Keerock
Footballguy
Either season long or daily...
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What's Normal? - Do you play Fantasy Football? (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Keerock
- Start date
Either season long or daily...
Keerock
Footballguy
How does not playing make your life "better"? Serious question.
jvdesigns2002
Footballguy
Yes—but very much on a reduced level. Many years ago, I’d play in several competitive leagues. However, in the past 6-7 years, I’d reduced my exposure to one or two leagues. I found that when I played in many leagues that a lot of my physical and mental energy was being spent on fantasy stuff (in regards to my free time). My Sundays went from being my days of leisure and relaxation to being roller coaster rides of joy and frustration. Cutting back has helped a lot. If I feel like my one or two leagues is not enough—I can always just make a lineup on FanDuel/draftkings specifically for that week.
Softballguy
Footballguy
Started playing in 1992, but quit two years ago. I didn't have the time to properly keep up, and most of my leagues subscribe here, so FBGs being the easy button hasn't been the case for a long time. Not having to set lineups on Sundays has been great, and now I can just concentrate on my favorite team and players. Don't miss it at all.
Plus, everybody and their grandma now wants to talk about their team. There absolutely cannot be anything more boring.
Plus, everybody and their grandma now wants to talk about their team. There absolutely cannot be anything more boring.
gianmarco
Footballguy
Same. Thought I'd be in the big minority here but I guess not.
Such a huge time suck and don't miss it one bit even though I wouldn't have expected that. My interest in the NFL decreased dramatically as well and the interest I do have is as a fan of my team.
And 100% agree about the Thursday games. That addition took away so much enjoyment from it.
Doug B
Footballguy
I do still play, but I liked your post to agree 1000X with the bolded. It added a lot of overhead to the fantasy football week.
Still want to convince the local leagues to switch to best-ball ... but we're a pretty hidebound bunch.
belljr
Footballguy
I would consider playing if my crew would do a best ball but they won't and I don't care enough to play with a bunch of strangers
MTskibum
Footballguy
Yes, I have ramped back up the last 2 years after barely paying attention for a 5-6 year period. I have done 30-40 drafts this year. I am not too big into DFS though, I will do a few of the million dollar contests and then when i lose the 50 dollars left in my fanduel account i will be done for the year.
3 redrafts
3 dynasties
20-30 - 1 dollar best balls
2 - 25 dollar best balls
~5 5/10 dollar best balls
3 redrafts
3 dynasties
20-30 - 1 dollar best balls
2 - 25 dollar best balls
~5 5/10 dollar best balls
El Floppo
Footballguy
I still play- long time dynasty league and long time $$ redraft league.
I spend a little time at the beginning of the year downloading Joe's Draft Dominator for the draft (dynast is rookies- just use rankings for those). I spend a couple minutes using Joe's in-week lineup thing each week checking the WW and setting my lineup. Done- that's it. And I usually finish in the playoff spots.
fwiw- I haven't watched or even followed football in 15 or so years... basicalyl since my kids were born. just don't care about the sport. but it's fun still playing with old buddies around the country- especially when my time commitment is minimal. I probably spend more time smack-talking than researching.
and yeah- thursday games suck.
I spend a little time at the beginning of the year downloading Joe's Draft Dominator for the draft (dynast is rookies- just use rankings for those). I spend a couple minutes using Joe's in-week lineup thing each week checking the WW and setting my lineup. Done- that's it. And I usually finish in the playoff spots.
fwiw- I haven't watched or even followed football in 15 or so years... basicalyl since my kids were born. just don't care about the sport. but it's fun still playing with old buddies around the country- especially when my time commitment is minimal. I probably spend more time smack-talking than researching.
and yeah- thursday games suck.
Jayrod
Footballguy
Tried to give it up. Went a few years without a league but then my son and his friends wanted to do one with their dads, so we have been doing a league for 3 years now. The boys are Jr's and Sr's so maybe only 2 more years before I can quit again.
Do love the drafts with all of us. It is 2 of my old high school buddies and our sons plus another kid for an 8 man league. Very casual, but we all enjoy it.
Do love the drafts with all of us. It is 2 of my old high school buddies and our sons plus another kid for an 8 man league. Very casual, but we all enjoy it.
Sullie
Footballguy
I started playing Fantasy Football in 1989. I was in an 8-team work redraft league back then for about 5 years and that was A LOT of fun but around 1994 I quit that job and I had to leave that league. About 1991, I joined another league, but this one was a 14-team redraft league in a different city about 200 miles away. Around 1994 or 1995 that league created a 12-team keeper league that later expanded into a 14-team keeper league. That entire league just became a giant nightmare. The guy running both leagues LOVED to argue about every, tiny, little detail and a few of the people in that keeper league would call you day or night all year long and request silly, one-sided trades. I quit both of those leagues when I got a call at 7:00 AM on a Saturday in March in 1997 requesting a stupid one-sided trade. That phone call was the one that broke the camel's back, I had enough, and I thought "I'm done with fantasy football" but I wasn't.
