Tuesday, July 8, 2014

Fantasy Football World Championship (FFWC) Early Draft Slot Announcement Comes 25 July. Sign up by Tomorrow to be eligible.

Sign up for the FFWC Main Event by tomorrow 9 July and you will have your draft spot announced early on 25 July. 

 The FFWC Main Event III (2014) costs $1,695 to play
They also have some satellite leagues such as the Qualifier for $279 and their $99 Draft-N-Go Leagues. And of course the always popular 10th Annual Rotobowl for $279.

 There are lots of contests and you should play in one or all of them! They are a great challenge. 

 I have already signed up for a FFWC Qualifier and plan to play in one of their Draft-n-Go Leagues next. 





Fantasy Football Tips (2nd Edition): 230 Ways to Win through Player Rankings, Cheat Sheets and Better Drafting ($12.95) www.amazon.com/dp/1936635151
Books from Extra Point Press:







Fantasy Football Guidebook (2nd Edition): Your Comprehensive Guide to Playing Fantasy Football ($19.95) http://www.amazon.com/dp/0982428650

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/fantasy-football-guidebook-sam-hendricks/1008633837


Fantasy Football Basics: The Ultimate "How to" Guide for Beginners available ($10.95) at Amazon http://www.amazon.com/dp/0982428634




Fantasy Hockey: The Ultimate "How-to" Guide for Fantasy Hockey Players ($14.95) www.amazon.com/dp/1936635100




Fantasy Basketball Handbook: The Ultimate "How-to" Guide for Beginners and Experienced Players ($12.95) www.amazon.com/dp/1936635097



http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/fantasy-basketball-handbook-sam-hendricks/1107640391
Please look at my new novel Just One More...


Just One More... $9.95
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0982428642

BN.com
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/just-one-more-sam-hendricks/1024930949?ean=9780982428641


Just One More… 


348 page military thriller. 
Read below for more details and to see the back cover.

Description:
On a fateful night in Afghanistan, a flawed NATO airstrike sets into motion a chain of events that reaches across the world, from Vancouver to Copenhagen to London. How far will one person go for revenge?
In the sleepy English countryside, an F15E Strike Eagle team gears up for a live weapons mission. Can lead pilot "Rider" keep his head in the game and overcome the demons of his past? Hundreds of lives will depend on the answer as a deadly Al Qaeda terrorist cell, and maverick CIA and MI6 agents descend on US soil in a jaw-dropping climax where anything goes.

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Fantasy Football World Championship (FFWC) Leagues

The Fantasy Football World Championship (FFWC) has an entry fee of $1,695. 

This will be the third year for the FFWC. They had 204 teams the first year and 336 teams last year. Their maximum is 600 but they expect 450 teams.

The Grand Prize is $150,000 and league prizes are $12,500.
-$5,000 for Champion
-#1 and #2 seeds earn $2,500 each (Best H2H record and most points scored)
-#3 and #4 seeds earn $1,250 each

The FFWC also has a Tuesday night "Draft n Gos" which is their version of a draft masters league. $99 entry every Tuesday at 9pm for this 28 round league. 

1st Place - $600
2nd Place - Free 2015 Rotobowl Team ($279 value)
3rd Place - Free 2015 Draft-n-Go ($99 value)


But my favorite FFWC satellite league is their Qualifier.
-$179 to play
-Live Drafts and Slow Draft formats
-Almost $2000 in league prizes
--$1695 2015 FFWC Main event team for 1st place and a $249 2015 Rotobowl Entry for 2nd place
-12 Teams, 20 Man Rosters
-Start 1/2/3/1/1/1+2 Flex
-All Play Weeks 1 and 2, H2H Week 3-13


Fantasy Football Tips (2nd Edition): 230 Ways to Win through Player Rankings, Cheat Sheets and Better Drafting ($12.95) www.amazon.com/dp/1936635151
Books from Extra Point Press:







