Who Should I Start? Kaimi Fairbairn or Austin Hooper

Wednesday, March 6, 2:35 PM

The Houston Texans re-signed kicker Ka'imi Fairbairn to a three-year, $15.9 million deal on Wednesday, according to a source. Fairbairn's average annual value of $5.3 million makes him the fourth-highest paid kicker in the league on a yearly basis. The 30-year-old kicked in a career-low 12 games in 2023 due to injury, but he was solid when he was active, making 96.4 percent of his 28 field-goal attempts while missing just one of his 22 extra-point tries during the regular season. All seven of his NFL seasons have come with the Texans, and he's made 87.1 percent of his 201 field-goal attempts in that time. With young quarterback C.J. Stroud leading what should be an explosive Houston offense for years to come, Fairbairn's fantasy needle is pointing up heading into 2024.

Wednesday, March 13, 12:18 AM

Las Vegas Raiders free-agent tight end Austin Hooper is expected to sign a one-year deal worth up to $4.25 million with the New England Patriots on Wednesday. The veteran tight end will reunite with new Patriots offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt, who was with Hooper with the Cleveland Browns. Hooper made the Pro Bowl two straight years from 2018-19 while with the Atlanta Falcons, but he hasn't been nearly as involved as he was then in the last four seasons with the Browns, Titans and Raiders. In 17 games (nine starts) last year in Vegas, the 29-year-old caught just 25 of 31 targets for 234 yards and no touchdowns. With both Mike Gesicki and Pharaoh Brown now gone, Hooper figures to serve as New England's No. 2 TE behind Hunter Henry in 2024. Unless Henry gets hurt, Hooper is unlikely to have a significant enough role to warrant fantasy consideration in standard-sized leagues.