Who Should I Start? Spencer Shrader or Ryan Fitzgerald

Monday, October 6, 11:21 PM

Indianapolis Colts head coach Shane Steichen said that kicker Spencer Shrader (knee) tore his ACL and MCL in his right knee in the Week 5 win over the Las Vegas Raiders and will miss the rest of the season, according to Stephen Holder of ESPN.com. Shrader was injured when a defender crashed into his knee following a kick on Sunday. It's a tough break for the 26-year-old and the 4-1 Colts, as Shrader had missed just one of his 14 field-goal tries while making all 14 of his extra-point attempts in five games before his season-ending injury. With no current kicker other than Shrader on the active roster or practice squad, the Colts will be working out free-agent kickers this week as they head into a Week 6 meeting with the visiting Arizona Cardinals. Fantasy managers who had been using Shrader at the position will have to hit the waiver wire for a replacement.

Saturday, November 8, 1:34 AM

Ryan Fitzgerald is a viable fill-in option if a deeper one is needed for Week 10. In last week's game against the Green Bay Packers, the Carolina kicker nailed his only field goal attempt and was 1-for-2 on extra point attempts. The rookie kicker has recorded an average of 7.2 fantasy points this season while hitting all of his field goal attempts in four of the last five weeks. Over the last four weeks, the Saints have allowed 10 points per game to the kicker position, which ranks 28th of all teams. New Orleans has also given up an average of 27 points to opposing teams, which is tied for 24th-most in the league this season. The matchup appears to be favorable for Fitzgerald, and while he is ranked just 18th at kicker by RotoBaller for Week 10, he could provide adequate fantasy totals.