Ahhh it is here. It is that time of year, where each fan has the opportunity to feel as if they are the best team managers in their fantasy league. Drafts are done. Picks were stolen. Line ups are being constantly changed, or if you are the Taco of your league, half your starters are on IR or slots are empty.
And for me? Well I am looking to repeat my championship status and win some extra money so I can buy myself another 49er jersey.
Draft Results
So here we go. My initial line up for the first week of fantasy football.
Not a bad lineup, if I do say so myself. Honestly, my biggest win is that I stole Christian McCaffery from my sister since my pick was before her in our draft. Adult sibling rivalry at its finest.
PPR vs. Standard Scoring
Our league scores by PPR (point per reception), which makes things much more interesting in my opinion. I love being able to draft or pick up “Sleeper” players and tip the scales in my favor each week. It definitely fits my play knowledge better than Standard scoring. Plus, when my Niners are losing or on a bye week, it makes watching other games on Sunday, Monday night and Thursday night, more exciting.
But if you are a novice or just not as neurotic as I am at watching and stressing about football during the season, Standard scoring for your league works. In a league with Standard scoring you’re definitely going to pretty much draft high performance players from each NFL team. That means, pay attention to top jersey sales from each team for who to pick.
Whether you are playing in a Standard scoring or PPR scoring league, unless you are the last person in a snake draft, do not pick Patrick Mahomes in the First Round.
Fantasy Football Faux Pas’
Okay, picking Mahomes in the First Round, wouldn’t be the worst faux pas in fantasy football society. You’ll still get a few eye rolls from your fellow managers in the league. But there is a reason for strategy drafting, again based on your league point system.
For example, as much as I love my Niners, I don’t pick all the players from the Niners because it would leave me in a lurch during Bye week. That doesn’t mean I still don’t try and have Niner players lined up to draft. Remember, fantasy football is a marathon and you have to survive the whole season.
Now as much as I support ragging on my fellow league managers for the silly fantasy fumbles, it does not mean I have not committed a few myself. Thankfully this year was not another case where I had to autodraft due to my day job. I will say if you have to ever autodraft, set your options and lineups ahead of time so you don’t just end up again with two quarterbacks as your first and second picks.
Auto Luck
And I’ll be honest, sometimes you’ll get lucky. During the 2021 season for my league, I had a solid team thanks to my autodraft lineup that I preset before draft day. Even made to the championship match, but lost due to player injuries.
But in general, if you actually care about who is on your roster, have your picks queued up before you’re on the clock. Don’t be like the fools my sister and I were clowning on for taking the full 2 minutes to pick. I might be tempted to throw a yellow flag for “delay of game” penalty at you in the group chat.
So, hopefully your draft turns out with some good picks. If you didn’t, don’t sweat. I have learned that waiting to see how each team plays after Week 1 is really what determines which players you want to trade, drop or pick up to set your season roster. Remember, marathon, not a sprint.
Don’t forget to set your lineups as NFL season kicks off tonight at 8:20 ET.
Let the battle for the 2023 Fantasy Football Champion begin!