Multiple Leagues - Is it really a good thing?

[Cult of Dionysus]

Just about everyone here has an assortment of leagues in which they play, myself included. I have three dynasties and one re-draft. Many posters here have many, many more leagues in their portfolio. But is this really not a dilution of the management experience? I can barely remember who I have starting in most of my leagues, much less tell who my opponents are starting or where we standing in respect of our match-up.

Wouldn't the ultimate management experience be managing one team, one set of players. Where you intimately know your roster, those of your league mates and the weekly opponent?

[slaughterrt]

I'll agree with you. I also have 3 dynos and 1 redraft. I have tried more but my current number of leagues is my limit. Any more and it dilutes my fantasy experience. For me, any more and it becomes more work than hobby. I have a favorite dyno league and spend probably 85% of my league-specific activities in that league. I say league specific because I don't count player research and valuation in that percentage because I apply that research to all my leagues. If I only could have one league, it would be this one without a doubt because I have the majority of time spent in it. I know my roster and I know my leaguemates. I invest in this particular league more than anyone else. I would even say that it's more the other owners than the actual rosters that make me enjoy the league. I would have no problem resetting the league as long as it's with the same owners.

Tangent over...

I think that having a select few works for me. I can have one team competitive and one rebuilding or in other stages of development. I can try different strategies and have fun. I don't play in money leagues, so it's not about winning the cash. It is about winning the bragging rights.

[SoShady]

I always have my priorities. I have way more teams than you have. It depends on how the team is doing and how good the league is with how much of my time it gets. Some teams take little or no management due to large rosters or well built squads. Funny enough you end up with enough teams you can root for everyone . I never really worry about who my opponent has unless it's MNF and we are in a tight battle. I have also never given much interest to the rosters of everyone in the league. Say you get hit by injuries or bombed the start up draft. Wouldn't that ruin your entire fantasy football season? Would rather have numerous teams as a fallback if one does not perform up to standards.

[Shoreline Steamers]

I've had more in the past, but now am comfortable with 4 leagues. One dynasty (team in sig.) a 10-team redraft with college friends, a local 10-team redraft with bar buddies, and a 10-team 5-keeper local league. I find that the different rules/formats keep things fresh and fun without being too overwhelming which was the case when I had more leagues.

Also, if you've only got one league and were the owner who lost Keenan Allen last week that takes the wind out of your sails before the NFL season really gets rolling. That's a consideration for me with multiple leagues. If I'm totally blowing it in one, at least I've hopefully got a shot in another. For that reason I think it's a good thing.

Though I do hate the fantasy choo-choo where you're starting a player and he's also playing against you in another league. That part of multiple teams can be a downer on some weeks.

[ajmyk]

I play in 7 leagues, my rule of thumb if that each league must have different settings.
In 3 seasons in dynasty, i feel that i MUST have at least a startup draft each off-season so it's kind of an issue.

At the start of the first batch of games, it's confusing, you don't really know who you should root for, except obviously the players you own and start in multiple league.
Then at some point most of your matchups are over or close to be over, and you can concentrate at the few matchups which are close and root for the relevant player.
Also if you're playing average, at the end of the seaosn, you'll drop out of contention in some leagues, letting you to focus on the more succesful teams.

I also mostly play in league of 14 or 16 so there a lot of players out there i'm not rostering.

[Detroitcity]

I'm in 12 leagues, 8 dynasty and 4 redraft. Some of my dynasty teams roster 30 -35 players and I can tell you every single player on all 12 teams. In my 4 or 5 "favorite" leagues, I can usually tell you the players on other owners rosters as well (at least the bigger names). While 12 might be a little too much, I could never see myself just doing 3 or 4 leagues.

There Is only one real negative to being in 12 leagues and that is waivers. They are a pain because you have to set pickups for 12 leagues and every league has a different waiver system or a different day/time that waivers run

As for the question about only having one team and having more time to focus on it vs being in multiple, I never think that is a good idea. Would you rather invest in one stock on the stock market for your retirement or diversify your portfolio, give yourself a better chance at making $$, and taking away some risk (unless you are just terrible at fantasy of course)

[bruiser]

I target the same players throughout my 5 leagues. When all of my teams are clicking, it's nice to get one championship out of the bunch. Playoffs are such a crapshoot....

I really like startup auctions, so I found a new avenue to scatch that itch: best-ball. No lineup, no maintenance. I'll probably ditch one or more leagues next year to allow for more best-ball teams.

[whodunnit]

I target the same players throughout my 5 leagues. When all of my teams are clicking, it's nice to get one championship out of the bunch. Playoffs are such a crapshoot....

I really like startup auctions, so I found a new avenue to scatch that itch: best-ball. No lineup, no maintenance. I'll probably ditch one or more leagues next year to allow for more best-ball teams.

same here, I'm a sucker for a start-up. but I also think I'm cutting back next year. I'm in a few where only half the owners are actually active all season, I know for sure I'll stay in 3, but there's a possible 4th, then I'll just do about 30 best ball and call it a season.

[collbey]

Reduced to 2 dynos and 2 contract/keeper leagues this year. But each is different scoring, devy/non devy, keeper and contract rules. Keeps it fresh and is easily manageable.

[BuckeyeNation]

I'm in 12 leagues, 8 dynasty and 4 redraft. Some of my dynasty teams roster 30 -35 players and I can tell you every single player on all 12 teams. In my 4 or 5 "favorite" leagues, I can usually tell you the players on other owners rosters as well (at least the bigger names). While 12 might be a little too much, I could never see myself just doing 3 or 4 leagues.

