Beginner's Guide to Fantasy Sports

Fantasy Sports: Football Overview

Tue, 02 May 2006 20:40:41 +0000

Fantasy football is the most popular of all the fantasy sports in America. Each August, fantasy owners are busy preparing their draft strategies just as the National Football League teams are busy preparing for the actual season. Fantasy football has gained many followers in the last ten years, and it continues to grow at an incredible rate. It in itself is a multi-million dollar industry.

The Draft

Tue, 02 May 2006 20:41:40 +0000

The fantasy football draft is one of the most anticipated days for players in every league! Leagues can have their draft whenever they would like, and they can choose from all different kinds of drafts. Some leagues prefer to get each member together and hold the draft in person. If every player in a league doesn’t live close together, though, this is difficult. Leagues like this can go with an online draft, offered by most web sites which offer fantasy football. In an online draft, players log onto any computer and go to the “virtual draft room,” usually a Java applet which keeps track of the drafted players on each room for you. An offline draft is also an option, in which each fantasy owner sends their player rankings electronically to the league, the draft order is randomized, and teams are selected based on owners’ rankings.

There are also other variations in drafts. The most common drafts are standard drafts, in which each fantasy owner has the responsibility to fill a roster of players. When their turn comes to draft, they can take any player available. These drafts are usually serpentine in nature, meaning that the player who gets the last pick in the first round will get the first pick in the second round and so forth.

Another type of draft is the auction draft. In an auction draft, each fantasy owner is given a fictional “allowance” with which to pay the “salaries” of their players. Owners then bid on the players available, understanding that they have to fill their entire roster within their allotted amount of money. If they run out of money, they are no longer allowed to draft any more players. The auction draft provides an interesting twist but is usually only for experienced fantasy players.

There are a number of different draft strategies, and you can read all about them at any of the web sites or in any of the magazines that cover fantasy football. Most experts agree that fantasy owners should simply take the “best player available” approach, meaning they should select their highest rated player who is still available on the draft board when their turn comes to pick.

Other draft strategies include the “positional rarity” strategy. Using this strategy, the fantasy owner makes their selections based on how difficult it is to find a productive player at each position. So, using this strategy in fantasy football, an owner may use an early pick on a tight end, because it is very difficult to find a productive tight end. Another strategy is the “running back only” strategy. Using this strategy, fantasy owners are encouraged to take as many running backs as they can early in the draft, because running back is generally the most productive position in the NFL. Most leagues allow an owner to start three running backs (two actual running backs and a running back at the flex position), and injuries sometimes plague running backs, so it helps to have a number of spare running backs on your bench in case some of your running backs get hurt. This is probably the most common draft strategy for fantasy football, which makes it difficult to apply, because there is a chance everyone in your league will be utilizing it!

The Statistics

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The positions in fantasy football differ in each league. Generally the offensive positions a fantasy owner will have to choose from include these: quarterback, running back, wide receiver, tight end, and flex (some combination of wide receiver, tight end and running back). When it comes to defensive positions, most leagues will allow the fantasy owner to select a team defense instead of individual players. For example, if you were to choose the New England Patriots defense, you would be awarded points every week based on their performance. Other leagues do allow players to choose actual defensive players, generally from these positions: defensive line, linebackers, cornerback and safeties. Kickers are also generally chosen.

Statistical categories in fantasy football also differ from league to league. Some of the more standard fantasy football statistics on offense include the following: passing touchdowns, passing yards, interceptions, rushing touchdowns, rushing yards, fumbles, receptions, receiving yards, receiving touchdowns, and two point conversions. Standard defensive statistics are these: points allowed, interceptions, fumbles forced, fumbles recovered, defensive touchdowns, blocked kicks, and tackles. Kickers are scored based on the length of their field goals and whether they make the extra point attempts or not.

The statistics in most fantasy football leagues are both positive and negative. For example, a quarterback can earn positive points by throwing touchdown passes, but he loses points for each interception he throws. Generally, offensive players are penalized for turning the ball over, while defensive players (teams) are penalized for allowing lots of points.

