by Ray Kuhn

Roster spots are crucial and should be treated with respect and the utmost of care. We only get so many and they have to account for injuries, upside, poor performances and bye weeks. That is why carrying anything more than one kicker is just crazy. It comes into play this week as there are multiple kickers that need to be replaced. If you have an extra player to drop in order to preserve Greg Zuerlein, that is understood, but beyond that you should just be replacing your existing kicker. Let’s take a look at how they rank this week:

1. Stephen Gostkowski – New England Patriots – vs. LA Chargers
2. Harrison Butker – Kansas City Chiefs – vs. Denver
3. Stephen Hauschka – Buffalo Bills – vs. Oakland
4. Josh Elliot – Philadelphia Eagles – vs. San Francisco
5. Justin Tucker – Baltimore Ravens – vs. Miami
6. Will Lutz – New Orleans Saints – vs. Chicago
7. Kai Forbath – Minnesota Vikings – at Cleveland
8. Matt Prater – Detroit Lions – vs. Pittsburgh
9. Matt Bryant – Atlanta Falcons – at New York Jets
10. Randy Bullock – Cincinnati Bengals – vs. Indianapolis
11. Patrick Murray – Tampa Bay Buccaneers – vs. Carolina
12. Blair Walsh – Seattle Seahawks – vs. Houston
13. Nick Rose – Washington Redskins – vs. Dallas
14. Cody Parkey – Miami Dolphins – at Baltimore
15. Robbie Gould – San Francisco 49ers – at Philadelphia

Notes:

• In most leagues Randy Bullock is likely available on the waiver wire. In fact at just 2.4% ownership in ESPN leagues, I would say you shouldn’t have a problem adding the Bengals kicker for this week. Now what points my attention towards him is not his pedigree, I mean most kickers really are interchangeable, but his match-up. He faces the Colts, who happen to have allowed the most points to opposing kickers so far this season. The issue with Bullock is that through five games he has attempted just eight field goals, making seven. He has made the most of his opportunities though as he has converted on all 11 of his extra point attempts.
• One job that appears to be quite stressful is that of the kicker in Tampa Bay. The next contestant we have for this season is Patrick Murray. With two weeks as a Buccaneer under his belt, he does have previous NFL experience, Murray has done what his predecessors were unable to do. It sounds simple, but Murray is actually making his kicks. Tampa Bay should be able to generate some offense against Carolina and Murray would ultimately benefit. He has made all four his extra point attempts along with both field goal chances, including one from beyond 50 yards. At 1.1% ownership, you really won’t have to waste a waiver claim on him.
• Cody Parkey hasn’t had the best start to the season as he is in the bottom third of scoring, but the Dolphins offense hasn’t done him many favors. It will be interesting to see if Miami continues the success they had in the fourth quarter last week, and that would bode well for Parkey. The Ravens have allowed the seventh most points to opposing kickers, and Parkey, for the most part, has been efficient so far this season. That is what you are looking for, especially if you are filling a hole for the week. While Parkey has missed two of his 10 extra point attempts, he is perfect on his eight field goal attempts.

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Make sure to check out all of our Week 8 rankings: