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Championship Ethics..Is it **** move to intentionally block free agent (1 Viewer)

death of the cool

Footballguy
It's championship week, and I am going against a team that has Luck playing the Chiefs defense while I have Nick Foles. We have a bidding process for free agents. The problem is that a few free agent QB's have great matchups this week....Cousins vs Dal,Cutler vs Philly, Tannehill vs Buff.

i'm thinking about putting up a decent bid on all 3 and dropping my bench players to keep them from the other team.Is this a shark move or is this being a jerk? Personally I think it is part of the game, but I have talked to some that feel like it is over the top. I think that it rewards players that are thinking ahead, and I don't feel that I should just sit there and give the guy a 20+ scoring QB if I can prevent it.

What's the shark pool's feelings on this...

 
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I wouldn't do it. Just put your best team out there, and hope the bounces go your way. Don't be a jerk. It'll just create hard feelings.

 
I'm doing it myself without hesitation. This isn't anything that they don't do in the NFL. If you made decent moves to get yourself the finals and maintained enough of your FAAB to complete these deals, that's your opponents problem, not yours. If he has terrible playoff matchups, it was his job to sure them up before week 16. I'm picking up a few team defenses because he's currently only carrying the Texans, and they're playing Denver this week.

 
Is it unfair when a real NFL team signs a player that was cut to get information, and then releases that player?

If you're not breaking the rules I'm not sure its unethical. Poor sportsmanship maybe. Unethical no.

 
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My opponent in one league this week only has Reed and Gresham at TE, both of whom figure to be out this week. I have way more FAB money remaining than he does, so I'm going to make (winning) bids for the top 4 WW TEs.

It's all part of the game.

:shrug:

 
Is it against the rules in your league? If not, do if for sure. I'm dropping a few decent WRs to block my opponent from picking up a decent D.

All part of strategy.

 
**** move

eta: i thought you were locking fa by doing the add drop trick...

you you are putting in real bids not as bad.

we limit weekly roster moves

 
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You can **** block if your rules allow.

I'm not a fan of putting in a bid for all 3 though.

I'm in a league that goes in order worst to first.

My opponent would only be able to block one player before I get a shot. All 3 seems excessive.

Can't he just outbid you for the QB he wants?

 
If it was me and I didn't know any of the other owners I would do it for sure

If I knew all of them it would be tough for me to pull a #### move

I'm the commish of a 10 team league and we all grew up together and all still live close to each other so none of us pull those moves on each other.

 
If it was me and I didn't know any of the other owners I would do it for sure

If I knew all of them it would be tough for me to pull a #### move

I'm the commish of a 10 team league and we all grew up together and all still live close to each other so none of us pull those moves on each other.
It's even more fun if you are close friends. Think "The League".... anything goes, even if it's slightly illegal. :)

 
My opponent in one league this week only has Reed and Gresham at TE, both of whom figure to be out this week. I have way more FAB money remaining than he does, so I'm going to make (winning) bids for the top 4 WW TEs.

It's all part of the game.

:shrug:
as long as you keep those ww TEs thru the week i see no problem with it
 
Part of the game. In fact you are in a way obligated to make the move if it is within your power and you think it will help you win the game.

 
Think this is legit because it relies on you having your FAAB intact.

just picking up and dropping to waivers crosses the line imo.

 
Just win baby! Why not dump a non starter for next weeks defense? Heck the league I am in you have to start planning that stuff several weeks ahead of the playoffs.

 
I don't see anything wrong with this at all. Guy I'm going against had Gronk, replaced him with Miller and will no doubt be scouring the WW today for a replacement. He has no bucks left so I've spent a buck on the three half decent options on the wire.

Quite surprised this is viewed in a had light. It seems perfectly acceptable to me

 
Sure it's legit--might have happened to me last week. My opponent had prior waivers and yanked McCown off the wire knowing I would have gone after him. As it was of course Cutler played anyway but no issues with the move imo.

