Fantasy Football Kicker Rankings & Waiver Wire Pickups (Week 8)

Sunday’s game between the Packers and the Lions was filled with crazy plays, head-scratching coaching decisions, egregious roughing-the-passer calls, the return of Josh Jacobs and all that goes along with his situation, and Jahmyr Gibbs nearly blowing out his knee trying to not score in the closing minute.

With so much going on in this divisional match, the disastrous kicking performance by rookie kicker Trey Smack gets buried among all the storylines.

Smack shanked a 26-yard field goal attempt after a delay-of-game penalty in the first quarter, only to follow that up with a 35-yard blocked attempt with 4:50 in the fourth quarter that would have given the Packers the lead. That gives Smack five missed field goals and two missed extra points on the season, putting him somewhat on the hot seat as the Packers are now 4-3 on the season and in last place in the NFC Central.

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Fantasy Football Kicker Rankings & Waiver Wire Pickups: Week 8

The 49ers continue to have kicking woes of their own, as Eddy Pinerio missed yet another extra point for the NFC West-leading Niners. Although the missed kick was not the deciding factor that led to their road loss against the Falcons, it did leave them needing two scores instead of a touchdown and two-point conversion on their final doomed drive that ended in a fumble by George Kittle.

Kyle Shanahan may have another kicking tryout over the break, even though San Francisco did sign Pineiro to an extension over the offseason.

Widely Available Kickers with Strong Week 7 Performances

Cairo Santos (K – CHI) vs. New England: 44% rostered on Yahoo

Santos led all scorers through Sunday Night with 15 fantasy points. He posted three field goals and three extra points, and even missed a long 50-yard try that would have given him a monster score on the week. Santos now has five of seven weeks with at least nine fantasy points and continues to be someone you can start in leagues.

Wil Lutz (K – DEN) @ Arizona: 15% rostered on Yahoo

Lutz kicking in the thin air of Denver for the last few seasons should have been a great opportunity for the veteran kicker to be a strong fantasy option, especially in leagues that offer distance bonuses. It just hasn’t transpired for the veteran kicker, but he does have periodic games where he does come through for fantasy managers. This week on the road against Arizona proved to be one of those weeks, with 14 fantasy points.

Widely Rostered Kickers With Dud Week 7 Performances

Spencer Shrader (K – IND) @ Minnesota: 88% rostered on Yahoo

The stud of the first quarter of the season had his first dud performance with four fantasy points after averaging 15 points per game in his previous five contests. While it looks disappointing on paper, he did have an opportunity to have a solid game with a pair of long kicks that he missed. Don’t move on from Shrader, as he is still a top-5 option for the rest of the season.

