Fantasy Football News

Fantasy Football Drafting Strategies

07/24/2007

As early August approaches and new fantasy football leagues pop up almost faster than excuses for NFL veterans not to attend training camp, (on FFLCommish.com... hint) many innocent people are introduced to the joy of team ownership, by savvy fantasy football veterans looking to pile up wins in their league. Fear not my fantasy newbies and those that find it difficult drafting a quality squad, I got you covered. Just use these simple rules as a guideline and victory is in your grasp. (Barring injury, age and off the field incident)

The first thing to remember is not to choose players solely because they play on your favorite NFL team. This mistake may lead to many uncomfortable Sundays, because on the few weeks in which my fantasy team struggles (2 or 3 times a year); I look to count on my Cowboys to pick me up. Imagine if I had Tony Romo on my fantasy team, and the ‘boys are getting shut down, I really wouldn’t be Sir Sunshine for a couple of hours, and believe me, no family needs to go through that type of agony. Remember, choosing with the heart hurts.

Don’t pick the majority of your players from the same division. If you do, you are running the risk of “death by bye week”, a situation when you are forced to sit 2 or more starters due to scheduled bye weeks in the NFL schedule. Do yourself a favor and check the schedule and adjust your pre draft lists accordingly.

Try to back up your injury prone players with backups from the same team. You may be thinking, "Why would I have an injury prone player?" Two word answer, Donovan McNabb. Having to scramble for a QB once the season has started can be frustrating and forget about trading for one, as other GM’s will look to take advantage of your plight. Having at least two quality starters and the backup for the more injury prone (or one with the worst offensive line) is the ideal situation.

Pay attention to roster deadlines and free agent deadlines. Losing a game due to the “illegal lineup", is not only an unnecessary loss, but a rather embarrassing mark on your resume. An even sadder situation is losing out on a coveted free agent, because someone outflanked you on the waiver wire. As team owner, gm, and coach, you have to keep your guard up.

When in doubt about who to pick, select the running back. There is never such a thing as having too many running backs. This is the position that drives the fantasy football machine. You never know, you may catch a Marion Barber type back in the eighth or ninth round.

Finally, this is very important. Have a plan, but be flexible on draft day. There is no telling who the team before you may select, so have 2-3 names on your list for every round of the draft. You don’t want your opponents to see you in a panic situation during the draft.

Remembering these keys can make the draft go a little easier for the novice fantasy football owner as well as the most experienced of owners.

About the Author
Augustine Dashiell is a senior staff writer for fflcommish.com, a fantasy football league management service providing flexible features for the discerning fantasy football league manager.