There are little things some custom leagues sneak in that you have to be aware of. Because custom leagues (as opposed to standard or default leagues) are allowed to use their own scoring systems and their own statistical categories, sometimes they sneak interesting things in. For example, some leagues will use return yards and return touchdowns as scoring categories. If you don’t pay attention to this before draft day, you may not draft any players who return kicks or punts, which could drastically affect your position in the standings. Watch for the different statistical categories leagues throw in, and also watch for imbalances in the points offered. For example, if your league awards one point for every twenty rushing yards but one point for every ten receiving yards, then wide receivers are suddenly twice as valuable as running backs. You have to be aware of every change made in custom leagues to make the best decisions possible in the draft and week in and week out as you set your starting lineup.

The Scoring

Tue, 02 May 2006 20:42:54 +0000

Fantasy football leagues generally play what is called a head-to-head format. This simply means that two teams in the league match up against one another each week, with the winner getting credit for a victory and the loser taking a defeat. Records are tracked and standings work just like they would in regular football. At the end of the season, some leagues have their own playoffs, pitting the top six or eight teams against one another in a bracketed tournament to determine the champion. So, like in real life, the best team during the regular season may not end up being the league champion.

There are other idiosyncrasies to watch for in each individual league. For example, as the end of the season approaches, some fantasy leagues will have their season end before the actual NFL season ends. Why, you ask? Well, as the NFL season heads into weeks 16 and 17, often the playoff picture is already determined, and many teams will begin to rest their regular players (which are the players who are selected in fantasy leagues) and play younger players. It is more fair for the outcome to be based on the players you originally chose, and if you have many players whose teams have already locked up a playoff spot late in the season, this could hurt your fantasy team’s performance.

Fantasy Sports: The Other Sports Overview

Fri, 02 Jun 2006 20:22:15 +0000

Fantasy sports are one of the most popular hobbies in the world, drawing millions of players who pay billions of dollars each year to be a part. While football is the most popular of the fantasy sports (much like it is the most popular of the regular sports), followed by baseball and basketball (these three sports are known as the “big three”), there are a number of other fantasy sports which are growing in popularity.

Not all fantasy sports cost money to play, so those seeking a hobby but not wanting to pay for one can find good opportunities in fantasy sports. There are an enormous number of web sites that offer fantasy leagues. The most popular is Yahoo!, which offers a huge selection of both free and paying leagues. Here is a list of other sites where you can play fantasy sports: www.espn.com, www.cbssportsline.com, www.cnnsi.com, www.sandbox.com, www.foxsports.com, www.tsn.com, and many (literally thousands) of others. The ones listed here are the most reputable and most reliable. Sites will make you sign up for an account, which is usually free, before you can participate in fantasy sports at that particular site.

Some of the fantasy sports besides the “big three” in which one can participate include hockey, golf, and NASCAR. Because college athletes are amateurs and using their names and statistics could jeopardize their amateur status, it is extremely unusual to find fantasy college sports. There are, however, other opportunities for college sports fans, like “pick ‘em” games and bracket challenges. We’ll be detailing all these fantasy sports in this article.

Fantasy Hockey

Fri, 02 Jun 2006 20:23:55 +0000

Fantasy hockey players are selected from the rosters of the thirty teams which make up the National Hockey League. The National Hockey League plays an 82 game schedule each season.

There are generally two kinds of scoring for fantasy hockey: rotisserie and head-to-head. Rotisserie scoring awards points to each team based on their position in the standings in each category. For example, in a 12 team league, the fantasy owner with the highest total of goals would receive 12 points in the standings, while the person with the least goals would receive one point, with the others falling into place in between. This is done for each scoring category, and the scores are then tallied to determine the winner. Rotisserie is the most common type of scoring in fantasy hockey leagues.

