Getty Greg Zuerlein #2 of the Dallas Cowboys.
Welcome to Fantasy Football Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em Kickers for Week 9 of the NFL season. Our kicker edition features two former must-starts at the position, each of whom are heading in different directions.
* Reminder: Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em is intended to present you with the non-obvious choices for your fantasy lineup. We dig deep into player matchups, scoring trends, and other factors to best help you with your fantasy decisions. Be sure to also check out our weekly fantasy football kicker rankings to better gauge where these start-sit options compare to the rest of the options at the position.
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Kickers: Start ‘Em
Start of the Week: Younghoe Koo vs. DEN
On the heels of an outlier 2.0 point performance, Koo bounced back to his typical dominant self in Week 8, racking up 13.0 points. The outing marked his fourth 13.0-plus point performance over his last six games. The Broncos have allowed 14.0-plus points to an opposing kicker in three of their last four games.
Harrison Butker vs. CAR
Butker has been far from the dominant fantasy play we’ve grown to know him as over years past. Since Week 3, Butker is K17, topping 8.0 points just once over that span. If there was any week to alter that statistic for the better it would be this one against Carolina. The Panthers have allowed 11.0-plus points to opposing kickers in four consecutive games.
Ka’imi Fairbairn at JAC
Fairbairn has averaged a healthy 10.4 points over five of his last six games, including a (tied) season-high 13.0 point outing against this week’s opponents, the Jaguars, back in Week 5. Since Week 2, opposing kickers average 11.5 ppg against Jacksonville, who allow the second-most kicks (9) from 30-39 yards out. Fairbairn has hit on four kicks from such distance over his last three games.
Matt Prater at MIN
Prater saw his two-game streak of 11.0-plus points come to a screeching halt a week ago, managing just 2.0 points against the Colts. However, a matchup with the Vikings could quickly see Prater getting back on the right foot. The Vikings allow 2.0 ppg more to opposing kickers than any other team in the NFL, as five of their seven opponents have scored 12.0-plus points against them.
Sleeper: Nick Folk at NYJ
Folk has topped 8.0 points just once this season. With that said, he has not missed a field goal in five weeks, while a matchup with his former team offers intriguing upside. The Jets are one of only four teams to allow a double-digit point average on a per-game basis this season.
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Kickers: Sit ‘Em
Sit of the Week: Rodrigo Blankenship vs. BAL
Through the first five weeks of the season, Blankenship was the second-highest scoring player at his position, averaging 12.0 ppg. Since then, he’s averaged just 5.5 ppg, putting him in a three-way tie as K26 since Week 6. The Ravens allow the fewest points to the kicker position this season, with only one opponent topping 6.0 points against them.
Robbie Gould vs. GB
Gould has scored 7.0 points or fewer in four of his last five games. To make matters worse, the 49ers’ offense is completely depleted due to injury, likely limiting his opportunities. Yet, if that wasn’t enough, Green Bay has held four of their seven opponents at the position to 4.0 points or fewer this season.
Jason Sanders at ARI
After amassing an absurd 40.0 points from Week 5-Week 6, Sanders has now scored 6.0 points or fewer in back-to-back games. Arizona has held three of their last four opponents at the position to 7.0 points or fewer.
Buyers Beware: Greg Zuerlein vs. PIT
Zuerlein accounted for all of Dallas’ offensive points last week. A statistic that is impressive, yet also highly worrisome for his future prospects. Whether it’s Ben DiNucci or Cooper Rush under center, you can’t trust the Cowboys offense to keep Zuerlein’s usage rate up to where it needs to be to trust him in your lineup. Having now scored 4.0 points or fewer in three of his last five games, Zuerlein is not worth the gamble against a Steelers team who has yet to surrender more than 8.0 points to a kicker this season.