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Superstition & FF (1 Viewer)

How superstitious are you when it comes to FF?

  • Not at all. The chips will fall where they may. I’ll draft the same guy on 20 teams.

    Votes: 21 41.2%
  • Moderately superstitious. I try to diversify my assets, and I never want to jinx them with excess pr

    Votes: 23 45.1%
  • Substantially superstitious. I wear my lucky hat to the draft every year, I’ll never jinx my players

    Votes: 5 9.8%
  • I don’t change my underwear during a winning streak, no matter how many weeks or months that goes on

    Votes: 2 3.9%

  • Total voters
    51

Hot Sauce Guy

Footballguy
How superstitious are you when it comes to FF? 

I frequently see comments like, “but since I drafted him this year, [doom and gloom scenario will ensue]”

I’d put myself at mild, personally, and usually just feel unlucky after the fact as opposed to jinxing things ahead of time. 

That said, I do believe in bad karma, so I never wish injury on anyone for fear the FF gods will smite me & my own players. But that’s not superstitious, that’s just being smart and logical.  👍🏼

 
I'm mostly a "let the chips fall where they may".  Despite having some pretty horrific luck in one league, I've managed to win the ship in every other league I'm in at least once so overall it evens out.  I'm in 5 leagues, but I do try not to have the same player on more than 2 or 3 teams just for injury avoidance.  Couple years ago I was all in on Aaron Rodgers, drafted him in 3 leagues and then traded for him in a 4th league, and the very next week he broke his collarbone.  Sucks to have your playoff hopes in 4-5 leagues just wiped completely away in one fell swoop.  Voted option 2 just for that. 

 
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As someone who tries (and fails) at the occasional DFS dart, I was looking for a choice between not at all and moderately. 

Having the same player in most of my rosters?  Sure.  Having the same player in 100% of my rosters?  Not advised.  

But then that's more about common sense versus superstition...

 
I put substantially superstitious but it is more for fun that anything else.  Do I really think wearing the same jersey until I lose helps me win - probably not but it sure doesn't hurt doing it just in case.

 
Not so much superstitious, more philosophically stoic.  Players will get injured, I will put my faith in someone who flops, every year I will fail to get into the playoffs in the only league I care about due to a series of unfortunate events despite having a team that my league mates compliment to start the season.

Back in the day I used to have a bean bag frog I would throw around whenever one of my players scored a touchdown, but it didn't do anything to make my team better after the first week, so I gave up on that.

 
Not so much superstitious, more philosophically stoic.  Players will get injured, I will put my faith in someone who flops, every year I will fail to get into the playoffs in the only league I care about due to a series of unfortunate events despite having a team that my league mates compliment to start the season.
how often do you find yourself saying to an empty room, “every damn time”, “you’ve got to be friggin kidding me”, or “well that figures”. :sadbanana:

That’s me, every year, almost weekly.

What that? Up 5 points with 1:37 seconds to go and all the winning NFL team needs to do is take a knee?  
Naturally, they inexplicably mangle the time, leaving 28 seconds on the clock and the QB I’m facing manages to get 2 passes off to the WR I’m facing, which puts the receiver over 100 for  2 point bonus with 4 points in combined yardage.

Sounds impossible, yet somehow this is what happens to me. 

Thus I’m either defeatist or “moderately superstitious”. 

 
how often do you find yourself saying to an empty room, “every damn time”, “you’ve got to be friggin kidding me”, or “well that figures”. :sadbanana:

That’s me, every year, almost weekly.

What that? Up 5 points with 1:37 seconds to go and all the winning NFL team needs to do is take a knee?  
Naturally, they inexplicably mangle the time, leaving 28 seconds on the clock and the QB I’m facing manages to get 2 passes off to the WR I’m facing, which puts the receiver over 100 for  2 point bonus with 4 points in combined yardage.

Sounds impossible, yet somehow this is what happens to me. 

Thus I’m either defeatist or “moderately superstitious”. 
"Philosophically Stoic" sounds fancier than both defeatist or moderately superstitious though.

But you're right, every week, every damn time.  Just that little flick in the nuts when your guard is down.

 
"Philosophically Stoic" sounds fancier than both defeatist or moderately superstitious though.

But you're right, every week, every damn time.  Just that little flick in the nuts when your guard is down.


