How do You Keep Your Teams Balanced? (1 Viewer)

[just_want_2_win]

I'd like to get the advice and insight of the many excellent posters in the Shark Pool.

First a little background: I've been playing FF since '98. I always made the playoffs but I didn't win my first league until 2005, when I had some good fortune (no injuries) and put in hours of research. I thought that recipe (the research part, anyway) would work the following year but I had my worst year ever. After that I decided to really study fantasy strategy and tactics. Since 2007 I've won 5 additional titles. I typically play 2-3 money leagues annually. Redrafts all; one of those titles was an IDP -- that was my one and only time I've done IDP. I've won a league of other fantasy football writers and even one where I missed the draft and autodraft gave me a decidedly mediocre team to start out.

I'd credit my championships to excellent research and aggressiveness in the waiver process. I've grabbed the likes of Rueben Droughns, Chris Chambers, Marques Colston, Greg Jennings, DeAngelo Williams, Austin Collie, and Arian Foster right before they became big names. (Usually that's been my last time owning those players as they become costly to acquire in the subsequent seasons.) And don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I'm prescient: I've also passed on some good values due to over analyzing, including Vick a couple years ago and Cam Newton last year when I really could've used a good QB.

Despite winning some titles and having scored some big waiver acquisitions, I often have had a hard time balancing my team:

In auction draft leagues, I've gone the route of going for superstars and then suffering from a weak supporting cast that tend to lose many close games. I've also done a great job in auctions of piecing together a very balanced team that doesn't have a mega-stud but still has very solid players but those often seem to fall just short in many games.

In snake draft leagues I've been RB heavy and struggled all year with WRs. And vice versa. Or I've been solid in the RB and WR departments but then weak at TE and QB and paid the price.

So you out in the Shark Pool -- how do you consistently get and maintain a balanced team that neither relies too heavily on one or two studs or is solid but not spectacular?

 

[Mash]

In auction drafts, I always go for one uber-stud (this year - Rodgers, Brees, Brady, Foster, Rice, McCoy, Calvin), then target guys I like that are undervalued (this year, happened to be Ridley and Malcom Floyd), and try to find bargains with players that have a negative sentiment about them and go for less than they should (Shonn Greene, SJax). In terms of balance, if I spend big on a QB, I tend to buy two tier 2/3 RBs, and spend less on WRs. I've always felt WRs are easy to find on the WW.

In snake drafts, I draft purely based on best available. The only way I would change my "best available" strategy is if I went RB-RB-RB and needed to fill other starter positions. As it stands, I did have an RB-RB-RB draft in a 12 team league, and ended up with: Cutler, Harvin, Floyd, McFadden, Murray, SJax, and Hernandez as my starters, with BJGE, Nate Washington, Crabtree, and Lance Moore coming off the bench.

I've had success using these two strategies over the years.

 

[massraider]

I go for points. If everyone chases RBs then I'll take the best WRs. Trade a WR later for a RB

 

[Rovers]

Never did auction, just snake redrafts and dynasty. (IDP included)

For IDP, research is without a doubt the key to winning.

In redrafts, I don't even try to keep a balance anymore. I start 4 WR, 1 RB now. The days of the 25 carry stud RB are largely gone. Draft an RB like McFadden or AP, get the handcuff, and go after #1 WR's, especially in PPR or 0.5 PPR leagues.

With this strategy, I also feel one must get a top 5 QB as well. I drafted M Rayn in the second at 2.03 after drafting McFadden and was laughed at, but After I took McFadden at 1.10, Brees went. In a keeper league, whether drafted or kept, Ryan was the only QB I thought had top 5 upside. Then I drafted nothing but #1 WR's. I kept J Jones, got Walker, then Llyoyd and Floyd, drafted a bye week RB in Benson, Handcuffed my only real RB, and filled in with the likes of S Hill and McCluster. Kept Gronk at TE...

Balance is not important if you have a flex. If my league would allow, heck, I'd start 5 WR's and no RB. Balance is important in the NFL, not neccessarilly so in FF. WR's can be streaky scorers, but with 4 #1 NFL WR's, they generate points consistantly enough, as one has a down week, one always blows up.

I look for consisdtant double digits from my one starting RB, and let the WR's go. Gotta have a good QB this way, but I jumped for Ryan and so far.... had a high score by 40 over the next team week one.

I really don't think balance matters. Total points do, and with the age of RBBC, RB'd tendancy for injury, I rely on my WR's.

 

[Banger]

It's hard because teams take different shapes and forms each year. Basically what I try to do every week is evaluate every player at every position on my team. I review other rosters and look for weaknesses and players I like and then I throw out offers to start dialogue. I know some people don't like to throw the first offer but I've been very successful by taking the lead in probably 90% of the trads I make.

Right now in one league I have two very good starting rbs with Stewart, leshoure and royster as backups. Royster doesn't look like he's gonna workout and there's some uncertainty there with leshoure and Stewart. I think they'll be solid, possibly very good backups/starters, but I'm really strong at wr so im trying to swing a trade to bring in a reliable RB in case of an injury. I try and address problems before they become problems.

Not sure if it helps but I just try and upgrade and make every position as strong as possible.

 

[Anonymous Internet User]

Like in any league, but especially in PPR, it's easy to find startable WR's but not so much for RB's. Once I fill my starting lineup, not including flex positions, I will go RB heavy and wait for WRs.

