Fantasy Football Rankings: PK - Week 20

Source: KFFL.com NFL

The Falcons may have to rely on Matt Bryant to once again be their savior.

Falcons | Matt Bryant has been clutch

Source: Footballguys.com

Atlanta Falcons PK Matt Bryant's game-winning field goal in the team's playoff win Sunday, Jan. 13, was his 10th straight make on a try of 49-plus yards.

Submitted for your derision: Fantasy ranks for NFL playoff leagues

Source: Roto Arcade by Andy Behrens

Perhaps the dumbest thing a fantasy manager can possibly do is publish player ranks on a mainstream sports site on the morning of a draft. Definitely not recommended. Poor strategy, requiring a special combination of stupidity and hubris. Far from ideal.

Nonetheless, I'm doing it today. My first fantasy playoff draft is coming up in just a few short hours, and I'm publishing ranks in advance. (Again: Unwise). Obviously I'd prefer to post this thing much later in the afternoon, after the draft, but my schedule is pretty jammed. I've blocked off eight-and-a-half hours to watch the Big Ten get mauled across five bowl games. The conference requires my full attention. So let's just rank the NFL playoff field right

Submitted for your derision: Fantasy ranks for 2013 playoff leagues

Source: Roto Arcade by Andy Behrens

Perhaps the dumbest thing a fantasy manager can possibly do is publish up-to-date player ranks on a mainstream sports site on the morning of a draft. Not recommended. This requires a special combination of stupidity and hubris. Far from ideal.

Nonetheless, today you're getting my NFL playoff ranks just a few hours before my first postseason draft of 2013. I'd prefer to publish this thing much later in the afternoon, post-draft, but unfortunately my schedule is pretty jammed. I've blocked off most of the day to watch the Big Ten get mauled for eight-and-a-half hours, across five games. So let's just rank the field right now.

But first, a few details about league settings...

My upcoming draft is a

Stealing Points, Week 17: Sacks in San Diego

Source: Roto Arcade by Scott Pianowski

Because some of you are still fighting that good fantasy fight, here's another batch of Stealing Points, the placekicker and defense ranks. If you feel good about your methodology at these positions, terrific. Keep doing what you're doing. If you need someone to break a tie for you, here's why you might want me to be that guy. It's your team. It's up to you.

Generally speaking, I'd like my kickers and defenses to be from teams expected to win - the bigger the favorite, the better. Let's get game flow in our corner. Additionally, I'm not sure the Falcons or

Stealing Points, Week 16: Remember the Pack, forget the Titans

Source: Roto Arcade by Scott Pianowski

If you're still reading our 2012 fantasy football content, good for you. This means you're still playing games of consequence this season, and that's a good thing. (Or it means we're locked into some co-dependent relationship that's oddly functional. Okay, we can live with that, too.)

You want to fight for every last point in any fantasy game, and it's common for some sharp fantasy owners to play the one-week rental game with respect to defenses and kickers. These two positions always have good options floating around the waiver wire, in part because their week-to-week value is largely matchup-dependent. With that in mind, here is my 1.0 version of rankings at the rental spots in Week 16.

Disagree with what's here?

Week 16 – K Rankings

Source: Fantasy-Info.com by Sean Douglas

Photo By: Ed Szczepanski / USA TODAY Sports

In the midst of another year of disappointment in Oakland, fantasy owners caught a glimpse of what Sebastian Janikowski can be when the Raiders actually give him a steady dose of opportunities. Janikowski converted on five field goals scoring all fifteen of the Raiders points in the teams shutout victory over the Chiefs.

On the day Janikowski converted a long of 57-yards giving him his third week out of the past five weeks with a 50 plus conversion. The bad news is his big day came fresh off converting one field goal or fewer in five of his past six games.

