Who Should I Start? Riley Patterson or Jake Bates

Wednesday, August 27, 7:51 PM

The Miami Dolphins officially signed free-agent kicker Riley Patterson to their practice squad on Wednesday, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. Patterson is expected to be elevated to kick against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 1 of the regular season on Sunday, Sept. 7, in place of the injured Jason Sanders (hip). The Dolphins put Sanders on short-term Injured Reserve on Tuesday, meaning he'll miss at least the first four games of the 2025 season. The 25-year-old Patterson will get a shot to fill in as Miami's kicker until Sanders returns, although he won't really be a starting kicking option in 12-team fantasy leagues. Patterson has already kicked for five different teams in his four NFL seasons and has made 85.1% of his 74 field-goal attempts and 96.5% of his 112 extra-point tries. He's gone just 4-for-9 from 50-plus yards out.

Friday, January 17, 1:49 AM

Detroit Lions kicker Jake Bates has never appeared in an NFL playoff game before, but he already ranks as the No. 1 overall kicker in RotoBaller's Divisional Round fantasy rankings. His highly anticipated performance against the Washington Commanders on Saturday is the result of an impressive regular season in which he scored the seventh-most fantasy points among kickers. He missed just three field-goal attempts, and the Lions' incredibly potent offense put him in position to make a whopping 64 extra points. Also working in his favor is a somewhat favorable matchup against the Commanders, who surrendered two field goals to Chase McLaughlin last week, including one from 50 yards out. All in all, Bates is this week's top fantasy kicker thanks to his accuracy, power, and role on a dominant Lions team.