Justin Tucker is the most accurate kicker in NFL history, with an impressive career percentage of 91%. Harrison Butker of the Chiefs and Younghoe Koo of the Falcons are currently tied for second at 88%.

Entering Sunday’s game against the Browns, Tucker had yet to miss a kick inside of 50 yards, and he had only three missed field goals all season. Yet just when his fantasy managers needed him most in the opening week of the playoffs, Tucker had his worst game of the year, with a 48-yard try pushed to the right and a blocked kick on a long attempt.

If you managed to overcome Tucker’s four-point game and are still alive in the playoffs, don’t fear playing Tucker next week at home against the Falcons. He has never missed more than five tries in a season, and you can bet he will not let that happen this season now that he has already reached five misses. Fire him up again next week and look for around ten fantasy points against Atlanta.

Weather is going to be a huge factor in the outcome of this week’s games, and pivoting to a kicker playing indoors may be a wise move. Half of the kickers ranked below are playing in games under 32F, including many with highs in the teens and single digits. To make matters worse, sustained winds of over 30 MPH are expected in Cleveland and Chicago this weekend, making kicking for those teams a dicey proposition.

You will notice that I have adjusted my rankings to reflect this issue, including moving players like Brandon McManus and Ryan Succop up higher than consensus.

Week 15 Stud Performances from widely available kickers

Chase McLaughlin (K – IND) @ Minnesota: 6% roster percentage on Yahoo

Buried way down in the lede of Sunday’s miraculous 33-point comeback was the fact that McLaughlin and his 21 fantasy points turned out to be one of the best fantasy starts of the week. If you started him, chances are you walked away victorious.

Matt Prater (K – ARI) @ Denver: 9% roster percentage on Yahoo

Prater returned to his old stomping grounds in Denver to post an impressive 14 fantasy points, with a pair of 50-yard kicks to go along with a 40-yarder. His K Score of 49 indicated a decent chance for a good day, but the unpredictability of the quarterback situation in Arizona made me hesitant to rank him higher than 20th.

Week 15 Dud Performances from widely-rostered kickers

Harrison Butker (K – KC) @ Houston: 95% roster percentage on Yahoo

Butker missed a 50-yard try and an extra point in a surprisingly close game on the road against the Texans. He is now down to 76% on the season with five misses out of 21 attempts, along with three missed extra points. Not exactly the type of season we were expecting for a guy who entered the season as the second-most accurate kicker of all time.

Kicker Rankings

*Red Zone Efficiency is based on the inverse of how well the kicker‘s offense does in the red zone. For example, the Chiefs rank 7th in red zone efficiency; therefore, Harrison Butker has an RZ EFF score of 25. The lower number, the better for kickers, as playing on a team that struggles to score touchdowns in the red zone equates to more field goal opportunities.

**The K Score is the sum of a player’s opponent’s red zone, the red zone efficiency of his offense, and the overall rank of his respective team in terms of total yards. A low score indicates that a kicker has variables working in his favor for a good fantasy kicking performance.

Kicker rankings are based on numerous factors, including matchups, Vegas lines, and score projections, weather conditions, the ability of a kicker‘s team offense and their ability to move the ball into field goal range, offensive red zone efficiency, and how well the opposing defense limits touchdowns in the red zone. These factors are a guide but not a definitive way to predict kicking success, as other variables and negative game scripts significantly impact the outcome.

Based on all the variables mentioned above, the following two kickers are players ranked outside of the FantasyPros ECR top 10 who could be an excellent play in Week 16.

Ryan Succop (K – TB) @ Arizona: 30% roster percentage on Yahoo

If you want to pivot away from a kicker playing in windy and frigid conditions this week, Ryan Succop on the road against the reeling Cardinals is not bad. His K Score of 64 is not great, but the Cardinals are 9th on the season in points allowed to kickers, and a negative game script does not look to be in play here. I don’t anticipate a monster game, but a solid floor of eight points with a ceiling of 12 is in play.

Robbie Gould (SF) vs. Commanders: 46% roster percentage on Yahoo

This pick may have a few of you rolling your eyes based on Gould’s recent showing of five points against the Bucs and two last week on the road against the Seahawks. I get it, but I also see that he has favorable weather conditions, is a home favorite by seven points, and his team is playing a defense that ranks 16th in red zone stops. I like the Niners in this one to win and Gould to finish with nine or more points.

Prediction Review

Each week I suggest two kickers ranked outside the FantasyPros ECR top 10 who I believe will be solid performers based on the variables described in the K Score section. The following is a review of my picks from the previous week to see where I was successful and where I missed the mark.

Joey Slye (WAS) vs. New York: 2% roster percentage on Yahoo

ECR Rank: 26
My Rank: 11
Week 15 Finish: T11

Slye was a missed extra point away from a top-10 finish on the week, despite owning an ECR of 26. I mentioned last week that I was going out on a limb somewhat with that call, but his K Score of 40 indicated a strong performance, and he came through with a solid 8 points.

Cade York (CLE) vs. Baltimore: 5% roster percentage on Yahoo

ECR Rank: 20
My Rank: 10
Week 15 Finish: T20

This one drives me nuts because York had every chance to finish as a top-10 kicker but missed two field goal tries on the day. Four made field goals and an extra point would have made him an elite player, but he is just too inconsistent to trust.

Waiver Wired

Top Add

Greg Joseph (K – MIN) vs. NY Giants: 20% roster percentage on Yahoo

Joseph plays indoors this week against a Giants defense that allows the 6th-most points to opposing kickers. His K Score of 42 is solid, and a crazy negative game script like last week is likely not in play.

Other players to consider:

Graham Gano (NYG) @ Minnesota: 52% roster percentage on Yahoo

Andrew Swanson is a correspondent at FantasyPros. For more from Andrew, check out his archive or follow him @FFKickerGuy.