Hopefully savvy fantasy owners were paying attention to the competition the Raiders were playing (not

Kickers and Defenses: Stealing points in Week 15

Source: Roto Arcade by Scott Pianowski

It's not uncommon to hear or read grousing about the kicker and defense positions in fantasy football. It's all luck, some say. It's too freaking random, someone might offer. Just flip a coin and get it over with, that's how many seem to view this part of the game. I've seen leagues that eliminate the kickers and defenses altogether.

Those lines of reasoning never made sense to me. In my view, ranking kickers and defenses is the easiest thing a fantasy football scribe does every week. More than any other position, the success of your kicker and defense is usually tied to the success of his club. (It's not quite that simple, but that's the best way to start - follow the heavy favorite.) And while some others

Week 15 – K Rankings

Source: Fantasy-Info.com by Sean Douglas

Photo By: Kelley L. Cox / USA TODAY Sports

With a rookie quarterback and an average at best receiving core, you know it was going to be a tough season for former Pro Bowl kicker Dan Carpenter. However if you’re looking for a waiver wire option with top kickers like David Akers, Blair Walsh, Greg Zuerlein and Justin Tucker’s production falling off in the second half of the season, give Carpenter a look this week.

The Dolphins travel back home after a competitive game in San Francisco where Carpenter nailed a 53-yard field goal. As a life long 49ers fan, I can tell you it’s no easy feat for a kicker to convert from over 50-yards in that stadium, especially one that has probably never kicked their

Week 14 – K Rankings

Source: Fantasy-Info.com by Sean Douglas

Photo By: Joe Camporeale / USA TODAY Sports

After converting just one field goal in his two previous games, Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski was successful on three of his four attempts against the Dolphins. While inconsistencies in attempts have been an issue for Gostkowski over the years, his problems are more to do with offensive drives producing touchdowns, as Gostkowski totaled 15 PAT’s in the previous two weeks.

Conversely, most kickers around the league struggle with consistency issues more because the team they play for is either bad or the offense fails the move the football, thus turning them into an undesired option for fantasy lineups.

Playing against the Texans and 49ers in the next

Week 13 – K Rankings

Source: Fantasy-Info.com by Sean Douglas

Photo By: Andrew Weber / US PRESSWIRE

It’s been an up and down roller coaster for Shayne Graham owners in recent weeks. While the Texans have put together back to back overtime victories in high-scoring games, their veteran kicker has missed three field goals in that time, and yet he’s also converted five.

Fantasy owners will take the five field goals, but it is his lack of consistency that forced the veteran to bounce around to four different teams (Giants, Patriots, Dolphins, Ravens) total through the two previous seasons after seven years in Cincinnati.

Through it all Graham’s situation still gives him a chance to tie or even break his career best of 31 field-goal conversions (has 20 thus

Falcons | Four probable

Source: Footballguys.com

Atlanta Falcons DE John Abraham (back), DT Jonathan Babineaux (neck), K Matt Bryant (back) and CB Christopher Owens (thigh) practiced in full Friday, Nov. 23, and is probable for Week 12.

WK 12 – K Rankings

Source: Fantasy-Info.com by Sean Douglas

Photo By: Derick E. Hingle / US PRESSWIRE

As the Falcons enjoy one of their better seasons in franchise history, veteran kicker Matt Bryant is prospering with what looks to be a career year. Bryant has been one of the better kickers for fantasy football and his consistency from week to week makes him one of the more reliable options at his position.

Through ten games Bryant has converted 25 of his 28 opportunities, has at least 2 field goals in eight of those games and has posted three or more conversions in four of his past five games.

What we know up to this point in the season is that the Falcons are sure to stay close in every ball game going forward and that is a big reason for his consistency

Sunday Scene, Week 11: Andre Johnson and the Texans turn back the clock

Source: Roto Arcade by Andy Behrens

Hey, wait, hold up. Who invited the 2008 Texans to the 2012 season?