Later on, in 1997 I started a new job, at a new company and I thought "I'm going to start an FFL and I'm going to be in charge of it, it's going to be relaxed, fun and just like my old work league from 1989, I want to recreate that competitive yet casual environment." And I did that and for years and years it was A LOT of fun. We had mandatory in person drafts, it was a 10-team redraft league, it was relaxed, it was fun and for the for the most part it was just amazing. We had people drop in and out over the years and, for the most part, when someone dropped out, we almost always got someone who "got us" and the whole vibe of our league. The vibe I wanted to get across was "this is NOT IMPORTANT at all in any way, shape, or form it's for fun and if you're too serious, you're out and if you ignore your team, you're out." I wanted that very fine line between "have fun, be involved but don't take it so seriously that you make everyone miserable." We had one older guy (we'll call him Roger) that BEGGED us to let him in the league for years, but we just didn't have an opening.
About 5 years ago, one of the best members of the league (an original member) quit because he was going through a messy divorce, and he was going through a difficult time, so we finally let Roger in. I had worked with Roger for about 15 years, I knew him very well, I really liked him and I was excited for him to finally join the league. He was probably 60 when he joined the league. The year Roger joined the league is exactly when I started hating Fantasy Football. Roger whined and b*tched and complained and challenged every single rule, complained about trades, you name it. He acted like a spoiled child and just made it awful. Because of his non-sense, this caused 2 of my other favorite people to leave, 2 other people joined who just weren't into it and this just kept snowballing to where we had 6 people who were awesome and 4 people who were miserable to deal with. And there weren't enough people interested in joining so I couldn't just kick them out because we had 6 people that really looked forward to Fantasy Football every year even with the 4 people that we're awful to deal with.
So, about 2 years ago, one of the longtime guys passed away, another long-time guy quit, and a third guy was leaving the company, so I JOYFULLY dissolved the league. I do not miss it one bit. My life is better because I don't stress about making sure people turn in complete lineups, I don't care about scores, I don't care about controversial plays, I don't have to stress out about scheduling an in-person draft, food for the draft, beverages, where to draft, directions, etc. I don't have to collect fees, I don't have to turn in a lineup, I don't have to natter people about remembering the bye week, trades, deadlines, writeups, etc. I feel like a 50 ton weight has been lifted off my shoulders but one of the BIGGEST things I've missed is watching a football game and enjoying football. I couldn't understand why I enjoyed college football so much more than the NFL for so long and it finally dawned on me that (for years) I trained myself to watch players and not the actual game. Focusing on players so much makes you miss the games and for the last two years, I found myself enjoying the NFL again for the first time in a long time.
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-OZ-
Footballguy
Down to two dynasty teams. We’ll see how this year goes but there’s a fair chance I drop both next year. One is with my son, who is incredibly lax about it but put a good team together (I might have provided some advice along the way).
I don’t hate Thursday night games when there’s one, and MNF is often fun when you have a player or two remaining.
I don’t hate Thursday night games when there’s one, and MNF is often fun when you have a player or two remaining.
GregR
Footballguy
Me too. Which is why my life is much better since I did finally stop playing.
Drunken knight
Footballguy
started in 91... very basic scoring. peak was about 15-20 years when i had about 15 teams. now down to 5
1 ffpc (from 2)
2 dynasty
1 keeper
1 redraft
1 ffpc (from 2)
2 dynasty
1 keeper
1 redraft
GregR
Footballguy
Can't answer for dutch, but for myself... when I get into something like FF I go full on. I watch as many games as I can scouting players. I get in multiple leagues that take up more and more of my time. It starts to hit the point of obligation. Yes those moments when you win your league are still wonderful moments, but the overhead of ever reaching there was a drag on my life.
There are other things that can have the same effect for me. Most of them I tend to put away after a month or two instead of going year round like FF did.
AAABatteries
Footballguy
Nope, don’t miss it at all.
MTskibum
Footballguy
You should add some best balls in there.
DA RAIDERS
Footballguy
I’m in 3. 2 are long term leagues that I commish(which is the worst) and one run by a guy that is a freaking machine. He runs all sorts of pools, brackets, etc. it’s nice to be in a league that is really well run.
snellman
Footballguy
I still play, but have cut way back on the number of leagues. I used to do 10-12 teams every year between dynasty and redraft. Now, I am doing 1 IDP dynasty and 2 local redrafts, 1 work league and 1 friends league. DFS is what pretty much changed everything for me. I play more DFS, playing year round between NFL, NHL, and MLB so I had to cut back somewhere.
wlwiles
Footballguy
This has always been fascinating to me, and I 100% agree with the statement. For something that millions of people play and enjoy together, fantasy players by and large absolutely hate listening to other people talk about their fantasy team. But they all want someone to listen to them talk about their own.