 
Not a #### move at all. The other owner should be looking to the horizon and planning if he thinks his starting QB has a bad match up. It's possible that he doesn't, KC hasn't exactly been lighting it up defensively lately.

So picking up 3 QB's would not be a #### move. However, the shark move would be to pick up 2, and leave the one that you predict will have the worst week.

:SHARKSCREECH:

 
Not a #### move at all. The other owner should be looking to the horizon and planning if he thinks his starting QB has a bad match up. It's possible that he doesn't, KC hasn't exactly been lighting it up defensively lately.

So picking up 3 QB's would not be a #### move. However, the shark move would be to pick up 2, and leave the one that you predict will have the worst week.

:SHARKSCREECH:
No the shark move is to pick up all 3 and leave him with the scraps....who he thinks will all have worse weeks.

 
This is strategic plain and simple. If you have the means (FAB bucks) to pull it off then it is the shark move. If your opponent didn't have enough foresight to pick up a QB with a better matchup before this week shame on him, no different than matchup planning throughout the season. You are doing nothing wrong. Like any game of strategy you need to have the "end game" in sight. For those who are detractors to this approach would it have been okay if he had picked up all 3 free agents last week or the week before or one every week for the last three weeks? As far as I'm concerned it's part of the game and since it's redraft those bench spots are meant for depth throughout the year and then doing what you have to do to give yourself the best chance to win at the end, within the rules. If you don't like it than join a dynasty league...

 
This is the SHARK Pool. A SHARK would make this move without question. If you have winnings on the line, it is a no brainer.

 
About 10 years ago I did some WW churning to keep QBs on waivers as my opponent had a bye and did not check his team until Sunday to pick up a replacement. He was angry and called me out on what I did, but in figured it wasn't against the rules and it was perfectly legit. Check your team and make a WW claim. He had every chance to grab any QB he wanted, he had a higher WW position than I did.

I don't churn anymore, because I think that's poor sportsmanship. If you are going to pick up a player or three as a defensive move, carry them into the game at least.

I've done that strategy all season. If my opponent has a bad defense starting I'll grab the best matchup that's available. Nothing wrong with making a defensive move. I think it's a #### move to drop them on a certain day so they don't clear waivers for Sundays games, but that's just me... Guess you have to draw the line somewhere :)

 
belljr said:
**** move

eta: i thought you were locking fa by doing the add drop trick...

you you are putting in real bids not as bad.

we limit weekly roster moves
I would have an issue if it was this...can't stand the add/drop thing and then they go to waivers the following Tuesday. What the OP is proposing is not unethical at all...the other guy had FA money to spend at some point and chose to spend it in other places throughout the season.

 
Blocking your opponent is well within the boundary in a championship game... I picked up Det & Mia def even though I already have cincy vs min

 
death of the cool said:
It's championship week, and I am going against a team that has Luck playing the Chiefs defense while I have Nick Foles. We have a bidding process for free agents. The problem is that a few free agent QB's have great matchups this week....Cousins vs Dal,Cutler vs Philly, Tannehill vs Buff.

i'm thinking about putting up a decent bid on all 3 and dropping my bench players to keep them from the other team.Is this a shark move or is this being a jerk? Personally I think it is part of the game, but I have talked to some that feel like it is over the top. I think that it rewards players that are thinking ahead, and I don't feel that I should just sit there and give the guy a 20+ scoring QB if I can prevent it.

What's the shark pool's feelings on this...
I did it in my league, didnt think twice about it. I dont know if the guy Im going against was going to try and grab them but I see nothing wrong with it. I think I currently have 4 QB 2 DEF and 2 K sitting on my bench

 
belljr said:
**** move

eta: i thought you were locking fa by doing the add drop trick...

you you are putting in real bids not as bad.

we limit weekly roster moves
I would have an issue if it was this...can't stand the add/drop thing and then they go to waivers the following Tuesday. What the OP is proposing is not unethical at all...the other guy had FA money to spend at some point and chose to spend it in other places throughout the season.
Yeah the WW churning is a bit more controversial. I still think that's completely legal but very unsportsmanlike. What the OP is doing is not a problem. Like I said above, if you carry them into the weeks games, I have no issue with it. I you drop them Saturday am and pick up more to drop Sunday... Really cheap

 
TheCommish said:
I wouldn't do it. Just put your best team out there, and hope the bounces go your way. Don't be a jerk. It'll just create hard feelings.
Stop, get off the high horse. All you just said to us is you are not trying your best to win.