Houston's defense is no longer supposed to be a team weakness, but an asset. In fact, the Texans D entered the week ranked second in the NFL in yards-allowed (281.6) and third in points (15.9). Sure, they were destroyed by the Packers in Week 6, but they've still held six opponents to 14 points or less this season. Ever since the Green Bay loss, this defense has been absolutely dominant.

This isn't a team that finds itself in weekly shootouts anymore, as was the case early in the Gary Kubiak era. These days, Houston holds your offense to a low number and they steamroll your defense with Arian Foster. That's the formula. Game

Week 11 K Rankings

Source: Fantasy-Info.com by Sean Douglas

Photo By: Thomas Campbell / US PRESSWIRE

We should have another defensive driven game between the Steelers and Ravens this week. After posting 55 points against the Raiders, Joe Flacco and the Ravens are flying high coming into this important contest. Of course, no one should expect the same results this week as Baltimore will face a Pittsburgh defense that has played like a top five unit in recent weeks.

No, expect the Ravens to lean on the kicking game a little more and that means Justin Tucker is set for a strong performance.

One of the emerging rookie kickers in the NFL, Tucker is 17 of 18 on the season with a long of 56 yards. Coach John Harbaugh won’t balk at long opportunities with a young

Week 10 – K Rankings

Source: Fantasy-Info.com by Sean Douglas

Photo By: Bruce Kluckhohn / US PRESSWIRE

Last week was a big test for Blair Walsh’s fantasy value as the Vikings traveled to Seattle. While Christian Ponder continued to struggle, the Vikings offense continued to move the football because of Adrian Peterson’s outstanding play. Walsh converted both of his field-goal opportunities and yet again blasted another attempt over 50 yards, this one from 55-yards out.

Through eight games, Walsh has at least a 49-yard field goal in six of those contests and in five games he has one over 50 yards. As was the case this past week, Walsh has proven he can remain accurate during road games as he’s converted 19 of the 20 opportunities he’s had this

Falcons | Three probable for Week 9

Source: Footballguys.com

Atlanta Falcons WR Harry Douglas (ankle, knee), PK Matt Bryant (back) and WR Drew Davis (hamstring) all fully participated in practice Friday, Nov. 2, and are probable for Week 9.

Falcons | Three limited in practice

Source: Footballguys.com

Atlanta Falcons DT Jonathan Babineaux (knee), PK Matt Bryant (back) and WR Drew Davis (hamstring) were all limited in practice Thursday, Nov. 1.

Shuffle Up and Redraft: Starting over with 220 picks

Source: Roto Arcade by Scott Pianowski

In the world of spies, they mock what they don't understand. In the world of fantasy, we want to understand, so we mock.

Truth be told, this 220-pick exercise wasn't really a mock — it's a real thing. I assembled 10 of my flatliner roto friends (industry and non-industry folks included) and we're all standing behind our teams. While we won't do any maintenance to the rosters we drafted Tuesday night, we are keeping score and we are playing for a financial stake. If you can't go full out, why go at all?

We'll use best-ball scoring to determine the winners; everyone will have their best theoretical score assigned to them after each go-round. It's a total-points grab, there are no head-to-head games. We're using the

Falcons | Four limited in practice

Source: Footballguys.com

Atlanta Falcons DT Jonathan Babineaux (knee), PK Matt Bryant (back), WR Drew Davis (hamstring) and WR Harry Douglas (ankle, knee) were all limited in practice Wednesday, Oct. 31.

Week 9 – K Rankings

Source: Fantasy-Info.com by Sean Douglas

Photo By: Jim O’Connor / US PRESSWIRE

Last year it seemed like the Giants were always coming from behind to make a made dash to win games. They’ve had some eventful matchups this year as well, but Lawrence Tynes is benefiting from New York playing close football games.

Through eight weeks Tynes already has 26 field-goal attempts and what’s more impressive is he’s converted 24 of those chances into points. Not one of the stronger legs in the game, Tynes long for the season is 49-yards, but he’s proving to be worthy of top five consideration at his position for fantasy leagues to this point.

