When it comes to critical fantasy football decisions, we’re always focused on quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers, and tight ends. Heck, even defense and special teams units get their fair share of attention as well! Yet, what about kickers? Unless your league doesn’t force you to roster one, they still score points for you, and can be the difference between winning and losing your matchup!
This brings me to my Week 17 kicker rankings. You don’t usually see kickers dissected, but that’s what I plan to do today. You’ve probably heard of expected/implied points for other positions, yet not for kickers. Let’s solve that, shall we?
We know a field-goal attempt is at least three times more valuable than an extra point, but it depends on distance. Thus, a raw field goal attempt is closer to four times more valuable than an extra point. With that in mind, here are the expected points for each kicker thus far, based on their usage.
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Implied Points (Weeks 1-16)
| Kicker | Team | Difference | Implied Points | Fantasy PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elliott Fry | KC | -3.9650 | 15.9650 | 12.0 |
| Dominik Eberle | HOU | -0.4270 | 13.4270 | 13.0 |
| Rodrigo Blankenship | IND | -1.8738 | 9.8738 | 8.0 |
| Nick Folk | NE | 0.1646 | 9.5354 | 9.7 |
| Greg Zuerlein | DAL | -0.6783 | 9.3783 | 8.7 |
| Greg Joseph | MIN | -0.0406 | 9.1406 | 9.1 |
| Matt Gay | LAR | 0.8542 | 8.7458 | 9.6 |
| Daniel Carlson | LV | 0.2234 | 8.5766 | 8.8 |
| Evan McPherson | CIN | 0.6798 | 8.5202 | 9.2 |
| Tyler Bass | BUF | 0.1490 | 8.3510 | 8.5 |
| Matt Prater | ARI | -0.0510 | 8.3510 | 8.3 |
| Mason Crosby | GB | -0.8510 | 8.3510 | 7.5 |
| Chris Blewitt | WAS | -3.3510 | 8.3510 | 5.0 |
| Randy Bullock | TEN | -0.3489 | 8.0489 | 7.7 |
| Chris Boswell | PIT | 0.3438 | 7.9562 | 8.3 |
| Dustin Hopkins | LAC | 0.0002 | 7.8998 | 7.9 |
| Michael Badgley | IND | -0.3895 | 7.8895 | 7.5 |
| Jake Elliott | PHI | 0.4566 | 7.8434 | 8.3 |
| Justin Tucker | BAL | 0.8694 | 7.7306 | 8.6 |
| Harrison Butker | KC | 0.8137 | 7.6863 | 8.5 |
| Ryan Succop | TB | -0.1178 | 7.6178 | 7.5 |
| Eddy Piñeiro | NYJ | 0.1950 | 7.5050 | 7.7 |
| Riley Patterson | DET | 0.4642 | 7.3358 | 7.8 |
| Robbie Gould | SF | 0.4257 | 7.2743 | 7.7 |
| Graham Gano | NYG | 0.4334 | 7.1666 | 7.6 |
| Joey Slye | WAS | 0.1334 | 7.1666 | 7.3 |
| Brandon McManus | DEN | 0.0462 | 7.0538 | 7.1 |
| Jason Sanders | MIA | -0.6410 | 6.9410 | 6.3 |
| Zane Gonzalez | CAR | 0.4295 | 6.8705 | 7.3 |
| Austin Seibert | DET | -0.3180 | 6.5180 | 6.2 |
| Younghoe Koo | ATL | 0.5922 | 6.2078 | 6.8 |
| Cairo Santos | CHI | -0.2950 | 6.0950 | 5.8 |
| Chase McLaughlin | CLE | -0.0547 | 6.0547 | 6.0 |
| Matt Ammendola | NYJ | -1.2437 | 6.0437 | 4.8 |
| Brett Maher | NO | -0.1130 | 5.8130 | 5.7 |
| Brian Johnson | WAS | 0.4496 | 5.4504 | 5.9 |
| Jason Myers | SEA | -0.2618 | 5.3618 | 5.1 |
| Ka'imi Fairbairn | HOU | 0.2254 | 5.2746 | 5.5 |
| Matthew Wright | JAX | 0.2510 | 5.2490 | 5.5 |
| Tristan Vizcaino | LAC | -0.4080 | 5.1080 | 4.7 |
| Ryan Santoso | DET | -0.4670 | 4.9670 | 4.5 |
| Aldrick Rosas | DET | -0.7978 | 4.7978 | 4.0 |
| Lirim Hajrullahu | CAR | 0.9560 | 4.5440 | 5.5 |
| Josh Lambo | JAX | -2.7030 | 4.4030 | 1.7 |
| Chris Naggar | CLE | -0.1210 | 4.1210 | 4.0 |
| Cody Parkey | NO | -0.2750 | 3.2750 | 3.0 |
| Alex Kessman | NYJ | -0.7370 | 0.7370 | 0.0 |
By this point, we have more than enough data to know which kickers are being utilized the best for fantasy purposes. Someone like Daniel Carlson, for example, doesn’t play for a potent offense but is being maximized because of the conservative nature of the Raiders organization. Meanwhile, teams that are more aggressive on fourth downs and have more efficient offenses, such as the Bucs, 49ers, Chargers, and Chiefs, don’t offer as much fantasy value with their kickers.
Hopefully, this helps explain my thought process when it comes to my kicker rankings. Speaking of which, here they are!
Week 17 Kicker Rankings
More of our Week 17 Rankings: QB | RB | WR | TE | PPR |
| Rnk | Kicker | Team | Opponent |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nick Folk | NE | JAX |
| 2 | Greg Zuerlein | DAL | ARI |
| 3 | Matt Gay | LAR | BAL |
| 4 | Greg Joseph | MIN | GB |
| 5 | Tyler Bass | BUF | ATL |
| 6 | Daniel Carlson | LV | IND |
| 7 | Mason Crosby | GB | MIN |
| 8 | Evan McPherson | CIN | KC |
| 9 | Matt Prater | ARI | DAL |
| 10 | Harrison Butker | KC | CIN |
| 11 | Jake Elliot | PHI | WSH |
| 12 | Ryan Succop | TB | NYJ |
| 13 | Robbie Gould | SF | HOU |
| 14 | Justin Tucker | BAL | LAR |
| 15 | Randy Bullock | TEN | MIA |
| 16 | Dustin Hopkins | LAC | DEN |
| 17 | Michael Badgley | IND | LV |
| 18 | Chris Boswell | PIT | CLE |
| 19 | Riley Patterson | DET | SEA |
| 20 | Joey Slye | WSH | PHI |
| 21 | Brett Maher | NO | CAR |
| 22 | Jason Myers | SEA | DET |
| 23 | Cairo Santos | CHI | NYG |
| 24 | Graham Gano | NYG | CHI |
| 25 | Brandon McManus | DEN | LAC |
| 26 | Jason Sanders | MIA | TEN |
| 27 | Lirim Hajrullahu | CAR | NO |
| 28 | Chase McLaughlin | CLE | PIT |
| 29 | Younghoe Koo | ATL | BUF |
| 30 | Kaimi Fairbairn | HOU | SF |
| 31 | Eddy Pineiro | NYJ | TB |
| 32 | Matthew Wright | JAX | NE |
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