The thing is, I'm not stoic about it. I do not calmly accept this as my fate. I shake my fist at the gods for having cursed me every time. "Why?!" I scream at my dogs, "WHYYYYYYYY!?"  :rant:

That said, hope springs eternal. Perhaps this will be the season that the fantasy gods are appeased. I will make ritual sacrifice of a virgin goat, and light the appropriate incense, after anointing myself with sacred herbal oils. There will be rum and cigars for Jobu. Oh yes, there will. :tebow:

 
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The thing is, I'm not stoic about it. I do not calmly accept this as my fate. I shake my fist at the gods for having cursed me every time. "Why?!" I scream at my dogs, "WHYYYYYYYY!?"  :rant:

That said, hope springs eternal. Perhaps this will be the season that the fantasy gods are appeased. I will make ritual sacrifice of a virgin goat, and light the appropriate incense, after anointing myself with sacred herbal oils. There will be rum and cigars for Jobu. Oh yes, there will. :tebow:
Bill Simmons wrote an article ages ago about how he took his poor dog on endless walks after his teams lost in order to get over the agony of defeat.  I know my dog would much prefer the shouting.

Maybe the problem is that the gods want a really slutty goat.  You think you've been appeasing them with virgin goats all the while, but in truth they want a goat who's the town bicycle.  Why not try both?  Then you can smoke the incense and dab the oils (if I'm picking up what you're putting down) in a weekly pregame prayer session.

As for rum and cigars... I'm more of a whiskey guy myself. Jobu will have to got on board with the peat.

 
In my mind I understand there's no all powerful fantasy god spoiling my season on some mad whim. 

In my heart I understand there is absolutely an all powerful fantasy god spoiling my season on some mad whim.  I pray to her, but heed my prayers she does not.

 
Superstitious with some things in life, but 0% when it comes to fantasy football (or at least, nothing comes to mind).

Fate is in the hands of the injury bug IMO... nothing I can do/say to jinx (or un-jinx) that.

 
I love me some Stevie Wonder. I heard the song on the way home on October 16th, 2003 and sang it in the car.

I called my buddy Todd when the sox were up in the 8th inning of game 7, we're finally going to see the Sox go to the Series. I was so excited. Pedro was gassed though...and Grady for some reason thought he had enough in the tank to get a few more outs.

I'm not saying that hiding in my basement or listening to a different radio station on the way home from work that day would have changed the outcome. But I'll be damned if those moments don't still linger for me as "things I wished I'd done differently."

I drafted Saquon each of the last two years. He wasn't on my list this year. And I drafted my own backup RB. I know it's not a shark move but who cares.

 
Not so much superstitious, more philosophically stoic.  Players will get injured, I will put my faith in someone who flops, every year I will fail to get into the playoffs in the only league I care about due to a series of unfortunate events despite having a team that my league mates compliment to start the season.

Back in the day I used to have a bean bag frog I would throw around whenever one of my players scored a touchdown, but it didn't do anything to make my team better after the first week, so I gave up on that.


We haven't forgotten. 

🐸 🐸 🐸 🐸 🐸 🐸 🐸

 
I love me some Stevie Wonder. I heard the song on the way home on October 16th, 2003 and sang it in the car.

I called my buddy Todd when the sox were up in the 8th inning of game 7, we're finally going to see the Sox go to the Series. I was so excited. Pedro was gassed though...and Grady for some reason thought he had enough in the tank to get a few more outs.

I'm not saying that hiding in my basement or listening to a different radio station on the way home from work that day would have changed the outcome. But I'll be damned if those moments don't still linger for me as "things I wished I'd done differently."

I drafted Saquon each of the last two years. He wasn't on my list this year. And I drafted my own backup RB. I know it's not a shark move but who cares.


I remain convinced that Dusty Dodger jinxed the 2002 Giants when he took Russ Ortiz out of a 4-hit shutout with a 6 run lead in the 7th, then gave him the game ball. 

One does not simply give a pitcher the game ball until the game is over, and one doesn't pull the SP from a shutout until he's actually given up a run. 

Dusty Baker 100% jinxed that WS for us in game 6.  That, and putting in two guys who only threw fastballs to the best fastball hitting team, perhaps in baseball history, was dumb. Plus Nen's arm was washed at that point & everyone knew it except for Dusty Baker. Even Nen has since said it.  :doh:  

 
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when my kicker is lining up for a field goal I switch channels.  won't watch him kick it.  I change back 30 seconds later & check the score to see if he missed or made.
Now THAT is an outstanding level of superstitious behavior. 

In the Super Bowl, I made some sports investments, one of which was the O on 1.5 Butker FGs. Seemed like a pretty reasonable wager. He nails his 1st one. The Bucs have a 4th and 3, and they're about to kick the 2nd one. "Easy money!" I'm thinking - naturally, there's an offsides penalty (which I don't believe I'd ever seen in that situation before) that gives the Bucs a 1st, and they throw the TD on the next play. I usually don't mind losing $30, but that one stung. 