Tynes already has four games this season with at least four field-goal conversions, only twice has he

Week 8 K Rankings

Source: Fantasy-Info.com by Sean Douglas

Photo By: Christopher Hanewinckel / US PRESSWIRE

Those fantasy owners who picked up Nick Novak a few weeks back can breathe a sigh of relief as usual starter Nate Kaeding has been placed on injured reserve. For the second season in a row, Kaeding has had a lower leg issue that has cost him a majority of the season and Novak has been there to fill in.

The Chargers have had some wild games of late but look for Novak to remain as one of the safer K1 plays weekly. San Diego may turn the football over and give away a few games, but Novak will continue to receive two or more

Mostly NFL Notes: Week 6 Recap

Source: Roto Arcade by deldon

After a major hiccup in Kansas City, the Ravens' offense got back on track Sunday, but Baltimore has won its last four games by an average of just 3.3 points, so they haven't exactly looked dominant. Should be interesting to see them travel to Houston to face a Texans team coming off an embarrassing loss on national television in Week 7 in a battle between the two teams with the best record in the AFC…This Ravens defense already looked nothing like its usual formidable self even before losing Ray Lewis and Lardarius Webb to season-ending injuries. Fantasy owners shouldn't hesitate to start players against Baltimore moving forward…Tony Romo has got 6.7 YPA with a 0:5 TD:turnover ratio on third downs this season, good for a

Week 6 K Rankings

Source: Fantasy-Info.com by Sean Douglas

Photo By: Jim Brown / US PRESSWIRE

In recent weeks fantasy owners with Stephan Gostkowski have relied more on PAT’s than field goals to get points on the board. This week should be different as the Patriots head out to Seattle and play against a tough defense.

Seattle won’t be a threat to post more than 20 points in the game, and we should expect New England to win time of possession. Still early October, we should have good weather out in Seattle so Gostkowski shouldn’t be held back from opportunities past 45 yards.

What Did We Learn From Week Five?

- Once again the Broncos fell behind early on the road against a playoff caliber team. Expect this week to be closer as

Week 5 K Rankings

Source: Fantasy-Info.com by Sean Douglas

Photo By: Scott Rovak / US PRESSWIRE

The Rams rookie kicker Greg Zuerlein had a terrific preseason but the question was, could the Rams play competitive football to make Zuerlein a starter in fantasy leagues? Through four games the answer is yes, as the Rams look more like the team that competed for a division title in 2010 then there abysmal performance last year.

Their success and Head Coach Jeff Fisher’s trust to use Zuerlein any chance he gets (even up to 60 yards), has made the youngster one of the top fantasy options at his position. One of the better big legs in the game Zuerlein is proving he has the accuracy to be trusted as well. Look to Zuerlein as one of the elites at his position as long as

Week 4 K Rankings

Source: Fantasy-Info.com by Sean Douglas

Photo By: Evan Habeeb / US PRESSWIRE

The Patriots have their problems on offense, and that means we should expect Stephen Gostkowski to continue with his three plus field-goal attempts per game. Leg strength hasn’t been a problem as Gostkowski has already matched his career long of 53-yards this season.

What Did We Learn From Week Three?

- Perhaps all is not lost for Rob Bironas as the Titans bounced back in a big way at home. Bironas had three field goals on the day, but it could’ve been better than that as he missed on two other opportunities. Don’t expect that to be the norm as Bironas has proven over the years, missing no more than three attempts in each of the past two

Week 3 K Rankings

Source: Fantasy-Info.com by Sean Douglas

Photo By: Evan Habeeb / US PRESSWIRE

If you don’t know the name Justin Tucker, you will soon. Tucker beat-out Billy Cundiff to start for the Ravens and looked good against the Bengals flashing a strong leg and accuracy. Then his week two performance made him a top five fantasy kicker as he went off for three field goals from distances of 56, 51 and 48 yards.

