For the second straight week kicking production was down across the board, with just eight kickers managing to top 10 fantasy points. The top performers were Cameron Dicker of the Chargers and Brandon McManus for the Jags, both of whom scored 16 points for their respective teams.
The 16 points for the top performer was the lowest amount of any week this season, yet collectively, there was only one missed extra point and 10 missed field goals on the day.
The top performer of the week should have been Riley Patterson of the Lions, who inexplicably missed a chip-shot 29-yard attempt against the Raiders on “Monday Night Football.” Depending on league scoring, that could have been upwards of a five-point swing if you use negative points, dropping Patterson to 14 points for the night.
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Fantasy Football Week 8 Kicker Rankings & Waiver Wire Advice (2023)
(Rostership percentages courtesy of Yahoo!)
Week 8 Strong Performances From Widely-Available Kickers:
Cameron Dicker (LAC) vs. Chicago | 33% rostered
We did not have a kicker rostered in single digits finish as a top-five performer this week, so I’m opting to go with Dicker and his 16 points against the Bears. After starting off red hot with two games of 10 or more points in Weeks 1 and 2, Dicker cooled off before this breakout week against Chicago. His Week 9 matchup on the road against the stingy Jets could be another nice week for Dicker.
Matt Gay (IND) vs. New Orleans | 20% rostered
May Gay continues to impress with an average of 10 fantasy points in each of his last three games. If you take out his goose egg Week 4 against the Rams, he has not given fantasy owners less than eight points per game dating back to Week 2, including a 24-point barrage in a surprising road win against the Ravens.
Week 8 Dud Performances From Heavily-Rostered Kickers
Tyler Bass (BUF) vs. Tampa Bay | 95% rostered
There are only four kickers on Yahoo! with a roster percentage of 90% or higher, and only Tyler Bass failed to score eight or more fantasy points this past week. I am not trying to pick on him, but Bass has been dead weight this season and enters Week 9 as the 13th-ranked kicker in 2023.
Kicker Rankings:
| Rank | ECR | Name | TEAM | Opponent | Spread | O/U | OPP RZ D | RZ EFF* | OFF RNK | K Score** | Weather |
| 1 | 3 | Jake Elliott | PHI | vs. DAL | 46 | -3 | 16 | 14 | 3 | 33 | 63F, 12 MPH Wind |
| 2 | 1 | Harrison Butker | KC | vs. MIA | 51 | -2.5 | 28 | 15 | 4 | 47 | 54F, Rain, 20 MPH Wind |
| 3 | 2 | Justin Tucker | BAL | vs. SEA | 42.5 | -5.5 | 30 | 29 | 11 | 70 | 66F, 10 MPH Wind |
| 4 | 4 | Brandon Aubrey | DAL | at PHI | 46 | 3 | 26 | 3 | 15 | 44 | 63F, 12 MPH Wind |
| 5 | 10 | Cameron Dicker | LAC | at NYJ | 41 | -3 | 4 | 28 | 7 | 39 | 52F, 10 MPH Wind |
| 6 | 5 | Blake Grupe | NO | vs. CHI | 41 | -7 | 32 | 5 | 12 | 49 | Dome |
| 7 | 6 | Jason Sanders | MIA | at KC | 51 | 2.5 | 15 | 31 | 1 | 47 | 54F, Rain, 20 MPH Wind |
| 8 | 12 | Ka’imi Fairbairn | HOU | vs. TB | 40 | -3 | 1 | 6 | 17 | 24 | Dome |
| 9 | 14 | Nick Folk | TEN | at PIT | 36 | 2.5 | 12 | 2 | 24 | 38 | 41F, 9 MPH Wind |
| 10 | 21 | Chase McLaughlin | TB | at HOU | 40 | 3 | 7 | 4 | 23 | 34 | Dome |
| 11 | 7 | Dustin Hopkins | CLE | vs. ARI | 37.5 | -7 | 20 | 23 | 18 | 61 | 59F, Rain, 14 MPH Wind |
| 12 | 8 | Tyler Bass | BUF | at CIN | 48.5 | 3 | 10 | 30 | 5 | 45 | 55F, 12 MPH Wind Chance of Rain |
| 13 | 9 | Younghoe Koo | ATL | vs. MIN | 37.5 | -4.5 | 21 | 13 | 14 | 48 | Dome |
| 14 | 11 | Matt Gay | IND | at CAR | 44 | -3 | 31 | 21 | 8 | 60 | 67F, 8 MPH Wind, Chance of rain |
| 15 | 13 | Evan McPherson | CIN | vs. BUF | 48.5 | -3 | 6 | 23 | 28 | 57 | 55F, 12 MPH Wind Chance of Rain |
| 16 | 20 | Greg Joseph | MIN | at ATL | 37.5 | 4.5 | 5 | 10 | 10 | 25 | Dome |
| 17 | 15 | Chris Boswell | PIT | vs. TEN | 36 | -2.5 | 2 | 8 | 30 | 40 | 41F, 9 MPH Wind |
| 18 | 17 | Jason Myers | SEA | at BAL | 42.5 | 5.5 | 3 | 13 | 16 | 32 | 66F, 10 MPH Wind |
| 19 | 18 | Daniel Carlson | LV | vs. NYG | 46 | -3 | 17 | 7 | 31 | 55 | Dome |
