Episode 1
Newbies Guide to Fantasy Football: Snake Draft in a Regular/PPR
1) Come Prepared- This means do your research weeks or even months prior to your fantasy football draft. Have an idea of the players you want to pick and have them listed based off priority. Bring your own list of players already highlighted different colors so you can see who is available in an easier way. For example top 10 players highlighted yellow, top 20 players red, top 30, and so on. DO YOUR RESEARCH!
2) Get off the Hype Train- Often times there are players who are just hyped up way too much even though its not warranted. Do not fall for these hype players as they often lead to wasted picks when they don’t live up to the hype.
3) Running backs are dime a dozen- In the state of the league today running backs values have plummeted and once the true elite are gone then the next batches are all toss ups. Production for running backs in a pass heavy league will be vary by team and what their current situations are. For example, teams that often have the lead will run the ball more to milk the clock and teams that are losing in games will pass more often than not to try to come back.
4) Bye Weeks Don’t Matter- People will often say to make sure you pick players who have different bye weeks to avoid weakening your team for example if 5 starters have week 7 as their bye week it can be seen as a downside. Not the case! There’s a lot of solutions to this including just taking the L for that week. DO NOT DRAFT AROUND PLAYERS BYE WEEKS!
5) Projected Stats don’t mean anything- At the end of the day this will mean nothing- Yes there will be players that hit and go beyond their projected stats however a majority will not. Learn to read between the lines and see why their stats are that way and determine if its because of the team they are going up against or if it’s the actual player.
6) Draft Position- The draft position can either make or break your team so prior to the draft have an idea of what your picks are depending on where on the draft you land- First pick to 5th has the plethora of options on the “best” players however also comes with the pressure of picking the “best” players which often times can lead to team sabotage as you are leaving these players for someone else. 6th to last picks often times get the left overs of the best players however in serpentine draft styles can often lead to success. Why? Because your picks are closer to each other than the 1-5 picks. Depending on the league the first 4 rounds are the most crucial in making your core team as those are the best players available. What to do if uncertain? Choose the back of the draft! This gives time for you to formulate your plan to see what 2 player combo you’d like to choose! Trade away if possible.
7) Put value on the players available not positions- The common misconception that a lot of newbies and even some veterans run into is they have to draft a certain way. They have to draft a running back even if there isn’t any good ones left or they have to take players they don’t want just because their ADP states they are a steal. Pivot and see what is the best overall player for your team. Learn to value other positions and what they can offer. Know which players are the “cutoff” for that position and once they are all picked choose a new position. For example, if the 5th best rb is taken but all the Wide receivers are still available- why not go WR1 and WR2 for a back 2 back. Or WR1 and QB1 or WR1 and TE1.
8) Identify the next needs- After getting your 2 core players make sure you identify what 2 positions are left and what the player pool has left. Again this is going to be your choice and don’t let anything else dictate this. Depending on how deep the league is and what has been picked consider referring to your list to see if the players you wanted are available if not go to the next players you’ve highlighted.
9) Start the trend don’t hop on it- Depending on the league there will be what’s known as a “run” of players picked at a position such as a QB run or WR run- Stay ahead of the trend by starting them. Just remember its ok to break runs if it means you’re getting a value by starting another one.
10) Middle/Late round picks matter! Don’t just fill randomly- This is where the real champions start to shine- If you do your research you will see the values that are left- For example, all teams have a running back now wither or not they produce is the question however by not giving up high pick values this is where you can mix and match players that you’ve researched and based off your research will be the highest asset for your team. I would recommend looking at what’s called “handcuffs”. What’s a handcuff? Well besides something steamy to try next time you’re in the bedroom, it’s the starter of the teams backup. For example, when Zeke was the starter his handcuff was Pollard- this is because if Zeke goes down the clear person to start would be Pollard. Learn to study the back ups of the back ups even. Wide Receivers 1 will always get theirs however WR2 to 4 will be sporadic based off match ups but if you do your research you’ll know which WR3 and 4 can give the same value as a WR1 in some weeks.
11) Strategize on what position you would like to have an immediate back up on just in case they go down- For example- QBs tend to be picked higher in drafts now a days and if your starter goes down its not a bad idea to have a back up QB. If I pick up a qb in round 1 or 2, I have a back up for them by rounds 5 or 6. This can also help with playing the match ups just in case your qb runs into a defense that is great against the pass. This strategy can work for WR and RB and even TE! How you might ask? Let’s say your WR is going up against not only a great CB but overall a great secondary in which you know will try to take away your WR1 starter- If you have a back up who has a better match up that week I would put faith in that back up to give you that match up points.
12) It’s ok to make mistakes- Nothing is guaranteed in life and Fantasy Football isn’t any different. You will make mistakes but its up to you to fix them during the season. How? Always make sure you do your weekly research and see if your current team is the best team to start if not make changes! For example you left a player on the bench who just scored 40+ points the week prior, and now you are absolutely starting them right? Wrong. Streaks and big games don’t often match and can actually lead to the opposite. Do your research on if they can absolutely repeat that prior week’s performance or if they will give you an egg.
13) The Waiver Wire is your friend! Make moves that make sense but don’t give up Waiver Wire position for the fun of it. If you give it up make sure that the return of investment in that move will be more than you acquired it for.
14) Losses at the start of the year won’t kill your season- Just remember it’s a long season and improvements are made on a weekly basis so take advantage of your losses by researching potential player booms. Don’t be afraid to sit your “stars” if needed.
15) Have fun! Fantasy Football is supposed to be fun and isn’t a job so do some trash talking and get those dubs!