3 FanDuel Kickers to Target in Week 8
In fantasy football, every point counts, and points are the only way you can win.
You need to maximize output from each and every player on your roster, and "punting" a position is never truly ideal. Sometimes in season-long leagues, you simply are stuck without any better options than who is on your roster already, but in daily fantasy football, where you are in control of every player you pick, there are no excuses.
So when you're making your lineups on FanDuel, don't leave kicker for last and choose whichever minimum-salary player fits in.
Move the position higher up on your priority list and learn to love the kicker. Start by targeting these three guys in Week 8.
Matt Bryant, Atlanta Falcons
FanDuel Price: $4,800
When looking for kickers, we're hoping for high over/unders, favorites, domes, and teams likely to win with relative ease. That means that Matt Bryant of the Atlanta Falcons is going to fit the bill quite often when the Falcons are at home. This week, Atlanta hosts the Green Bay Packers as just 2.5-point home favorites, which is mildly concerning because home-field advantage usually nets a team a 3-point spread.
Still, the over/under of 52.5 gives the Falcons an implied team total of 27.5 points, highest of the week. Further, our algorithm gives the Falcons a 71.7% chance to emerge victorious. The conditions, scoring chances, and win probability (which suggest relying on field goals late in the game is more likely) make Bryant a safe option for Week 8.
Brandon McManus, Denver Broncos
FanDuel Price: $4,800
Brandon McManus doesn't have everything we'd want in a kicker, mainly that his implied team total is just 24 points, but as a 4.5-point favorite over the San Diego Chargers on a slate where spreads are all under 7 points, we can take a chance. Our algorithm sees the Denver Broncos winning this one 68.5% of the time, so that much is reassuring.
There is a mild wind projected at this point (seven miles per hour), but the altitude, lack of precipitation, and win expectancy help ease some of that discomfort if you want to pivot from Bryant without being careless.
Nick Novak, Houston Texans
FanDuel Price: $4,500
I always try to throw out a minimum-salary option, and with six teams on bye, a Thursday night game, a London game on Sunday morning, and Monday Night Football, there just aren't many options to pick from in general on FanDuel's main slate. As for minimum-salary kickers, there are actually eight, but as far as kickers in good weather situations on teams likely to win? Eh.
We can look to the Houston Texans' Nick Novak, though. Houston is a 2.5-point home favorite over the Detroit Lions, but our algorithm sees the Texans winning this one just 48.6% of the time. Nothing we can really bank on. Still, with a retractable roof, a leaky defense from Detroit, and an iffy offense of his own, Novak could get chances at field goals under a roof -- even with a pretty gross implied team total of 23.75 points.