I may never watch a FG again. 

 
Bryan Edwards somehow went undrafted in my 14-team redraft and I'm not scooping him because I feel like it will kill his dynasty ceiling.

Mostly it's because I really don't have an easy drop that's clearly inferior, but the superstitious (probably more pessimistic) outlook that I can't possibly have something as nice as a stud breakout WR landing on both of my fantasy teams is a real thing.   I would like to think most of it is about diversification, but there's definitely some crazy in play too.

 
I'm not superstitious when it comes to FF.  I'm not superstitious about anything else either, but I may be a little stitious about some things.  For example, I try not to say things like "what could go wrong?" or "how hard could it be?".

 
Story #1

About ten years back, I was in my re-draft league championship.   My opponent pulled within 1.X points and only needed 2 points from the Ravens DST on MNF against the Chargers.   I was not actually resigned to my fate, but in a desperate attempt to jinx it for him, I congratulated him on his championship and treated it like I had zero chance of pulling it out.

I couldn't bring myself to watch the game.   At some point after midnight I pulled up the box score.   No 35+ deduction to the Ravens DST for points allowed.   I'm sunk.

Step 2, look at the scoring summary to see if there are any DST TDs or safeties for the Ravens.   Nothing there.   I'm still hanging by a thread.

Step 3, look at Phil Rivers line and see 0 interceptions.   Damn, why couldn't you throw 3 just to make it not even be a close call.   Now I'm probably going to lose by a couple of lousy points.

Step 4, find the Chargers fumbles column.   Zero fumbles lost by the Chargers.   Now I'm starting to perk up, but certainly the Ravens are going to sack Rivers a couple of times, right?

Step 5, Ravens defensive statistics.    Get a couple of rows down and find the first '1' sack count.    One more from any player on the defense sinks me.   The tension is gut wrenching.   I continue to scroll down line by line, player by player.

0, 0, 0, 0 ,0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0   and then....

The end of the defensive stats column.   

The jinx worked.  He needed 2 points from BAL DST to take the Championship and got 1.    

 
Story #2 

Four years ago.   Same re-draft league championship.   I'm playing my best friend who's a career 0-3 in the Championship.   I'm trying to win my 4th.

His team had a ridiculous three-headed monster at RB.   Gurley, Kamara, Melvin Gordon.

I was weaker to begin with and just lost A. Rodgers and Antonio Brown to injury.   Yahoo projected a 33-point decision to my opponent.

He had the top waiver priority and used it to pick up my dropped injured stud, AB84.    He could have used it to block a number of promising under-the-radar young WRs that had some upside for a breakout game that week.   Instead he used it to pour salt on my wound on his way to his first championship.   I picked up Keelan Cole and Chris Godwin back when they were just two young unknown WR3s to look out for if they got an opportunity to start. 

I also picked up Jake Butt, and Elijah Penny, and added them to my bench.   Sophomoric, but that's how I roll.    If anyone was a fan of Upright Citizens Brigade sketch comedy, you will know what I was going for.    Or you can look up '### Pennies - Upright Citizens Brigade' on youtube.

Keelan Cole and Chris Godwin scored 30 points.   Won the championship by 9 points.    My opponent (now 0-4) is known as the Minnesota Vikings of our fantasy league to this date.

Two years later, I was back in the championship and added the injured Andrew Luck, Butt, and Penny back to my bench.   Championship #5.   

That combination is undefeated on my bench in the week 16 championship.   Part of the reason I'm so pissed about the new 18-week schedule.

 
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Several years ago, we started a new redraft league at the local hardware store. End of the first season my son and I were in the championship game. I go into the Monday game with a lead and nobody playing. He had his defense  in the game. Time expires and I have held onto a .6 lead. I’m celebrating my victory when I realize there was a defensive penalty on the play, so they get one more play. Defense gets a tackle for a loss and he wins by .4. 
 

Did I jinx myself by celebrating? 🤷🏼‍♂️
 

Seemed safe with the clock hitting zero. 

 
Neither do I, but that's just to avoid overreaction. I prefer to watch the games without thinking about if a particular play changed the lead in one of my games. Some weeks I don't check scores until the late games are finished. 
I don't know how y'all do it. 

I live and die with every play. 

 
I'm a definite leave the room for awhile guy. Not just for field goals but as a momentum changer. I always think I'll miss something positive. When it works I say "you're welcome". My analyst suggests two visits a week.

 
I'm superstitious in that way that I think if I yell at the TV for what I want to happen, it improves the probability.   When it works, I show my gratitude with a hearty, "THAT'S WHAT IM TALKMBOUT!!!" 👏👏👏

 

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