Fantasy Football Week 10 Kicker Streamers: Graham Gano, Cairo Santos, and More

When looking for kicking streamers, I'm often searching for guys who are facing defenses that give up a lot of points. The reasoning is simple: the more points a team scores, the more their kicker gets on the field, so finding an opponent who gives up points accomplishes the same thing from the other side of the coin.

The three teams that have given up the most points per game are the Bengals, Cowboys, and Titans; I would be looking to go after them in this column if possible. Instead, all three are on bye in Week 10 (along with the Chiefs), causing us to drop to the next tier of targets.

There is still value to be found, so let's look at three kickers with good matchups this week who are widely available in fantasy leagues and can be picked up and inserted into your lineup. Most stats are from NFL.com.

Use FantasySP's defensive rankings to find the teams and players who have the best fantasy matchups each week!

Graham Gano, New York Giants @ Chicago Bears

Cairo Santos, Chicago Bears vs. New York Giants

Guess which two teams are fourth and fifth in points allowed after our three on bye? The Bears and Giants both showed their lack of defensive prowess in Week 9, as San Francisco scored 34 on New York and Cincinnati put up 42 on Chicago. This has the makings of a high-scoring game, and the kickers may be hidden beneficiaries.

The Bears and Giants both rank in the top 10 in most yards, passing yards, and rushing yards allowed per game. If you like rate stats better, Chicago is in the top four in most yards per pass attempt and rush attempt allowed. New York is in the middle in yards per pass attempt, but they have allowed more yards per rush attempt than any other team.

Both teams also have offenses that can do damage, putting the kickers in position to be involved. It's risky to count on a bad offense, so the benefit of offensive power is only a fantasy plus (and I'm not worrying about these teams scoring too many touchdowns and not kicking field goals in this one).

Chicago ranks sixth in points per game. We just talked about New York's porous run defense, and the Bears are fresh off a game in which they ran for 283 yards on 7.6 per attempt; those are passing stats. This team is again likely to have success on offense, putting Santos in good positions.

Santos is generally an accurate kicker but one without a big leg. Sure enough, two of his three misses this year are from 50-plus yards. That hurts his fantasy value a bit, as those big kicks score the most points, but he will hit the shorter attempts.

The Giants look like a different offensive team since Jaxson Dart took over at quarterback. In the three games that Russell Wilson started, New York averaged 17.3 points per game. In the six games that Dart has played, they are at 24.2 points per game. That first number would be the fifth-worst in the league right now, while the latter would rank perfectly average at 16th (compared to their current rank at 22nd).

Gano missed four games with an injury, but he has now been back for two weeks and looks good when on the field. Gano has missed just one field goal attempt and no extra points (19 total kicks).

One note: this game is being played in Chicago, where weather doesn't always cooperate. Early weather reports show a chance of rain, but that's still a long time from this writing, and forecasts change. Check the weather of this game on Sunday morning before locking one of these kickers into your lineup.

Andre Szmyt, Cleveland Browns @ New York Jets

Counting on the Browns' offense is risky business in fantasy football. They have a few solid players, but running back Quinshon Judkins is the only fantasy guy who really performs at high level on any type of regular basis. Cleveland is averaging the third-fewest points per game, just 15.8.

Szmyt's opportunities have been limited, as he had only one or two field goal attempts in seven of eight games (and three attempts in the other contest). He also topped two extra points in just one game, when he had four against Miami.

That's all enough to disqualify Szmyt from fantasy consideration for risk-averse owners. He could be nearly shut out in any game with such a low-level offense, leaving a low floor that can easily be improved on most weeks.

The matchup here is just so good, though. The Jets have allowed the sixth-most points per game, right after the Bears and Giants. I didn't necessarily go searching just for the next three teams in points allowed after those top groups on bye, but it worked out that way because the whole triumvirate is very giving in all facets.

The Jets also made two huge trade deadline moves, trading away cornerback Sauce Gardner and defensive tackle Quinnen Williams, maybe their best two defensive players. Along with losing that top-line talent, it will throw the lineup into flux and hurt the team's depth, making them even more vulnerable this week.

Szmyt is held to low-level streamer status because of his team's low floor. He is a feasible fantasy player in deeper leagues this week, but you can probably also find a safer option if you prefer that plan. I am intrigued by his ceiling and see him as a fine player to consider against your options.