You can explore the Internet or the newsstands in June and July, and youll find a wealth of information about fantasy football and fantasy football leagues. Most of it is statistics. Miles and miles of statistics. And most sites and magazines claim to offer more than all the others. What few offer, although, is sound advice on how to be successful every year. So, check out all the sites and magazines for your stats, but hunt no more for the secret to winning, because here it is.
I have played in very competitive fantasy football leagues for 15 years. I have missed the playoffs only twice, and Ive been to three fantasy bowls. I won more games and scored more points than any other team in my leagues history. Now, Ill give you my plan, and it wont cost you a dime. Here is the three-step formula for winning in fantasy football year in and year out.
The first step is to draft for depth. It sounds easy enough, but many people in my league focus on getting their starters, and the rest of the draft is nothing more than throwing darts at names on a stat sheet. I have chosen players beyond the seventh round (we have 14 rounds) who have led my team in scoring. I didnt even have them targeted as starters; I just saw the potential, through all of the research Id done. For example, take unique note of second and third-year wide receivers. They regularly go overlooked, because their numbers are not spectacular. Receivers take a year or two, before they adjust to the NFL. Chad Johnson is a great example. Also, watch for rookies who may explode late in the season, once they have grasped a technique. Lee Evans was a star after week nine this past season.
Step two is to supervise your team every week, down to the most slight details. If youve drafted for depth, youll have lineup decisions every week, because youll have a team filled of players that are scoring points. Check their histories against weekly opponents (a hugely overlooked strategy by novices). Some players simply thrive against particular teams, just as some teams tend to score differently against certain defenses. This can definitely change your weekly lineup decisions.
The third step is to watch the waiver wire and make two key trades. No matter how well you have drafted, near the end of the season, you will need to make changes. Its time to trade away your depth for stars. Also, lookout for available players to pick up -- even if they may only help you for one week. I drafted both Domanick Davis and Chad Johnson last season. Later, I traded both, so I could acquire LaDanian Tomlinson. This simplified my weekly lineup decisions, while giving me a player who would score at least one TD every week.
If you stick to this easy formula, no matter what kind of league you play in, youll make the playoffs 85 to 90 percent of the time. Thats not bad in any league.
