Jake Bates
Detroit Lions
Season Preview
Jake Bates enters the 2026 fantasy season as one of the safer kicker picks because he is back with the Lions and remains tied to one of the NFL’s strongest offenses. Detroit officially re-signed Bates for 2026 after he was tendered as an exclusive-rights free agent, so there is no new-team risk or holdout concern to factor into his outlook.
The case for Bates is simple: volume and environment. He has made 84.1% of his field goals across his first two NFL seasons and has been elite on extra points, leading the league in XP attempts and makes in each of the last two years while playing in a high-scoring offense. In 2025, he finished as the No. 6 fantasy kicker overall, going 27-for-34 on field goals and 54-for-56 on extra points, which shows both strong fantasy output and some room for even more if Detroit keeps creating scoring chances.
There is one small change to monitor: the Lions will have a new offensive coordinator in 2026, which could slightly alter red-zone efficiency or overall scoring volume. Even so, the Lions are still expected to field a favorable offense, and half of Bates’ games come indoors at Ford Field, which helps reduce weather-related volatility and makes him a steadier weekly option than many other kickers.
For fantasy draft purposes, Bates belongs firmly in the top-kicker tier and profiles as a reliable starter in most leagues. If you want stability and access to a high-scoring offense, he is a strong target again in 2026, with a realistic path to another top-10 finish and more if Detroit stays near the top of the league in scoring.