While the kick returners last week weren’t hits, they ranked 13th, 15th, 17th, in terms of kick return yards so they weren’t complete busts either. I was right with the kickers in that the Panthers, Bengals and Eagles would score a lot of points. Each scored at least 24. Unfortunately the kickers were kicking more extra points than field goals. Again, I will try to uncover the special team players you can add to your team which will result in happy fantasy owners.
Kick Returners
Devin Hester – No kicker has more consistently allowed his kicks to be returned this year than Ryan Longwell with just seven of his 27 kicks getting touched back. He has been a little above average as a return man this year other than his 69 yard punt return for a touchdown, which means he is primed for a big game. To top it all off, he knows everyone will be watching him on Sunday Night Football.
Devin Thomas – To stick with the Devin theme, over the past two weeks Thomas has had seven returns for 185 yards. It is always a good sign playing the Bills now that they are a high scoring offense this year, and Rian Lindell has had two out of every three kicks returned. The Bills have scored at least 30 points in four games, which should lead to about four returns by Thomas.
Clyde Gates – As a rookie, he has had at least 60 kick returns in every game even though he’s only had three opportunities in each of the last three games. He can hopefully have more than three opportunities as he’s up against the Jets. They will likely score a bit against Miami, and Nick Folk averages just 66 yards per kick which is third lowest for players with at least ten kickoffs.
Kickers
Billy Cundiff – The kicker that I picked to be the best fantasy kicker has yet to live up to that standard. He has hit just nine field goals, and missed both of them beyond 50 yards. However I think this is the week where he takes a step closer to the top of the leader board, as the Ravens will need to score a bit of points to keep up with the Texans. Without Andre Johnson and Mario Williams; the Ravens should be able to accomplish which means lots of points for Cundiff.
Robbie Gould – The Bears kicker is one of the few who are still perfect, while he’s ten for ten. The Vikings are typically good for roughly 20 points, which means the Bears will need to top that. After an embarrassing loss to the Lions, they get the chance to prove in front of everyone they are still a legitimate playoff contender. If the Bears can shine in this game, they will accomplish this as well as get Gould a lot of points.
Jason Hanson – He is another kicker that is perfect on the season with eleven successful kicks. The 49ers are coming off of an offensive explosion, so the Lions will probably need to score a bit to keep up with them and remain undefeated. They have scored at least 24 points each week, so if Hanson isn’t already on a fantasy team permanently, it might be time to give him a home on your roster.
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