Tuckers situation is attractive for fantasy leagues, but what impresses me most is John Harbaugh’s willingness to use him at will. A former special-teams coach, Harbaugh must really love his young kicker to display so much trust at this point in his career, and we should view Tucker as a top five fantasy option at his position going

Fantasy Football Rankings: PK - Week 2

Source: KFFL.com NFL

Matt Bryant should be the beneficiary of a quality offensive showing by the Falcons.

Week 2 K Rankings

Source: Fantasy-Info.com by Sean Douglas

Photo By: Rafael Suanes / US PRESSWIRE

Maybe the Ravens didn’t like what Billy Cundiff brought to the table, but Washington has to feel good about having him after he went four for four against the Saints. Cundiff doesn’t have one of the stronger legs in the game, but we should feel good about his chances for quality production, if the Redskins remain competitive in most football games.

Look to Cundiff as a solid starter this week as the Redskins play the Rams, a team they destroyed last season.

Sean’s Watch List For Week 2

- Rob Bironas and Alex Henery have the talent to be weekly starting options in fantasy leagues. However, there are problems for both kickers if

2012 Week 1 Fantasy Football Kicker Rankings

Source: Bleacher Report NFL

The smell of football is in the air. Here are my 2012 Week 1 fantasy football kicker rankings.

1. David Akers, San Francisco 49ers
League’s top kicker last year with 44 field goals and 34 extra points. Plays Green Bay.

2. Stephen Gostkowski, New England Patriots
Pats offense should be even better. Gostkowski kicked 28 FGs last year with 59 PATs. Plays Tennessee.

3. Mason Crosby, Green Bay Packers
Kicked 28 FGs last year with a ridiculous 68 PATs. Against SF he should have multiple FGs.

4. Sebastian Janikwoski, Oakland Raiders
Seabass kicked 31 FGs with 36 PATs last year. Plus, he continually drills long FGs. Plays San

2012 Fantasy Football Kicker Rankings – Week 1

Source: Bleacher Report NFL

The smell of football is in the air. Here are my 2012 Week 1 fantasy football kicker rankings.

1. David Akers, San Francisco 49ers
League’s top kicker last year with 44 field goals and 34 extra points. Plays Green Bay.

2. Stephen Gostkowski, New England Patriots
Pats offense should be even better. Gostkowski kicked 28 FGs last year with 59 PATs. Plays Tennessee.

3. Mason Crosby, Green Bay Packers
Kicked 28 FGs last year with a ridiculous 68 PATs. Against SF he should have multiple FGs.

4. Sebastian Janikwoski, Oakland Raiders
Seabass kicked 31 FGs with 36 PATs last year. Plus, he continually drills long FGs. Plays San

2012 NFL Week 1 Fantasy Projections: Matthew Stafford and Tom Brady Top List

Source: Bleacher Report NFL

Using the WhatIfSports.com NFL simulation engine, the individual fantasy players and defensive teams are ranked based entirely on projected fantasy points using the FOXSports.com Fantasy Football default scoring where:

QBs, RBs, WRs and TEs: TDs are 6 points.

QBs: 25 passing yards is 1 point.

QBs: Interceptions are -2 points.

RBs: 10 rushing yards is 1 point.

QBs, RBs, WRs and TEs: Fumbles lost are -2 points.

WRs, TE and RBs: 10 yards

Fantasy Football 2012 Week 1: Kicker Rankings, Projections

Source: Bleacher Report NFL

No doubt David Akers should still be viewed as the top option at kicker in fantasy leagues. Akers faces a challenge in Week 1, as the game scripts could easily tilt toward the San Francisco 49ers—who are playing on the road against the Packers—falling behind.

It will be up to the 49ers defense to hold down one of the better offenses in the league, and I think that’s a tall order, especially the first week of the season.

Expect marginal numbers from Akers this week, but he should get back to his dominant ways in the team's first home game, against the Lions in Week 2.