Head-to-head scoring is also very popular in fantasy hockey. In this scoring method, two teams in the league match up against one another each week, with the winner getting credit for a victory and the loser taking a defeat. Records are tracked and standings work just like they would in regular hockey. At the end of the season, some leagues have their own playoffs, pitting the top six or eight teams against one another in a bracketed tournament to determine the champion. So, like in real life, the best team during the regular season may not end up being the league champion.

The starting positions in most fantasy hockey leagues are center (2), left wing (2), right wing (2), defenseman (4), and goalie (2). Standard scoring categories are goals, assists, plus/minus, power play points, penalty minutes, game winning goals, wins, shutouts, goals against average, and save percentage.

Fantasy Golf

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Fantasy golf players select golfers from the Professional Golf Association, whose season lasts for the better portion of the calendar year. Generally owners select golfers from three tiers (A, B, and C), with golfers in tier A being the best and those in tier C the worst. Players can only use a golfer for a certain number of tournaments per year (usually four to six). Fantasy golf is somewhat different than most other fantasy sports due to the fact that different owners in the same league can own the same golfer from the PGA at the same time, with the maximum tournament rule applying.

Fantasy players are scored simply on the performance of their golfers. This is why it is so important to choose wisely when you use your golfers, as you always have to remember your tournament limits.

Fantasy NASCAR

Fri, 02 Jun 2006 20:24:52 +0000

Fantasy NASCAR is an auto racing league running from late February to late November each year. Interestingly, NASCAR is the only sport which begins its season with its biggest event, the Daytona 500, every February. This is also the first event of the fantasy NASCAR season.

Like fantasy golf, fantasy owners in NASCAR choose drivers from three tiers. One difference is that each owner is permitted to choose a team of eight drivers before each race, but you can only use four of these drivers for your race. Again, multiple owners in the same league can own the same driver. Also like in golf, drivers are only permitted a certain number of races each season (usually eight to eleven), so you must choose carefully when to use your drivers.

Drivers are scored on their performance in each race. Generally the top 40 to 50 finishers are given points based on their order of finish. Drivers are awarded bonus points for their positions after qualifying, with the top four to six positions scoring. Most sites also offer bonus points for drivers who lead at least one lap during the race.

Pick 'Em Games

Fri, 02 Jun 2006 20:25:23 +0000

Each season, many fantasy web sites offer opportunities to participate in pick ‘em games. While you can play pick ‘em with professional sports like football, these games are usually reserved for college sports, because of the aforementioned issue with the amateur status of college athletes.

Pick ‘em games are exactly what they sound like: the fantasy owner picks the winner of certain games as a matter of competition. The most popular pick ‘em game is for college football. This game is usually known as “Pigskin Pick ‘Em,” based on the familiar nickname for football. Fantasy owners are given a number of games each week in which they must choose the winners. Whoever picks the most correct winners wins for that week. Generally players will be asked to predict the final score for a few of the games, which functions as a tie breaker in case two or more players pick the same number of correct winners. Standings are kept for the duration of the college football season, and the player with the best prediction skills is the league champion at the end of the season!

Bracket Challenges

Fri, 02 Jun 2006 20:25:50 +0000

The bracket is one of the most recognizable icons in American sports, primarily for one big reason: the annual NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Tournament. Some of the most classic sports terms come from this event, like Cinderella, bracket buster, Sweet Sixteen, Elite Eight, Final Four, March Madness, upset, and buzzer beater! It logically goes to follow that fantasy sports would take advantage of this enormous event.

Each March when the tournament field is selected, thousands of web sites offer bracket challenges, which are, in effect, fantasy sports. Players are asked to predict the winners of each tournament game (much like in the pick ‘em games). Players’ brackets are scored for accuracy, with higher point totals being awarded for games in the later rounds of the tournament. So, a player who selects three of the final four teams may score higher than a player who picks a lot of first round upsets but misses with their Final Four picks.

Nearly all of these contests are free to play, and they often offer cash prizes to the winner (and substantial cash prizes to a player who selects every single game correctly, something that happens once every few years). This provides great incentive to participate in bracket challenges early each spring.

Sources
http://fantasysports.yahoo.com