Other posters have answered this well but I will add another note that was touched on a bit. I work with a young 20 something who is really into sports and Really into fantasy football. He spent 20 mins regaling me with his team, his league setup and the team names and I was just astounded that he thought I cared one iota. I told him so and now he’s sheepish around me but I no longer have to hear about his prowess with magic football so it’s a win. But it did remind me of me from years ago that I got shivers thinking about it.
fruity pebbles
Footballguy
First year not doing it. Don’t really watch football anymore but still liked the strategic aspect of it. Got little enjoyment out of it anymore and it became more stressful than fun. Gonna try going without completely.
weirdo
CletiusMaximus
Footballguy
I enjoy watching the games more when I'm not focused on individual performances/scoring metrics. I understand others are different, and having a fantasy stake in the games enhances the experience for many/most fans. For me it was an unwelcomed distraction - same as when I used to gamble. The worst thing for me is watching with a group of guys who are constantly talking about their fantasy teams. I'm better at ignoring it now, but it drives home for me how happy I am not to have that going on in my head when I'm watching a game.
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
Haven't played since 2010. Don't miss it one bit.
Based on this I would recommend not stopping once your kids are out of HS. Use this is a yearly reason to get together and see everyone. It's what FF was supposed to be for in the first place.
I guess I am in the minority. I enjoy talking FF and about other teams and leagues. I like seeing how other people do things and what weird rules, etc I am missing out on. Don't get me wrong, there are some people that I don't want to talk FF with but that is about the person and how they discuss things. Not the subject matter.
Pip's Invitation
Footballguy
I am in three leagues (one a free one here in the FFA). In recent years I haven’t paid attention to football news until late July or so. Then I check rankings, make my rankings and adjust based on new news and insights. I have actually been doing better with that way than in the old days when I followed NFL news all year.
zamboni
Footballguy
I can see how it's become oversaturated in the general population, but I've found it often helps as a conversation piece/ice breaker when you don't have much to talk about with someone at, say, a BBQ or other social event.
Pip's Invitation
Footballguy
I have noticed this as well. When my kid’s friends’ parents have thrown parties, fantasy football is often the main topic among the dads. Which is fine with me because otherwise they talk about MMA, which I don’t care about.
I am in my all time high of leagues this year because of a last minute substitution request:
I really only care about two (Original & Dynasty) as leagues that keep most of my focus. I run the other teams for fun and smack talk as none of those leagues are real serious.
- Original League: Started in 1985. Still has 8 of the original owners and is at 14 teams (fluctuated between 12-14 over the years).
- Dynasty League: My buddy and I created this league from scratch in 2005. Dynasty, Salary Cap, IDP. it's the only draft I prepare for as it carries me through all the other ones.
- Father/Son League: Started in 2015. My son wanted to get his own team so I started a simple league when he was 10. Still going strong
- Zealots Dynasty: Joined 3 years ago as a test league for my dynasty league. It's free and just for bragging but it lets me try things
- ESPN Standard League: Buddy got me in this league 2 years ago as they needed teams. Just hung around since
- ESPN Standard League: Same buddy got me in this year as they lost someone last minute
I really only care about two (Original & Dynasty) as leagues that keep most of my focus. I run the other teams for fun and smack talk as none of those leagues are real serious.
Tom Servo
Nittany Beavers
This.
Tom Servo
Nittany Beavers
What's best ball?
Drunken knight
Footballguy
essentially, draft then your score is derived from your best possible starting lineup.
belljr
Footballguy
tl;dr - you dont set lineup - your "top points" for your "starter requirements" is your score for the week. So you don't have to play WDIS/Questionable game
El Floppo
Footballguy
My left one.
Keerock
Footballguy
Ditto... my right one is a mess.
Manster
Footballguy
4 leagues, all local, 3 live drafts.....other one is a work league we do on yahoo.
I'm getting to the point where I don't research much anymore. I can't really watch a ton of football either cuz I have kids doing a ton of stuff. I continue to do the leagues for two reasons. First, I know all the people in all my leagues, so it's a social thing. And second, I can still be fairly competitive with minimal research because of the tools available......I know some don't like that aspect, but let's be honest, a good portion of FF players are middle aged dudes with crazy schedules.
I'll probly continue in the leagues I'm in for the foreseeable future. That said, I've lost quite a bit of interest in the NFL, in general over the years.......I can't pinpoint the reason, other than it just doesn't mean as much to me as it used to.
With the collapse of the Pac 12, I could start losing interest in college ball as well......I dunno, I think my priorities are just changing. Things that are out of my control.......and controlled by massive money seem to be less important to me
I'm getting to the point where I don't research much anymore. I can't really watch a ton of football either cuz I have kids doing a ton of stuff. I continue to do the leagues for two reasons. First, I know all the people in all my leagues, so it's a social thing. And second, I can still be fairly competitive with minimal research because of the tools available......I know some don't like that aspect, but let's be honest, a good portion of FF players are middle aged dudes with crazy schedules.
I'll probly continue in the leagues I'm in for the foreseeable future. That said, I've lost quite a bit of interest in the NFL, in general over the years.......I can't pinpoint the reason, other than it just doesn't mean as much to me as it used to.
With the collapse of the Pac 12, I could start losing interest in college ball as well......I dunno, I think my priorities are just changing. Things that are out of my control.......and controlled by massive money seem to be less important to me
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