Who Should I Start? Ka'imi Fairbairn or Jake Bates
Week 1 Projections
| Fant. Pts. |
Rush. Yds. |
Rush TD |
Rec. | Rec. Yds. |
Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Ka'imi Fairbairn News
Tuesday, March 10, 9:36 AM
The Houston Texans are signing kicker Ka'imi Fairbairn to a two-year, $13 million deal on Tuesday, a league source told Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 Sports. Fairbairn still had a year left on the three-year, $15.9 million contract he signed with the Texans in March of 2024, but the Texans will extend one of the best kickers in the NFL for another couple of seasons. The 32-year-old veteran led the NFL in both field-goal makes (44) and attempts (48) in 15 regular-season games in 2025, also making all 28 of his extra-point opportunities. He went 9-for-13 on kicks from 50-plus yards out. Fairbairn was second behind only the Seahawks' Jason Myers in overall fantasy points among kickers last year. He has an 87.6% success rate in his career on 291 field-goal attempts over his nine years in the league. Locked in with Houston for another couple of years, Fairbairn will be a high-floor fantasy kicker in 2026.
Week 1 Projections
| Fant. Pts. |
Rush. Yds. |
Rush TD |
Rec. | Rec. Yds. |
Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8.6 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Jake Bates News
Wednesday, March 4, 3:20 PM
The Detroit Lions tendered a contract to exclusive-rights free-agent kicker Jake Bates, ensuring that he returns for the 2026 season, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. Bates has gotten off to a nice start to his NFL career in two seasons with Detroit, making 84.1% of his 63 field-goal attempts while making 118 of his 123 extra-point tries in 34 games played. The 27-year-old Arkansas product has led the NFL in extra-point attempts and extra-point makes in each of the last two years while playing in one of the best offenses in the league. In 2025, he went 27-for-34 on field goals (4-for-9 from 50-plus yards) and 54-for-56 on extra points in 17 games played to finish as the No. 6 fantasy kicker in overall points. The Lions will have a new offensive coordinator in 2026, but they should still have a favorable offense, making Bates a clear top-10 fantasy target at the kicking position.
Ka'imi Fairbairn vs. Jake Bates
Still trying to decide between Fairbairn and Bates? Check on the latest news to make sure both players are active and healthy. Our PPR projections show that Ka'imi Fairbairn is projected to score 8.3 points this week while Jake Bates is projected to score 8.6 points.
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