Evan Tarracciano | Tue, Aug 11th 2026, 7:16am EDT

Fantasy Football Draft Strategy: How to Draft Kickers (2026)

Kickers are a notoriously hot-button subject in fantasy football because of their maddening inconsistency, high turnover rates and unpredictability. Managers who select a kicker anywhere other than the final round are often ridiculed by their league mates, who wonder what the point of overthinking things is.

Fantasy Football Draft Strategy: Kickers

Out of all the positions that managers draft in fantasy football, kickers are also the ones most streamed, meaning that managers feel perfectly comfortable scouring the waiver wire each week for the best option, rather than choosing a “set it and forget it” starter. I’ll fully admit to utilizing this strategy in the past, especially with how little thought I’ve paid to the position during drafts.

This begs the question: Is it worth acquiring a tier-one kicker, or should managers continue to simply stream the position instead?

Looking back at the 2025 season, Jason Myers led all kickers with a whopping 202 fantasy points. This was the first time any kicker has crossed the 200-point threshold since FantasyPros started recording stats back in 2002. Myers averaged nearly 12 points per start, converting 41 of his field-goal 48 opportunities, including all 48 extra-point attempts and nine kicks from beyond 50 yards. Myers was sensational and gave his managers a weekly leg-up (pun intended) at the position.

Yet, he was hardly alone.

Ka’imi Fairbairn actually scored more points per game than Myers (12.9 to 11.9) and finished second with 194 fantasy points. Brandon Aubrey and Cameron Dicker also averaged 11 and 10 points per game, respectively. This marked the second consecutive season that at least four kickers have averaged double-digit point totals per week. Prior to this, it hadn’t happened since 2017, and before that, 2013.

Nine kickers averaged more than 10 points per game in 2025, but I’m withholding Spencer Shrader, Ben Sauls and Charlie Smyth because they didn’t start a full season with their respective teams.

What does this infer? Kickers are becoming increasingly more accurate (especially from distance), and coaches are more willing to allow kickers opportunities to try long-distance field goals, rather than attempting to pin their opponents back in their own territory with a punt.

In 2025, four kickers attempted more than 40 field goals. In 2024, that number ballooned to six.

Care to guess the last time prior to this that more than four kickers attempted 40 field goals?

2017.

That was the only other season in the last 20 years where kickers have been so prolific.

Kickers are scoring more, and also being given more opportunities, especially from distance. Noted.

To further put this into perspective, Myers’ 202 points last season would have placed him as the WR8 in half-PPR formats, ahead of Davante Adams and Nico Collins. He would have ranked as the RB16, ahead of Jaylen Warren, Rico Dowdle and Breece Hall. Myers would have been the TE2, only behind Trey McBride.

Starting to get the point?

Kickers shouldn’t be dismissed so easily.

Noteworthy Kicker Trends & Characteristics

Now that we’ve established the importance of the position, it is time to take a step back and figure out which factors benefit kickers most and who should be targeted.

A common factor amongst the top five kickers from last season is that they played on offenses capable of moving the ball with ease, but not necessarily on the top-scoring teams.

The Los Angeles Rams led the NFL with 65 total touchdowns last season, followed by Buffalo (62), New England (58) and Detroit (57). Yet, none of their kickers managed to crack the top five at the position. Extra points are fine, but fantasy managers want field goals.

Managers looking to maximize their kicker should target offenses that fall between fifth and 15th in projections. Any higher and the team will kick too many extra points, but any lower and the team isn’t capable of providing enough opportunities due to offensive struggles.

Another common thread that is that the top kickers don’t often deal with terribly adverse weather conditions, especially cold temperatures. Of the top 10 finishers at the position in 2025, only Chris Boswell and Harrison Butker play for teams with open stadiums that I’d describe as “cold weather” teams. Kicking in domed stadiums is quite beneficial to accuracy and attempts.

Kicker Targets

Unsurprisingly, recency bias creeps in when ranking players. Glancing through the first tier of kicker rankings, the same players who finished last year in the top five are ranked exactly the same. Apparently, either no analyst is willing to go out on a limb and endorse someone else, or there is just a great amount of faith in those options. Or perhaps, both things are true.

Reviewing statistics from the last few seasons gives us further information to work with. Veteran kickers who return with job security and have experienced success in the past are easy to bank on for strong production.

Brandon Aubrey (K – DAL)

Brandon Aubrey has finished as a top-three option in each of the last three seasons and remains the most logical choice for managers wishing to prioritize the position. Aubrey has averaged 42 attempts per season since entering the league and is remarkably accurate from long distance, converting 35 out of 44 attempts from beyond 50 yards. Even factoring possible regression with Dallas scoring more touchdowns and attempting fewer field goals, he is the top choice on the board.

Cameron Dicker (K – LAC)

Cameron Dicker has started every single game for Jacksonville in each of the last three seasons, and has finished as the K4, K3 and K8 during that stretch. He is the current all-time NFL leader in field goal accuracy and has a strong enough leg to convert from more than 50 yards out when required. Now that both starting tackles for Los Angeles return, look for this offense to operate on all cylinders, giving Dicker an outside chance to finish as the top kicker in 2026.

Cam Little (K – JAX)

Cam Little has the strongest leg in the league, and I fully expect Jacksonville to make a leap forward with their offensive production this year. The Jaguars seem perfectly happy to allow him opportunities from long distance, as he’s shattered the record for the longest field goal in league history, with a 68-yarder last November. Playing on a team capable of moving the ball offensively coupled with a mid-range defense that surrenders points, Little should be counted on again for strong production.

Jason Myers (K – SEA)

Last season’s top scorer Jason Myers has finished as a top-five option in three of the past four years, mainly due to volume. Though he isn’t as accurate and doesn’t have as strong a leg as others on this list, Seattle’s willingness to “take the points” whenever possible puts Myers in a good position for relevance. The Seahawks’ offense largely remains intact from last season, and their smothering defense will hold most opponents to low-scoring contests where kicks are crucial.

Evan McPherson (K – CIN)

I’ve long been a fan of Evan McPherson, since he was one of the first NFL players in recent memory that shared my name. Call me a sap, go ahead. After struggling with accuracy issues in 2024, McPherson rebounded last season, converting 25 of his 28 field goals and 41 out of 44 extra points. McPherson finished as the K14 last year, despite Cincinnati being without Joe Burrow for most of the season. Should Burrow remain healthy, look for the Bengals to give McPherson more attempts this season, making him a dark horse to crack the top five.

Chase McLaughlin (K – TB)

Chase McLaughlin is another kicker who I’ve been happy selecting in drafts, when provided the opportunity. He finished as the K7 and K6 the last two seasons, and strongly benefits from playing in Florida and largely avoiding cold-weather games. Baker Mayfield, Emeka Egbuka and Chris Godwin return healthy this year, and so does the Buccaneers’ offensive line, which was ravaged by injuries in 2025. I’m looking for this offense to revert to form and give McLauglin more opportunities in 2026.

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