 

Sean’s Watch List

We witnessed some

Week 1 – K Rankings

Source: Fantasy-Info.com by Sean Douglas

Photo By: Icon SMI

No doubt David Akers should still be viewed as the top option at kicker in fantasy leagues. Week one, Akers faces a challenge as the game scripts could easily tilt towards the 49ers falling behind, playing on the road against the Packers.

It will be up to the 49ers defense to hold down one of the better offenses in the league and I think that’s a tall order, especially week one. Expect marginal numbers from Akers this week, but he should get back to his dominant ways in the teams first home game against the Lions, week two.

Sean’s Watch List

We witnessed some veteran kickers who got there walking papers last week as well as talented Texans rookie Randy

Juggernaut Index No. 6: The Atlanta Falcons

Source: Roto Arcade by Andy Behrens

There should be no need for us to spit out thousands of words on the Falcons at this point, because we've already written this team to death. Every other day, it seems, one of Atlanta's skill players is featured on the Yahoo! fantasy home page. Michael Turner has taken a turn or two, as has Jacquizz Rodgers. We've debated the relative merits of Julio Jones and Roddy White, we've celebrated the potential of Matt Ryan.

If we don't dial down the hype about this franchise fairly soon, Yahoo! users are gonna start looking for Andre Rison and Jeff

2012 NFL Fantasy Football Kicker Rankings by Tier

Source: Bleacher Report NFL

Here’s a look at the LestersLegends 2012 team kicker rankings by tier. 

 

Tier One: Top kickers in high-powered offenses. Seabass is an exception because he kicks so many long FGs. You may have to draft them prior to the last round of your draft.

Alex Henery, Philadelphia Eagles

The Eagles offense seem to take a little while to get going, but I expect it'll

2012 Fantasy Football Kicker Rankings

Source: Bleacher Report NFL

Here’s a look at the LestersLegends 2012 team kicker rankings.

1.  David Akers, San Francisco 49ers:  He was a top-tier kicker with Philly and took it to a new level with the Niners last year, kicking 44 field goals with 34 extra points.

2.  Stephen Gostkowski, New England Patriots:  The Pats should be an offensive force again and Gostkowski should reap the benefits. He kicked 28 FGs last year with 59 PATs.

3.  Mason Crosby, Green Bay Packers:  Kicked 28 FGs last year with a ridiculous 68 PATs. The Packers should be one of the top offensive teams once again.

4.  Alex Henery, Philadelphia Eagles:  The Eagles offense seemed to take

Kickers – 2012 Fantasy Football Projected Stats

Source: Fantasy-Info.com by Sean Douglas

Photo By: Icon SMI

After his final game with the Eagles, we had to wonder if David Akers best days were behind him. After all, Akers would be turning 36 years old as he headed into free agency as Philadelphia went with Alex Henery in the draft.

As the lockout ended and free agency finally got underway, Akers landed with the 49ers after Joe Nedney called it a career. San Francisco clearly wasn’t going to have the same high-scoring offense we saw in Philadelphia, and we had to wonder if Akers would be good for 30 field conversions in a season.

For the first time in as long as I can remember, I had Akers listed outside the top ten kickers to target on draft day. Boy was I wrong, as the 49ers finally had the breakout

2012 NFL Wild Card Round: Fantasy Football Defense and Kicker Rankings

Source: Bleacher Report NFL

Here is the Lester’s Legends fantasy football team defense rankings for the Wild Card Round.

1. Pittsburgh Steelers @ Denver Broncos: This is easily my favorite matchup of the Wild Card Round. Tebow seems to have lost his mojo, and the Steelers’ physical play will make it difficult for him to reclaim it. 

I suspect they will limit his running ability, forcing him to beat them with his arm. I don’t see that happening.

2. Houston Texans vs. Cincinnati Bengals: The Texans have had a rock-solid defense this year, ranking fourth in scoring (17.4) and second in yards allowed (285.7). Wade Phillips will challenge

NFL Playoffs 2012 Fantasy Football: Team Defense, Kicker Wild Card Rankings

Source: Bleacher Report NFL

For those of you who are new to playoff fantasy football, the name of the game is not to select simply the highest-scoring players for this week.

