NFL Player News
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Jake Elliott K | PHI
Eagles' Jake Elliott: Bankable from inside 40 yards
Elliott completed 22 of 26 field-goal attempts in 2019 and converted 33 of his 35 extra-point tries.
In each of his three years in the league, Elliott has logged at least an 83.9 percent success rate, earning himself a new five-year deal in the process. He did not miss a single field-goal attempt from inside 40 yards during the season, despite whiffing on two extra-point tries. The 24-year-old accounted for all of the Eagles' nine points in their wild-card loss and looks to be a fixture on the team for years to come.
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Brandon McManus K | GB
Broncos' Brandon McManus: Scores 112 points in 2019
McManus converted 29 of 34 field goals, with a season high of 53 yards, and 25 of 26 point-after attempts in 2019.
A strong argument can be made that 2019 was McManus' finest statistical performance. He ended one field goal off his career high and a fraction of a percentage point off his career best conversion rate. More importantly was from where he was kicking them; his 14 field goals from 40 yards and farther out obliterated his previous season high of 10. He ended 2019 tied for fifth in the league with 29 total field goals, and his 14 field goals from 40 yards and farther also ranked fifth. If the offense can take some further steps with incoming sophomore Drew Lock at the helm, McManus' opportunities should only increase in 2020.
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Harrison Butker K | KC
Chiefs' Harrison Butker: Leads NFL in field goals
Butker finished 2019 with a league-high 34 field goals made and finished third for extra-point makes (45) behind Justin Tucker (57) and Wil Lutz (48).
Butker missed just one field-goal attempt from inside of 50 yards all season, but he did misfire on three extra-point tries. He has five more years remaining on his contract with the Chiefs, and there is nothing to suggest he's falling off in any way. Given his spot on a high-powered Kansas City squad, Butker should be one of the first kickers off the board in 2020 drafts.
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Daniel Carlson K | LV
Raiders' Daniel Carlson: Costly miss in one-point loss
Carlson converted three of four field-goal attempts in the Raiders' Week 17 loss to the Broncos, missing a 39-yard attempt wide left in the process.
Carlson, who missed just one of his 17 field-goal attempts in 10 games with the Raiders during his rookie campaign in 2018, took a step back throughout the latter half of the 2019 season. The Auburn product connected on 73 percent (19 of 26) of his field-goal attempts and missed a pair of extra-point tries in 2019. Carlson especially struggled from lengthier distances, going 6-for-12 from 40-plus yards out. He'll become an exclusive-rights free agent in 2020 as the Raiders make the move to Las Vegas.
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Wil Lutz K | DEN
Saints' Wil Lutz: Rare miss in wild-card loss
Lutz made two of three field-goal attempts and converted both of his extra-point attempts in the Saints' 26-20 overtime loss to the Vikings on Sunday.
Lutz finished the game with a rare miss, pushing the ball wide right on a 43-yard attempt at the end of the first half that would have tied the game at 13. Entering this game, he had made 16 field goals in a row, and Lutz will head into next season as one of the league's most accurate kickers.
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Ka'imi Fairbairn K | HOU
Texans' Ka'imi Fairbairn: Sends Texans to divisional round
Fairbairn converted both of his field-goal attempts in the Texans' 22-19 overtime win over the Bills in their AFC wild-card playoff game.
Fairbairn booted a 41-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter that sent Houston to the divisional round after an accurate 28-yarder in overtime. The 25-year-old placekicker has made all of his kicks over the last seven games, going 9-of-9 on field goals and 16-of-16 on extra points.
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Mike Badgley K | BUF
Chargers' Michael Badgley: Perfect from inside 45 yards
Badgley converted on 13 of his 16 field-goal attempts in 2019 and did not miss any of his 19 extra points.
A groin injury ultimately cost Badgley the first eight games of the season, but the second-year kicker returned in Week 9 and proceeded to be a reliable option from 45 yards or less. All three of Badgley's misses came from 46 yards or longer, however, but considering the team's struggles to find a consistent kicker in past seasons, it's unlikely the 24-year-old will have much competition at the position in 2020.
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Matt Prater K | BUF
Lions' Matt Prater: Accurate from long range
Prater converted both of his field-goal attempts and both of his PATs during Sunday's 23-20 loss to Green Bay.
The 56-yarder Prater cranked through in the fourth was right down the middle and might have have been good from 70-plus yards, given how much room it had to clear the post. Regardless, the veteran's general ability to connect from long range was critical for the Lions' David-Blough-led offense to maintain its lead for most of the game. With the 2019 campaign now in the books, Prater will finish his age-35 season having converted 26 of 31 field-goal attempts and 35 of 36 PATs over 16 games in 2019. Despite both his field goals and field-goal attempts representing four-year lows, the entire Lions offense suffered from the absence of Matthew Stafford (back) over the last half of the campaign. A healthy Stafford should mean good things for all parties involved in 2020, the final year of Prater's current contract.
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Matt Prater K | BUF
Lions' Matt Prater: Accurate from long range
Prater made both of his field-goal attempts and both of his extra points in Sunday's 23-20 loss against the Packers.
The 56-yarder Prater cranked through in the fourth was dead-center and might have have been good from 70-plus yards, given how much room it had to clear the post. Regardless, the veteran's general ability to connect from long range was critical for the Lions' David-Blough-led offense to maintain its lead for most of the game. With the 2019 campaign now in the books, Prater will finish his age-35 season having converted 26 of 31 field-goal attempts and 35 of 36 PATs over 16 games in 2019. Despite both of his field goals and field-goal attempts representing four-year lows, the entire Lions offense suffered from the absence of Matthew Stafford (back) over the last half of the season. A healthy Stafford should mean good things for all parties involved in 2020, the last year of Prater's current contract with Detroit.
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Greg Zuerlein K | NYJ
Rams' Greg Zuerlein: Misses another kick in Week 17
Zuerlein connected on one of his two field-goal attempts and all four extra-point kicks during Sunday's 31-24 win over Arizona.
The veteran finished the campaign connecting on just four of eight field-goal attempts over the final five weeks of the season to drop to 72.7 conversion rate for the year. It was the second worst field-goal percentage of his career and lowest since hitting just 66.7 percent during the 2015 season. He's a good bet to bounce back in 2020, and the improvements the Los Angeles offense made down the stretch are encouraging for his fantasy outlook.