Who Should I Start? Harrison Butker or Ramiz Ahmed

Wednesday, December 11, 1:15 PM

Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said that kicker Harrison Butker (knee) will return to practice on Wednesday, but his status for the Week 15 contest on Sunday against the Cleveland Browns is still up in the air. Butker's 21-day practice window to return from Injured Reserve is being opened, but the Chiefs don't necessarily have to activate him for this weekend. The 29-year-old has missed four games after having surgery on his left meniscus. His status for this weekend will depend on how he looks in practices this week. In Butker's absence, the Chiefs have used Spencer Shrader (hamstring), who is also on IR, and Matthew Wright, who was clutch in the Week 14 win over the division-rival Los Angeles Chargers by making all four of his field goals and an extra point. Whoever is the Chiefs' kicker in Week 15 will be worth a starting lineup spot in fantasy.

Saturday, August 10, 7:37 PM

Washington Commanders kicker Ramiz Ahmed went 1-for-1 on his field goal attempts and 2-for-2 on his extra-point attempts on Saturday afternoon. His field goal attempt came from 40 yards out. This is important to note because Riley Patterson missed his lone field goal try from 39 yards out. Brandon McManus was originally brought in during free agency to serve as the starting kicker in D.C. but was let go in June due to being involved with a civil lawsuit. As a result, this opened up a competition between Ahmed and Patterson, and after the team's first preseason game, Ahmed may be in the lead. Patterson does have more experience in the NFL and has gone 59-for-67 throughout the first four seasons of his career. Ahmed made only one NFL appearance back in 2022 with the Green Bay Packers and moved on to play for the Birmingham Stallions in the UFL last spring. Fantasy managers should continue to monitor this competition as the winner could be fantasy-relevant, especially if rookie Jayden Daniels is able to adjust to the NFL fairly quickly and move the Washington offense downfield on a consistent basis.