Brag About Your (Fantasy) Football Experience thread

[Cult of Dionysus]

So it sounds like almost no one here (except for Yeti) has any real football experience...

[_yeti]

So it sounds like almost no one here (except for Yeti) has any real football experience...

I've talked to some former college guys when catching up and been like, yeah so I'm really into fantasy football now, then explain dynasty and it's like explaining it to an old relative or something. Just because ppl played football doesn't mean they wouldn't be terrible at a football based strategy game. Come to think of it, almost everyone in my friend leagues didn't play organized football.

[ArrylT]

can't wait to see what clarion contrarion, lukky, or skip or so forth posts.

[Cult of Dionysus]

Didn't mean to make a qualitative statement about it. Certainly one doesn't need to have football experience to be good at fantasy or real general management of NFL teams, for that matter.

But I did go into this thinking that perhaps guys who had had some football experience might gravitate towards the more hardcore side of fantasy football (i.e. dynasty).

[Cult of Dionysus]

Football experience: Played HS football and was All-Metro and All-State, Received Division 1 Big-10 Scholarship as TE/DE. Was undersized at 6-4, 230 at highest weight, known more for speed, intelligent play, outright aggression than elite genetics/athletic ability at D1 level, washed out in 2 years (3 years eligibility remaining) likely could have started as Junior or Senior but left when realized no chance of NFL future, could have gone to D1AA school of choice as transfer but was done with football. Did not watch football AT ALL for several years after but was lured back into the fold as I transitioned from player to fan (mostly due to joining fantasy football).

Would be cool if you could give us some additional insights. Did you enjoy playing high school more than college? How much of a grind was it (if at all)? How much of step-up was Big-10 play from high school play? What are your own personal feelings/experience with concussions and the current focus/concern on them? Is it something that affects/worries you and the former teammates that you keep in contact with (high school and/or college)? When you watch NFL games, are you more perceptive of schemes, personnel groups, pre-snap stuff, etc.? If so, what in particular would you say...

Sorry, I know that's a lot of questions.

[_yeti]

can't wait to see what clarion contrarion, lukky, or skip or so forth posts.

"I used to walk 10 miles in barefeet and used to calculate carve the stats on a stone tablet, the leather helmets made for a more authentic game experience"

[_yeti]

Football experience: Played HS football and was All-Metro and All-State, Received Division 1 Big-10 Scholarship as TE/DE. Was undersized at 6-4, 230 at highest weight, known more for speed, intelligent play, outright aggression than elite genetics/athletic ability at D1 level, washed out in 2 years (3 years eligibility remaining) likely could have started as Junior or Senior but left when realized no chance of NFL future, could have gone to D1AA school of choice as transfer but was done with football. Did not watch football AT ALL for several years after but was lured back into the fold as I transitioned from player to fan (mostly due to joining fantasy football).

Would be cool if you could give us some additional insights. Did you enjoy playing high school more than college? How much of a grind was it (if at all)? How much of step-up was Big-10 play from high school play? What are your own personal feelings/experience with concussions and the current focus/concern on them? Is it something that affects/worries you and the former teammates that you keep in contact with (high school and/or college)? When you watch NFL games, are you more perceptive of schemes, personnel groups, pre-snap stuff, etc.? If so, what in particular would you say...

Sorry, I know that's a lot of questions.

Did you enjoy playing high school more than college?

1000%. I used to be the guy saying shoot me if I say these are the best days of my life (and they aren't, because family), but playing high school football was one of the greatest experiences of my life. A brotherhood that sticks together as we all come of age, work hard, experience victories and defeats together, NOTHING like Friday Night Lights.

How much of a grind was it (if at all)?

A GRIND. August is camp, report to facility at 7am, with practices, film, workouts they fill the whole day. Get to the dorm around 10pm, curfew and exhausted, do it all again. Don't see a non-football soul all month. Also, offseason 5am workouts, spring ball (where they know you have all summer to recover so for two weeks we would MURDER each other). You have like 5 guys you know have a shot at the league and 100 who are grinding but their whole community thinks they are going to the league so that becomes another type of brotherhood, like we only know what we go through. Becomes a real hard hat mentality, like alright suit up let's knock this out. Then you are also a full time college student on top of it. Also, in season you are AT practice even if you are a redshirt and watching full team off vs def with 1s and 2s only playing a lot of the time and you are only on scout team and in individual drills. It's not like you can go lift when you are doing nothing watching at practice. So in season I would often have class all day, practice, team dinner, film room, and then go to the weight room on my own, then homework, then crash, then do it again. I left before being a starter but that is a heck of a grind, when I saw no NFL at the end of the rainbow I decided to save my body over saying I started for a year or two. By doing that, there is a level of shaming from inside the community both on the team and outside, like "you threw it all away." Never regretted my decision to leave. A lot of the guys drink and party hard but I had the mindset of I am killing my body this hard to improve it, why tear it down with alcohol? So I didn't drink or party at all. Can be real isolating, at least it was for me.

