Fantasy Football Daily: Kickers Trio

Fantasy Football Advice

Today, we’re talking fantasy football kickers.

Last season I actually got this one right and was taking Stephen Gostkowski every draft I was in. Unfortunately for my K position, the Patriots were way too good at going all the way. However, the points still added up so you take them where you get them. The best part about Gostkowski was the reliability. His floor was 7 points save two games on the season (one was 6 and the other was 4). Even though he only made 3-5 from 40-49 yards and Belichick never let him kick at 50+, he recorded a mammoth 74 extra points. Outside of the 40 yarders, he was golden, going 8-9 from 30-39 and perfect from under 30. I think Gostkowski will score just as many if not more fantasy points this season. He tallied 137 real life points last year.

My two other top picks for this year are Mason Crosby and Nick Folk. Mason actually totaled more points than Gostkowski with 141, but he had 6 misses under 50 yards. He also missed a couple of 50 yarders, but leagues usually don’t take points away for those. Crosby wasn’t as consistent as Gostkowski, but he had better high end points and more explosion with 2 15 point games and 1 13 point game. Favre’s absence from Packtown wouldn’t sway me from Crosby. The Packers are still talented enough to churn the chains, but may have problems punching the ball in with Rodgers still adjusting. This sounds like a counterbalance to me and I expect Crosby to end up at the top.

Nick Folk was 2 steps behind last year the top last year, but you have to like his solid base with big potential. Folk nailed 7-7 40 yard field goals. Unfortunately, he also missed 2 chip shots under 30. Those misses hurt because not only is that 6 points floating out the window, but you’re also deducted points depending on your league settings. His only other misses were 3 from 50 yards out. He has good fantasy pop as evidenced by 3 13 point games and respectable consistency overall, bottoming out at a 4 point low only twice. That said, he had one game at 5 and three games at 6 which is too many.

Mason and Folk were rookies last year and displayed nice potential with a combination of power and general accuracy. Folk’s concentration should improve and wipe away those gimme misses. As for Gostkowski, I expect a huge year from him. The Pats are going to drive, but its almost as if fantasy nation will not let them score as many TDs as last year, so you’ve got to think Gostkowski will thrive under all of the easy setups.