Week 4 K Start, Sit: Who to Play at Kicker: Mason Crosby to Dominate Against the Falcons

I’m going to focus on matchups and game scripts in this breakdown with a special focus on the games I project to be the highest-scoring on the week. Always remember that most kickers are tough to depend on week-to-week and it’s important to optimize your chances for success at the position with weekly management. I’m going to assume guys like Tucker, Butker, and Koo are already owned and started in your league without hesitation, so I’m focusing on lesser-relied upon players here.

Start ‘Em

Mason Crosby: The Packers’ Mason Crosby should be in your lineup each and every week, but I wanted to highlight him here as my favorite kicker for fantasy this week. The Falcons have allowed 36 points per game this season, the most in the NFL and Aaron Rodgers is on an absolute tear right now. Regardless of whether or not Davante Adams or Allen Lazard will be available, the Packers are going to put up an obscene amount of points on the Falcons and Crosby will benefit with an excellent stat line of his own.

Randy Bullock: Being attached to an offense that can move the ball between the 20s with ease but struggles in the red zone is a perfect spot to be in for a fantasy kicker. That’s where Bullock finds himself, as Joe Burrow’s Bengals have the fourth-lowest touchdown conversion rate in the red-zone this season. Bullock has made eight of his nine field-goal attempts this season and should produce another solid game against the Jaguars’ defense that is allowing the 14th-most fantasy points to opposing kicker so far.

Ryan Succop: The Buccaneers play the Chargers this week, a defense that is allowing the 2nd-most fantasy points to kickers so far. Succop hasn’t hit double-digit fantasy points so far this season, but this could finally be the week. I expect the Bucs to be able to move the ball on the Chargers plenty, but LA has allowed a below-average rate of touchdowns in the red zone so far, so Succop’s services could be required closer to the goal line. Succop is four for five on field goals this season.

Ka’imi Fairbairn: The Texans are going to be involved in a high-scoring shootout with the Vikings this week and Minnesota is allowing the most fantasy points to kickers so far this season. Kicking the ball for a Deshaun Watson-offense should still make Fairbairn an intriguing option every week, and in this matchup, I’m projecting him to have his best game of the season so far.

Sit ‘Em

Jason Myers: The Dolphins have allowed the fewest fantasy points to kickers so far and while their defense hasn’t faced the likes of Russell Wilson, Tyler Lockett, and D.K. Metcalf, I have concerns about Myers this week. The Seahawks have scored a touchdown on 100% of their red-zone trips so far while Miami has allowed opposing teams to score a touchdown on 87.5% of red-zone trips (the highest mark in the NFL). If the Seahawks are able to consistently finish drives with touchdowns, Myers has a limited ceiling, and I would be looking for other options.

Nick Folk: The matchup between the Patriots and Chiefs should feature one of the highest points totals on the week as both teams are top-ten scoring offenses so far this year. The Chiefs have done a decent job of playing bend-don’t-break defense and Folk should get a few calls for field goals. He’s made 9 of 10 extra points and 4 of 6 field goals this season and is a great lower-owned option to consider at kicker. With the Patriots looking to control the time of possession and field position, the kicking game will be very important in this matchup for them.

Daniel Carlson: The Raiders’ Daniel Carlson had a #1 and #7 finish at kicker in the first two weeks, but dropped to #17 last week as the Raiders offense struggled against the Patriots. Things don’t get much easier against the Bills defense this week as Buffalo has led opposing kickers to just 7.3 fantasy points per game. The Raiders aren’t an elite offense that can be counted on every week and Carlson is a heavily matchup-dependent kicking option. In this matchup, I’m looking elsewhere.

Joey Slye: It’s been a weird season for Slye so far with two top-three finishes at kicker sandwiching a 27th-ranked finish in Week 2 against Tampa. This week, the Panthers play the Cardinals, a defense that is more than capable of giving them some real problems. Last week, the Panthers struggled to adjust to not having Christian McCaffrey, and despite the win, they finished with just 14 first downs on the afternoon. I’m very worried about this team’s ability to move the ball right now, especially against Arizona, and I’m looking for a kicker who’s attached to a more reliable offense.