Who Should I Start? Matt Gay or Matthew Wright

Saturday, November 29, 4:55 AM

San Francisco 49ers kicker Matt Gay filled in reasonably well for the injured Eddy Pineiro (hamstring) in Week 12. In San Francisco's 20-9 win over the Panthers, Gay converted both of his extra point tries and nailed field goals from 29 and 47 yards out. Pineiro is listed as out on the 49ers' final injury report before their Week 13 showdown with the Cleveland Browns, so Gay will stay on as the team's kicker for at least one more week. Unfortunately, he won't be working in favorable conditions. Sunday's forecast calls for 25 to 35 MPH winds, rain, and snow in Cleveland. Gay will have to be at the top of his game to be of service to San Francisco. Fantasy football managers may want to look elsewhere to fill the kicker slot in their starting lineups for Week 13.

Tuesday, January 6, 4:59 PM

The Buffalo Bills announced on Tuesday that they signed free-agent kicker Matthew Wright to their practice squad. Veteran kicker Matt Prater (quadriceps) aggravated his quad injury in the Week 18 win over the New York Jets on Sunday, which means that Wright will most likely be promoted to the active 53-man roster for this weekend's Wild-Card matchup at the Jacksonville Jaguars. The 29-year-old Wright kicked for three teams in 2025 -- the Tennessee Titans, Washington Commanders, and Houston Texans -- making all five of his field-goal tries and all four of his extra-point attempts in only four games played. Wright has kicked for eight teams in his six NFL seasons, making 88.2% of his 68 field-goal attempts. He's gone 45-for-47 on extra points. Given Prater's uncertain status for the weekend, fantasy managers would be wise to avoid Buffalo's kicking situation entering the playoffs.