Streaming Kickers: Week 13 Targets

Nov 27, 2018

The war against kickers is on, and I am here to fight the good fight. It’s Week 13 and the points coming from your kicker could be the difference between a fantasy postseason berth or watching from the sidelines.

Projecting a kicker’s output isn’t as difficult or random as you may think—in fact, taking a look at Vegas odds is the best way to accurately predict a kicker’s weekly potential. By focusing in on the team implied point totals, we can get a cumulative idea of how that offense will perform when it comes to settling for field goals, distance of kicks, and the like.

Another metric useful in projecting a kicker’s output is 4for4’s schedule-adjusted fantasy points allowed or aFPA. By removing the schedule bias, we can compare matchups in an apples-to-apples manner. By Week 4, there’s a solid sample size to work from, and the info gets more trustworthy with each data-filled week.

The goal in streaming the kicker position is to roster a player who will return starting kicker fantasy points and in Week 12, Mike Badgley, Cairo Santos and Brett Maher were all among the top 14. 4for4’s optimal streamer has 159 points this season—good enough for the highest point total at the position.

In order to provide advice you can actually implement, candidates for streaming must be owned in no more than 40 percent of Yahoo fantasy leagues. As always, check 4for4’s rankings when making weekly decisions on any position.

Top Streaming Picks

Sebastian Janikowski, (Seahawks) vs. 49ers

Sitting the prettiest for Week 13, Seabass gets a home tilt against the 49ers, with his team projected to win by 10 points. The over/under in this contest is currently set at 46.5, with Seattle implied for 28.25 of that. The 40-year-old is coming off a kicker one performance in Week 12 and should have ample chances to add points to your roster again this week at CenturyLink Field. He’s free in 84 percent of Yahoo leagues, making him a solid Week 13 streamer.

Michael Badgley, (Chargers) @ Steelers

Road kickers aren’t usually my favorites, but this should still be a game where Badgley should put up decent fantasy points. The Chargers offense is solid, but will be without the services of Melvin Gordon carrying the rock. This could lead to more red zone instability which favors Badgley. Pittsburgh sits 25^th in aFPA to kickers, with their opponents putting up 8.3 fantasy points per contest this season. Badgley is rostered in 35 percent of Yahoo leagues