How much of step-up was Big-10 play from high school play?

Night and day, everyone was the best player on their high school team, walk-ons included. When I went back and watched high school it looked like slow motion (same thing is said about the speed change to the pros from college). I learned more about football in a week of college than 4 years of high school. Where we were all monsters in high school, now everyone is big. I went from being the biggest guy to the smallest DE and all of a sudden I really have to rely on speed and aggression where I used to overpower everyone.

What are your own personal feelings/experience with concussions and the current focus/concern on them? Is it something that affects/worries you and the former teammates that you keep in contact with (high school and/or college)?

I tend to be a more intellectual guy than most football players but I jokingly (and seriously) sometimes say it has affected my brain (memory especially, but people say well we are getting older happens to everyone). I think we all probably have some level of CTE though someone like me it would be much more mild than a guy with 10 more years playing. It's the hitting your head part not the pro part that gives it to you. Most people are still too young to think about or acknowledge it. People don't really talk about it in my experience.

When you watch NFL games, are you more perceptive of schemes, personnel groups, pre-snap stuff, etc.? If so, what in particular would you say...

Nope. We dont have proper angles, we need the all-22 angle and slow motion to reallly try to get after it on a technical level. I transitioned from player to straight fan, so I think people who coach at any level probably care more about that stuff. When you watch film as a player it is in detail breaking down technique as it applies to that one position and gets reallly specific and watch plays in slow motion over and over, etc. I think only QBs get the great scheme training as a player. As a fantasy player I think being a player more helped my eye test to recognize player ability/athleticism. I watch from a more instinctual gut reaction of the game than try to get super technical.

[ArrylT]

Thanks for sharing yeti - much appreciated.

[skip]

My high school banned football in the latter part of the 1930's and was not available until after I had graduated. I went to a DIII college that didn't offer football either. So my football experience outside of being a fan is none.

I started following the NFL in 1978 when I was in grade school and was introduced to fantasy football in 1989 when I joined my first league. To put that into perspective, the first time I saw a web browser (Netscape 1.1N) was in 1994. Drafts were only live, phones were pretty much all land line, and you had to get stats in the USAToday on Monday morning.

So if my math is correct, the 2018 season will be my 30th playing this game. I started like everyone else doing redraft. My first auction league was in 1992. It was also the first keeper format. I joined that league as an expansion team and went to the title game. I've lost track of the number of leagues I've played in and/or won since that time. I started in dynasty leagues in 2007 and joined here on this forum in 2008. In the first league I joined with members of this site, I had a 3 year run as the league leading scorer with two titles. That league fell apart at that point.

I prefer to limit my leagues at this point in life and only currently play in only one dynasty league and last summer played my first redraft league in ages with some members of my church and won the title there.

I am sure at times I get passionate over certain players, ideologies, etc. but that is mostly because I am a big believer in learning from ones mistakes. I hate to see others make the same ones I've either made myself or seen made repeatedly. I can honestly say that this current off season has been one of the more frustrating ones on this forum and I'm trying to work on replying to fewer and fewer threads to narrow my focus to more unique posts, particularly in the team advice section. There is an increasing number of lazy members who don't bother to even look back 24-48 hours over previous threads, not to mention the keeper and redraft posts getting put in the dynasty team advice section.

[FantasyFreak]

Thanks for sharing yeti - much appreciated.

X2. Thanks for that. That's a good read.

[Bot101]

My high school banned football in the latter part of the 1930's and was not available until after I had graduated. I went to a DIII college that didn't offer football either. So my football experience outside of being a fan is none.

I started following the NFL in 1978 when I was in grade school and was introduced to fantasy football in 1989 when I joined my first league. To put that into perspective, the first time I saw a web browser (Netscape 1.1N) was in 1994. Drafts were only live, phones were pretty much all land line, and you had to get stats in the USAToday on Monday morning.

