Gostkowski is still a free agent at press time, but the Titans reportedly have considered re-signing him, even though he missed eight field goals last year. He did convert seven of eight from 50-plus yards, so while he might be past his prime, the 37-year-old still has enough leg strength to get by in the NFL. He also improved late last season, but it's not clear if that'll be enough for another shot.
Gostkowski had been entrenched as the Patriots' kicker since he was selected in the fourth round of the 2006 NFL Draft, and given his favorable team context the 36-year-old was for quite some time one of the most reliable fantasy options at his position. A hip injury limited Gostkowski to four games last season, and it wasn't until early September that he signed with a new team, joining the Titans shortly before Week 1.
The longtime Patriots kicker has an eight-year streak finishing no lower than 10th among kickers in fantasy scoring, but he hasn't topped the leaderboard since doing so three consecutive years from 2013 to 2015. While his team context remains beyond reproach, the 35-year-old has middling leg strength and doesn't get many chances from 50-plus yards. Gostkowski signed a two-year, $8.5 million contract in April.
Gostkowski rebounded from a disappointing 2016 to finish last season as a top-five fantasy scorer among kickers for a ninth time in the last 11 years. He's responsible for five of the top 18 spots on the NFL's single-season points list, with each of those campaigns occuring in the last six years. Still attached to Tom Brady and still reliable from in close, Gostkowski offers the position's best mix of floor and ceiling.
After leading the league in scoring four consecutive seasons, Gostkowski took a major step back in 2016. Part of his decline came from missed PATs (he had three), but it was more to do with the combination of fewer field-goal attempts and lower accuracy. His 32 attempts tied for 14th in the league, and his 84.4 percent success rate marked the first time he made fewer than 91 percent since 2012, putting him lower than 15 others (min. 10 games). Given his career history, it wouldn't be surprising to see Gostkowski improve in 2017, but he is not the clear-cut top option anymore.
Gostkowski is without question the best kicker in fantasy football. He plays on a team with an elite offense, which gives him plenty of field goal and extra point opportunities, and he is extremely accurate. The Patriots have gotten more points from their kicker than every other team in each of the last four years, with Gostkowski hitting at least 91 percent of his attempts in the last three. He ranked fifth in field-goal attempts last season and third in PATs, and he was one of only five kickers to make all of his extra points (the only one with more than 36 tries), and he's kicked at least 50 in five of the last six seasons. There is no better kicker to select in the last round of fantasy drafts.
Gostkowski led the NFL in scoring for the third consecutive season last year thanks to his league-leading 35 made field goals and 51 PATs (fourth). After kicking a career-high 92.7 percent in 2013, Gostkowski was even better last year, hitting 94.6 percent of his 37 attempts. If there's a nit to pick, it's that he only had a single opportunity from 50-plus yards, a stark decline after he went 5-of-6 from that distance the previous year. The Patriots' offense remains productive, though the potential four-game suspension of quarterback Tom Brady could mean a slow September. Nevertheless, Gostkowski is one of the most accurate kickers in the league and should continue to see a large number of opportunities.
With several of Tom Brady’s key targets missing large chunks of action last season, the Patriots offense provided Gostkowski with 22 fewer extra-point attempts than in 2012. However, the team’s drop in red-zone efficiency equated to six additional field goal chances for Gostkowski, who tied for the NFL lead in attempts (41) while converting at a 92.7 percent clip, a rate seven points better than his career mark. The stark increase in both attempts and proficiency enabled Gostkowski to rack up 158 points, marking the third straight season he’s topped 140 points. Better health at the skill positions may turn more of those field goals into one-pointers in 2014, but Gostkowski’s steady track record of top-notch point totals makes him as dependable of a fantasy option as any kicker.
Gostkowski's value was fueled almost entirely by the ability of the Patriots offense to crank out touchdowns, resulting in a league-leading 66 PATs – tied for third most in NFL history. Moreover, Gostkowski somehow managed to sneak onto the field for 35 field-goal attempts, his most since 2008. Even if the field goals regress a bit, Gostkowski's huge PAT disparity with most kickers – only three others had more than 50 – ensures his place near the top of the rankings.
