Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Fantasy Football: For Women Too

If you haven't tried fantasy football yet, then maybe it's about time. It's best to do it a week or two before the regular football season starts because some players might still lose starting positions based on preseason performances.

I recently signed up at foxsports.com with the help of my husband who was the champion in his league last year. His friends and family (that includes me, of course) value his opinions and ideas about football, some of which I will now be sharing with you.

There are various sites that allow you to join fantasy football leagues for free, like nfl.com, espn.go.com, yahoosports.com or foxsports.com. All you have to do is sign up, go to their fantasy football site and join a league. You are then given an option to do either a live or automated draft. With the automated draft, you make a list of players you like and the computer automatically fills up your team for you according to the best available players. But I wouldn't recommend doing that. Do the live draft instead so you can have fun getting the players you want.


The Live Draft

This is one of the most exciting parts about fantasy football, other than watching the games and cheering for your players, of course. At a certain date and time, you and the 11 other members of your league will sit in front of your computer, enter your draft room and take turns picking players on the spot.

The person picking ahead of you might select a top RB (Running Back) or QB (Quarterback). If he happens to be the player you wanted, you'll have to choose the next best available top RB/WR/QB. On the other hand, when it's your turn to pick, you might get the top WR (Wide Receiver) who everybody else wanted (like I fortunately did with Larry Fitzgerald). So while the other members of your league will be yelling in front of their computers and going, "No! Not my top wide receiver!", you, on the other hand, will be smiling and relishing the moment.


Getting Ready for the Draft

On a sheet of paper, make a list of players you want for the top 3 key positions in the team, at least 10 for each: RB's, WR's and QB's. These are the guys who usually run, catch the ball and make the most touchdowns so naturally they are the ones who'll give you the most fantasy points.


Drafting Your Team

On the day of your live draft, get in your league at least 10 minutes earlier so you can look at the roster of players available. Now, ladies, remember that if you want your team to do well, don't pick players just because they're cute or they look good in their uniform. Pick those who rank highest according to fantasy football stats or those who have played consistently very well because they are the most likely to earn you the most points.

The first six picks are the most important because you'll need to fill your roster with very good starters to establish a good core of position players. With a live draft, if you're listed 9th on your league, that means there will be 8 persons picking ahead of you. The picking sequence may be from 1-12, then 12-1 until you have all filled up your teams.

On your first pick, take a top RB. But if the first 8 persons ahead of you have already taken the top RB's, it may be best to take a top WR.

On your second pick, if you already have a top WR, get the next best RB, or vice versa. On your third pick, get a top QB/RB/WR. If all the top QB's were already taken, take the next best available player.

In the next rounds, if the best RB's and WR's are already taken, pick those who the top QB's throw the ball to. For example, you can pick WR Randy Moss because he's one of the guys who top QB Tom Brady throws to. So even if Tom Brady is not on your fantasy team, you'll still get points when he throws a touchdown pass to Randy Moss.

The best sequence recommended for your first six picks would be: RB, WR, QB, RB/WR, TE/WR/RB, TE/WR/RB or RB, WR, RB, QB, TE/WR/RB, TE/WR/RB. With the remaining picks, look for a top TE (Tight End) and top DST (Defese Special Team) during the late rounds to fill your roster.

Make sure you watch out for your players' bye weeks. That's when they're not playing. You'll need to have back-ups, so you shouldn't draft too many players with the same bye weeks. Otherwise, you won't get points for those players during those weeks.

Pay attention to injury reports and player trades early in the year. check depth charts, news and notes on players to check up on your team. These can all be found on the sports site you signed up with. If one of your players gets hurt, say your QB Peyton Manning (knock on wood), you'll have to make trades with other members of the league, like giving up your top WR Reggie Wayne for another top QB like Aaron Rodgers.

Draft at least one player from your favorite football team so you'll enjoy watching your team and your favorite fantasy player at the same time.


Have Fun!

When you have finished drafting your own fantasy football team, you can now make a small wager with your husband, boyfriend or other friends (for example, the winner gets a steak dinner or a free car wash).

Enjoy watching the games and your fantasy football players! During a commercial break, your husband might lean over to let you know he appreciates that you're doing fantasy football with him. You both might be surprised, your team might even do better than his.