Who Should I Start? Matt Prater or Charlie Smyth

Tuesday, October 15, 7:55 PM

The Arizona Cardinals placed kicker Matt Prater (knee) and defensive lineman Bilal Nichols (neck) on Injured Reserve on Tuesday, meaning both players will have to miss at least the next four games. Nichols will miss the rest of the season. To replace Prater on the active 53-man roster, the Cardinals elevated Chad Ryland from the practice squad. In the last two games with Prater out, Ryland has gone 5-for-6 on field goals and made both of his extra points. Prater made all six of his field goals and went 10-for-10 on extra points in his four games, surpassing the career 1,800-point plateau. The earliest Prater will be eligible to return from IR will be after the team's Week 11 bye for a Week 12 contest against the division-rival Seattle Seahawks. Ryland will be a poor streaming option for fantasy managers in Week 7 against the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday night.

Sunday, August 25, 6:35 PM

New Orleans Saints kicker Charlie Smyth (groin) didn't suit up during Sunday's preseason contest against the Tennessee Titans. The rookie kicker has been dealing with an ongoing groin issue since Friday. Head coach Dennis Allen said that the team wanted to play it safe and hold Smyth out of this game. In his absence, Blake Grupe handled the kicking duties during the preseason finale. He connected on both his field goal attempts and made all three of his extra point attempts as well. It remains to be seen which kicker the team decides to ride with into the regular season. Grupe is probably the favorite after making 30-of-37 field goal attempts and all 40 extra point attempts during his rookie season with the Saints in 2023.