Sportsbooks Are Putting Faith in Dan Bailey and Greg Joseph in Week 3

• Minnesota and Cleveland signed new kickers this week
• Will new Vikings’ kicker Dan Bailey find success in Minnesota after being released earlier this year by Dallas?
• Will undrafted free agent Greg Joseph be an upgrade over Zane Gonzalez in Cleveland?

After disastrous kicking performances in Week 2 cost both the Minnesota Vikings and Cleveland Browns possible wins, both teams have made changes in their kicking departments.

Dan Bailey has since replaced Daniel Carlson in Minnesota, while Greg Joseph replaces Zane Gonzalez in Cleveland. With that, sportsbooks have released odds on how each kicker will fare in their debuts.

Odds to Miss a FG or XP in Week 3

Three Missed FGs Cost Vikings Win

The Vikings were a 35-yard field goal away from defeating the Green Bay Packers in overtime last week, but Daniel Carlson missed his third kick of the day to leave the Vikes with only a tie.

Head Coach Mike Zimmer was none too pleased with the rookie kicker and on Tuesday the team signed veteran free agent Dan Bailey.

While he was released by the Cowboys in September, over his seven-year career he ranks as the second-most accurate kicker of all-time. His 88.2% ranks only behind the 90.3% career mark of Ravens’ kicker Justin Tucker.

Bailey was able to hold out for the best deal possible. He reportedly turned down several larger contract offers, plus turned down a tryout with the Browns, to sign a $2 million one-year deal with the Vikes.

REPORT: Dan Bailey turned down tryout with Cleveland Browns https://t.co/DJneXquvjG pic.twitter.com/53lUybD9Ft

— WKYC 3News (@wkyc) September 17, 2018

For all of Bailey’s career success, he did struggle down the stretch of 2017 in missing five field goals and two extra points over the last five weeks. He was, though, returning from a groin strain which caused him to miss the previous five weeks.

Browns Keep Finding Ways To Lose

Cleveland came so close to finally getting their first win in over a year and allowing fans to unlock their “Victory Fridges” full of beer (Google it, it’s a real thing).

However, this time it was kicker Zane Gonzalez who broke Browns’ hearts in missing two field goals and two extra points against the Saints.

As you can see from the Tweet above, Cleveland missed out on the Dan Bailey sweepstakes so instead signed another free agent in Greg Joseph.

While Bailey has 108 NFL games to his name, Joseph has zero. Joseph went undrafted out of Florida Atlantic (FAU) this year but was in the Dolphins’ camp this offseason. He went 3/3 in FGs and 2/2 in extra points during the preseason but lost out to Jason Sanders.

Despite his lack of experience in the NFL, Joseph holds many records at FAU. He is FAU’s career leader in points scored, extra points made and attempted, as well as field goals attempted.

Greg Joseph will get crash course with new teammates before making NFL debut

? » https://t.co/DibanImeoy pic.twitter.com/v6qScSXIB7

— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) September 18, 2018

That said, Joseph did miss six field goals last year and his career average at FAU was only 69.5% (57/82). He did connect on 165/170 extra points.

Bank On More Kicking Jitters in Week 3

Bailey is favored to have a better debut which seems justified considering he’ll be playing inside the friendly confines of U.S. Bank Stadium.

It’s also unlikely he’ll be called upon to make any high-pressure kicks against the Bills, in a game where the Vikings are heavy favorites.

Bailey vs Joseph Career NFL Kicking Stats

Joseph has the disadvantage of having limited experience and a short week of preparation with the Browns playing on Thursday. Against the Jets, this game could also be close and require Joseph to make a key kick.

This prop isn’t a head-to-head bet, though, and with each kicker paying plus-money to miss just one kick, I’ll take my chances on betting both to miss and hope to cash at least a small profit if even one kicker misses.

Best Bet: Dan Bailey to Miss – YES (+155) & Greg Joseph to Miss – YES (+115)