Olindo Mare

Mare's biggest weakness last season was the Seahawks offense. Seattle finished 29th in the league with 4.9 yards per play last season and scored just 33 touchdowns. And even though the Seahawks were 29th in red-zone touchdown efficiency at 42 percent, which theoretically should have offered Mare copious field-goal opportunities, Mare still attempted just 14 kicks inside 40 yards. Mare, who was 25-of-30 last season, had made 88 percent of his field goals in three seasons in Seattle, and last year added a 50-yarder. Mare had never missed an extra point in Seattle but had never attempted more than the paltry 31 he did last season. Mare is accurate enough, but the opportunities just weren't there. He moves onto Carolina, which does't improve his prospects much and he will continue to be a lower-tier fantasy kicker.

Mare’s two seasons in Seattle have been highlighted by great accuracy (90.5 percent) but few opportunities. Mare has kicked just 58 extra points in two seasons in Seattle (the Saints kicked 63 last season), while attempting just 53 field goals. New coach Pete Carroll made modest upgrades to the offense, but the Seahawks still lack playmakers. Mare also did not have an attempt of 50-plus yards after hitting 3-of-4 from that distance in 2008. Mare appears to have overcome his struggles of inaccuracy that plagued him in 2006-2007, but until his attempts increase significantly, he’ll be just another accurate kicker with little to show for his efforts.

A healthy Matt Hasselbeck will go long way in helping Mare, but the Seahawks still lack playmakers on offense. Perhaps new coach Jim Mora will get more out of the offense than Mike Holmgren. If not, it’ll be more of the same for Mare. Last season, Mare made 88.9 percent of his field goals, his highest mark since 2001, and hit three 50-yarders after making only three in the previous three years combined. Don’t bet on him being as accurate or as long as he was last season. Also, backup Brandon Coutu is still on the roster and could conceivably provide a challenge to Mare at some point.

Unlike most of the kicking battles this season, this one actually holds fantasy significance, as the Seattle kicker position yielded 127 points last season. The team still has Matt Hasselbeck and might have upgraded at running back by signing Julius Jones. Mare likely is Seattle's fallback plan in case seventh-round pick Brandon Coutu doesn't produce. Coutu looks like a better bet. Mare struggled last season (10-of-17) and is coming off a hip injury, which is like a pitcher coming off shoulder surgery. Coutu has a strong leg and could easily win the job. He was 53-of- 66 at Georgia and never missed an extra point. If Coutu wins the job, he could be this season's version of Mason Crosby or Nick Folk, and this projection should be considered conservative.

No kicker improved his fantasy relevance more than Mare, who went from one of the NFL’s worst offenses in Miami to one of the best in New Orleans. The Saints scored 47 touchdowns last season, but attempted only 26 field goals. Even though he might attempt fewer field goals than his 36 last season, Mare should improve his field goal percentage, which was only 72.2 percent last season, with his home games in a dome.

The improving Dolphins make Mare a relevant kicker once again. He scored 108 points in 2005 – his first time past the century mark since 2002. Coach Nick Saban has this team headed in the right direction, so look for Mare to benefit from that.

Miami’s recent offensive slide resulted in Mare becoming a risky fantasy kicker. Accuracy wise, Mare isn’t the kicker he once was. The past three seasons, Mare converted 76.3 percent (58-for-76) after connecting on 84.4 percent in his first five NFL seasons. The offense is likely to struggle again as first-year coach Nick Saban retools the offense.

Twice in the last three seasons, Mare has finished below 100 points. In that time, the Dolphins have averaged just 27.0 FGA, which makes it difficult to recommend him, especially when you consider Miami’s sluggish Dave Wannstedt-coached offense that produced just 33 extra points. But we can’t blame all of Mare’s scoring problems on the offense. He hit just 75.9 percent of his FGAs last season and 76.6 percent over the last two seasons.

After a career-low 96 points in 2001, Mare rebounded for 114 points in 2002, thanks in large part to the arrival of Ricky Williams. Mare has averaged 114.5 points in his six-year career with the Dolphins. His accuracy took a hit in 2002 when he made just 24 of 31 (77.4 percent), but he is still hitting 83.3 percent for his career. A healthy Jay Fiedler and the continued running of Williams should give Mare similar opportunities to score. And kicking in a warm climate always helps, too.