Fantasy Mistakes
Wed May 30 10:17am ET
By JEFF PAUR @jeffpaur
Sr Fantasy Writer
Alright, here are some of my pet peeves when it comes to fantasy football. These are some issues that I see every year with fantasy owners. I'm going to help you avoid making the same mistakes before the season even starts. So here are five fantasy mistakes to avoid this season.
Bench a receiver because your opponent has the quarterback of that receiver.
This drives me absolutely crazy. A fantasy owner sits a player because of his opponent's lineup. The owner is going to sit Davante Adams this week because he is playing Aaron Rodgers. What? The whole point of fantasy football is to score the most points. This isn't real football. You need to field a lineup that will score the most possible points. It does not matter who your opponent is playing. If you are deciding between Adams and Julian Edelman, pick the player that you think will score the most points that week. It doesn't matter if your opponent has Aaron Rodgers or Tom Brady. You need to field the best possible lineup for that week. It does not matter who your opponent is starting. That will not make a difference in your points scored. Play the best possible lineup every week.
You have to load up on running backs with your first few picks.
This used to be the only way to draft. Take running backs with your first two or three picks. You need top running backs to win your league. Well, you still need to have some good running backs to win your league but this isn't an absolute way to draft come draft day. You can still take running backs early and often, but you don't have to be set in that strategy. PPR leagues have changed the way to draft. And the ever-changing NFL changes draft strategy as well. The league throws a lot more, so receivers score more than ever and more consistently. So you don't need to take running backs early like past years. Feel free to branch out and look at receivers or tight ends early come draft day.
Draft a full lineup come draft day.
Unless you are drafting a few days before the start of the season, it isn't necessary to draft a full lineup. Many of the better fantasy players load up on skill position players come draft day. You really don't need a full lineup after your draft is complete. Injuries happen and position changes occur until right before the start of the year, so fantasy values can change in a hurry. This is why taking a chance on skill players late in your draft instead of taking a kicker or second defense is a good idea. You could catch lightning in a bottle.
Go big early with your waiver wire bidding.
You definitely need to watch your waiver wire early in the year. Many players emerge at the start of the year and make an impact all season long. But spending all your waiver wire money early in the year is a bad idea. Go after the players that you think could help, but you are going to need to save some money for later in the year. Players can emerge just as easily in Week 10 as they do after the first week or two of the season. Don't spend all your waiver wire money early in the year. It can bite you in the butt before the season is out.
Play the matchup game.
I actually am a big proponent of looking at matchups and will examine them closely before setting my lineup. But with that said, don't get too cute when it comes to matchups. Good players score points no matter the opponent. Fantasy players can get caught up in matchups to a fault, making poor weekly decisions because they are caught up on favorable and unfavorable matchups. Sure, matchups help when it comes to tough lineup decisions, but benching elite players for a marginal play in a great matchup can really come back to haunt you. Don't overanalyze your matchup decisions.