We are well into the month of August. The first full weekend of preseason games is about to get underway. Fantasy draft season is well underway—and soon it will be ramping into overdrive.
And you know what that means.
Fantasy advice. Boatloads of it. Oodles. Gobs, even.
Of course, you know this—because you are a Footballguy. Here at FBG, we have spent the entire offseason getting fantasy managers ready for draft day. Want to know who to draft in the first round? Want to know which sleepers to target in the late rounds? Want to know the ups and downs of the differing fantasy draft strategies?
Done, done and done.
And by golly, if the award-winning experts here at Footballguys advise you to do something, it's in your best interest to do it.
However, there is a flip side of that coin. As valuable as knowing what to do on draft day, there is knowledge that is every bit as essential to a successful draft.
Knowing what not to do.
For every value to target on the biggest day on the fantasy calendar, there's a bust fantasy drafters should avoid. For every strategy tip that can help turn a good draft into a great one, there is a pitfall that can sink the ship before it ever leaves the harbor.
And each and every year, fantasy managers drive that draft-day boat right into an iceberg.
Yep. In the harbor. An iceberg in the harbor. A harborberg.
So, since I am constantly being told I am not a fantasy football expert and not an especially good writer (words hurt, y'all), this time out I have decided to draw fantasy managers a map of what not to do on draft day.
Now what did I do with those crayons?
DON'T Show Up Clueless
This first one should really go without saying. And yet each and every year, fantasy managers end their chances at a championship before it even begins by showing up to draft with no knowledge of the format and scoring and no real plan for what to do once the festivities get underway.
The easiest mistake to make in drafts is not knowing the league's scoring and roster requirements. How many flex spots are there? Is one of them a "superflex" spot? Is the league PPR? Are there scoring vagaries, such as bonuses or TE-premium, that can significantly affect player values? It literally takes 10 minutes to check. Spend those 10 minutes.
There's also a minimal modicum of preparation that is a must. You have to at the very least have a set of rankings (preferably tiered). Some notion of an idea of how you plan to attack your draft—especially if you know your draft slot ahead of time.
Plugging your league into Footballguys' Draft Dominator isn't a bad idea either.
Just saying.
DON'T Become a Prisoner of the Plan
It's a good idea to have a plan on draft day. But it's a bad idea to doggedly stick to that plan no matter what happens. Because, as the noted philosopher Michael Gerard Tyson once said, "Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth."
Going into a draft convinced that "Zero RB" is the only way to fly is fine—it's not my personal cup of tea, but different strokes for different folks. But once it becomes clear that three-quarters of the league is equally convinced that "Zero RB" is the bee's knees, then at some point you have to be willing to pivot.
Flexibility is one of the most critical aspects of having a good draft. If everyone hammers the wide receiver spot, the value is going to be at running back. If the entire league decides to play "QB Chicken," then drafting a high-end signal-caller becomes more palatable.
Go where the value takes you. Be one with the draft. Get your zen on.