2012 Fantasy Football Week 8: Kicker Rankings / Projections

Those fantasy owners who picked up Nick Novak a few weeks back can breathe a sigh of relief as usual starter Nate Kaeding has been placed on injured reserve. For the second season in a row, Kaeding has had a lower leg issue that has cost him a majority of the season and Novak has been there to fill in.

The Chargers have had some wild games of late but look for Novak to remain as one of the safer K1 plays weekly. San Diego may turn the football over and give away a few games, but Novak will continue to receive two or more field-goal opportunitys most weeks with three or more PAT’s.

What Did We Learn From Week 7?

- Sebastian Janikowski has battled a groin injury since the preseason,  but coming into Week 7 he had converted all 10 of his attempts. Against the Jaguars, Janikowski finally missed a field goal, but his other four conversions helped the Raiders in a victory and gave his fantasy owners their best performance from the veteran this year.

- Like Janikowski, Dan Bailey finally broke out with a big game converting all four his his field-goal attempts in a close win. The Cowboys played two competitive games on the road and it appears they are ready to get a hold of their season. This is good news for Bailey owners.

- Just a rant here: I started Rob Bironoas because I believed the Titans offense was on the way up. Well, they did score 35 points, but the problem is, Bironas didn’t receive a field-goal opportunity in the game. Whaaa!

Sean’s Week 8 Watch List

- Mason Crosby connected on three of his four field-goal attempts last week. This was by far his best day on the season and hopefully this means he’s ready to be trusted in the future after a tough stretch. Janikowski had four field goals against the Jaguars last week, let’s see if Crosby can keep it going.

- Playing the Seahawks at home, Jason Hanson should be in line for another quality performance as the Lions have struggled to put the football in the end zone.

- It should be a wild game in Denver and it will be important for the Broncos to not have another slow first half if Matt Prater is going to be worth starting. I expect that to happen as we saw the Buccaneers post 21 points on their first three drives against New Orleans last week. Prater is having a good year and playing in Mile High’s thin air, we can feel good about his odds of receiving opportunities over 50 yards should the game call for him to convert one.

 

1	Jason Hanson	Seahawks
2	Sebastian Janikowski	@ Chiefs
3	Stephen Gostkowski	@ Rams
4	David Akers	@ Cardinals
5	Blair Walsh	Buccaneers
6	Greg Zuerlein	Patriots
7	Robbie Gould	Panthers
8	Nick Novak	@ Browns
9	Matt Prater	Saints
10	Matt Bryant	@ Eagles
11	Dan Bailey	Giants
12	Mason Crosby	Jaguars
13	Rob Bironas	Colts
14	Jay Feely	49ers
15	Lawrence Tynes	@ Cowboys

Week 8 Standard Rankings – QB | RB | WR | TE | Flex |