Fantasy Football Guidebook (2nd Edition): Your Comprehensive Guide to Playing Fantasy Football ($19.95) http://www.amazon.com/dp/0982428650

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/fantasy-football-guidebook-sam-hendricks/1008633837


Fantasy Football Basics: The Ultimate "How to" Guide for Beginners available ($10.95) at Amazon http://www.amazon.com/dp/0982428634




Fantasy Hockey: The Ultimate "How-to" Guide for Fantasy Hockey Players ($14.95) www.amazon.com/dp/1936635100




Fantasy Basketball Handbook: The Ultimate "How-to" Guide for Beginners and Experienced Players ($12.95) www.amazon.com/dp/1936635097



http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/fantasy-basketball-handbook-sam-hendricks/1107640391
Please look at my new novel Just One More...


Just One More... $9.95
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0982428642

BN.com
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/just-one-more-sam-hendricks/1024930949?ean=9780982428641


Just One More… 


348 page military thriller. 
Read below for more details and to see the back cover.

Description:
On a fateful night in Afghanistan, a flawed NATO airstrike sets into motion a chain of events that reaches across the world, from Vancouver to Copenhagen to London. How far will one person go for revenge?
In the sleepy English countryside, an F15E Strike Eagle team gears up for a live weapons mission. Can lead pilot "Rider" keep his head in the game and overcome the demons of his past? Hundreds of lives will depend on the answer as a deadly Al Qaeda terrorist cell, and maverick CIA and MI6 agents descend on US soil in a jaw-dropping climax where anything goes.

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Monday, July 7, 2014

Draft Masters (DM), Draft Experts (DE), Draft Champions (DC), Draft and Forget or Draft and Go League Strategies Part 2

Okay the first 7 tips were on Saturday so go back to review them if this is all new to you. 
Just a quick reminder these leagues have different names at different venues (hence the title). For example, the leagues are called Draft Expert (DE) at the Fantasy Football Players Championship (FFPC) and Draft Champions (DC) over at the NFFC while the FFWC calls them Draft and Go Leagues. 
8) If you get a big name at QB (Manning, Brees or Rodgers) get his handcuff too. No other owner will want Brock Osweiler so you can wait and take him with your last pick. This will also mean you have 4 QBs instead of 3. However, the insurance policy is worth it.
Better to have insurance with a late (28th) round pick instead of a deep deep sleeper WR.

 9) If you get in a bind and have to skip a player from the rule of having three at QB, TE, K and DEF then skip the defense since they will never have an injury to take them out of the lineup.
So if you follow tip #8 above and do draft Peyton and then opt for Brock Osweiler with your 28th pick of the FFPC Draft you may have to skip your third defense since you are going to have 4 QBs.

 10) Use discriminators when deciding between players in the same tier. Use bye weeks first then decide if they are a conservative or aggressive pick. A player who is suspended or injury prone is not a good thing for a DM team. Go with players who are hot/cold if paired up with a consistent player as well.

 A later bye is another discriminator I use. My philosophy is that I want to get as many points as possible from them before an injury occurs. If he plays for only 5 weeks and one of those was his bye then I only had him for 4 weeks effectively. Now take the same player and the same injury but his bye week is in week 8. I had him for 5 weeks. I also think it is easier to recharge with a later bye week. If you have only played 3 games and then you get a break it does less good then if you have played 8 games and then get a week off.

 11) Avoid Kickers and QBs who have job security issues. No reason to pick a QB who MAY be good if he starts but the IF is IF HE STARTS-think all rookie QBs this year who have not been name the starter-Manziel, Bortles, Bridgewater. If he does not start, you have just shot yourself in the foot. Better to have an average starter than a good clipboard holder. Other question marks this year remain for R Fitzpatrick (HOU), M Schuab (OAK) and the Geno Smith/Mike Vick situation at the NYJ. I say avoid all 6 of those QB situations and draft 3 QBs from the 26 other teams!

