Kickers Corner
Are you ready to continue to build your lineups from the bottom up? If you have not yet done so, check out my posting for Defenses Here. For many, the way to build is to start from the top, pick out the QB that they want. They leave Def and Kicker to the end and just take whomever you can fit. For some, they choose to start at the bottom and work their way to the top. This way no spot goes without proper thought. I am here to help you by doing that research for you with the focus at the bottom of the roster.
Before the Pick Research
I love to play on Fanduel and one of those reasons is that I believe that the Kicker gives us an advantage. So many people roster whatever cheap kicker they can place. About as much thought goes into who they play kicker as they do who’s the boss. The best thing is, the Kicker might be one of the easiest spots to select. If you want to know what I look for in selecting a kicker I have you covered in my How to Pick a Kicker to find out.
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For a quick refresher remember these tips
- Teams expected to score over 24 points and favored to win preferably at home.
- Teams who play indoors or where the weather is not an issue.
- Kickers who can actually kick the ball from distance with high accuracy.
- forget about the price, and focus on the skill.
The main reason we want to focus on everything but ignore the price is that no other position on your roster will have more chance to return points based on the difference in salary. Top priced kickers are 5100, the bottom price is 4500. Many top options will fall into the 4700 range, that means for 200 more you could easily grab a 15 point kicker whereas the 4500 guys may only be good for 8.
Cash Kickers
Cash kickers will be kickers who can score us a solid 8-10 points. If they get more that is great, but we really need that safety floor just like any other roster spot. This could be 1 FG and 3 XP or it could be all FGs. To find these we will strictly follow the rules laid out above.
- Stephen Gostkowski
- Kai Forbath
- Adam Vinatieri
Stephen Gostkowski
This is one of those plays where it could backfire as NE might not give it everything they can. The fight against Pit for the home field was the main reason we wanted to focus on NE. The problem is Pit is sitting their stars which means the game might not matter. If Pit isn’t pushing than why will NE push? The bright side is that Gost can still be put to use all game long. I just do not like his upside for more than cash.
Kai Forbath
Forbath has been solid for most of the season, but he has not really shown himself as a stud. He gets enough use to be cash safe most weeks and if things go his way he could put up GPP winning numbers. If you are looking for a safe call then I really like Forbath for the safety and he comes in at 5k which can be easy to fill this in.
Adam Vinatieri
Viny gets the matchup boost this weekend. There is always the chance that Vinatieri gets no use as Indy falls behind the numbers. The bright side is Indy is only really bad in the 4th quarter so I think Viny can be used all game for the most part. Only 4700 for some savings but not great upside. Look for those 10-12 point games as the norm.
Hybrid Plays
If you are not sure why a hybrid play is I suggest checking out a Geek Favorite to understand what I am talking about. A quick breakdown, however, is these are players who carry a little more risk for more upside. This is an area where we can kind of skip some of the rules or interpret them our own way.
- Justin Tucker
- Matt Prater
- Wil Lutz
Justin Tucker
Tucker is my number one target for DFS this weekend. There are a few things to take note, first is there will be some 10-15 mph wind and second the weather outside is frightful. The reason we say F-it is because Tucker has the best leg in NFL. I am not worried about winds 15 mph and under, but if the reports change and they are going to be sustained higher than we need to worry. There is nothing we can do about the cold so there is always that worry. Tucker has 20 point upside, but with the weather, he might be lucky to bust 10 points. I do not think he will kill you regardless because of the ability to kick from so far out and the fact that he is getting used.
Matt Prater
Lions are out of the hunt which can be bad if they struggle to move the ball. Prater still has the ability to get the work and the leg to take advantage of them. Green Bay is a team we want to target normally so we can do that with Prater again. I do not think this is a safe spot as I can see game flow where Prater busts almost as much as he does well. If you want to play Prater do so with risk, but he is pricey and not as good as Tucker.
Wil Lutz
Lutz could have been one of our fantasy studs all season, but he is not used enough. 35 kicks all season is what he had because NO has just scored so well. This is another week where Lutz could have the same issue, but the focus comes from the fact that Lutz is playing on a team that needs to win. I would rather play Prater once again, but Lutz has a safe floor and risky upside. That is a nice problem to have if we do not want to bust.
GPP Kickers
This group of kickers may score you 0 points but they offer the upside of 20 points if things go your way. These are the guys you may only play if you are going MME and looking to be different. They are also the kickers who may win you that 30,000 person contest. Of course, they are also the same ones who could lose it for you. RISK BE WARNED!
- Ka’imi Fairbairn
- Robbie Gould
- Chris Boswell
These kickers are risky. Each offers something that I see where we could end up with a great score. For more on that join me in Slack and let’s talk about them together.