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ESPN vs. Myfantasyleague.com for Salary/Contract Leagues? (1 Viewer)

blake

Footballguy
I hope that I'm posting this in the right place. If not, I apologize, and mods, please move it to the appropriate forum. In addition, I tried to search many different times for this subject, and got some help, but not exactly what I was looking for.

I confess, the league I run is full of seasoned fantasy players but also some beginners as well. For the last four seasons, our league has been hosted by ESPN. And ESPN has never let us down. However, we are moving towards an auction draft from a straight draft, and I'm quickly discovering the limitations of ESPN.

Firstly, I can't simply edit a roster page to input salaries and contract year/type it appears, like you can on MFL or CBS Sportsline for that matter. Does anyone who hosts their league on ESPN, find that they can edit a roster page to easily show a salary of a player and what his contract status is? Is there a separate page, after an auction, that this shows on ESPN? I can't seem to find it and it is too early to do a mock draft on ESPN to test it out.

MFL allows me to easily do this and it is very clean looking which I really like. In addition, MFL seems to have MANY different options, and it seems our league, as it grows, could grow with MFL. I don't get that same feeling with ESPN.

MFL has some drawbacks too, however. MFL does not make its own app, but instead depends on 3rd party apps? How are the quality of these apps? I'd be curious to hear from those who use MFL about this.

I also can't seem to find a money back guarantee on MFL and what their policy about this is.

Finally, I'm open to moving the league to MFL, and I think my league mates would be open to this as well. However, I want to be sure of things before I do it, and want to be convinced of MFL's quality. Right now, I'm not totally convinced and might stick with ESPN, but there is a lot of time and I'm hoping to be convinced.

Any helpful replies would be gratefully accepted.

 
MFL, always MFL
Yeah, I haven't been overly convinced about that so far. While I like MFL and it has many flexible options, I'm not bowled over, but I am open to learning more, hoping that I'm missing some important details. I am utterly amazed that they don't even produce their own Android/iPhone app. It would be a deal breaker if whatever third party apps they support aren't as good as the ESPN one, which is pretty much flawless. Not being able to test these apps for a while makes me a little nervous. I really want to know how MFL's live scoring is on Sundays and how reliable and easy it is to view on a smartphone if the apps stink. Lots of unanswered questions about MFL for me that the website seems unable/unwilling to answer through their FAQ.

 
MFL's live scoring is great and reliable. I only have experience with the the android app but it works great. In regards to a contract/salary cap league there isn't another website that automates more of the process than MFL. Its really not even close in that regard. I think their money back guarantee is through week 4 but I could be wrong on that one.

 
Braven, thank you for the response. I'm curious - what is the app that you use, the title, I mean? That would be a great help. If it has worked really well for you, I'll keep an eye out for it. Is the app free?

And thanks also about the money back guarantee tip. I ended up writing to them, and the informed me that it was up until Week 2, which is more than enough for me. I made sure to purchase a league and hopefully I can figure out the ESPN holes and if those inflexibilities by ESPN are deal breakers for me (I'm thinking they very well might be with contracts and salaries).

Also, I think you might be right about MFL and the amount you can customize on the site. There aren't a whole lot of reputable websites it seems for fantasy football which is kind of shocking to me since the hobby is so popular these days.

 
Again, for my league's needs, I have yet to be convinced about that. However, if you'd like to contribute something substantive to that claim, I'd love to read it. I'm sure there is a vast amount to MFL that I don't know about yet. Though, at the same time, I'm sure I'm missing some key points to ESPN's customizations to auction/salary/contract leagues that I have not uncovered because of my lack of experience with them and their "league manager" system.

The biggest thing that it might come down to is the MFL app on android/iPhone. If the 3rd party apps that MFL employs doesn't compare favorably with ESPN's flawless app, that might be the deciding factor for me and for my leaguemates, though how ESPN handles post-auction salaries is a gigantic part of my decision making as well. It is unfortunate that I can't do any mock drafts on ESPN until mid-June to test this out.

 
If your league is serious enough that you are doing contracts/salaries, I am really surprised that the app would be the deciding factor.

I am willing to sacrifice appearance and perhaps a small amount of convenience (though I am not sure about that) for functionality, and customization. So (for me) the app might be sweet, but if the site doesn't allow me to do certain things, I won't even get to the 'comparing apps' point.

I love the facet added to leagues by adding escalating contracts and cap hits to dynasty leagues. To me, it's like going from rabbit ears to High Definition. And those leagues are best served on MFL. MFL has almost every option you could want, and a lot you never thought of that you may like.

I wonder what can be done on app that cannot be done almost as easily on the mobile site?

 
The app is an incredibly huge factor and we're not willing to sacrifice appearance, at least I would rather not. And like you're not sure you'd want to sacrifice convenience, my league mates and I are unwilling to do that as well which brings me back to the app. I see your point definitely about if the site is limiting, the app doesn't come into the discussion. That is fair and that is why I included ESPN in my question too - to ask if anyone uses ESPN with contract/salary leagues since it is possible. My league mates and I have grown accustomed to the app and I would hate to backtrack on that quality for something that has become essential for the guys in my league.