 12) You will have 32 defenses to choose from, kickers, however, are less sure as some are fighting to keep their job. Plan on only 26-28 kickers as really being draftable. So favor kickers over Defenses in the draft order simply because there are less reliable kickers. 

 13) Draft a RBs handcuff since this is best ball. The best player automatically gets the start in this format. Grab RBs that are in a RBBC situation to monopolize the scores.
If you can get Chris Johnson and Chris Ivory then you have cornered the NYJ RBs no matter who scores. Same goes for the TEN RB situation with rookie Bishop Sankey and Shonn Greene. 

 14) RBs are more consistent with their points (other then the top WRs) so I target RBs early and draft more WRs late and hope that quantity trumps quality.

 15) Research the league to determine how many of each position are drafted and when. Know when you need to take your 3rd QB, TE, K and Defense. For example, in the FFPC Action 77’s only about 28 Kickers and Defenses were drafted in past years. So you could afford to wait a little before getting your last one. I would take my 3rd kicker before the 3rd defense simply because there are only about 26-28 reliable kickers and you do not want to take one that may be suspended or hurt or fighting for his job. Of course now that these FFPC leagues are expanding there rosters by 2 players you may more kickers and defenses drafted. 

 16) Do not wait too long to get handcuffs for stud RBs. Remember every other owner will be drafting quite a lot of RBs so chances are good they will take the one you need just as easily.

 17) In the FFPC with a 28 player roster I like this team 3 QB/7 RB/9 WR/ 3 TE/ 3 K/3 DEF. Maybe even 8 RBs and 8 WRs if the RB8 is a needed handcuff. Expect Defenses to go in the 15th round and Kickers to go in rounds 19 and 20. And without a doubt the expanded roster (28 for FFPC and FFWC versus NFFC 26 man roster) means I like the 3 QB, TE, K and Defense play. If I dropped one of those it would be Defense since they cannot be lost to injury.

 In the NFFC DC I like 3/6/8/3/3/3


Fantasy Football Tips (2nd Edition): 230 Ways to Win through Player Rankings, Cheat Sheets and Better Drafting ($12.95) www.amazon.com/dp/1936635151
Books from Extra Point Press:







Fantasy Football Guidebook (2nd Edition): Your Comprehensive Guide to Playing Fantasy Football ($19.95) http://www.amazon.com/dp/0982428650

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/fantasy-football-guidebook-sam-hendricks/1008633837


Fantasy Football Basics: The Ultimate "How to" Guide for Beginners available ($10.95) at Amazon http://www.amazon.com/dp/0982428634




Fantasy Hockey: The Ultimate "How-to" Guide for Fantasy Hockey Players ($14.95) www.amazon.com/dp/1936635100




Fantasy Basketball Handbook: The Ultimate "How-to" Guide for Beginners and Experienced Players ($12.95) www.amazon.com/dp/1936635097



http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/fantasy-basketball-handbook-sam-hendricks/1107640391



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Sunday, July 6, 2014

Jimmy Graham Grievance Decided He is a TE!

In case you have been concentrating on World Cup Football (Soccer to Yanks) let me enlighten you on a developing Fantasy Football story. Jimmy Graham, the Super Star TE, is currently involved in a grievance case against his team the New Orleans Saints. UPDATE: He has been ruled a TE!

 Background: NO wants to pay Graham like a Top TE. They gave him the teams franchise tag but as a TE not as a WR. That means less money for Jimmy. 
TE gets $7 Million.
WR gets $12 Million.
Quite a difference and Graham is new school at TE and moves around quite a bit. He is not your typical stay in and block TE with a late slide to the middle of the field. In fact he lined up wide or in the slot 2/3 of the time he in the game so he has a legitimate gripe here.
He feels (and perhaps rightly so) that his numbers are worthy of WR $.

 The deadline for a ruling is 15 July so it will be resolved before training camp begins. However, if you are drafting Graham you need to know how your league will treat a decision that calls him a WR. If such a ruling is made then the NFL may call him a WR which means his position status will change for FF purposes. Or will it? How will your league rule? Normally it is the position that the league software. 

