Flex player (1 Viewer)

[PSILOCYBIN]

Likely not the right forum for this question but I'll apologize in advance and ask anyway.

This is the first year our league is going to incorporate a flex player. Basically, I am wanting to understand how others (you) who utilize a flex player (in your respective leagues) incorporate that wrinkle into your draft strategy??

Is a good flex player more important than grabbing your first TE?

Is a player like Jones-Drew more important than a #2 WR assuming you have already locked up your #1 and #2 RB's?

Are you more likely to target your #3 RB or #3WR as your flex player?

 

[wannabee]

the more RBs you can start, the more valuable RBs become

 

[SSOG]

Flex players wouldn't change my draft strategy at all, since my draft strategy is to go with the BPA at all times, unless I'm in a no-trade league (or a league where the owners simply refuse to trade). My thought process is that, even if I already have 4 RBs and 1 WR, if I think that RB X is better than WR Y, I'm going to draft RB X under the assumption that, at some point during the season, someone is going to need an RB- at that point, I can trade RB X for more than WR Y, (meaning drafting RB X effectively nets me WR Y and change).

 

[shredhead]

Is a good flex player more important than grabbing your first TE? Yes

Is a player like Jones-Drew more important than a #2 WR assuming you have already locked up your #1 and #2 RB's? Yes

Are you more likely to target your #3 RB or #3WR as your flex player? Yes

 

[Penguin]

Flex players wouldn't change my draft strategy at all, since my draft strategy is to go with the BPA at all times, unless I'm in a no-trade league (or a league where the owners simply refuse to trade). My thought process is that, even if I already have 4 RBs and 1 WR, if I think that RB X is better than WR Y, I'm going to draft RB X under the assumption that, at some point during the season, someone is going to need an RB- at that point, I can trade RB X for more than WR Y, (meaning drafting RB X effectively nets me WR Y and change).

The only problem I see with this is that until you trade X for a WR >WR Y you are losing starter points at the WR position every week. I learned this first hand in a work league (mostly novices, minimal prize money etc) where I hoarded RB's and could not trade them. Teams were willing to roll with RB#15 & RB #34 as their starters while I had 5 top 15 RB's rostered. I guess you can say that my loss of points at WR was equilized by the other owbers loss of points at RB but that's not always the case. Some of the owners actually drafted decent squads, at least a decent pair of starters at RB along with some nice WR's, it was those owners that I was losing ground to on a weekly basis.I think it you have to be smart about it. Draft the best player available to a point. If you already have 4 RB's rostered and only one WR and it's a start 3 WR league, you may be better served drafting WR2 instead of RB5..... unless you KNOW that you can trade him, and trade him fairly early in the season ie. before you lose too much ground (or too many games.)

 

[SSOG]

Flex players wouldn't change my draft strategy at all, since my draft strategy is to go with the BPA at all times, unless I'm in a no-trade league (or a league where the owners simply refuse to trade). My thought process is that, even if I already have 4 RBs and 1 WR, if I think that RB X is better than WR Y, I'm going to draft RB X under the assumption that, at some point during the season, someone is going to need an RB- at that point, I can trade RB X for more than WR Y, (meaning drafting RB X effectively nets me WR Y and change).

The only problem I see with this is that until you trade X for a WR >WR Y you are losing starter points at the WR position every week. I learned this first hand in a work league (mostly novices, minimal prize money etc) where I hoarded RB's and could not trade them. Teams were willing to roll with RB#15 & RB #34 as their starters while I had 5 top 15 RB's rostered. I guess you can say that my loss of points at WR was equilized by the other owbers loss of points at RB but that's not always the case. Some of the owners actually drafted decent squads, at least a decent pair of starters at RB along with some nice WR's, it was those owners that I was losing ground to on a weekly basis.I think it you have to be smart about it. Draft the best player available to a point. If you already have 4 RB's rostered and only one WR and it's a start 3 WR league, you may be better served drafting WR2 instead of RB5..... unless you KNOW that you can trade him, and trade him fairly early in the season ie. before you lose too much ground (or too many games.)

That's why I added the caveat that it's not a good strategy in leagues where owners don't like trading. I've been lucky so far in that most of my leagues have owners who are very active traders, and I've established a reputation as a fair trader who actively seeks win/win deals (rather than holding out for win/lose deals like most other people do). When I trade, my goal isn't just to improve my team, it's to improve the OTHER GUY'S team so that people in the future will want to trade with me, too.

 

[DLeo]

Likely not the right forum for this question but I'll apologize in advance and ask anyway.This is the first year our league is going to incorporate a flex player. Basically, I am wanting to understand how others (you) who utilize a flex player (in your respective leagues) incorporate that wrinkle into your draft strategy??Is a good flex player more important than grabbing your first TE?Is a player like Jones-Drew more important than a #2 WR assuming you have already locked up your #1 and #2 RB's?Are you more likely to target your #3 RB or #3WR as your flex player?

If your using MJD as your flex starter this year then you should be one of the favorites to win your league. I say this thinking you have two better Rb's playing with him allready?

 

[FantasyTrader]

There is a definite strategy needing to be taken into consideration in regards to flex player. I feel that all too often, my opponents look at their flex as my "fill-in" guy or my "other" guy so often - they grab their starting core (1 QB, 2 RB, 2 WR and maybe even TE) before looking at - okay, now who do I want for my flex. IMO, that's often a mistake. The guy is going to be on the field as much as the rest of your starting squad and is just as important. I like to reach for my flex often long before my starting spots have been filled (assuming the draft falls right and there's indeed value to be had by filling my flex in the 4th-5th round. I view flex as a position you can gain some nice cushion by addressing sooner rather than later.

 

[ipljeff]

There is a definite strategy needing to be taken into consideration in regards to flex player. I feel that all too often, my opponents look at their flex as my "fill-in" guy or my "other" guy so often - they grab their starting core (1 QB, 2 RB, 2 WR and maybe even TE) before looking at - okay, now who do I want for my flex. IMO, that's often a mistake. The guy is going to be on the field as much as the rest of your starting squad and is just as important. I like to reach for my flex often long before my starting spots have been filled (assuming the draft falls right and there's indeed value to be had by filling my flex in the 4th-5th round. I view flex as a position you can gain some nice cushion by addressing sooner rather than later.

 

[PSILOCYBIN]

There is a definite strategy needing to be taken into consideration in regards to flex player. I feel that all too often, my opponents look at their flex as my "fill-in" guy or my "other" guy so often - they grab their starting core (1 QB, 2 RB, 2 WR and maybe even TE) before looking at - okay, now who do I want for my flex. IMO, that's often a mistake. The guy is going to be on the field as much as the rest of your starting squad and is just as important. I like to reach for my flex often long before my starting spots have been filled (assuming the draft falls right and there's indeed value to be had by filling my flex in the 4th-5th round. I view flex as a position you can gain some nice cushion by addressing sooner rather than later.

My thoughts exactly...thanks for the feedback...

 

[veto87]

Your Flex position will also depend on your scoring of course, in PPR leagues a WR might be better than a RB or a catching RB becomes even more valuable.

I usually find that drafting a few rookies can lead to a good flex player near the end of the season when teams are out of the playoffs and are looking to see what they can do. All of a sudden that RB you took in the mid to later rounds or even off the waiver wire can take you to the championship !