Fantasy Football Is Better Without Kickers and Team Defenses—Here’s Why
Let’s be real, fantasy football has come a long way. It’s sharper now. More competitive. Everyone’s diving into data, streaming players, and grinding waivers. But somehow, we’re still rolling out kickers and team defenses like it’s 2008. Why? For tradition? Nostalgia? A little extra chaos? Honestly, it’s time to let ‘em go.
Kickers: The Ultimate Coin Flip
There’s nothing worse than losing a matchup because some kicker nailed a 56-yarder as time expired… or missing the playoffs because yours didn’t get a single attempt all game. You can’t predict that stuff. It doesn’t matter how much research you do. Kicker scoring is all over the place. Weather, game flow, coaching choices… It’s a guessing game wrapped in a coin flip.
Let’s not pretend hitting the “top kicker” in your draft was a skill move. You just got lucky. And that’s the problem, kickers don’t reward strategy. They reward randomness.
Team Defenses: A Bad Matchup Waiting to Happen
Team defenses, same deal. You can stream like a pro and still get torched. Maybe the defense you picked ran into Mahomes or Josh Allen that week. Or maybe you benched a bad D that happened to grab two picks and a touchdown against a backup QB. It’s not a science, it’s roulette.
Even when you play it smart, fantasy team defenses can still screw you over. Imagine the offense fumbles deep in their own territory, and the opposing team punches it in. That goes against your defense, despite them never being the problem. It’s stuff like that that makes D/ST scoring feel completely broken.
So What Do You Play Instead?
Ditching kickers and D/STs frees up your lineup for way more fun. Add another flex. Go with an extra WR. Maybe dip into IDPs if your league wants to level up. At least those options give you more control. More chances to actually outplay your opponent instead of rolling the dice every week.
Look, fantasy football should be about skill, not luck. Swapping out kickers and team defenses doesn’t kill the fun; it actually makes it better. Clean lineups, less randomness, and more chances to win by being sharp, not lucky. Sounds like a win to me.
At GoingFor2, we’re all about leveling up your game, because let’s face it, we can’t go for three.
Written by: Jamie Perog
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