 Of course if he is ruled a TE than none of this discussion will matter. AND only really matter in leagues that have TE unique rules-like the FFPC and FPC that awards 1.5 PPR to TEs (as opposed to 1 PPR for other positions). Or leagues that do not allow TEs to be flex eligible. 

 Some questions to think about:
-If you already drafted him as a TE will he stay that way if the NFL subsequently changes his position to WR?
-When is the position locked in for FF Leagues? 
--At the start of the FF draft
--At the start of training camp
--At the start of the pre season
--At the start of the regular season
-Can a players NFL listed position change mid season? This is much more a factor in Fantasy Baseball then in FF.
-If you are in a tournament (such as FPC or TPC) does Grahams position change or should it stay the same for others who draft later?

 What do I think? 
If he is listed in the software as a TE when the first draft occurs (in the case of a tournament with lots of drafts on different dates) then he should stay at that position for the entire season. I guess what I am really saying is that there are no position changes in FF. Whatever the position he starts at he finishes in since some drafts occur before or after a change. It would be an unfair advantage for him to be listed as a TE for one draft of a tournament and then listed as a WR for other later drafts. 

 If you are in a local league just make sure you know whether he is a TE or WR based on your league rules in case the ruling makes the NFL change their mind about his position. 




Fantasy Football Tips (2nd Edition): 230 Ways to Win through Player Rankings, Cheat Sheets and Better Drafting ($12.95) www.amazon.com/dp/1936635151
Books from Extra Point Press:




Fantasy Football Guidebook (2nd Edition): Your Comprehensive Guide to Playing Fantasy Football ($19.95) http://www.amazon.com/dp/0982428650

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/fantasy-football-guidebook-sam-hendricks/1008633837


Fantasy Football Basics: The Ultimate "How to" Guide for Beginners available ($10.95) at Amazon http://www.amazon.com/dp/0982428634



Fantasy Hockey: The Ultimate "How-to" Guide for Fantasy Hockey Players ($14.95) www.amazon.com/dp/1936635100
Fantasy Basketball Handbook: The Ultimate "How-to" Guide for Beginners and Experienced Players ($12.95) www.amazon.com/dp/1936635097



http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/fantasy-basketball-handbook-sam-hendricks/1107640391
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Saturday, July 5, 2014

Tips for Draft Masters/Draft Experts/Draft Champions/Draft and Forget/Draft and Go Leagues Part 1

I have drafted in several draft masters drafts this season and decided to share some tips. This is an article from a few years ago but I have taken the liberty of updating it.

 The types of leagues have different names depending on who the operator is but most go by one of these monikers: Draft Masters (DM), Draft Experts (DE), Draft and Forget or a recent one Draft and Go.

 Tips
1) It is a total points league not H2H so you need to have a different mindset altogether. You always want to have at least two QB, TE, K and Defense. I suggest three of each but will explain why later. You need two of each because you cannot go to the waiver wire to add free agents on bye weeks. In a Draft Masters or Draft Experts league, it is draft and forget; meaning there are no free agent transactions. What you draft is what you get for the entire season. The format gives you the best score each week based on who is on your roster. Therefore, if you have only one kicker, then the week he is on a bye you will get no kicker points. Always have at least one extra player at each spot to cover for the byes and when injuries occur.

 2) Watch the bye weeks. Remember NO adds or drops. Therefore, if you have only two QBs and they are both on the same bye week you have hosed yourself out of QB points one week. Even if you have three QBs and only two are on the same bye week you lose their ability to back up the other one on a down week, when two are out on the same bye week. Granted it means you have more to backup the others on the one week where they might have been on a bye but the points you get from backing them up that one week generally will be far less then the potential points you could get while avoiding a zero if all are out on a bye the same week.
You cannot leave points missing like that.

