FAAB strategies in FFPC (1 Viewer)

It's my first year playing FFPC dynasty leagues and I'm curious what is a typical expectation for the FAAB process.  Do you guys have any particular strategies that you've found successful?

Some specific questions I have that may help advance the conversation are:

How much of your budget would you be willing to spend on the very first waiver opportunity?

What's a reasonable amount to spend on a single player on the first waiver chance?

Do you see a lot of teams hoard dollars and get more aggressive later in the season?  Or wait for that one really hot waiver add and go nuts?

Is there any sort of discernable pattern when it comes to waiver priority and average cost to acquire?  In other words, the top tier waiver adds usually go for $X each week, second tier $Y, etc.

Those are just a few things I'm wondering about, but please feel free to chime in with anything you've found to be useful.  Thanks!

It varies league to league, but I find the first FA auction usually sets the tone for the sought after players for that league.

It varies but if there is a guy that looks decent he will be expensive so if you want him bid aggressive. I don't see many people looking to save dollars. If they see someone they like they go get him

As others have said it varies, but in general I would say that most owners tend to bid heavy early on.  There may be a couple of owners hoarding but the majority are spending heavily off the bat.

To parrot what others have said it varies a lot by league. There is a website where you can see winning bids for all leagues and it really drives home the point how random it can be from one league to another.  I'm pretty sure everyone has a similar story or example where one league you might have bid $200 on a player and not got him and in another league that player could have been yours for $1. So I don't have an answer or opinion to provide you for any of your questions as all of those tend to be more league specific which is random as could be.

That being said here are some basic strategies:

1. Never spend it all your money until FAAB is over. I constantly see teams leave themselves with $0 when FA is not over. I'd always leave at least a few dollars until the last waiver run.

2. In dynasty leagues use the last few weeks of waivers to locate players that enter FA or for some other reason are on the waiver wire but you think in the time frame from end of season till cuts are due that their value can change.  Last year Trey Burton would have been that kind of guy as an example.

3. In redraft leagues where the regular season ends after week 11 the FFPC rules are that the 4 playoff teams are only teams that can bid in weeks 12-13. So if you believe your team is a playoff contender I always try and size up teams I think can make playoffs and put myself in position if possible to control the FA market those two weeks.  I've had a lot of cases where I can outbid the other 3 playoff teams like 5 times over, sometimes as high as 8. That's a great feeling knowing that if any player of interest is available those two weeks you control the market.

I think you have to look at the roster construction of teams. If you have a cpl teams in your league that did zero rb drafting or are light on rbs--the moment one looks good--they will bid big on him.  I generally agree with most of the others saying that if you want a player--bid strong on him.   If there is a good to great available on the WW and you have the ability to get him early in the season--he's worth more to your team--as he will help you for many more weeks than a one or two week bye week fill in guy.   If I see a player early that can be an impactful player on my team for much of the season--I'm going to bid big on him as I'll extrapolate more production from him over the course of a season.   If I'm looking for a bye week filler--I'm not going to bid as much.  I wouldn't cement yourself in a strategy or certain percentages--you have to view each potential pick up independently and evaluate the max bid you are willing to pay for him. 

I’m a first time FFPC player this year as well, so thanks for starting this thread. 

For all the people who have said "if you really want a player, you have to bid big to get him", can you put some kind of dollar range on that statement? I have no idea if "bid big" means $500, or $250, or what % of your remaining FAAB bucks.   Thanks!

ETA generic FFPC question: where the heck can I see the list of available free agents? And once I can see that, is there a feature to add some of those players to a Watch List like on Yahoo or MFL? Thanks 

Thanks for the replies so far.  As Joey said, can someone quantity what bidding big means to them?

For example, I have a WR needy team and Albert Wilson is available.  Let say he gathers a modest amount of appeal over training camp.  What would be a good bidding range?

