Doing Fantasy For The First Time This Year

[Mishel]

A friend of mine is starting a fantasy league for the first time this year...any pointers or anything I should know, for a first timer doing it?

[Moderator 3]

Don't take advice from your competitors.

[JHarris]

I did my first league last year and finished in first(10-3). Research as much as possible before you draft, ESPN and CBS have alot of info available to help you draft. RB tend to be the hot commodity and biggest points. DO NOT be a homer, grab the Ravens D if available but anyone else is risky. Draft your kicker dead last. There were only a few TE last year that got great numbers, look to take them in 4th or 5th unles Witten Gonzales or Clark is available. A team with a rookie or very younq QB is a good place to look for you're RB eg. Matt Ryan was a rookie so Michael Turner got alot of carries. Same thing with Flacco but Ravens did RB by committee (very frustrating) If you know more about your league rules I can give you some other tips with trades and free agents.

[WinnipegRaven]

I think the biggest thing that has helped me with my leagues has been reading, reading and more READING. News around the league effects the outcome of your matchups dramatically. There are a wealth of sites (rotoworld.com etc) which can help you week to week with your matchups.
Take your matchups seriously. If you have say a stud RB who is going up a monster D, you may want to bench that fella and see about picking up a sleeper back (Mendenhall last year baby) or starting one of your alternates although he may be admittedly worse, his numbers may be better even if its just by a couple FP's this can determine a W or an L for the week - I lost 2 games by 1 point last year.
Be active in free agency and be very aware of injuries to your and opposing teams.

[ZIBBY28]

edit: delete, sorry

good luck to you.. you'll quickly become addicted!!

[twiz42]

[quote name='WinnipegRaven' date='03 July 2009 - 11:51 AM' timestamp='1246636302' post='204861']
I think the biggest thing that has helped me with my leagues has been reading, reading and more READING. News around the league effects the outcome of your matchups dramatically. There are a wealth of sites (rotoworld.com etc) which can help you week to week with your matchups.
Take your matchups seriously. If you have say a stud RB who is going up a monster D, you may want to bench that fella and see about picking up a sleeper back (Mendenhall last year baby) or starting one of your alternates although he may be admittedly worse, his numbers may be better even if its just by a couple FP's this can determine a W or an L for the week - I lost 2 games by 1 point last year.
Be active in free agency and be very aware of injuries to your and opposing teams.
[/quote]
I agree u must stay on the free agents and early.dont be afraid to roll the dice.

[KentuckyRaven]

I did fantasy football for the first time last year and agree that it is very helpful to read up on on techniques. After you grasp the basics I would recommend trying out a mock draft or two. This lets you get a feel for when you should make a move for particular players. I know ESPN's site lets you do mock drafts online, but I am sure there are other places you can go too. Good Luck!

[Guest jasonIPS2]

My advice is to be on top of waiver players. These tend to be the make it break it after the initial draft.

[markmullen]

Draft a RB in the first two rounds, then a QB, then your WR/TE's. DEF/ST and kickers should only be the last two rounds. Keep up on waivers constantly.

[oaks94]

Read up on fantasy from different sources magazines, internet, etc. draft a good RB and QB then a WR constantly check waivers and trades try to trade quantity for quality

[ravensdominate]

Research. Research. Check out ESPN or NFL.com. Only draft the players that are going to be productive and stay away from injury prone players.

[stormie]

[color="#800080"]Only played for the first time last year myself, but make sure you stay on top of the weekly injuries and byes as the weeks go past. I did, but some of the people playing didn't and they missed ALOT of points.[/color]