 3) Try and get starters used for a flex position all from different bye weeks. This is tough and is not a must just a good to know type thing. In FFPC, you start 2 RB, 2 WR, 1 TE and 2 flex so that is 7 players starting from those 3 positions. There are 9 bye weeks (weeks 4-12). If each of the starters is out on bye on a separate week then you only need one strong replacement to step up each week from your bench to have steady points. If three or more starters are out on the same week that could potentially be a very bad week and reduce your overall points significantly. Note to everyone weeks 4, 9 and 10 have 6 teams out each week on a bye.

 4) If the roster size allows it, draft three QBs, TEs, Ks and Defenses. Why? The extra player at each position will give you on average about 30 points above most combinations of QBs, TEs, Ks and Defenses. Try it yourself. Look at the scores for most combinations of players then factor in an additional player from the bottom 25th -32nd. In many cases the extra player is used on the two bye weeks when only one of the combinations of players is available and then on a few more weeks he may be the top player and give you a few points more then you would have had. All in all 4-5 weeks as your top player at that position and giving you 6 more points each of those weeks means 25-30 extra points. Now if you do that at each of the positions (QB, TE, K and Defense) you have just guaranteed yourself another 100-120 points. What have you lost? Four players who were deep sleepers or handcuffs. You lost your RB8 and 9 and WR8 and 9. If you think one of the RBs and WRs at those spots can give you 100 extra points over your starters and backups, then by all means continue to draft them. I prefer easy extra points versus banking on a deep sleeper who will only start if my starters are hurt. I rationalize it that if my RB1 gets hurt and I need help and have to rely on my RB8 or 9, my season is over anyway. The FFPC expanded in 2014 from 26 to 28 man rosters. I suggest drafting 3/7/9/3/3/3 or 3/8/8/3/3/3 depending on how many RBs you draft early in the draft. If you go RB early and often then 6 or 7 RBs overall will work with a stockpile of WRs late. If you go WR early then you will need to stockpile RBs later and hope one or two hit. 
5) Never wait until the last round to draft one of those third QB, TE, K or defenses unless you absolutely know there will be enough for you in the last round. Bottom line is draft all of the third QB, TE, K and Defenses before the last round. Save the last pick for an extra WR sleeper. This way you know you will have them and do not run the risk of another team drafting the last kicker or defense. 
I recommend saving the 27th and 28th on WR sleepers and drafting your K3 in the 25th rd and DEF3 in the 26th round.

 6) Look at combos: QB by committee, TE by committee, defense by committee etc. FFGuys.com always has articles about which combos are best to go with. Look at these articles and plan whom you think you can get and who works best.

 7) Look at who is left and how best to draft. If you have three TEs with the same bye week to choose from for your TE2 and another TE with a different bye week, who do you pick? Go with one of the TEs from the same bye because chances are your third TE choices are less likely to be from that bye week now that so many were gone. Basically try and look ahead to which TEs will be left and their bye weeks. Try to draft a player who has a bye week that is not the same as the majority of the players from that position left to draft.

 Check back tomorrow for more Draft Master Tips!

Fantasy Football Tips (2nd Edition): 230 Ways to Win through Player Rankings, Cheat Sheets and Better Drafting ($12.95) www.amazon.com/dp/1936635151
Books from Extra Point Press:







Fantasy Football Guidebook (2nd Edition): Your Comprehensive Guide to Playing Fantasy Football ($19.95) http://www.amazon.com/dp/0982428650

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/fantasy-football-guidebook-sam-hendricks/1008633837


Fantasy Football Basics: The Ultimate "How to" Guide for Beginners available ($10.95) at Amazon http://www.amazon.com/dp/0982428634




Fantasy Hockey: The Ultimate "How-to" Guide for Fantasy Hockey Players ($14.95) www.amazon.com/dp/1936635100




Fantasy Basketball Handbook: The Ultimate "How-to" Guide for Beginners and Experienced Players ($12.95) www.amazon.com/dp/1936635097



http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/fantasy-basketball-handbook-sam-hendricks/1107640391
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