That was kind of long winded. I'll boil it down by saying I really want to find out if ESPN has any flexibility whatsoever with contract/salary leagues. Meaning, what I really want is to easily be able to feature the salary of a player, his contract status and what type of contract he has on the roster page. Seems easy enough to me, and MFL can easily do this. My question is...can ESPN? I haven't been able to experiment yet since I can't do a mock auction, but the keeper features seem easy enough to follow which gives me confidence.

All that being said, from first glance (at least in 2013), I'm thinking I'd fully agree with you with what you say regarding MFL having every option I'd want and a lot I've never even considered. I think you're totally right. I also think you're right with the fact that salary/contract leagues are best on MFL. So you might be asking...then what's your beef!? Very fair! I guess I just want to make it clear to my league mates that I did painstaking research on this to shift them to another website.

Regarding the app, that is a great question. The ESPN app, while I'd hesitate to say anything is flawless, it is darn close to it. I could post messages to the message board using the app, set my lineup, look at my opponent's lineup, check live scoring, read the league's top story...and well, I'm probably missing stuff, but you see my point. Basically, it is as good as the website. And I'm just hoping that a 3rd party MFL app is oh...75% as good. I think I'd settle for that with the amount the website can do, and how fairly priced it is.

I hope my long winded explanations made sense and I appreciate your post.

 
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Have you looked into the accounting of ESPN for contract leagues?

Can they advance you league from year to year, making all contract changes, and adjusting salaries?

 
Have you looked into the accounting of ESPN for contract leagues?

Can they advance you league from year to year, making all contract changes, and adjusting salaries?
Good questions, all. Interestingly, they can advance the league from year to year. Thankfully, at least I know that much since my league has had a league on there, and all information is carried over. Now, with contract changes and adjusting salaries, that *could* be something I'd have to do manually which surely is a weakness and is a "con" while with MFL, it is a clear "pro" as they can do it automatically. Problem is, we don't have all automatic increases. We have different contract levels, and as such, different increases for each. So that may end up being something I have to do manually anyway.

But with ESPN and contract leagues, that is something I'm trying to figure out with a mock draft. I want to see what it looks like AFTER the auction draft. Will the salaries show on the roster page? It will on MFL, and that is a clear "pro" for that site. If ESPN did it too, that would be excellent. But, with adjusting salaries, I'm just not sure how clear cut that would even be for MFL since not every keeper would be adjusted at the same rate from year to year.

Basically, like with everything, if I can make it as complicated as possible, I'll do my best. Still, thanks again for the helpful questions/feedback.

 
If you want to do ANYTHING out of the ordinary, MFL always.

Don't pick ESPN. Just don't. Not if you're serious about managing a league.

 
MFL by a wide margin.
Been using MFL since 2000, and never looked back. Can't beat cost, flexibility, and the customer service is best in the land; nay, best in the WORLD. I highly advise you to run, not walk to MFL and you will never regret it.

** I guarantee this post. If you don't like it, you can exchange it for a new one **

 
Couple of extra suggestions about MFL.

If you're a FBG member, don't forget to use the $10 FBG discount.

Also don't forget to find someone with a league there and use them as a referral so they will get a discount, which you can then split with them. Possibly someone in your league plays another league on MFL that could do it.

Similarly, if you have someone else in the league who pays for another MFL league, let him submit the payment so the leagues will be linked and you'll get a multi-league discount on the 2nd league, which can be split between the two leagues.

 
If you want to do ANYTHING out of the ordinary, MFL always.

Don't pick ESPN. Just don't. Not if you're serious about managing a league.
Yeah, I can't say I'd unilaterally agree with this. ESPN has been more than fine with our league. The fact that we are adding a few extra wrinkles I'm not sure makes the league any more serious. It is really just nuances that I'm unclear about with ESPN. But more importantly, ESPN has been flawless for our league for four years, so I can't see why you wouldn't pick ESPN for a league. Even if I decide to go with MFL, I'd always endorse ESPN.

If the app is your concern then that might be valid. Appearance shouldn't be as MFL is so customisable you can get people to make it look however you like.

Here's my MFL salary cap league if you want a look.

http://www17.myfantasyleague.com/2013/home/78804#0
Ok, now your league is phenomenal. I love the teams that have their team names in unique fonts and logos with them in a "bar" type of setup. I would love to be able to learn how to do that. I may have to dig out my HTML for dummies book from 1998. Unfortunately, I don't think anyone in our league has any HTML type knowledge, but wow, I may use your league site as a template. It looks terrific! Thank you for sharing.

 
CokeZero said:
MFL by a wide margin.
Been using MFL since 2000, and never looked back. Can't beat cost, flexibility, and the customer service is best in the land; nay, best in the WORLD. I highly advise you to run, not walk to MFL and you will never regret it.

