Finished first in points and missed playoffs (2 Viewers)

[zed2283]

It happens.

 

[Deamon]

This is a first for me. 12 team league, 6 teams make the playoffs. As the last game is ending I'm finishing as the top scorer for the season, with a 6-8 record, and out of the playoffs. I had more points scored against me than everyone else, by a large margin. I've been playing this game 20+ years and this is the worst victim to schedule variance outcome I've ever seen. I'm not even mad about it, I'm honestly laughing about how crazy it is.

Always Use Victory Points.

 

[Heisenberg23]

We use Victory Points (12 teams). Can get 4 VP a week. 2 points for a win. Top 4 score is 2 more points while middle 4 is 1 point. Playoff criteria in order is then VP, Record, points... works great, would solve the OP problem and preserves H2H.

 

[Spin]

Not as egregious as yours, but I finished fourth in points for and had by far the most points against and missed the playoffs. I had three weeks where I was second highest and lost to high points, never had that happen to that extent before.

 

[IC FBGCav]

With all sympathy, sometimes it's just your turn to lose.

I really like this way of putting it.

Schedule variance has worked in my favor in the past and I'm sure it will again at some point in the future. I just thought it was nuts to be points leader and not in the playoffs and to have the most points against by a significant margin (since all of the points I put up, which again was the most, none of those were against me obviously). This one feels like having a full house fall to runner runner quads, just a statistically rare bad beat. But it happens once in a great while and finally happened to me.

It happens more than you think. My goal when I was a commish was to try to get the best teams in the playoffs. You can run it a number of ways but the 6 seed was always given to the team with the most points. I found that wasn't fair to the 3 seed in 3 division leagues. My resolution was the division winning get 50% of a buy in if they win their division. Then seeds 4-6 get in by points. First 2 seeds get a bye. 3 seed plays the team 6 with the least points. Seeds 4 and 5 fight it out. It was my solution, it was as fair was I could come up with. Also, implemented a double week in 12 team league when there were no NFL teams on a bye usually early in the season and not playing two teams in your division. That way you played everyone in your division twice and everyone else in the league. I feel your pain. I was top scorer in a league by a few hundred points and won 2 games heads up. It definitely happens.

 

[kylechoffman]

All of my leagues award the last and final playoff spot to the team not in the top 5 but with the most total points from the remaining teams. Sometimes this is the next best team but sometimes its like you. Sorry this happened but its a good way to resolve this problem.

 

[Marauder]

We use Victory Points (12 teams). Can get 4 VP a week. 2 points for a win. Top 4 score is 2 more points while middle 4 is 1 point. Playoff criteria in order is then VP, Record, points... works great, would solve the OP problem and preserves H2H.

Victory points minimizes the problem but doesn't completely eliminate it. I know this because the league where it happened to me this year (first in total points but missed the playoffs) was a Victory points league.

 

[kyoun1e]

Been there. Our league now does 1 win for beating your weekly opponent and 1 win for beating the median score (aka scoring in the top 6). Makes situations like this ideally obsolete.

What platform do you use?

Been thinking about this for years, but we use ESPN and it seems inflexible.

I've been proposing one W/L for your head to head matchup and then some % W/L depending on how many of the leagues teams you would have beaten or lost to that given week. Would absolutely smooth out all lucky/unlucky BS.

 

[Galileo]

This year, I am actually on the flip side of this coin. I am the lowest scoring team in the league, but I have snuck into the playoffs with an 8-6 record. Chip and a chair! Let's Goooo!!! We did have the top scorer miss the playoffs once. After that incident, we adjusted our league so that it is sort of 2 leagues in one. We split the prize pool in half...50% gets divvied up amongst the top scorers and 50% gets distributed to the top finishers in the H2H playoff bracket. Often, teams play piggy and collect on both. Sometimes a team will collect on one side and not the other. I like it because it keeps the H2H which I find to be fun. I also don't mind a little luck variance. Hey, sometimes the best team doesn't win. Such is life. But it also rewards those who manage to put together a solid team, but may have been a little unfortunate along the way.

 

[urbanhack]

I have the least points scored out of the 6 playoff teams and the most points scored against. lol i have no clue how i made it in.

 

[RenegadeRoy]

Been there. Our league now does 1 win for beating your weekly opponent and 1 win for beating the median score (aka scoring in the top 6). Makes situations like this ideally obsolete.

What platform do you use?

Been thinking about this for years, but we use ESPN and it seems inflexible.

I've been proposing one W/L for your head to head matchup and then some % W/L depending on how many of the leagues teams you would have beaten or lost to that given week. Would absolutely smooth out all lucky/unlucky BS.

Yahoo does it but you have to pay for a premium league (or whatever they call it). Commissioner handles that so not sure how much it is.

Hoping it becomes more popular so it's implemented in more place and/or for free.

 

[-jb-]

In my big money league, this has happened to me FIVE times. This year - highest point scorer, win and in position last week. went against the worst team in the league, and was favored by 40 points (half ppr). his team put on a show and knocked me out. this vexes me more than anything in this hobby and just keeps happening in this one league.

ME: Fields/Kamara/Mostert/Tyreek/AJB/Evans/LaPorta/Aubrey/Texans

HIM: Ridder (really?) / Mixon (ok) / Javonte (first TD this year!) / Kupp (welcome back, jerk) / Garret Wilson / Josh Reynolds (for ****ing real???) / Njoku (literally career 2TD day) / Tucker / Seahawks

Beat me by 30 points (70 pt swing from projections), and took high point score for the week.

My team is ALWAYS strong in this league. Best W/L across all years, hold the highest single game score, hold the highest season score, etc.

I've NEVER won this league (multiple wins in every other league, often the most wins), but in this one either out with highest points, or make playoffs then get knocked out consistently.

My team name in this one is Susan Lucci. It makes me angry.

Thank you for listening to my TEDrant.

 

[-jb-]

I didn't read all the comments but this was probably said earlier. For the last 10 years or so, I have implemented some sort of where you finish in H2H and the last two teams to make the playoffs are based upon total points. Some of us have bad virtual defenses and this fixes the issue. I have rarely had anyone not like this setup and many have incorporated it into their own leagues. Just my $0,02

have this in a few leagues and it is liked across managers. big money league it was shot down.

 

[Zow]

This is a first for me. 12 team league, 6 teams make the playoffs. As the last game is ending I'm finishing as the top scorer for the season, with a 6-8 record, and out of the playoffs. I had more points scored against me than everyone else, by a large margin. I've been playing this game 20+ years and this is the worst victim to schedule variance outcome I've ever seen. I'm not even mad about it, I'm honestly laughing about how crazy it is.

In one league I missed out despite being a top-scorer. I agree!

In another I'm going to sneak in because I'm in the fantasy equivalent of the NFC South. I disagree!

A well-rounded fantasy career will experience a bit of everything-- highs and lows. Chalk this one up to an experience you won't soon forget.

Yep. Happened to me before. Of course, I’ve also luckily snuck my way in to a few playoffs and then won the championship when my teams got hot so I always just chalk up the experience to variance and it’s offset but those luckier championships.

I will do though that in most of my leagues we’ve either switched to victory points or we pay out highest regular season points or something to avoid your situation.

 

[Insein]

Our league the most points gets the same pay out as 2nd place. Unfortunately this year the most points is also the best record in my league. So he's probably going to get first place money plus total points money. Plus we give out $10 each week to the highest score. So he got like 3-4 of those. Yes he had a good year.

 

[QuizGuy66]

Need to improve your defense next year
-QG