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Most Razzball readers are experienced fantasy football players. We multiple leagues, multiple formats, spend countless time researching players, following ADP trends, and plugged in to the NFL news room. Regardless of how many ‘expert’ OR industry leagues we are in, nothing compares to the level of competition in famous “Home Leagues.”
Home leagues are an avenue for buddies from college to stay in touch, your family and neighborhood league, or your girlfriend/boyfriends work league that your significant other hyped you as “really good at fantasy football player” and now here you are signed up for more leagues than you want to admit to your significant other. This is where we cut our teeth playing fantasy football, but now these are the leagues that help us sharpen our tools. Here are couple of do’s and dont’s that will help you dominate on draft day…
In the spirit of competition, share this article with your homes leagues. Help increase the level of competition. I know the easy money is enticing, but increasing the level of competition in your home league will mold you into a better fantasy football player. Iron sharpens iron…
Draft Kicker and Defense with your last two picks
A book can be written, probably has, on why you should wait to grab a K & D/ST. Time and time again, you’ll find Kickers and Defenses drafted with 4-5 rounds remaining in your draft. Have we not learned our lessons? Remember when the 2017 Jaguars D/ST was regarded as the best defenses in recent history? They were a middle round target for fantasy owners in 2018. After finishing 2017 as the #1 fantasy defense, the Jags DST finished 2018 as the 17th ranked fantasy defense. They scored 60 less point from the previous year and were not worthy of starting most weeks. It’s been 7 years since the last time a fantasy defense repeated as the top fantasy unit. For Kickers, the same three names haven’t finished in the top 3 for at least 10 years (I got tired of going back). Except for appearances by Gostkowski and Justin Tucker, but the variance in weekly kicking production is so volatile that it’s not worth drafting early. Kicker #3 was separated by less than 15 points from Kicker #10 in 2018. Kicker #10 was Cowboys’ Brett Maher, who was on waivers multiples times throughout the season.Â
Drafting a kicker or defense early is not going to win your league. Similar to why quarterbacks are devalued in single-QB leagues, you can only start one kicker and one defense. You HAVE to start multiple RBs, and WRs. You win your league by drafting skill players late, that have high upside and turn into league winners. Think about your league-mates that took late round fliers on Patrick Mahomes, James Conner, Phillip Lindsay, George Kittle and Mike Williams last season. While your home-leagues are drafting kickers and defenses in those early ‘teen rounds, you need to round up all of the late round skill players available. Target guys that win your league, not Justin Tucker nor The Chicago Bears D/ST. You can easily stream both positions over the course of the whole season and have top 12 output at the position.Â
Wait on Quarterbacks…
This will happen home leagues, Patrick Mahomes will be drafted in the first round. I understand the appeal, the guy threw 50 touchdowns. It’s been 15 years since the last time a quarterback repeated as the overall QB #1 in fantasy football..15 years (Shoutout Daunte Culpepper). Mahomes is likely to be in the top 5, but it is more likely that he will NOT finish as overall #1 fantasy QB. Fantasy football is about value, and finding value in as many spots as you can. The reason Mahomes was a league winner last season was because he was drafted later in drafts. The players that had Mahomes, ALSO had a stacked skill position group because they decided to wait on their quarterback. The quarterback position presents a lot of value every year in fantasy football. Rudy has Jared Goff projected to finish as the overall QB #3 in 2019 and his current ADP is 87th overall, early 7th round. Mitchel Trubisky is projected to finish as the QB10 and his current ADP is 151 OVR, middle of the 12th round. Similar to streaming K & D/ST, you can stream a quarterback off waivers based on weekly matchups the whole season and finish with top 10 output from that position. Granted, that’s a risky way to do it but it goes to show the depth at the position.Â
Don’t get trapped by name recognition, draft upside…
All of the major fantasy platforms, ESPN/NFL/YAHOO/CBS, have expert rankings and ADP numbers loaded in their draft applications. For the most part, these list have increased in quality over the years leveling out competition in the early rounds of drafts. In laters rounds, your wife’s dad or girlfriends coworker will fall victim to targeting names they recognize. This will not hurt them early in drafts but they will pay for it later. Don’t be a sucker and grab Randall Cobb because you remember him from a couple of years ago in Green Bay. He’ll be fighting for 3rd/4th looks in a run first offense that will focus on Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup in the passing game. You might not recognize the name of younger players on the list, but you want to add upside players later in the draft. These are typically rookies, or 2nd-3rd year players that have a potential path for more opportunity as the season progresses. Older guys that have name recognition present a capped ceiling, we know what they are and we know their role. You can’t expect Mohammed Sanu to have a “break out” season at age 30 and heading in to his 7th season. Instead of grabbing Sanu at his current price of WR60, take a flier on potential 2nd year breakout WR Michael Gallup, currently going as WR55. Instead of grabbing Carlos Hyde at his current price, RB51, take a shot on potential Melvin Gordon replacement Justin Jackson (RB55) or preseason crush RB Justin Hill (RB55). If you hit on young upside guys, you increase your chances on winning your league.
Forcing a position…
This is a common mistake for amateur fantasy players. “I need to draft a RB here, or I have to grab a QB/TE here because I haven’t filled out my starting roster yet” is a mindset that plays right into the hands of skilled draftee’s. Just because you have two WRs already rostered and one RB, it does not mean you HAVE to draft a RB next. If the wide receivers atop the draft board are in a tier or two above the next RB, then take the receiver. Do not force a position, it’s okay to leave the draft with a position of strength. This provides trade value later in the season, or helps protect from injuries to a position group on your roster. Keep in mind, if you see a position group “drying up” Â and the next options that would make it around are multiple tiers lower, then it’s okay to lock up that position. Throughout the draft you will see guys “fall” relative to their ADP for multiple reason…most likely an early QB or TE run. Don’t succumb to the pier pressure and grab a QB or TE early because you feel like you have to. This is when you find great value in drafts, when a player should have gone a round or two earlier but is still sitting their atop the draft board. Take advantage of your league-mates and stack those players up.
Good luck this week and let me know how you do in your drafts. I’ll see some of you in my RazzBall Commenter Leagues this and next week. Leave your comments and feedback below.Â
As always you can find me on twitter, @NicRomeroFF