** I guarantee this post. If you don't like it, you can exchange it for a new one **
The cost is one thing I've definitely been impressed with. There are so many opportunities for discounts and paired with the immense amount of customization, I can see why people are so loyal to MFL. It really is an impressive site. And I will give the customer service a nod as well. I asked a simple, tedious question regarding the money back guarantee since I couldn't find it on their FAQ page and someone got back to me within the same day which I appreciated. While I'm not running to MFL just yet, I am trotting. Hopefully that counts.

Greg Russell said:
Couple of extra suggestions about MFL.

If you're a FBG member, don't forget to use the $10 FBG discount.

Also don't forget to find someone with a league there and use them as a referral so they will get a discount, which you can then split with them. Possibly someone in your league plays another league on MFL that could do it.

Similarly, if you have someone else in the league who pays for another MFL league, let him submit the payment so the leagues will be linked and you'll get a multi-league discount on the 2nd league, which can be split between the two leagues.
Greg, I've appreciated our exchanges on this board in the past. I'm pretty sure it was regarding contract setups for keeper leagues before. I found your input very valuable and thoughtful. This post is no less helpful, so I thank you for it as well. I got lucky with a new league 50% off discount + the $10 FBG discount + $10 early bird discount (total = $25), and with the money back guarantee up to Week 2, it was a no brainer to at least try out.

Funny, I remember about ten years ago or so, CBS Sportsline's leagues were over $100. There was an amount of customization, but not overwhelmingly so like MFL. I wonder if the CBS leagues are still that expensive with ESPN and Yahoo doing such good jobs for free.

 
MFL does have an app. MFL Platinum is what it's called on the iPhone at least. It's not great by any means but it does the job with live scoring, ability to submit lineups, etc. They also have a mobile site that works well on mobile devices. For everything else, I just load the full web site on my phone if I really need to.

 
MFL 12 was the android app, I've used in the past. I'm guessing the new will be called MFL 13 but it doesn't look like its available yet.

 
MFL does have an app. MFL Platinum is what it's called on the iPhone at least. It's not great by any means but it does the job with live scoring, ability to submit lineups, etc. They also have a mobile site that works well on mobile devices. For everything else, I just load the full web site on my phone if I really need to.
MFL 12 was the android app, I've used in the past. I'm guessing the new will be called MFL 13 but it doesn't look like its available yet.
Thanks, guys. Do you remember, by any chance, when the app came out last year?

 
Thanks, guys. Do you remember, by any chance, when the app came out last year?
No, but I was just notified of an update on my iPhone this week for MFL Platinum 2013. I don't recall what the changes were exactly, but it's setup for the 2013 leagues at very least.

 
If you want to do ANYTHING out of the ordinary, MFL always.Don't pick ESPN. Just don't. Not if you're serious about managing a league.
Yeah, I can't say I'd unilaterally agree with this. ESPN has been more than fine with our league. The fact that we are adding a few extra wrinkles I'm not sure makes the league any more serious. It is really just nuances that I'm unclear about with ESPN. But more importantly, ESPN has been flawless for our league for four years, so I can't see why you wouldn't pick ESPN for a league. Even if I decide to go with MFL, I'd always endorse ESPN.
Sure, as a substitute for a notepad and the Monday morning newspaper, ESPN is fine.
 
If you want to do ANYTHING out of the ordinary, MFL always.Don't pick ESPN. Just don't. Not if you're serious about managing a league.
Yeah, I can't say I'd unilaterally agree with this. ESPN has been more than fine with our league. The fact that we are adding a few extra wrinkles I'm not sure makes the league any more serious. It is really just nuances that I'm unclear about with ESPN. But more importantly, ESPN has been flawless for our league for four years, so I can't see why you wouldn't pick ESPN for a league. Even if I decide to go with MFL, I'd always endorse ESPN.
Sure, as a substitute for a notepad and the Monday morning newspaper, ESPN is fine.
Well, thankfully this is completely untrue. I'd think that anyone who uses ESPN could attest to that.

 
If you want to do ANYTHING out of the ordinary, MFL always.Don't pick ESPN. Just don't. Not if you're serious about managing a league.
Yeah, I can't say I'd unilaterally agree with this. ESPN has been more than fine with our league. The fact that we are adding a few extra wrinkles I'm not sure makes the league any more serious. It is really just nuances that I'm unclear about with ESPN. But more importantly, ESPN has been flawless for our league for four years, so I can't see why you wouldn't pick ESPN for a league. Even if I decide to go with MFL, I'd always endorse ESPN.
Sure, as a substitute for a notepad and the Monday morning newspaper, ESPN is fine.
Well, thankfully this is completely untrue. I'd think that anyone who uses ESPN could attest to that.
Untrue? I've used ESPN years and years ago. Back then ESPN was better than calculating the scores by hand. Are you saying it's worse now?
 

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