MoSneaky Fantasy Football Online Magazine » Mastering the Internet Draft

Mastering the Internet Draft

14 May, 2007 Misc., Strategy

N. Ford When it comes time to draft, everyone goes in with a different strategy in mind. Who’s to say what is right, each method can prove fruitful. Here’s a little system that works well in leagues that have a small roster. The Yahoo.com default leagues are a prime example, and are what we will use for demonstration.

The starting team appears as follows:

QB

RB

RB

WR

WR

WR

TE

K

D

Followed by 6 bench slots.

Bench (backup QB)

Bench (backup RB)

Bench (backup WR)

Bench (backup TE)

Bench (backup K)

Bench (backup D)

On the MoSneaky Forums…

2007 in General Fantasy Discussion (0 Replies) - super_chicken

Start/bench Thu… in Start/Bench (1 Reply) - golfnut680

I need help in … in Start/Bench (0 Replies) - pitoplaya56

5 RB’s who to s… in Start/Bench (0 Replies) - kannydoo

should i make t… in Should I make this trade (0 Replies) - jjgob

Now, as you can see, 6 bench slots aren’t nearly enough. If you draft a backup QB, TE, K, and Defense, that only leaves you with 2 slots left for backup RBs and WRs. That’s insane. Being short slotted causes several problems.

Injuries will absolutely destroy your team, since you only have 1 backup for each position.

Off weeks become crucial. None of your starting positions can have the same off-week as your bench replacement. This can really tie your hands, when trying to select the best talent available in the draft.

You have absolutely no room to draft sleeper picks. You NEED every spot for proven backups.

You can’t handcuff a questionable player and still have a replacement during their off-week. (Handcuff means to take the backup to a player, in case he gets hurt/doesn’t perform. Fred Taylor is a prime example of a guy you’d want to handcuff, he gets hurt nearly every year)

Now, how do we get around this problem? What we are going to do is NOT draft a backup TE, K, or D. Sounds silly, but it’s not. The whole premise is that we sacrifice a little bit in the backup area, for the 1 week those players’ teams are off, in exchange for more roster room to draft sleepers, and backup the WR/RB positions.

By using this system, your lineup will look like this:

QB
RB
RB
WR
WR
WR
TE
K
D
Bench (Backup QB)
Bench (WR/RB/Sleeper)
Bench (WR/RB/Sleeper)
Bench (WR/RB/Sleeper)
Bench (WR/RB/Sleeper)
Bench (deep sleeper)

Now. The obvious question is, “What the hell happens during off-weeks, when I have no backup?” The answer is simple. You’ll drop the worst player on your bench (most often the deep sleeper pick, if they haven’t succeeded by that time), and pick up the off-week replacement that you need. If you don’t care about losing your TE/K/D, you can just drop them in the off-week, instead of the deep sleeper. The great thing about the TE, K, and Defense positions, is that there will ALWAYS be a starter on the waiver wire, unless you’re in an 18-team league. Sure your replacement won’t be as good as the guy you could have drafted, but it will be a warm body to fill the spot for 1 week.

What you’ll be enjoying though, will be the number of options you have every week at WR/RB, and all the trade talks you can have with your stable of valuable RB/WRs. If a couple of your sleepers come through, your team will be a powerhouse. Say you can’t sleep at night without handcuffing the backup to that injury-ridden star RB. Go ahead and take one, and you’ll still have 4 bench slots left to use on RB/WR and sleepers.

The only rule that must be followed when doing this, is to make sure that none of your TE, K, and D have the same off-week. If they do, you’ll be dropping 2 bench players that week, instead of just 1.

And that’s it. Simple huh?

Carrying a backup tight end, kicker, and defense is stupid. Repeat that to yourself, as often as you need, until you believe it.