Kickers can be frustrating. They are completely unpredictable when it comes to fantasy scoring because they are entirely dependent on something that is outside of their own control, the offense putting them in a position to kick.
Outside of the Justin Tucker owner, most teams will add/drop kickers based on perceived matchups. However, most fantasy players will simply look for a kicker on a high-scoring offense or a kicker facing a poor defense when making their kicker selection. While this sounds like a solid strategy in theory, if the offense is so good that they are always scoring touchdowns, the kicker will be limited to extra-point attempts which will only result in 1 point.
One strategy that I have found successful when looking for a fantasy football kicker is to look for teams with a good offense, but that struggles in the red zone. An additional strategy that I have found is to target the kicker going against a team defense that has a “bend don’t break” defensive philosophy that allows teams to move the ball but is great in the red zone.
The jackpot is to find a kicker on a struggling red zone offense going against a great red-zone defense. Following this strategy, the following kickers could be good streaming options for Week 9 in fantasy football.
Daniel Carlson (LVR)
Daniel Carlson is the No. 7 kicker on the season in points per game. Due to a bye in Week 8, he is now available in 70% of leagues. The Raiders have a great matchup this week against the Giants who have been a top 10 matchup for opposing kickers this season. The Giants’ red zone defense has been a top 10 unit over the past three weeks allowing a touchdown on only 50% of red zone opportunities. Carlson should continue to produce and is in line for a solid Week 9.
Randy Bullock (TEN)
Bullock has been a top 5 kicker on the season and is still available in over 65% of leagues. Due to the Derrick Henry injury, many will assume that the Titans’ offense will struggle. However, the Titans still have plenty of skill-position weapons to be an above-average offense. Additionally, without Derrick Henry, the Titans will be a less efficient red zone offense. Look for Bullock to continue as a top-tier kicker.
Michael Badgley (IND)
Badgley took over the kicking duties for the Colts once Rodrigo Blankenship went on IR with a hip injury. Since taking over the role, Badgley has been perfect, connecting on all his field goal and extra points attempts and is available in 90% of fantasy leagues.
The Colts have a great matchup against the Jets this week who are allowing over 390 yards per game this season. Badgley was a streamer pick in Week 8 and disappointed with only 7 fantasy points. However, the Colts overperformed in the red zone last week converting 4 of their 5 red zone opportunities into touchdowns. On the season the Colts are only converting 51% of their red zone opportunities into touchdowns. Look for the Colts to regress to the mean in terms of red zone efficiency this week and afford Badgley with more kicking opportunities.