 
Blocking your opponent is well within the boundary in a championship game... I picked up Det & Mia def even though I already have cincy vs min
Not just championship game, its part of the entire game.

Do you not pick up someone week 5 to maybe block an opponent? I do, its part of the game, if it wasnt it wouldnt be allowed.

 
belljr said:
**** move

eta: i thought you were locking fa by doing the add drop trick...

you you are putting in real bids not as bad.

we limit weekly roster moves
I would have an issue if it was this...can't stand the add/drop thing and then they go to waivers the following Tuesday. What the OP is proposing is not unethical at all...the other guy had FA money to spend at some point and chose to spend it in other places throughout the season.
Then dont play in leagues with add/drops.

The crying in this thread is pathetic and its more pathetic you guys play fantasy then cry about how its played.

 
If your opponent has the same rights to bid for these guys as you do, then bid away. Some consider it a d*** move, but consider the situation where you don't bid, your opponent scoops up all 3 of those QBs, then you find out 20 minutes before kick off that your starting QB is in the locker room vomiting and won't play, or your starting QB slides off an icy road on the way to his stadium in the morning and breaks his arm in car crash, and then you wish you would have bid to get some QB insurance.

Strange things happen.

 
The line between good strategy and bad sportsmanship is what you're doing worth the added players. Churning is a garbage move and honestly any league that doesn't clearly prohibit that practice needs to in my eyes to be a decent league. If you are dropping players that you're not going to use however for players you are going to use or are willing to hold to prevent them from being used against you that is obviously a strategic move and anyone calling that a #### move must hate competition.

 
Thanks for the replys....yes I would be picking these guys up with free agent money. I would not be wavier churning because I do agree that is crossing the line.....

I knew what I was planning to do was just good fantay football....I mean I planned a month ago to pick up the Titans just to face the Jags, so I should have every right to make these moves.

 
Friendly league for bragging rights? Probably best to let him put his best roster possible out there so no one claims your win was cheap.

money league? Fire away. All's fair and it'd be irresponsible not to.

 
I remember several years back, I made the finals and was going against a solid team who (if I remember correctly) lost Priest Holmes (his best player) in the semi-final round. I had priority on the waiver pickups and grabbed the backup RB at the time (don't recall his name) because my opponent didn't really have another viable starter on his bench, just a bunch of platoon guys. The Priest owner bashed me relentlessly on the message board for doing this, calling me a poor sport, calling it a weasel move, etc. I defended it as a good strategy. Whatever stiff he ended up starting had a surprise big game, the Priest backup didn't do squat and I lost in the finals. If I would have just let him pick up Priest's backup, he surely would have started him and I would have won.

Moral of the story…. sometimes karma is a ##### when you make those decisions.

 
I would absolutely do it. Mainly because if one of your guys gets hurt in practice or something, you have the next best available option to you. It makes your team better whether you use him or not, because it is possible that you will need to use him.

 
nastynate said:
Is it against the rules in your league? If not, do if for sure. I'm dropping a few decent WRs to block my opponent from picking up a decent D.

All part of strategy.
I have no idea how this could be against the rules. How would improving your back in case of injury be against the rules?

 
shadyridr said:
Raider Nation said:
My opponent in one league this week only has Reed and Gresham at TE, both of whom figure to be out this week. I have way more FAB money remaining than he does, so I'm going to make (winning) bids for the top 4 WW TEs.

It's all part of the game.

