Who Should I Start? Matt Prater or Chase McLaughlin

Saturday, January 6, 3:04 AM

As the regular season concludes with Week 18, fantasy managers can confidently rely on Arizona Cardinals kicker Matt Prater. In the recent victory against the Eagles, Prater showcased his consistency by converting 2-of-2 field goals and 3-of-3 extra points. Impressively, he has not missed a kick in his last four games and has only four total misses on the year, solidifying his status as one of the most reliable kickers in the league. Prater's performance against the Eagles, including successful attempts from 28 and 34 yards, underlines his ability to contribute fantasy points regularly despite Arizona's offensive inconsistencies. As the Cardinals gear up for the final game of the year, fantasy managers should feel comfortable starting Prater, knowing they have a dependable kicker to round out their lineups.

Monday, March 11, 5:15 PM

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers agreed to an undisclosed three-year deal to re-sign kicker Chase McLaughlin on Monday, according to a source. McLaughlin will stay with the Buccaneers after going 29-for-31 on his field-goal attempts and 33-for-33 on his extra points in 17 regular-season games. The 27-year-old's success rate on field goals last year set a new single-season record, so it's no wonder why Tampa wanted the kicker back for another go-round in 2024 as their primary kicker. From a fantasy perspective, McLaughlin finished as the No. 16 kicker in terms of overall fantasy points in 2023. The Bucs offense should remain largely the same this year with quarterback Baker Mayfield and top wideout Mike Evans sticking around, so McLaughlin should enter the year as a matchup-based streamer at the kicking position in fantasy.