NFL Player News
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Wil Lutz K | DEN
Saints' Wil Lutz: Bounces back after early miss
Lutz made two of three field-goal attempts and his only extra-point try during Sunday's 27-26 victory over the Falcons.
Lutz' first field-goal attempt -- 44-yarder in the first quarter -- hit the left upright and was no good, but he bounced back and made his next two field goals. His first make was a 49-yard attempt in the third quarter that cut Atlanta's advantage to 16-10, and he gave the Saints' a one-point lead after drilling a 51-yard field goal with 30 seconds left in regulation. Lutz underwent core-muscle surgery in August 2021 that kept him sidelined for the entire campaign, but he looks to have shaken off the rust after missing his first kick of the 2022 season.
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Greg Joseph K | LV
Vikings' Greg Joseph: Doesn't miss in season opener
Joseph made all three field-goal attempts and both point-after tries during Sunday's 23-7 victory over the Packers.
Joseph made field goals from 28, 29 and 56 yards during the Vikings' blowout win over the Packers. The fifth-year kicker appeared in all 17 games for the Vikings last year and went 33-for-38 on field-goal attempts and 36-for-40 on extra-point tries. He figures to garner a similar workload in 2022, though Minnesota's new offensive scheme could increase Joseph's opportunities moving forward.
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Rodrigo Blankenship K | TB
Colts' Rodrigo Blankenship: Misses potential game-winning kick
Blankenship made two of three field-goal attempts and both of his extra-point tries during Sunday's 20-20 tie with the Texans. However, he missed a potential game-winning kick in overtime and had two of his kickoffs go out of bounds for penalties.
Blankenship opened the scoring with a 45-yard field goal in the first quarter and added a 27-yarder in the fourth quarter, but he missed a 42-yard attempt wide right in overtime, which would've won the game for the Colts. After a strong rookie season, Blankenship appeared in just five games last year due to injuries, and despite missing the would-be game-winning kick, he'll look to reclaim the consistency that made him a reliable kicker in 2020. He may lose the kickoff role, as he was pressed into that duty when Rigoberto Sanchez was lost for the season with an Achilles injury.
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Evan McPherson K | CIN
Bengals' Evan McPherson: Mixed results in loss
McPherson made two of three field-goal attempts and missed his only extra-point try during Sunday's 23-20 overtime defeat versus the Steelers. Both misses occurred after long-snapper Clark Harris tore his biceps and Mitchell Wilcox was forced into action and had bad snaps.
McPherson drilled a 59-yarder to open the scoring for the Bengals and added a 26-yard chip shot at the end of the first quarter. However, it all went downhill from there, as the second-year kicker proceeded to have his potential game-winning extra point blocked at the end of regulation and missed another potential game-winning kick -- a 29-yard field-goal attempt -- wide left in overtime. McPherson put together a solid rookie campaign and appeared ready to take another step forward after his booming 59-yarder, but he instead took a step back as the Bengals dropped the season opener. Regardless, Cincinnati's offense is elite and should continue to give McPherson plenty of bounce-back opportunities moving forward.
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Chris Boswell K | PIT
Steelers' Chris Boswell: Drills game-winner in OT
Boswell made three of four field-goal attempts while converting both of his extra-point tries during Sunday's 23-20 overtime win over the Bengals.
Special teams became an issue for both squads late in Sunday's season opener, as Evan McPherson had an extra-point try blocked with zero seconds remaining in regulation to force overtime before missing a 29-yarder in overtime. Boswell was perfect over his four kicks in regulation, but he had a 55-yard field-goal attempt hit the left upright with 2:27 remaining in the extra period. However, he had a chance to redeem himself later and drilled a 53-yard attempt as time expired in overtime to give the Steelers the season-opening win. Boswell had a career-high 40 field-goal attempts in 2021, and he certainly saw plenty of work during Sunday's matchup to begin the 2022 campaign.
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Younghoe Koo K | NYG
Falcons' Younghoe Koo: Shines in season opener
Koo made four of five field-goal attempts and both of his extra-point tries during Sunday's 27-26 loss to New Orleans.
Koo opened the scoring with a 54-yard field goal on the Falcons' first offensive drive of the season. He made another 50-yarder with under three minutes left in the second quarter and added a 40-yarder as time expired in the first half. Koo tacked on a 27-yard chip shot to start the fourth quarter, but his performance ended on a sour note when his potential game-winning 63-yard attempt was blocked to end the contest. Regardless, Koo's season opener was stellar from a fantasy perspective, and he figures to get plenty of opportunities in Atlanta's offense, which moved the ball with ease but failed to convert in the red zone.
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Eddy Pineiro K | SF
Panthers' Eddy Pineiro: Makes all four kicks
Pineiro made his only field-goal attempt as well as all three of his extra-point tries in Sunday's 26-24 loss to the Browns.
Pineiro converted from 34 yards on his field goal, which along with a trio of PATs, netted him six points in his Panthers debut. He'll strive to keep his perfect start going in Week 2 versus the Giants.
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Brett Maher K | LAR
Cowboys' Brett Maher: Little work in Week 1 loss
Maher connected on a 51-yard field goal on his only attempt in Sunday's 19-3 loss to the Buccaneers.
The Cowboys' offense was brutal to begin the season, and the unit now faces the prospect of more poor outings to come with Dak Prescott (hand) sidelined for multiple weeks. In theory that could result in plenty of stalled drives and field-goal attempts for Maher, but if Week 1 is any indication, it's more likely to mean he hardly gets used at all. Fantasy GMs who landed on Maher in their drafts will likely want to check the waiver wire for alternatives.
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Ka'imi Fairbairn K | HOU
Texans' Ka'imi Fairbairn: Perfect in opener
Fairbairn converted two of two field-goal attempts and both extra-point kicks in Sunday's 20-20 tie with the Colts in Week 1.
Fairbairn, who experienced an undisclosed injury near the end of preseason, returned to form and was perfect on the day. He made field goals from 45 and 43 yards. The Texans were within his range early in the fourth quarter and leading 20-3 -- it would have been a 53-yarder -- but head coach Lovie Smith opted to punt instead, explaining to reporters in the post-game press conference that he thought backing up the Colts and playing defense was the better option. Fairbairn, a usually a sure-footed kicker with distance, looks to improve on a down year in 2021 as the Texans maneuver through the second year of a rebuild.
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Graham Gano K | NYG
Giants' Graham Gano: Converts only kick Sunday
Gano did not try any field goals and made his only extra-point try in Sunday's 21-20 season-opening victory against the Titans.
New York scored three touchdowns in the game, but Gano got to attempt the extra-point after only one of them. After the Giants' first score, a botched snap resulted in the kicker aborting his attempt, and after their final touchdown, head coach Brian Daboll boldly called for a two-point try that was converted to win the game. The good news for Gano is that he was able to play after suffering a concussion in the team's second preseason game. He's been excellent since joining New York two seasons ago, converting 60 of 65 field-goal tries and 39 of 41 extra-point attempts.