:shrug:
as long as you keep those ww TEs thru the week i see no problem with it
That may be the only catch. Some league have two waiver periods. Some sort of playoff rule or something where if you pick a guy up you have to keep him till the next week, unless he gets hurt like that day or something before the next waivers.

 
I remember several years back, I made the finals and was going against a solid team who (if I remember correctly) lost Priest Holmes (his best player) in the semi-final round. I had priority on the waiver pickups and grabbed the backup RB at the time (don't recall his name) because my opponent didn't really have another viable starter on his bench, just a bunch of platoon guys. The Priest owner bashed me relentlessly on the message board for doing this, calling me a poor sport, calling it a weasel move, etc. I defended it as a good strategy. Whatever stiff he ended up starting had a surprise big game, the Priest backup didn't do squat and I lost in the finals. If I would have just let him pick up Priest's backup, he surely would have started him and I would have won.

Moral of the story…. sometimes karma is a ##### when you make those decisions.
Go figure, the only person who said anything was the guy you were playing. I bet if the situation was flipped, he woulda done the same thing you did.

 
About 10 years ago I did some WW churning to keep QBs on waivers as my opponent had a bye and did not check his team until Sunday to pick up a replacement. He was angry and called me out on what I did, but in figured it wasn't against the rules and it was perfectly legit. Check your team and make a WW claim. He had every chance to grab any QB he wanted, he had a higher WW position than I did.

I don't churn anymore, because I think that's poor sportsmanship. If you are going to pick up a player or three as a defensive move, carry them into the game at least.

I've done that strategy all season. If my opponent has a bad defense starting I'll grab the best matchup that's available. Nothing wrong with making a defensive move. I think it's a #### move to drop them on a certain day so they don't clear waivers for Sundays games, but that's just me... Guess you have to draw the line somewhere :)
my only issue with it is if, as some have said, you only hold them until you can drop them and make sure they aren't able to be picked back up before game time... if you are gonna pick the players up you should keep them until kickoff at least IMHO

 
To me the roster churning thing SHOULD be against the rules, but if it isn't then I see no problem with that either. As long as you pick up a guy and keep him for the week, it's fine. UNLESS you pick the guy up on like a wednesday, he gets hurt in practice or whatever, then you can drop him. A super simple commish decision on that interpretation of the rules should clear it up quite easily.

 
I remember several years back, I made the finals and was going against a solid team who (if I remember correctly) lost Priest Holmes (his best player) in the semi-final round. I had priority on the waiver pickups and grabbed the backup RB at the time (don't recall his name) because my opponent didn't really have another viable starter on his bench, just a bunch of platoon guys. The Priest owner bashed me relentlessly on the message board for doing this, calling me a poor sport, calling it a weasel move, etc. I defended it as a good strategy. Whatever stiff he ended up starting had a surprise big game, the Priest backup didn't do squat and I lost in the finals. If I would have just let him pick up Priest's backup, he surely would have started him and I would have won.

Moral of the story…. sometimes karma is a ##### when you make those decisions.
That isn't karma. That was bad luck.

Your opponents response to your move is asinine and means he essentially wants to play in a league using teamRB since he felt he was "entitled" to the Prist Holmes replacement. Just wow.

I think it sucks something fierce that after being a whiny baby he then beat you like that...you should have just left the player on your bench and played with whatever else you had probably but oh well. I hope you no longer play with guys like that.

 
To me the roster churning thing SHOULD be against the rules, but if it isn't then I see no problem with that either. .
I think you should. If anyone in a league sees a loophole in the bylaws, they can either bring it up so that it can be fixed to make the league better or they can exploit it for personal gain. One of those things is the "right" thing to do and the other is clearly the "wrong" thing to do.

Churning allows you to use 1 roster spot to the power of X roster spots and is wrong for the same reasons that roster sharing type trades are wrong.

 
If you're picking guys up and holding them: both legal and ethical.

If you're churning: unethical (IMO) but legal (assuming there isn't a rule against it).

 

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