2008 Fantasy Football Preview: Kickers
08/11/2008
Sports Channel / Bullz-Eye Home
Do yourself a favor and wait for a few kickers to be drafted before pulling the trigger on one. If you can’t snag one of our top four, you can wait even longer because there isn’t much difference between PK5 and PK22. A good rule of thumb is to grab a kicker once 8-10 have already been drafted.
You’ll want to focus on good kickers in good offenses. That way, you’ll benefit from lots of extra points and a good number of field goal attempts. It also helps if the kicker plays his home games indoors or in nice weather. There are kickers who play outdoors for bad offenses that still do pretty well (Rob Bironas, Robbie Gould, Matt Stover etc.), but since they rely so much on field goal scoring, their week-to-week numbers are typically inconsistent.
Don’t bother drafting a backup kicker unless your league roster is huge. You’re better off rolling the dice on a flier at RB or WR who might pan out and help your team. There are always decent kickers on the waiver wire to fill in during your kicker’s bye week.
We’ve ranked the position in tiers to give you a better idea of how we view the drop-off within the position. There is a low sample size of Antsports Average Draft Position data, so we decided not to include it. You shouldn’t be drafting your kicker until the very last round or two anyway.
Stephen Gostkowski, Patriots
21/24 FG, 74 XP
Look at all of those extra points. That’s some serious consistency week-to-week.
Nick Folk, Cowboys
26/31 FG, 53 XP
Dallas has a high-powered offense that sometimes grinds to a stop in the redzone. That’s good for Folk.
Adam Vinatieri, Colts
23/29 FG, 49 XP
Kicking for the Colts ensures plenty of opportunity in (usually) good conditions.
Nate Kaeding, Chargers
24/27 FG, 46 XP
Kicking in sunny San Diego for one of the league’s best offenses has its rewards.
Shayne Graham, Bengals
31/34 FG, 37 XP
Graham has been a top 10 kicker for the last four years. Cincy’s offense should have a better 2008.
Mason Crosby, Packers
31/39 FG, 48 XP
The Packers had some redzone troubles last year and that resulted in a ton of attempts for Crosby. Can Rodgers march them down the field like Favre did?
Josh Scobee, Jaguars
12/13 FG, 26 XP
Scobee only appeared in eight games last season, so if we double his output, he would have been a top 10 kicker.
Jeff Reed, Steelers
23/25 FG, 44 XP
It’s tough to kick in Pittsburgh, but Reed benefits from a good offense that gives him plenty of opportunities.
Phil Dawson, Browns
26/30 FG, 42 XP
Dawson benefited from the resurgent Cleveland offense, which should have another good year.
Neil Rackers, Cardinals
21/30 FG, 47 XP
After two top 10 appearances, Rackers had an off year in 2007. He kicks indoors for a pretty good offense.
Rob Bironas, Titans
35/39 FG, 28 XP
Bironas hit eight FG in week 7. Otherwise, his numbers wouldn’t look so good.
Matt Stover, Ravens
27/32 FG, 26 XP
After four consecutive top 10 appearances, Stover was a victim of the Ravens’ inept offense. New OC Cam Cameron should increase his chances.
Josh Brown, Rams
28/34 FG, 43 XP
Al Saunders’ arrival should help the Rams offense to improve, which should help Brown get more opportunities than Jeff Wilkins did last season. Kicking indoors is always a plus.
Robbie Gould, Bears
31/36 FG, 33 XP
Gould consistently gets a ton of FG attempts because the Bears can’t punch it in. This should continue, which means his week-to-week scoring will be up and down.
Kris Brown, Texans
25/29 FG, 40 XP
He kicks indoors for a decent offense, but his accuracy is erratic.
Lawrence Tynes, Giants
23/27 FG, 40 XP
Tynes regularly has to kick in tough conditions at the windy Meadowlands. The Giants move the ball well, however.
David Akers, Eagles
24/32 FG, 36 XP
Akers used to be a perennial top 10 performer, but his accuracy and opportunity has been down over the last three years.
Matt Bryant, Buccaneers
28/32 FG, 34 XP
The Buccaneers’ offense was better last season and Bryant had more opportunities as a result. Not much has changed, so expect another productive year.
Jason Hanson
29/35 FG, 35 XP
Mike Martz is gone, which is probably going to hurt his opportunities, but he kicks in a dome and is pretty consistent.
Ryan Longwell, Vikings
20/24 FG, 39 XP
Minny’s offense can’t move the ball well, so Longwell’s chances are limited.
Shaun Suisham, Redskins
29/35 FG, 29 XP
New offense could mean struggles for Washington. He could post the same numbers if the Redskins get off to a good start.