There Is only one real negative to being in 12 leagues and that is waivers. They are a pain because you have to set pickups for 12 leagues and every league has a different waiver system or a different day/time that waivers run

As for the question about only having one team and having more time to focus on it vs being in multiple, I never think that is a good idea. Would you rather invest in one stock on the stock market for your retirement or diversify your portfolio, give yourself a better chance at making $$, and taking away some risk (unless you are just terrible at fantasy of course)

As far as your comments on team management and waivers, I was going to type something very similar. It just comes down to personal preference.

I'm in 15 leagues overall, and I could recite my entire roster in all 15 leagues with 98% accuracy and right now could yell you my starting lineup for every league.

Waivers are a bit of a headache though, as you try to decipher who's available in each of your leagues. I usually make a weekly list of all the top WW pickups and use that to help me look for players in each individual league. I then go back through the FA pool of each of the leagues and look for random players that might be available. It ended up taking me over 2 hours to get my waiver bids set last night.

[_yeti]

I play one redraft and one dynasty. I can tell you who is on everybody's team in detail and owner tendencies, etc. I need to feel invested or the endeavor loses its purpose for me. Redraft is fun and there are long running rivalries and I get that full drafting experience every year. As for dynasty, if I am only in one league then every move I make feels like a franchise with consequences. It isn't a percentage play or the amount of shares I have of something, if I pull the trigger on a deal or choose not to, that is huge for my team and ultimately I get to see all of my decisions and all of my opponents decisions and stack them up longterm. To me the stakes of not having more chances to make a decision makes me much more invested and is the only way I can play. When there isnt a lot of activity I do get antsy sometimes and consider more leagues, but then again it is like anything else in life, the more normal you make it, the less of a thrill. When I pull a big trade it may have taken a very long time of plotting and planning and the rush to finally go through is much bigger than if I was in a bunch of leagues constantly wheeling and dealing. Also, with only one potential title to win, for me, the thrill of winning it is much more than being in 10 leagues and even winning 2 or 3 or 4 at once.

[RavingLunatic]

I used to be in 10-15 leagues (NBA/NFL/MLB) at a time when I was getting paid for sports/fantasy writing. Since I moved on from that and have focused on my real career I have dropped most leagues. I don't do basketball or baseball anymore, and I don't do any redraft anymore. I am in 4 dynasty football leagues now and I feel like that is too many, but they are teams that are harder for me to give up - although I will quite possibly quit 1 or 2 of them after this year.
Having been on both sides of this I can honestly say it is far more enjoyable to play in fewer leagues that I really care about. Plus I get the added bonus of advancing in my chosen profession without too much distraction.
I think there a lot of people who just like to draft and don't really invest much into their teams when they have so many.
I really don't know how people play in 30 leagues without all of them suffering in some way, not to mention various aspects of their personal lives. It just seems ridiculous to me, but live and (hopefully) learn I guess.

[koalabear]

Am rebuilding one of my Dynasty teams and am in three leagues. I would hate to be rebuilding if I was just in one league and the season is a wash from the outset.

[rubber_duck]

I play one redraft and one dynasty. I can tell you who is on everybody's team in detail and owner tendencies, etc. I need to feel invested or the endeavor loses its purpose for me. Redraft is fun and there are long running rivalries and I get that full drafting experience every year. As for dynasty, if I am only in one league then every move I make feels like a franchise with consequences. It isn't a percentage play or the amount of shares I have of something, if I pull the trigger on a deal or choose not to, that is huge for my team and ultimately I get to see all of my decisions and all of my opponents decisions and stack them up longterm. To me the stakes of not having more chances to make a decision makes me much more invested and is the only way I can play. When there isnt a lot of activity I do get antsy sometimes and consider more leagues, but then again it is like anything else in life, the more normal you make it, the less of a thrill. When I pull a big trade it may have taken a very long time of plotting and planning and the rush to finally go through is much bigger than if I was in a bunch of leagues constantly wheeling and dealing. Also, with only one potential title to win, for me, the thrill of winning it is much more than being in 10 leagues and even winning 2 or 3 or 4 at once.

The OP intrigued me. This is a topic that doesn't get brought up very frequently on the message boards and the responses were close to what I had expected. Yeti was the first one to really hit the target, IMO.

As several people have mentioned, by playing in multiple leagues you gain the opportunity to try several different strategies at once (rebuilding, win now, zero RB, etc). That can be fun. It can be a learning experience. It can be lots of things.

It can never be as intense as being all-in on a single league. Not all-in for a year or two. That doesn't get you there emotionally or intellectually. That's not what Yeti was talking about. I know, having playing a single fantasy league 10 years. Reading Yeti's post I was nodding in agreement as he made his points.

Playing in a single fantasy league for 5 or 10 years (or more) can make some decisions very tough. Try going through a rebuild when you only have 1 league, knowing you aren't going to win for the next 2 years and then things might improve ... if you got the rebuild "right".

It's not easy to play in a single league. There are many pitfalls to it. If you are going to try this, select the league very carefully.

[Friction]

In tons of leagues and have no issues at all. Opponent- don't care beyond glancing before the games start and after they are done, maybe before Monday night. Makes the games easier and I don't micro manage watching and following matchups. Waivers, since they are all blind bidding, I spend maybe 15 minutes a week total. I do not find it hard at lol to manage them all. I believe a lot of people over think the whole process and sometimes that can be detrimental to a team's success. Don't get me wrong, you need to make moves and stay active, but technology allows you to do it while you are taking a dump, so it's not like you are spending extra time managing your teams. Unless you do some other important activity while dropping the Browns off at the super bowl. I have plenty of success year in and out, so I think as long as you have a solid understanding of roster management and knowledge, you will be fine without a ton of time invested. And a lot of luck.