By Matt Vensel

4:00 p.m. EDT, August 19, 2011

I enjoyed writing the first four days of my Fantasy Fodder 2011 season preview. Today is not as exciting, though, because all that’s left are the kickers and the defense-special teams combinations. You guys know by now that you shouldn’t address these areas until the end of your draft, so let’s get right to the rankings.

(If you have a scorching question about Josh Scobee or if you absolutely need to know if the Browns’ D/ST is worth a late-round flyer, shoot me a question on Twitter or leave it in the comments section. I can’t wait.)

On to the kicker rankings…

1. Stephen Gostkowski, Patriots: He’s again my top kicker, but don’t take him until the last two rounds.

Download The Baltimore Sun's new iPhone app.

2. Nate Kaeding, Chargers: The Chargers offense should get a boost with a full year of Vincent Jackson.

3. Mason Crosby, Packers: At the very least, he’ll be kicking a lot of extra points this season.

4. Sebastian Janikowski, Raiders: This large man has a large leg, but he can be erratic.

5. Neil Rackers, Texans: He has settled in with the Texans after the Cardinals jettisoned him after the 2009 season.

6. Billy Cundiff, Ravens: If you only got fantasy points for touchbacks…

7. Rob Bironas, Titans: This is one guy who is hoping Chris Johnson ends his holdout soon.

8. Matt Bryant, Falcons: The Falcons have a ton of red-zone weapons, which hurts his value.

9. Robbie Gould, Bears: He’s got a strong leg, he’s accurate and it’s a Mike Martz offense.

10. Alex Henery, Eagles: I’d probably put David Akers here, and Henery is expected to be just as reliable.

11. Dan Carpenter, Dolphins: He faltered down the stretch last season. Let’s hope he gets back on track.

12. Josh Brown, Rams: One of the NFL’s best kickers, he’ll get more opportunities thanks to Sam Bradford.

13. Garrett Hartley, Saints: The Saints are confident enough in Hartley that they didn’t bring in competition.

14. Lawrence Tynes, Giants: Tynes has scored at least 100 points in six of his seven seasons.

15. Adam Vinatieri, Colts: The old guy is still going. He missed just two of his 28 attempts in 2010.

And your D/ST rankings…

1. Steelers: They get sacks, force turnovers and keep opponents out of the end zone…