If you're playing in a real life money >$500 league then you've got to subscribe to fantasymojo . As far as FAAB goes, you'll see some >$700 FAAB money getting spent on a high profile waiver wire add in the first 1-2 weeks in dynasty leagues. Go big or go home - or save your FAAB for the playoff run to box out your opponents when it is time to pick guys (or team defenses) and put on your bench who you do not want to face. There are many other strategies to employ depending on your needs and the strength of your opponents. 

joey said:

ETA generic FFPC question: where the heck can I see the list of available free agents? And once I can see that, is there a feature to add some of those players to a Watch List like on Yahoo or MFL? Thanks 




 

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The interface is so 1990's so it takes a little digging. Go to Stats and then filter by Available players. They're working on an app so I hope we can start getting better usability soon. 

stuckinthemuck said:

The interface is so 1990's so it takes a little digging. Go to Stats and then filter by Available players. They're working on an app so I hope we can start getting better usability soon. 

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Thanks. The Stats tab gives me an error, so I just emailed their info@ffpc address to see what’s up. 

ETA: I’m assuming for folks in existing FFPC leagues, the Stats tab works just fine. Question for the OP, since it's your first FFPC league just like me, does the Stats tab work in your league?

skinfanjon said:

Thanks for the replies so far.  As Joey said, can someone quantity what bidding big means to them?

For example, I have a WR needy team and Albert Wilson is available.  Let say he gathers a modest amount of appeal over training camp.  What would be a good bidding range?

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If you really need a WR and you think Wilson could give you reliable WR2 numbers all year I'd bid around $150. Just know there is a wide range and you have to gauge what other teams might bid, how desperate you are for your team, and the likelihood of Wilson performing up to what your team needs. During last year's first waiver wire run, Chris Hogan went for an average of $408 FAAB, but with a range of $1-$995. Not a typo. 

joey said:

Thanks. The Stats tab gives me an error, so I just emailed their info@ffpc address to see what’s up. 

ETA: I’m assuming for folks in existing FFPC leagues, the Stats tab works just fine. Question for the OP, since it's your first FFPC league just like me, does the Stats tab work in your league?

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My stats tab is working fine.  Theres also a button that says "create bid group" on your team page that should show available players.

skinfanjon said:

My stats tab is working fine.  Theres also a button that says "create bid group" on your team page that should show available players.

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Chris from FFPC just replied to my help request, went to my league's Stats Page, and said it works fine for him. And now it suddenly works fine fo me. Somehow, that "fixed" it. All good now. 

Anyone know if there's such a thing as a "watch list" in FFPC?

joey said:

I’m a first time FFPC player this year as well, so thanks for starting this thread. 

For all the people who have said "if you really want a player, you have to bid big to get him", can you put some kind of dollar range on that statement? I have no idea if "bid big" means $500, or $250, or what % of your remaining FAAB bucks.   Thanks!

ETA generic FFPC question: where the heck can I see the list of available free agents? And once I can see that, is there a feature to add some of those players to a Watch List like on Yahoo or MFL? Thanks 

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I would say a "big" bid is around $400. Though as Meno pointed out, that can certainly vary a good bit. 

joey said:

Thanks. The Stats tab gives me an error, so I just emailed their info@ffpc address to see what’s up. 

ETA: I’m assuming for folks in existing FFPC leagues, the Stats tab works just fine. Question for the OP, since it's your first FFPC league just like me, does the Stats tab work in your league?

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I find I have to log out then log back in to FFPC when I get those error messages, works every time at least for me.

Anyways, I first started a couple FFPC leagues last year, and only from experience, I had way too much money left on me at the end of the year.  Live and learn.  I wouldn't hesitate to put a $300 bid this year for a guy I think is a priority, even more if the situation dictates.  I think I was just too passive last year since roster spots are premium, I didn't want to waste my $ on a guy I'd end up cutting after the season was over.  

FreeBaGeL said:

I would say a "big" bid is around $400. Though as Meno pointed out, that can certainly vary a good bit. 

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Zyphros said:

I find I have to log out then log back in to FFPC when I get those error messages, works every time at least for me.

Anyways, I first started a couple FFPC leagues last year, and only from experience, I had way too much money left on me at the end of the year.  Live and learn.  I wouldn't hesitate to put a $300 bid this year for a guy I think is a priority, even more if the situation dictates.  I think I was just too passive last year since roster spots are premium, I didn't want to waste my $ on a guy I'd end up cutting after the season was over.  

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Thanks guys. Good stuff.