You want to choose players who have better odds to advance to the next round.

Some websites will put a salary cap for your squad, with dollar values for each player. Other sites may allow you to pick anyone available, but you have to decide which players will advance to the next round, as you will get bonus points for their production in future weeks.

Heading into the Wild Card Round of the playoffs, if I had to put my money down on teams that I felt were locks to advance, they would be the New Orleans Saints and the Pittsburgh Steelers.

With that said, you

Scenes from the War Room: Auditing Two NFL Playoff Drafts

Source: Roto Arcade by Scott Pianowski

I know, it's not that much fun to read about someone else's drafts, but I wanted to get one more push out of football before I completely flicked the switch over to hockey and baseball, full-time. If you're involved in the Playoff Draft world, this post might interest you. If you're not, it probably won't. I make no guarantees and no promises.

I'm not just the Yahoo! playoff cheatsheet architect, I'm also a client. And in two different Monday Drafts, I got to see how frustrating this playoff game can be when you're running from the outside of the

Shuffle Up for the Playoffs: Second season cheat sheet

Source: Roto Arcade by Scott Pianowski

Well, that was a fun 17 weeks. But we still have 11 games to go. Let's talk about the fantasy playoffs.

The first thing you do prior to a playoff draft is rank all the teams with respect to their game potential. This has nothing to do with who's actually on the teams or how fantasy-friendly those players are; you're simply asking yourself "who could get multiple games out of the tournament?"

Here's how I rank the 12 teams with respect to Game Potential:

1. Saints
2. Packers
3. Patriots
4. Ravens
5. Steelers
6. Giants
7. Texans
8. Falcons
9. Niners
10. Bengals
11. Lions
12. Broncos

How you compose that list above will have a

Wild Card Round – K/D Rankings

Source: Fantasy-Info.com by Sean Douglas

For those of you that are new to playoff fantasy football, the name of the game is basically to not just select the highest scoring players for this week, but you want to choose players who have better odds to advance to the next round. Some websites will put a salary cap for your squad, with dollar values for each player.

Other sites may allow you to pick anyone available, but you have to decide which players will advance to the next round, as you will get bonus points for their production in future weeks.

Heading into the wild-card round of the playoffs, if I had to put my money down on teams, I felt were locks to advance it would be the Saints and the Steelers. With that said, you will notice that my top-ranked kicker

2011 Fantasy Football Week 17 Rankings: Kickers and Defenses

Source: Bleacher Report NFL

Most leagues wrapped up their fantasy seasons last week, but there are still plenty of titles up for grabs. Here are the LestersLegends’ Week 17 2011 fantasy football kicker and team defense rankings.

Kickers

1. David Akers @ St. Louis
2. John Kasay vs. Carolina
3. Stephen Gostkowski vs. Buffalo
4. Matt Bryant vs. Tampa Bay
5. Robbie Gould @ Minnesota
6. Mason Crosby vs. Detroit
7. Dan Bailey @ New York Giants
8. Alex Henery vs. Washington
9. Mike Nugent vs. Baltimore
10. Steven Hauschka @ Arizona
11. Jason Hanson @ Green Bay
12. Nick Novak @ Oakland
13. Sebastian Janikowski vs. San Diego
14. Rob Bironas @ Houston
15. Ryan Succop @

Week 17 K/D Rankings

Source: Fantasy-Info.com by Sean Douglas

In what could be a win for the division title and a first-round bye, expect the Steelers to use all the healthy normal starters they can suit up to play against the Browns this week. Even last week, without Ben Roethlisberger this defense posted a shutout against the Rams, and it’s likely they will hold the Browns under 14 points, even with Seneca Wallace bringing some life to their offense last week. Keep an eye out for the Falcons, Vikings and Chiefs defenses as possible waiver wire additions this week if you need help for a team defense.

