Fantasy Football Week 1 Rankings: Top 15 Kickers

While kickers are often overlooked, they still play an important role on a week-to-week basis. Let’s take a look at how I would rank the Top 15 for the upcoming week:

Garrett Hartley, New Orleans Saints vs. Minnesota
Stephen Gostkowski, New England Patriots vs. Cincinnati
Nate Kaeding, San Diego Chargers at Kansas City
David Akers, Philadelphia Eagles vs. Green Bay
Mason Crosby, Green Bay Packers at Philadelphia
Ryan Longwell, Minnesota Vikings at New Orleans
Robbie Gould, Chicago Bears vs. Detroit
Rob Bironas, Tennessee Titans vs. Oakland
Jeff Reed, Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Atlanta
Matt Prater, Denver Broncos at Jacksonville
Lawrence Tynes, New York Giants vs. Carolina
Neil Rackers, Houston Texans vs. Indianapolis
Adam Vinatieri, Indianapolis Colts at Houston
Dan Carpenter, Miami Dolphins at Buffalo
Josh Brown, St. Louis Rams vs. Arizona

Thoughts:

Would it surprise anyone if the Saints and Vikings, as well as the Eagles and Packers, got into a shootout? That type of game would certainly benefit all four kickers, allowing them to rack up the points for their owners.
Will the Steelers be able to find the end zone or, with their top two quarterbacks on the sidelines, will their drives stall leaving them to attempt numerous field goals? My guess is they get a few extra field goals, meaning Jeff Reed’s value increases.
Over the last two years, Robbie Gould is 14-15 kicking on turf. Couple that with the chance for the Bears to score quite a few points under Mike Martz and you have to like him as an option this week.
Last season the Raiders tied for fourth in field goals allowed (30). Considering their defense is not too bad, you certainly can imagine seeing them bend, but not break, leaving Bironas to connect on a few kicks. That certainly makes him a good option for the week.

Make sure to check out the rest of our Week 1 Rankings:

THIS ARTICLE IS ALSO FEATURED ON WWW.ROTOPROFESSOR.COM/FOOTBALL