II. Know the Competition
Those of us who have played fantasy football in multiple leagues have experienced this first hand; some leagues are just more competitive than others, and some leagues draft differently than most.
- There are some leagues out there which are mainly for fun; some leagues are used as a way to keep a group of people in contact with one another; in other leagues the loser gets a tattoo hand selected by the league’s winner. There is nothing wrong with any of these types of leagues. As long as the competitive nature, or lack thereof, is fairly uniform across the league then everyone should have fun throughout the season. It is not recommended to invite novice players into a league full of seasoned veterans, it won’t be too much fun for anyone and the competitive nature of the league may be damaged as a whole.
- Some leagues simply draft differently than others. Leagues in which the average owner is less-experienced tend to draft QBs much higher than is usual. I’m in a league that was established back in the ‘80s and the 1st round is almost always dominated by RBs, and a QB run starts shortly after, that’s just how it’s always been. I have read about a league where the first round is all kickers and then the true draft starts after that. The key point to all of this is that if a league has the draft history handy, then it is advantageous for everyone to reference that in order to establish an idea of what to expect for the next draft. Things I would look for: which positions dominated which rounds, which owners selected a QB or TE early, when were the first Def and K drafted, or anything else that looks out of the ordinary. This won’t take long to do and gives anyone willing to do it a huge advantage. As long as someone has an idea of what to expect for their draft then they can zig when others zag and celebrate their job well done with an adult beverage after the draft.
* This is block 2 of an 11-part series that will be posted over the course of the next week. It will then be posted in its entirety at the conclusion of the series. Part I was noticeably more lengthy than all others which is why it was posted on its own. Thank you for reading and be sure to come back tomorrow for the next blocks!