Last Updated – Dec. 26th

Kickers

1 David Akers @ Rams 2 Sebastian Janikowski Chargers 3 Stephen Gostkowski Bills 4 Mason Crosby Lions 5 Jon

Setting a Lineup, Checking it Twice: A few words on Week 16

Source: Roto Arcade by Scott Pianowski

It's almost time to buckle up and take off for the most important make-believe week of the year. A few general thoughts as we crunch through those critical Week 16 matchup decisions.

• A lot of fortune-cookie logic comes out at this time of year, the obligatory "don't get cute" and "always trust your studs" party line. To me, that's a bit of a cop out, the work of those obsessed with the path to a Friendly Loss. I say, go with who you think gives you the best chance to win, no matter if it jibes with name brands, seasonal values, or what won for you in the previous week or two. If you think DeAngelo Williams

Fantasy Football Kicker Rankings: NFL Week 16

Source: Bleacher Report NFL

Here’s the LestersLegends’ Week 16 2011 fantasy football kicker rankings.

1. David Akers @ Seattle: Akers leads the league in FGs (38) and points (143). The Seahawks have allowed 21 FGs and 28 PATs.
 

2. John Kasay vs. Atlanta: Kasay has 26 FGs and 31 PATs. The Falcons have allowed 21 FGs and 30 PATs.

3. Dan Bailey vs. Philadelphia: Bailey is second in league in FGs (32) and points (132). The Eagles have allowed 15 FGs and 36 PATs.
 

4. Mike Nugent vs. Arizona: Nugent has 27 FGs and 30 PATs. The Cardinals are tied for the lead with 30 FGs allowed, along with 29

Week 16 – K/D Rankings

Source: Fantasy-Info.com by Sean Douglas

In light of the results from the Texans lose to the Panthers, and the Colts first win of the season, Houston’s week sixteen matchup in Indianapolis may not be a big blowout after all. No, the Colts didn’t find a passing attack last week, but their defense stepped up and made plays, as they rolled to an easy finish against the Titans.

Still if you’re in need of a solid top ten matchup for Super Bowl week, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to take a shot on the Texans defense for an early Thursday game. Indianapolis has a hard time slowing down the Texans zone run blocking scheme, and it’s not like they will have Cam Newton at quarterback.

Last Updated – Dec. 19th

Kickers

1 Sebastian

Week 15 Start 'Em, Sit 'Em: Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Atlanta Falcons

Source: Bleacher Report NFL

Thursday night games are very interesting for fantasy owners. If you come out of Thursday night in good shape (your players did well and/or your opponent's players did lousy), you feel like you are most definitely going to win this week. If you come out of Thursday night in less-than-ideal shape (your players did lousy and/or your opponent's players did well) you will feel like you're screwed this week.

And guess what? There's absolutely nothing you can do about this. It's just how it works. Before we break down Thursday night's game, let's look at a couple of things you need to remember about Thursday night games:

If you're not planning on starting players you own that are playing on Thursday night, remember you will not

NFL Week 15: 2011 Fantasy Football Kicker Rankings

Source: Bleacher Report NFL

Here’s the LestersLegends’ Week 15, 2011 fantasy football kicker rankings.

1. David Akers vs. Pittsburgh: leads the NFL with 135 points (36 FGs and 27 PATs). The Steelers have allowed 17 FGs and 19 PATs.

2. Dan Bailey @ Tampa Bay: Ice Ice Bailey has 31 FGs and 32 PATs. The Bucs have allowed 19 FGs and 43 PATs.

3. John Kasay @ Minnesota: has 26 FGs and 45 PATs. The Vikes have allowed 27 FGs and 39 PATs.

4. Mason Crosby @ Kansas City: has 23 FGs and 55 PATs. The Chiefs have allowed 19 FGs and 34 PATs.

5. Rob Bironas