A good kicker is worth at least 3 wins/season. Now a bad kicker on a good team can sometimes hide himself in wins or losses. If the Chiefs score 30 points and win by 10 no one cares whether Lawrence Tynes missed 2,3 or 5 FGs. But on a team like the Chicago Bears every point is precious. So it’s really too bad they’ve got the NFL’s worst kicker.

Yes, Doug Brien is now the NFL’s worst kicker. We all remember the 35 year old PK from his miss in last year’s Jets/Chargers game. Well he’s 1/4 on the young season and doesn’t look like he’s going to get any better.

Brien’s % in the ‘04/’05 regular season was a decent 82.8. But, like boots or hearts, once kickers start to fall apart, they really fall apart. His confidence is shot and I’ll be surprised if he finishes the season with Chicago. The winter weather at Soldier’s Field, combined with the ever-present wind, is just going to make it a nightmare for Bears fans to watch this guy’s attempts.

So who else is up there with Doug as the guys you don’t want to see coming onto the field to cover your bets? Well we all remember Olindo Mare’s 2000/2001 seasons when he converted over 90% of his chances. Then something snapped and since 2002 he’s been coming in under 80%. Last year he was 12/16, a pitiful 75% mark for a team that needed all the points it could get.

Jose Cortez’s career FG % is 71.7, yet you can still find him kicking for the Cowboys. Billy Cundiff is actually the better kicker, but I don’t think he and Bill Parcells got along very well.

The thing you’ll notice about all of these guys is that they’re over 30 years old. Todd Peterson, who’s not that bad, is 35. So is Doug Brien. John Hall is 31.

Kickers can hang around forever if they can just hit in the 75-80% range. Now contrast that with a guy like Adam Vinatieri who hit 93.9% last year. Average talent at the kicking position is acceptable because there are only about 40 people in the world who can do that job.

Now who’s the best kicker? Well, right now, hands down, it’s Vinatieri. The next 9:
1A: Neil Rackers:His career FG% is 75.4. He’s 100% in 2005. His career high in points is 92. Right now he’s got 86. I don’t see how this lasts, but you may as well ride him while he’s hot.
2:David Akers: He tore his hamstring this week, but when healthy he’s the next best thing.
3: Jason Elam: The air is thin in Denver and he can hit 60 yarders.
4: Mike Vanderjagt: Worth it just because he plays in a dome and gets lots of PAT attempts.
5: Ryan Longwell: One of the great mid-range kickers. I just don’t trust him long-distance.
6: Sebastian Janikowski: He’s got the best leg in football. Unfortunately he’s also a complete headcase.
7: Ryan Lindell: Buffalo is doing all its scoring between the uprights this year, which means 130+ fantasy points for Ryan.
8: Jeff Wilkins: Plays in a dome, like Vanderjagt, and doesn’t miss the tough ones.
9: Nate Kaeding/Jeff Reed: Both up-and-comers who’re going to give you similar numbers.
10: Matt Stover: Gets overlooked, but he’s a consistent threat on an offense that doesn’t score TDs. The only problem is that they don’t seem to be able to move the ball into FG range either.

Update (Nov.8):Well, looks like we were right. Doug Brien’s gone, replaced by the NFL’s only Semitic kicker in Robbie Gould. And Jose Cortez is also back on the scrap heap, where he belongs. As of October 17th Neil Rackers is leading all NFL kickers with 58 points scored. His career FG % is 73.8%. Right now he’s at 100. That can’t last. But with Arizona completely unable to score TDs it seems possible that Rackers finishes the year with 110+ points (he had 94 last year in 16 games).

Other guys to take a look at:

I never considered Shayne Graham to be much of a talent, but his career % is 83.3.

Matt Bryant was under 80% for the Giants a couple years ago, but he’s found his niche on a Tampa team that’s moving the ball into FG range on the ground.