game features a strong NFL DFS player pool, with big names like Justin Herbert, Keenan Allen, Ladd McConkey, Jordan Mason and Justin Jefferson taking center stage. Finding undervalued players at a cheap price is still the key to building a winning NFL DFS strategy in Showdown contests — especially with this matchup featuring so many big-name players, who will likely be popular NFL DFS picks.
Should you target a potential sleeper pick like Adam Thielen or Kimani Vidal when building NFL DFS lineups? Vikings running back Aaron Jones is questionable to play after missing the last four games and bein on injured reserve. Before making any NFL DFS picks for Chargers vs. Vikings on ‘Thursday Night Football’ on sites like DraftKings and FanDuel, be sure to check out the NFL DFS lineup advice, strategy and player stacks from SportsLine NFL daily Fantasy expert Jimmie Kaylor.
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Kaylor is a NFL betting and DFS expert for SportsLine, who opened the 2022 NFL season by winning DraftKings’ NFL Showdown Thursday Kickoff Millionaire contest. He edged out over 355,000 other entrants in the contest and also has multiple five-figure tournament wins on his DFS resume. Kaylor has covered the NFL and college football for close to a decade as a member of the Pro Football Writers of America, and his background as a former college and NFL player gives him a unique perspective when building his fantasy lineups and locking in his betting picks.
Now, Kaylor has turned his attention to the Thursday Night Football matchup of Vikings vs. Chargers and just locked in his top daily Fantasy football picks. You can only see his Thursday Night Football DFS picks and analysis at SportsLine.
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Top NFL DFS picks, lineups, stacks for Vikings vs. Chargers
One of Kaylor’s top DFS picks for Thursday Night Football is Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert. The former Oregon standout has quickly established himself as one of the premier young signal-callers in the NFL. In the 2024 season, he threw for 3,870 yards, completing 65.9% of his passes, tossed 23 touchdowns and only three interceptions, finishing with a 101.7 passer rating. He gets to face a Vikings defense in which its last five offensive touchdowns allowed have come via the passing game.
Through the early portion of the 2025 campaign, he has already totaled 1,913 passing yards, 13 touchdowns, and six interceptions in seven games while leading the league in passing yards. Despite his impressive production, Herbert has been selected to the Pro Bowl just once, back in 2021, which many consider an underrepresentation of his talent. His combination of arm strength, pocket awareness, and mobility has made him the centerpiece of the Chargers’ offense under coach Jim Harbaugh, and he continues to trend toward the elite tier of NFL quarterbacks. See who else to roster right here.
Part of Kaylor’s optimal NFL DFS strategy also includes rostering Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson. The former LSU standout has rapidly ascended into the elite tier of NFL wide receivers, already earning four Pro Bowl selections by the 2024 season. In 2024, he caught 103 passes for 1,533 yards and 10 touchdowns, continuing his streak of five consecutive 1,000-yard seasons.
In the 2025 campaign he’s maintained that high standard, posting 34 receptions for 528 yards and one touchdown in limited play so far, with an impressive 15.5 yards per catch. Throughout his career, Jefferson has been a consistent target and game-changer, known for his ability to stretch the field and deliver in big moments. You can see the rest of Kaylor’s NFL DFS picks here.
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How to build NFL DFS lineups and stacks for Chargers vs. Vikings
Kaylor is also targeting another undervalued player who could explode for huge numbers on Thursday. This pick could be the difference between winning your tournaments and cash games or going home with nothing. You can only see who it is, and get the rest of Kaylor’s NFL DFS picks, at SportsLine.
So who is Jimmie Kaylor including in his optimal NFL DFS lineups for Vikings vs. Chargers on ‘Thursday Night Football,’ and which under-the-radar NFL DFS picks offer huge value? Visit SportsLine now to see optimal NFL DFS picks, rankings, advice, and stacks, all from SportsLine’s proven DFS expert who won a single-game millionaire maker tournament, and find out.