So if my math is correct, the 2018 season will be my 30th playing this game. I started like everyone else doing redraft. My first auction league was in 1992. It was also the first keeper format. I joined that league as an expansion team and went to the title game. I've lost track of the number of leagues I've played in and/or won since that time. I started in dynasty leagues in 2007 and joined here on this forum in 2008. In the first league I joined with members of this site, I had a 3 year run as the league leading scorer with two titles. That league fell apart at that point.

I prefer to limit my leagues at this point in life and only currently play in only one dynasty league and last summer played my first redraft league in ages with some members of my church and won the title there.

I am sure at times I get passionate over certain players, ideologies, etc. but that is mostly because I am a big believer in learning from ones mistakes. I hate to see others make the same ones I've either made myself or seen made repeatedly. I can honestly say that this current off season has been one of the more frustrating ones on this forum and I'm trying to work on replying to fewer and fewer threads to narrow my focus to more unique posts, particularly in the team advice section. There is an increasing number of lazy members who don't bother to even look back 24-48 hours over previous threads, not to mention the keeper and redraft posts getting put in the dynasty team advice section.

So you’ve been playing fantasy nearly as long as I’ve been alive

[Bot101]

can't wait to see what clarion contrarion, lukky, or skip or so forth posts.

"I used to walk 10 miles in barefeet and used to calculate carve the stats on a stone tablet, the leather helmets made for a more authentic game experience"

Pfff

[Prickler]

I'm the epitome of an average athlete. Played baseball, football, and basketball as youth and started on every team I ever played on until high school. That is when reality set in. A slow 5'11 180lb white guy doesn't have a place in high school football at any position.

So, what's my brag? In 1997 my high school team broke the national record for consecutive wins at 73 in a row. I didn't play much that year, but damn it was an amazing experience. I played with some amazing team mates. A few went on to the NFL. I still have a bunch of memorabilia from high school including a state championship ring in California.

I'm much better at fantasy football than real life football. Won my home league the first 2 years participating in it. I mostly just listen to really smart people who can sell me on strategy or players. (Thanks Shawn Siegele) I've used my own strategy in dynasty in which I draft stud WR's while and punt year 1, all without compromising overall talent, almost guaranteeing the top overall pick. I've built a few juggernauts with this method and have a hard time straying from the idea every time I do a startup draft.

[skip]

I've built a few juggernauts with this method and have a hard time straying from the idea every time I do a startup draft.

I'm a big believer in not "reinventing the wheel", so why should you even want to change? If it works, that's the very reason to keep doing it.

[Prickler]

I've built a few juggernauts with this method and have a hard time straying from the idea every time I do a startup draft.

I'm a big believer in not "reinventing the wheel", so why should you even want to change? If it works, that's the very reason to keep doing it.

Wilson, Russel SEA QB
Mariota, Marcus TEN QB
Mayfield, Baker CLE QB
Prescott, Dak DAL QB
Taylor, Tyrod CLE QB
Foles, Nick PHI QB
Lauletta, Kyle NYG QB
Edmonds, Chase ARI RB
Smith, Rod DAL RB
Jones, Ronald TBB RB
Smith-Schuster, JuJu PIT WR
Davis, Corey TEN WR
Fuller, Will HOU WR
Landry, Jarvis CLE WR
Funchess, Devin CAR WR
Cooper, Amari OAK WR
Doctson, Josh WAS WR
Taylor, Taywan TEN WR
Enunwa, Quincy NYJ WR
Jones, Zay BUF WR
Rogers, Chester IND WR
Snead, Willie BAL WR
Cain, Deon IND WR
Treadwell, Laquon MIN WR
Henry, Hunter LAC TE
Williams, Maxx BAL TE


Here's an example of my latest Superflex startup. Loaded at QB and WR. punted TE completely by drafting Hunter Henry cheap. Hoping to flip R. Jones, R Smith, and C. Edmonds at some point this season for value while punting RB completely as well.

With Henry back next year and a top 3 pick, I think I can trade one of my QB's for a RB and I'm instantly a playoff team next year. If tings don't go as planned I'll punt year 2 as well, and usually by year 3 at the very latest my team is pretty stacked with a core that is still in it's prime.

I did this last year in a few leagues and added Barkley to some pretty good teams. I'm excited to see how it turns out this year.