It was another predictably high-scoring season last year for Gostkowski, who reached 143 points on 59 PATs and 28 field goals thanks to one of the league’s best offenses. Gostkowski’s 33 field-goal attempts, which ranked just 11th in the league, were the most of his career outside his 40-attempt 2008 – the year Tom Brady was injured. In other words, under Brady the Patriots offense is so efficient that hoping for more field goals and fewer PATs for Gostkowski is futile. In fact, after leading the league with 42 red-zone touchdowns in 2010, the Patriots scored 47 last season. While New England’s touchdown prowess is always a concern for Gostkowski’s field-goal chances, few kickers in the league will come close to approaching even 50 PATs, let alone 60. Expect Gostkowski to do that again in 2012.
A mid-season quadriceps injury ended Gostkowski's 2010 season after eight games, which was unfortunate considering the Patriots' league-leading 32.4 points per game. Veteran Shayne Graham replaced Gostkowski, and together the duo totaled 131 points, third most among kickers. The Gostkowski/Graham tandem saw only 25 field-goal attempts but combined for 67 point-after attempts, far and away the most in the league. The Patriots likely will witness a drop in offensive production, as they'll be hard pressed to duplicate their incredible plus-28 turnover margin. While that could hurt Gostkowski, he likely will benefit from fewer red-zone touchdowns. The Patriots scored a league-leading 42 touchdowns there last season, more than in any season in the Tom Brady era, save for New England's record-breaking 2007. Fewer PATs and more field goals would increase Gostkowski's value. Gostkowski owners will be faced with five potentially bad-weather games as the Patriots have three December/January home games and road dates at Washington and Denver. While Gostkowski is a career 84.3-percent kicker, his accuracy drops to 70.8 percent (17-of-24) kicking in temperatures less than 40 degrees. Gostkowski rehabbed his surgically repaired quad this offseason and is expected to be 100 percent healthy.
After posting a league-high 148 points in
2008, Gostkowski fell to 125 last season,
thanks in part to Tom Brady’s return from knee
surgery. With Brady back under center, the
Patriots offense improved by seven touchdowns
last year, and Gostkowski had nine
fewer field goal attempts after an NFL-leading
40 in 2008. Nevertheless, Gostkowski still
ranked a solid sixth in kicker scoring and with
the formidable Patriots offense remains one of
the more dependable fantasy kickers.
Moreover, he even got to stretch his leg last
season. Bill Belichick’s aggressiveness heretofore
limited Gostkowski’s long-range opportunities,
but last season, Gostkowski attempted
three 50-yarders (making two), more than his
total during his first three seasons combined.
Weeks 13-16 are potential cold-weather
games for Gostkowski, who is a career 23-of-
30 (76.6 percent) kicking in temperatures of
less than 40 degrees.
Gostkowski attempted 40 field goals last season, tied for most in the NFL, and connected on a league-high 36 en route to a 148-point season. With Tom Brady back from injury, expect more extra points and fewer field goals, but Gostkowski should still be among the safer picks in this year’s kicker class because of New England’s prolific offense. Bill Belichick’s aggressiveness, though, limits Gostkowski from long range – his 50-yarder last season was just his second attempt from 50-plus in three years with the Patriots. Gostkowski has one potential bad-weather road game in December at Buffalo and, of course, four home games in the second half of the season.
Normally, 21 field goals made would not be
worthy of a top ranking. However, as we said last
year, "No kicker benefited more from the offseason
than Gostkowski." Indeed, with an NFL-record
74 extra points, Gostkowski finished second
in the league in kicker scoring with 137 points.
While the Patriots might not reach those totals
this season, their offense is still one of best in the NFL. The only drawback for Gostkowski is that
coach Bill Belichick is so aggressive offensively
that Gostkowski rarely kicks from 50-plus. He
is just 1-of-1 from beyond 50 yards in two years
with the Patriots.
No kicker benefited more from the offseason than Gostkowski. The Patriots loaded up at wide receiver, acquiring Randy Moss, Donte’ Stallworth and Wes Welker to give Tom Brady one of the NFL’s best receiving corps. Brady also has second-year running back Laurence Maroney, a star in the making. Gotkowski had a decent rookie season going 20-of-26, but he came on down the stretch (10-of-12 in the last six games) and should have more extra points at a bare minimum.
The Patriots drafted Gostkowski in the fourth round, so there’s a feeling the kid can play. Gramatica must put the abdomen injury that derailed his career two years ago behind him, so there’s a lot of uncertainty in both players. The eventual winner of the job becomes the kicker for a team with an above-average offense – New England is one of the five teams to get at least 100 points from the kicking game over the past five seasons. They’ve scored 44 TDs in each of the last two seasons and worked to improve that side of the ball in the draft.
