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Before you start signing up for a fantasy football league, especially a daily fantasy football match-up, there are several elements that you should be keenly aware of. These are some fantasy football basics that we think will help prevent you from being taken advantage of at your next draft…

Basic Fantasy Football Draft Tips: Know Your League

#1. Is this an Auction or a Snake Draft? 

Whether or not you get to select your team in a round-robin fashion versus an auction is huge. If you’re going to be doing an auction, what’s the salary cap? You’ll have to do your budgeting ahead of time so that you don’t get caught up in “bidding fever” and overspending for someone that had an inflated value. Don’t get us wrong, you WILL overpay for players sometimes. We all do. It eventually balances itself out as your opponents will do the same. Once you know the draft style, you can ask the following question…

#2. Know Your Scoring Model

Often times one of the rookie mistakes in a draft is to pick up a quarterback really early when their value is not weighted as heavily as a Wide Receiver or a Running Back.

• How many points does a quarterback receive for a passing touchdown?
• What is the deduction for interceptions?
• How many points do QB’s get per passing yard?
• How many QB’s do you get to draft?
• Can you put a QB into a Flex position? If so – your QB value really goes up!

These are key pieces of information to know as you’re putting together your draft priority list. Another thing to keep in mind is if you have a quarterback who likes to run. If there are less points given for passing, then your running quarterbacks may be worth a bit more than your pocket passer.

#3. How Big is Your League?

Knowing how many players you’re up against is important, because once you know your scoring model, then you can figure out how many players you’ll need to draft to fill up your roster. You will see a difference between a 12-team league and a 14-team league. In a 12-team league you can afford to wait until later rounds to pick up a solid QB. In larger leagues, you will find that good quarterbacks are a bit more in demand, and thus may force you to make a move sooner than you anticipated.

#4. How Many Starters Will You Need?

Figure out the ratio between non-QB’s and your QB position. For example, if your league has the following set-up:

• 1 Quarterback
• 2 Running Backs
• 3 Wide Receivers
• 1 FLEX position (RB/WR)

This set-up would give you a 6-to-1 ratio of non-QB’s to your QB. This is a high radio, which lowers the importance and value of your QB. You can typically stand to hold off on drafting a QB early on.

#5. Don’t Stress Out Over Kickers and Team Defenses

If your league has you draft Kickers and Team Defenses, don’t stress out a ton over those positions. They are a small component to your scoring, and you can get many options via your league’s waiver wire if something happens to one of your players.

There is a lot more to go over when it comes to drafts, but these are some basics to keep in mind as you’re starting your draft preparation. Know your league! Learn the rules, and see what areas you can utilize to your advantage. Are other teams taking QB’s early when you know that they aren’t worth as much? Use that to your advantage! Don’t be swayed by other teams’ drafting. Go in with a plan, and stick to it.

We’ll have more tips in the coming days and weeks so that you can have success playing fantasy sports!