Who Should I Start? Graham Gano or Jake Bates

Wednesday, November 12, 5:43 PM

The New York Giants placed kicker Graham Gano (neck) on Injured Reserve on Wednesday due to the neck injury that he's been dealing with, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. It's the second time that Gano has been on IR this year, so his season will come to an end after only five games played in 2025. The 38-year-old veteran kicker went 9-for-10 on his field-goal attempts (he made his only 50-yard attempt) and 9-for-9 on extra points. The G-Men explored using Jude McAtamney for a short bit with Gano injured this year, but that didn't work out, and they are set to continue with former Falcons kicker Younghoe Koo in their Week 11 contest this Sunday against the visiting Green Bay Packers. In last week's loss to the Bears, Koo made both of his field goals and both of his extra points. He shouldn't be on the streaming radar in fantasy this week, though, with quarterback Jameis Winston taking over for the injured Jaxson Dart (concussion).

Wednesday, December 24, 10:39 PM

Across 15 games this season, Detroit Lions kicker Jake Bates has converted on 22 of 28 field goal attempts and 52 out of 54 extra-point tries. Bates has the benefit of being tied to the Detroit offense, which enters Week 17 ranked second in the NFL in points per game (30.1). However, Bates and the Lions will face one of the league's top scoring defenses in Week 17 when they travel to Minnesota to take on the Vikings. Over the last three weeks, Minnesota has allowed opponents to score an average of just 13 points per game. In the first matchup between the two NFC North division rivals this season in Week 9, the Lions were held to 24 points, their fourth-lowest mark in a game in 2025. If there's one benefit for Bates, the game will be played indoors, which eliminates any weather concerns for the kicking game. Bates remains a viable starting kicker for fantasy managers in Week 17, but he profiles as a low-end option rather than a must-start player at the position against Minnesota.