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Fantasy Football should always be about fun. But sometimes competitiveness overpowers common courtesy. My good friend Dr. Mike was new to a well-established league made up of his fraternity brothers. They rudely dubbed Mike’s team “New Meat.” Little did they know Dr. Mike was an experienced Fantasy player. He went on to win the league championship. When he was paid his winnings, the annoyed frat boys gave him a stack of cash that had 500 staples in it. No surprise, Dr. Mike quit the league soon after. To quote one of my favorite musicians Michael Franti, “Just work hard and be nice to people.”
Here’s some Fantasy Billboard last minute advice for 2024.
Grade in the Shade — Take your Fantasy site’s draft grades with a grain of salt. One of the sites, that shall remain nameless (it rhymes with seediness snorts), strangely ranked my quarterback draft a C+. I thought drafting this QB in Round 3 (matching his ADP) was perfect. My C+ choice at QB was Patrick Mahomes. What lunatics are running the asylum on this site?
My Grandmother was 50% Italian, 50% German and 50% Irish. (She was a very large woman) — Another issue I have with some Fantasy sites is the “percent rostered” column. How is this relevant? Who cares? That site that rhymes with “seediness snorts” has Dak Prescott, the second-best QB in Fantasy last year, only 97% rostered. How is he not at 100%? And all-world RB Christian McCaffrey, the GOAT himself, is only rostered 98%. Huh? There are 2% of teams that don’t want CMC? Am I losing my mind?
Never Let ‘Em See You Sweat — Don’t panic and start trading away your players before the season starts. Abandoning your guys before one regular season down is played is foolhardy. Remember, one moment of patience may ward off an eternity of disaster.
All Revved Up with No Place to Go — Preseason means nothing. The 2023 preseason rushing leader was the Packers’ Emanuel Wilson. He had 223 yards and two TDs. Wilson made Green Bay’s roster but finished with just 85 yards for the year. Frank Gore Jr. led all RBs in rushing this preseason for the Buffalo Bills with 163 yards and a TD. Before you rush to pick Gore up, please note the Bills just cut him (he’s now on their practice squad). Such is the precarious predicament when you peruse preseason performances.
A Bad Wing, Man — Deshaun Watson’s health must concern every Browns fan. He didn’t play at all in preseason, which is fine I guess, but the reason was “a tired arm.” For a QB that’s played just 12 games in two years for Cleveland to have a tired arm before the season starts is very disconcerting. If Watson is your QB, you might need another wingman. Talk to me, Goose.
QB or Not QB? That is the Question — Gadget guy Taysom Hill has flip-flopped between QB, TE and even RB in his career. Fantasy sites vary on his official position. CBS SportsLine lists him as a QB. Fantasy Pros have him as a TE. Yahoo lists him as either. This is important because if you draft Hill as a backup QB and your site only recognizes him as a TE, you can’t start him in your QB spot. Know your site’s settings before you take Taysom.
Fly Me to the Moon — Do you want to play among the stars? Take a flyer on some backup RBs. Jordan Mason looks mighty fine backing up the oft-injured McCaffrey. Tyrone Tracy Jr should get a fair amount of work behind Devin Singletary. Braelon Allen of the Jets and Ray Davis of the Bills had excellent camps as well. In 2014, Denver’s backup RB C.J. Anderson stepped in for an injured Montee Ball and averaged a stunning 21 points per game over the last eight weeks of the season, catapulting many a lucky Fantasy team to championship glory.
Map Out your Future but Do it in Pencil — Every year I make a spreadsheet of my team roster, categorizing them by position and laying out their entire schedules. This “vision board” allows me to look ahead at my starting lineups and see who faces an easy or difficult matchup. And it prepares me for bye weeks. To quote Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs, “A winning effort begins with preparation.”
Would I Lie to You? — A month after praising my favorite “Comeback Player of the Year” candidate WR Tim Patrick as an “important leader in the locker room,” Broncos head coach Sean “Pants on Fire” Payton cut him.
One Mans Opinion — “Don’t sleep on Steelers’ WR Van Jefferson. He could be a Top 40 WR playing opposite George Pickens,” Jeff Mans, FantasyGuru.com. Get 30% off the subscription price from FantasyGuru.com, the finest source for Seasonal, DFS (Daily Fantasy Sports) and Sports Gaming advice. Just go to FantasyGuru.com and enter the code NEW30 for instant savings.
Bill Reinhard is a member of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association, a columnist and artist for FantasyGuru.com, and author of Jets legend Joe Klecko’s Hall of Fame acceptance speech. Catch Bill every Thursday night at 6:45 on “This Week in Pro Football” on YouTube TV starting Sept. 5.
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