FanHouse David Akers

What do you get when you have the league's fourth-highest scoring kicker squaring off -- in a dome, no less -- against the team who has allowed the most kicking points in the NFL? An easy No. 1 fantasy kicker ranking, that's what.

Ryan Longwell has only been outscored by three other kickers this season -- and one of them is on a bye this week. He's made 13 of 14 field goal attempts and all 29 extra points. The Lions have been on the receiving end of 27 extra points and 14 field goals thus far in 2009. Expecting double digit points from your kicker is rarely feasible -- due to the fickle nature of kickers -- but you can do so here, Longwell owners.

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Stephen Gostkowski has been one of the highest point-scoring kickers this season, so you'll always find him toward the top of the rankings. This week seems even more sure-fire, though, for two reasons. First of all, the Patriots' once-vaunted offense seemed to be back on track prior to a bye week, in which they were able to rest and further prepare. Secondly, only the Browns, Chiefs and Raiders have allowed more kicking points than the Pats' opponent this week, Miami. Gostkowski as the top kicking option is a no-brainer.

1. Stephen Gostkowski, NE vs. MIA
2. Lawrence Tynes, NYG vs. SD
3. Mason Crosby, GB at TB
4. John Carney, NO vs. CAR
5. David Akers, PHI vs. DAL

In last week's fantasy football kicker rankings, I mentioned that the Raiders were fantasy gold at all positions. Well, the boys in the black and silver stepped up and proved it wasn't a hard-and-fast formula, holding the Eagles to nine points. We're talking Week 7 kicker rankings here, though, so do you notice anything about those nine points? Like, say, three field goals? David Akers even missed two, so the Raiders yielded five field goal attempts.

This week, the Jets visit Oakland. Expect them to modestly move the ball, mostly on the ground, and give Jay Feely his fair share of field goal attempts. Thus, we've ranked him fourth behind three sure things.

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In addition to being bad at everything else, the Raiders are pretty reliable in terms of allowing fantasy football points to kickers. They've yielded 10 field goals so far this season, which ties them for the most in the NFL. They've also given up 14 extra points, which means no one has given up more kicking points than the Raiders. Seriously, it's like a never-ending line of suck coming from Oaktown these days.

This week, the Eagles take their high-powered offense to Oakland. Expect the scoreboard operator to be a bit busy, at least in the visitor's column. David Akers will get his fair share, and he tops our Week 6 fantasy football kicker rankings.

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Training camps have wrapped up, the NFL season is right around the corner, and it's still hot as sin outside. But instead of cooling you off with a warm island song, FanHouse break out ye old heat check for our 2009 NFL Season Previews. " We'll rate each club in 5 categories on a scale of 1 to 10, high score wins.

A rather mundane offseason in Philadelphia took a dramatic turn on the night of Aug. 13. That was when news broke that the team had signed free-agent quarterback Michael Vick. All of a sudden, the Eagles were the center of the football world -- this attention will continue throughout the season, as the media will keep a very close eye on how Vick fits in. Meanwhile, coach Andy Reid has a veteran starter in Donovan McNabb to keep happy, and he's pretty good, by the way.

It's been over a month since we last posted positional fantasy football rankings, so it's time to run our second version. Plus, we added some staff. This is now an average ranking from eight Fantasy FanHouse writers. To view the early version of our kicker rankings, click here.

I'll beat the dead horse here, because I feel like it is my duty. Please don't draft a kicker until the last round and never pay more than a dollar for one in an auction. It's just not worth it because of the turnover from year to year. Check this out:

Top three kickers in '08: Gostkowski, Akers, Carney
In '07: Crosby, Bironas, Folk
In '06: Gould, Kaeding, Scobee
In '05: Rackers, Feely, Graham

I could use a lot more data to continually hammer the point home, but it would be a waste of time. So, uh, yeah. Don't waste a pick until you have to.

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With Fantasy Football season ready to kick in high gear, FanHouse is here to preview each and every team -- one per day until we've done them all.

Meet The ...
Eagles, backed by two injury-prone, aging talents with yet another shot at fantasy greatness! Andy Reid and company have loaded up on new toys for Donovan McNabb. They are hoping to rekindle the memories of when a guy named T.O. was around. Finally, McNabb breathes deep and says, "Now I have enough playmakers." However, will he and his homeboy Brian Westbrook actually be able to stay healthy?

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FanHouse's crack squad of savvy fantasy football personnel put our five heads together and amassed consensus rankings for non-keeper, standard scoring leagues. We'll update as the season gets closer, but this is our "incredibly early yet still fun" version.

Last season, the consensus top two picks pretty much anywhere you looked were Shayne Graham and Nick Folk. Folk's average draft position was utterly insane -- going as high as the 10th round in some leagues. Folk ended up 23rd in kicker points, while Graham ended up 30th.

Even though I'd rather outlaw the kicker from fantasy for life, I can't make you do that, but I will say absolutely do not draft one until the last round. This position should be an afterthought because there is simply too little predictable method to the madness.

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Well, that didn't take long -- after contemplating that the Eagles might be en route to storming back on the Arizona Cardinals ... they did just that.
On a second-and-10, Donovan McNabb went deep to rookie DeSean Jackson, who had a half step on Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. That half-step was just enough for McNabb to squeeze the ball in and, after tipping the ball to himself, Jackson juggled it a few times and waltzed into the end zone on a 62-yard touchdown pass, putting the Eagles ahead for the first time all game, 25-24.