NFL Player News
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Harrison Butker K | KC
Chiefs' Harrison Butker: Misses second kick of year
Butker converted both of his two extra-point tries but missed his only field-goal attempt in Monday's 20-14 loss versus the Raiders.
On a day when Kansas City's offense struggled to get much of anything going, Butker only got one chance at a field goal, and he hooked the 36-yarder wide to the left. He's now missed two kicks in two weeks after being perfect through the first 13 games of 2023. The Chiefs will host a soft Bengals defense in Week 17.
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Dustin Hopkins K | CLE
Browns' Dustin Hopkins: Won't be available in Week 17
Hopkins (hamstring) is considered week-to-week and won't be available to play Thursday against the Jets, Kelsey Russo of the Browns' official site reports.
Cleveland signed Riley Patterson to its practice squad Monday and will likely elevate him to the roster for at least this week's game to handle kicking duties. Hopkins was unable to continue this past Sunday against the Texans after he appeared to suffer a hamstring injury during Dameon Pierce's 98-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. Hopkins has been one of NFL's most productive kickers during his first season in Cleveland, converting 33 of 36 field-goal attempts (including a perfect 8-for-8 from 50-plus yards) and 24 or 26 extra-point tries over 15 games.
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Jake Elliott K | PHI
Eagles' Jake Elliott: Has busy Christmas Day
Elliott made all seven of his kicks (four field goals and three extra points) in Monday's 33-25 win over the Giants.
Both Elliott's four field-goal attempts and his seven total kicks matched his season highs. He was far busier than he'd been in recent weeks, as he hadn't attempted more than two field goals in a game since Week 5.
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Ka'imi Fairbairn K | HOU
Texans' Ka'imi Fairbairn: Not needed in blowout loss
Fairbairn did not attempt a field goal and converted both extra-point kicks in Sunday's 36-22 loss to the Browns in Week 16.
The Browns struck early and never let up, which limited Houston's need to settle for three points. Not that the Texans had to make any decisions about going for a field goal. Houston's offense had exactly one snap in Cleveland territory over the first three quarters. If C.J. Stroud (concussion) can return for Week 17 against Tennessee, or the team can get competent play from the backup QBs, Fairbairn could be a factor again. The placekicker converted all four field-goal attempts against the Titans in Week 15.
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Chase McLaughlin K | TB
Buccaneers' Chase McLaughlin: Another busy day in win
McLaughlin connected on field-goal attempts of 24, 31 and 51 yards and also converted all three extra-point tries in the Buccaneers' 30-12 win over the Jaguars on Sunday.
The game marked McLaughlin's second straight double-digit point tally, with Sunday's 12 points besting Week 15's total by two. The 51-yard make also was McLaughlin's sixth in seven attempts from 50-plus yards this season, giving him an elite 85.7 percent success rate from that range. McLaughlin should continue to benefit from an improving Buccaneers offense in a Week 17 home divisional matchup against the Saints.
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Anders Carlson K | NYJ
Packers' Anders Carlson: Productive in victory
Carlson made two field goals and three of four extra-point tries in Sunday's 33-30 victory over the Panthers.
Carlson was not perfect in Week 16, but he did put at least eight points on the board for the fourth straight game. He will attempt to extend that streak against a Vikings team that has been inconsistent against kickers in recent weeks but limited Carlson to just four points in Week 8.
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Mike Badgley K | DET
Lions' Michael Badgley: Back on practice squad
Badgley reverted to the Lions' practice squad Monday, per the NFL's transaction log.
For a second game in a row, Badgley jumped up from Detroit's practice squad to serve as the team's placekicker Sunday at Minnesota. In the end, he made his only field-goal attempt (37 yards) and three of four point-after tries. With Riley Patterson out of the picture after the Lions waived him last week, Badgley is poised to handle kicking duties while attached to a productive offense moving forward. Whether or not the team elevates Badgley or outright signs him to the active roster ahead of Saturday's game at Dallas remains to be seen, but he has just one elevation left before the latter transaction will need to take place.
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Cairo Santos K | CHI
Bears' Cairo Santos: Solid performance
Santos converted both of his field-goal attempts while scoring nine points in the Bears' 27-16 win over the Cardinals on Sunday.
Santos has scored at least nine points in five of his last six games, and he has become a reliable top-12 option in fantasy leagues after starting the season with limited scoring opportunities through Week 9.
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Greg Zuerlein K | NYJ
Jets' Greg Zuerlein: Not full participant Monday
Zuerlein was listed as a limited participant on Monday's practice estimate due to a quadriceps injury, Adam Caplan of SiriusXM NFL Radio reports.
Zuerlein converted all three of his field-goal attempts and all three PAT attempts in Sunday's 30-28 win over the Commanders. This included his game-winning kick in the final seconds. However, he apparently came out of the game with a quadriceps issue as well. The veteran's status for Thursday's game against the Browns is now in question. It remains to be seen if New York will add a kicker to its practice squad, which would be a sign that Zuerlein's status is indeed up in the air.
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Brandon Aubrey K | DAL
Cowboys' Brandon Aubrey: Automatic in Week 16 loss
Aubrey connected on both his field-goal attempts and both his extra-point attempts in Sunday's 22-20 loss to the Dolphins.
It's the eighth time this season, and the third in the last four games, that Aubrey has booted multiple FGs and multiple PATs in the same week. The rookie kicker continues to extend his NFL record of 33 straight successful field goals to begin a career, and he leads the league in scoring with 141 points. Aubrey is in line for a productive finish to the regular season with a Week 17 home game against the Lions being followed by a road contest against the defensively challenged Commanders in Week 18.