| 20 | 27 | Lucas Havrisik | LAR | at GB | 40 | 3 | 8 | 20 | 9 | 37 | 59F, Rain, 14 MPH Wind |
| 21 | 16 | Greg Zuerlein | NYJ | vs. LAC | 41 | 3 | 21 | 0 | 29 | 50 | 52F, 10 MPH Wind |
| 22 | 19 | Eddy Pineiro | CAR | vs. IND | 44 | 4 | 24 | 16 | 27 | 67 | 67F, 8 MPH Wind, Chance of rain |
| 23 | 22 | Anders Carlson | GB | vs. LAR | 40 | -3 | 17 | 19 | 25 | 61 | 59F, Rain, 14 MPH Wind |
| 24 | 23 | Graham Gano | NYG | at LV | 37 | 3 | 25 | 1 | 32 | 58 | Dome |
| 25 | 24 | Joey Slye | WAS | at NE | 40 | 3 | 9 | 24 | 20 | 53 | 60F, 12 MPH Wind |
| 26 | 25 | Cairo Santos | CHI | at NO | 41 | 7 | 19 | 28 | 19 | 66 | Dome |
| 27 | 26 | Matt Prater | ARI | at CLE | 37.5 | 7 | 29 | 18 | 21 | 68 | 59F, Rain, 14 MPH Wind |
| 28 | 28 | Chad Ryland | NE | vs. WAS | 40 | -3 | 12 | 25 | 26 | 63 | 60F, 12 MPH Wind |
*Red Zone Efficiency is based on the inverse of how well the kicker’s offense does in the red zone. For example, the Ravens rank 30th in red zone efficiency; therefore, Justin Tucker has a RZ EFF score of 2. The lower the number, the better for kickers, as playing on a team that struggles to score touchdowns in the red zone equates to more field goal opportunities.
**The K Score is the sum of a player’s opponent’s red zone, the red zone efficiency of his offense and the overall rank of his respective team in terms of total yards. A low score indicates that a kicker has variables working in his favor for a good fantasy kicking performance.
Kicker rankings are based on numerous factors, including matchups, Vegas lines and score projections, weather conditions, the ability of a kicker’s team offense and their ability to move the ball into field goal range, offensive red zone efficiency and how well the opposing defense limits touchdowns in the red zone. These factors are a guide but not a definitive way to predict kicking success, as other variables and negative game scripts significantly impact the outcome.
Contrarian Kicker Plays
Based on the variables outlined above, the following two kickers are players ranked outside of the FantasyPros ECR top 10 who could be excellent plays in Week 9.
Nick Folk (TEN) @ Pittsburgh | 18% rostered
In a week where we don’t have an outlier K Score option to recommend, Nick Folk on the road against the Steelers could be a good play. This has the makings of being an ugly, low-scoring game, and Will Levis looked pretty strong last week against the Falcons. Folk’s K Score is 38, making him a player who should post between eight and 12 fantasy points.
Ka’imi Fairbairn (HOU) vs. Tampa Bay | 15% rostered
Ka’imi Fairbairn burned fantasy managers last week (myself included) with just one fantasy point against the Panthers. It was a surprising outcome, and the only time this season that Fairbairn did not reach at least eight points. He is home and has one of the best K Scores of the week.
Prediction Review
Each week, I suggest two kickers ranked outside the FantasyPros ECR top 10 who I believe will be solid performers based on the variables described in the K Score section. The following is a review of my picks from the previous week to see where I was successful and where I missed the mark.
Younghoe Koo (ATL) @ Tennessee | 68% rostered
- ECR Rank: 15
- My Rank: 5
- Week 8 Finish: 5
As long as the Titans, under rookie Will Levis, did not have a massive game that created a negative game script, Younghoe Koo’s K Score of 26 indicated he was a no-brainer play this week on the road in Tennessee. That proved to be the case, and the veteran kicked came through with 12 fantasy points.
Greg Joseph (MIN) @ Green Bay | 11% rostered
- ECR Rank: 19
- My Rank: 10
- Week 8 Finish: Kicker Tied 20
The goal of the K Score is to predict kicker opportunity, and it worked well in the case of Greg Joseph. He had three field goal attempts and three extra points, which should have resulted in 15 fantasy points and a top-five finish. Unfortunately, he missed two of those three field goals and finished with a measly four points.
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