Who Should I Start? Cairo Santos or Spencer Shrader

Tuesday, December 24, 2:19 PM

Chicago Bears kicker Cairo Santos should not be viewed as a viable streaming option on Thursday evening when the Bears host the Seattle Seahawks. Last weekend, Santos went 1-for-1 on attempts and 2-for-2 on extra points during their loss to the Detroit Lions. Over the past four weeks, Santos has only attempted two or more field goals in a single game on one occasion. During this span he attempted zero field goals in two of the games. Even though he holds a strong 84.6 FG% since Week 9, Santos has not been given enough volume to provide a solid fantasy output. During the fantasy playoffs, it is critical to target kickers on high-scoring offensive units and the Chicago Bears do not fit that criteria. Facing a Seattle Seahawks defense that has allowed the tenth-fewest fantasy points to opposing kickers, fantasy managers should look elsewhere for a streaming option.

Thursday, March 13, 9:49 PM

The Indianapolis Colts announced on Thursday that they have signed free-agent kicker Spencer Shrader to an undisclosed deal. Shrader will return to Indianapolis after making all three of his extra points in the Week 1 loss to the division-rival Houston Texans. The 25-year-old also appeared in games with the New York Jets and Kansas City Chiefs in his first year in the NFL in 2024, going a combined 5-for-5 on field-goal attempts (zero attempts from 50-plus yards) and 9-for-9 on extra-point tries. Shrader didn't miss a single kick, but it was also a small sample size. He was brought in to compete with veteran Matt Gay this summer after Gay made just 83.8 percent of his 37 field-goal attempts in his second year with the team. Whoever wins the competition should be left to the waiver wire in 12-team fantasy leagues.