Week 8 Fantasy Football Kicker Rankings

Rank	ECR	Kicker	Team	Matchup	O/U	Spread	OPP RZ D	RZ EFF	OFF RNK	Consistency	Weather	K-Score
1	2	Spencer Shrader	IND	at JAC	46.5	7.5	4	19	25	1	3	59.5
2	3	Evan McPherson	CIN	vs. TEN	46.5	-10.5	16	21	13	1	3	43.5
3	4	Chase McLaughlin	TB	vs. ATL	44.5	-2.5	20	12	26	1	2	58.5
4	9	Chris Boswell	PIT	vs. CLE	38.5	-3.5	6	6	20	3	3	34.5
5	17	Jake Bates	DET	vs. MIN	45.5	-3.5	1	28	2	1	0	28.5
6	5	Brandon Aubrey	DAL	vs. ARI	53.5	-6.5	25	30	10	3	0	61.5
7	13	Harrison Butker	KC	at DEN	41.5	-1.5	7	16	6	5	3	35.5
8	6	Chad Ryland	ARI	at DAL	53.5	6.5	26	1	22	2	0	57.5
9	7	Cam Little	JAC	vs. IND	46.5	-7.5	16	25	11	3	3	50.5
10	10	Brandon McManus	LAR	vs. LAC	43.5	-7.5	10	26	1	3	0	32.5
11	1	Will Reichard	MIN	at DET	45.5	3.5	27	11	29	1	0	71.5
12	8	Tyler Loop	BAL	at BUF	53.5	3.5	24	20	9	3	2	61.5
13	11	Tyler Bass	BUF	vs. BAL	53.5	-3.5	20	27	4	1	2	50.5
14	12	Matt Gay	LV	at NYJ	44.5	1.5	14	4	14	2	2	37.5
15	22	Andy Borregales	NE	at MIA	44.5	-7.5	19	14	7	3	2	37.5
16	14	Ryan Fitzgerald	CAR	at GB	47.5	3.5	22	22	5	1	2	55.5
17	15	Cairo Santos	CHI	at SEA	46.5	3.5	30	13	3	5	2	56.5
18	16	Jason Myers	SEA	vs. CHI	46.5	-3.5	18	11	15	1	2	43.5
19	19	Andre Szmyt	CLE	at PIT	38.5	3.5	8	11	24	2	3	51.5
20	20	Jason Sanders	NYJ	vs. LV	44.5	-1.5	30	2	23	2	2	57.5
21	25	Drew Stevens	WAS	vs. PHI	40.5	-3.5	13	11	19	3	2	44.5
22	21	Nick Folk	ATL	at TB	44.5	2.5	11	25	17	3	2	60.5
23	23	Wil Lutz	DEN	vs. KC	41.5	1.5	2	19	30	3	3	58.5
24	24	Trey Smack	GB	vs. CAR	47.5	-3.5	28	3	18	5	2	52.5
25	27	Joey Slye	TEN	at CIN	46.5	10.5	3	6	32	1	3	55.5
26	26	Cameron Dicker	LAC	at LAR	43.5	7.5	5	11	28	3	0	54.5
27	28	Zane Gonzalez	MIA	vs. NE	44.5	7.5	12	15	27	3	2	66.5
28	18	Jake Elliott	PHI	at WAS	40.5	3.5	32	29	31	1	2	98.5

*Red Zone Efficiency is based on the inverse of how well a kicker’s offense does in the red zone. For example, a team ranked 30th in red-zone efficiency receives an 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 leads to more field-goal opportunities.

**The K Score combines several variables that can influence fantasy kicking success, including Vegas spread, opponent red-zone defense, offensive red-zone efficiency, overall offensive production, kicker consistency and weather. A lower K Score indicates that more of these variables are working in the kicker’s favor.

Kicker rankings are based on the K Score along with matchup analysis, projected game environment and other factors that can impact kicking opportunities. The K Score is intended as a guide rather than a definitive predictor, as game script and other unpredictable variables can significantly impact fantasy kicking performance.

Week 8 Upside Plays

Jake Bates (K – DET) vs Vikings: 70% rostered on Yahoo

Bates has overcome Dan Campbell’s tendency to go for it more than other head coaches, scoring 37 fantasy points in his last three games, including an 18-point breakout Week 4 against the Panthers. Look for a floor of around 7 fantasy points and a ceiling of about 14, based on his K Score of 28, the week’s top K score.

Harrison Butker (K – KC) @ Denver: 33% rostered on Yahoo

Butker has been inconsistent this season with only two games of 12 or more fantasy points. He disappointed last week against Seattle, but really everyone on the Chiefs struggled in what was a lopsided contest. Butker is not an every-week play, but he is a decent streamer this week on the road in Denver.

Week 7 Prediction Review

Jason Myers (K – SEA) vs Chiefs: 90% rostered on Yahoo

• ECR Rank: K11
• My Rank: K2
• Week 7 Finish: T12

Myers made both of his field goal tries on the day and both extra points in the Seahawks’ win over the visiting Chiefs. A late long touchdown run by Emmanuel Wilson negated what would have been a likely third field goal from Myers that would have possibly gotten him to a top 5 finish, but Wilson sealed the deal on the ground, and Myers was left with a solid, but not great, week,

Andre Szmyt (K – CLE) @ Tennessee: 1% rostered on Yahoo

• ECR Rank: K21
• My Rank: K1
• Week 12 Finish: T12

Like Myers, Szmyt had a solid, if not great, week with eight fantasy points. The disappointing part is that he missed a 45-yard try that would have made him a top-3 player of the week, but he bounced back with the game-winner for the Browns in the closing minutes.

Waiver Wired

• Cam Little (K – JAX) vs. Indy: 57% rostered on Yahoo
• Jake Bates (K – DET) vs. Minnesota: 70% rostered on Yahoo
• Chris Boswell (K – PIT) vs. Cleveland: 50% rostered on Yahoo

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