 

[Rovers]

Like in any league, but especially in PPR, it's easy to find startable WR's but not so much for RB's. Once I fill my starting lineup, not including flex positions, I will go RB heavy and wait for WRs.

I don't get this approasch. Once you get your RB1, by the time you have filled up your roster, the best WR's are long gone. What startable RB's are left by the 3rd round? Sure you can do a pik'em of GB WR's, or NO WR's, but how many true #1 WR's are left? True #1 RB's are gone in the first round. Loading up on stud WR's is what I do now after getting that #1 RB. Startable WR's are a dime a dozen. I like to get #1 WR's. They aren't startable, they are weekly must starts. There are far fewer must start RB's than there used to be.

The NFL has become a pass happy league. I'm sure we've all heard that. Follow that trend, and go WR happy early. Be sure to get a stud QB with this strategy. Let the Moreno's, Benson's, Shannihan's RB of the week and barely startable RB's fall to the next guy. Take the stud WR who plays every down. Or end up with Laurent Robinsons and Braylon Edwards of the NFL. They aren't going to go off for 100 yards and 2 TD's like soooo many other WR's can do now.

Natch, just my opinion.... glad others like to go RB heavy. Plays into my strategy.

 

[SameSongNDance]

Like in any league, but especially in PPR, it's easy to find startable WR's but not so much for RB's. Once I fill my starting lineup, not including flex positions, I will go RB heavy and wait for WRs.

I don't get this approasch. Once you get your RB1, by the time you have filled up your roster, the best WR's are long gone. What startable RB's are left by the 3rd round? Sure you can do a pik'em of GB WR's, or NO WR's, but how many true #1 WR's are left? True #1 RB's are gone in the first round. Loading up on stud WR's is what I do now after getting that #1 RB. Startable WR's are a dime a dozen. I like to get #1 WR's. They aren't startable, they are weekly must starts. There are far fewer must start RB's than there used to be.

The NFL has become a pass happy league. I'm sure we've all heard that. Follow that trend, and go WR happy early. Be sure to get a stud QB with this strategy. Let the Moreno's, Benson's, Shannihan's RB of the week and barely startable RB's fall to the next guy. Take the stud WR who plays every down. Or end up with Laurent Robinsons and Braylon Edwards of the NFL. They aren't going to go off for 100 yards and 2 TD's like soooo many other WR's can do now.

Natch, just my opinion.... glad others like to go RB heavy. Plays into my strategy.

You said it yourself, it's a passing league. If you compare the passing totals of this first week of games to those of last year, the differences are glaring and not minor. Everyone essentially performed the same last week, throwing in between 250-350 yards. Last year the disparity was much much larger ranging from Brady throwing for 500+ yards to McNabb throwing for 39 yards with QBs performing on many different levels in between. I attribute most of this to the lockout. Grabbing a QB in the first rounds will be the biggest mistake of 2012 and this will be made clear by week 4.As for my draft strategy, I usually follow VBD.

As for the composition of my team I usually roster four WRs at max and the rest of the slots go to RBs.

 

[Rovers]

Like in any league, but especially in PPR, it's easy to find startable WR's but not so much for RB's. Once I fill my starting lineup, not including flex positions, I will go RB heavy and wait for WRs.

I don't get this approasch. Once you get your RB1, by the time you have filled up your roster, the best WR's are long gone. What startable RB's are left by the 3rd round? Sure you can do a pik'em of GB WR's, or NO WR's, but how many true #1 WR's are left? True #1 RB's are gone in the first round. Loading up on stud WR's is what I do now after getting that #1 RB. Startable WR's are a dime a dozen. I like to get #1 WR's. They aren't startable, they are weekly must starts. There are far fewer must start RB's than there used to be.

The NFL has become a pass happy league. I'm sure we've all heard that. Follow that trend, and go WR happy early. Be sure to get a stud QB with this strategy. Let the Moreno's, Benson's, Shannihan's RB of the week and barely startable RB's fall to the next guy. Take the stud WR who plays every down. Or end up with Laurent Robinsons and Braylon Edwards of the NFL. They aren't going to go off for 100 yards and 2 TD's like soooo many other WR's can do now.

Natch, just my opinion.... glad others like to go RB heavy. Plays into my strategy.

You said it yourself, it's a passing league. If you compare the passing totals of this first week of games to those of last year, the differences are glaring and not minor. Everyone essentially performed the same last week, throwing in between 250-350 yards. Last year the disparity was much much larger ranging from Brady throwing for 500+ yards to McNabb throwing for 39 yards with QBs performing on many different levels in between. I attribute most of this to the lockout. Grabbing a QB in the first rounds will be the biggest mistake of 2012 and this will be made clear by week 4.As for my draft strategy, I usually follow VBD.

As for the composition of my team I usually roster four WRs at max and the rest of the slots go to RBs.

Ok, not picking a fight here, but rather to debate, I have to ask, of these late RB's, are any of them startable? Benson went well before Malcom Floyd did in my local. Floyd as a 4th WR is a must start, is Benson at RB, even as your RB2? How many must start RB's are there vs. must start WR's by the fifth round? Why load up on unstartable players when there are still WR's who are clear #1 WR's on their own NFL team?Even RB's like Turner and DWill look like pure busts already, not to mention the Morenos and even CJ2K. There are only a handful of RB1s anymore... 6 or 7, that's it. There are 32 #1 WR's in the NFL. Why load up on RB's who put up fewer points than another 20 WR's that remain on the board?