Chase McLaughlin: Start or Sit?
Starting placekicker with big-leg range and a 65-yard career long. Reliable from distance, though his 84.9% career accuracy sits around league average.
This week’s verdict
Toss-Up· medium
K15 at 8.4 points: elite 84% accuracy and 65-yard range, but only 2.0 projected FG attempts and no weather forecast at an open roof
Projected
8.48.48.4
Same in standard, half-PPR and PPR
Consensus
K15
position rank
Projected FGA
2.0
1.8 made projected
Implied total
23.5
team points
Weather
—
no forecast yet
Red-zone stalls
1.4
per game · 2025
FG%
84%
32/38 · 2025
- 2.0 FG tries projected, right at the 2.0 league median this week.
- TB's offense stalls in the red zone 1.4 times a game (2025) — that's where kicker points come from.
- Vegas has TB at 23.5 points as 3.5-point dogs.
- 84% on field goals (2025), with a 50-plus make in 7 games.
The call
- The leg is a real edge — 84% (32/38) with a 50-plus make in 7 games and a 65-yard long means he cashes attempts other kickers don't even take.
- Volume is the problem: 1.8 made on just 2.0 attempts plus 2.1 extra points off a 23.5 implied total is a median K line, which is why he sits at K15 rather than in the start-every-week tier.
- 1.4 red-zone stalls per game is a healthy source of drive-ending kicks, and he's locked in as PK1 with no designation, so there's no role or availability risk.
- Tips to start if the forecast at the open roof comes in calm; if wind shows up, a top-12 kicker in a dome is the cleaner play.
Verdicts based on PPR scoring.
Verdict history
| Week | Verdict | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 Week 1 | Toss-Up· medium | K15 at 8.4 points: elite 84% accuracy and 65-yard range, but only 2.0 projected FG attempts and no weather forecast at an open roof |
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