The Fantasy Draft season has come to a conclusion for 95% of leagues (yes, there are probably drafts up until Thursday), so from here on out, we will focus on In Season adjustments to your team.  I have posted my final 150 lists for Drafts in case you still draft this week at the bottom of this post.  This post will focus on how to come up with your weekly routine during the season to be successful.  Then, I will do what I will do every week – Key Pick Ups, Trade Targets and Sneaky Starters.

Weekly Routine

For me, the most important thing for any Fantasy Player is to have a consistent routine that they follow every single week.  To use a quote from Remember The Titans, “It’s like novacaine.  Just give it time, it always works.”  That is true for Fantasy.  You have to come up with a consistent pattern to analyze your team, the match ups, etc.  If you don’t then, you will be trying things new every week and following the pack.  Be yourself!!  Just like I suggested making your own list based on your league settings, you need to have a routine.  I’m going to suggest one here, but make it your own.  Now, this routine is actually good for both Season Long and Daily Fantasy.  I’ll highlight the adjustments in this section.  We haven’t focused on Daily Fantasy a lot in the past few weeks, but now is the time to incorporate Daily Fantasy into your weekly routine, too.

  • Get Your Sources Down 
    • League Pages – Most league pages have status updates for every player on your team and in the league.  Get familiar with the information given.  I like to read these on my way to work on the train each day (when I didn’t drive to work) or at lunch.  You can review at any time.
    • Twitter
      • I recommend following some of the league’s most dialed in reportors:  Adam Scheter for ESPN and Ian Rapoport for the NFL.  When news breaks, they will have it.  Others you can consider here are:  Josina Anderson and Stephania Bell (an injury professional) at ESPN.
      • I also recommend you follow some Fantasy Experts who will post their information on players – Jamey Eisenberg, Heath Cummings and Dave Richard of CBS, Matthew Berry and Field Yates on ESPN, Jeff Mans on GuruElite and John Hansen on the Fantasy Guru.  These guys all are doing tons of research and will have breaking news and picks for you.
      • Finally, dial into some beat reporters for your key guys or players you are interested in.  Find out who the local writers are in those markets and follow them, often times, the big guys get their information from these guys.  Why not get it first?!?
    • Subscriber Services – there are a ton of them out there.  If you have the extra money and want to invest in them, then go for it.  I do not do the sites personally.  I draw from a lot of sources to be balanced.  However, most of the top guys will have great advice for you.
      • Sirius XM Fantasy – if you already are a Sirius subscriber and haven’t added this channel, then do it!!  When I bought my Ford Fusion in 2014, I found this station and have won 2 titles and another 2 3rd place finishes since.  All the experts have shows on the channel, and I follow a lot of them on Twitter.  It is Channel 210.  The other one is the NFL station which gives you good information (Channel 88).
      • Podcasts – Maybe you don’t have Sirius, which is cool.  A lot of the big guys have podcasts with the same content they provide on their sites for free on your iPhone Podcasts or Sound Cloud.  I listen to the 2 big ones – CBS – Fantasy Football Today (Jamey, Dave and Heath) and ESPN’s 06010 Fantasy Podcast (Yates and Berry).  If you listen a couple times a week, then you will be dialed in.
      • Sites Subscriptions – Again, I do not use these, but there are a lot of good ones:  Fantasy Guru, GuruElite, RotoGrinders (Daily), RotoExperts, Pro Football Focus and FantasyPros (I like the Football Diehards the best on Fantasy Pros – afternoon drive on Sirius).  All of these sites will give you advice, rankings, and injury information.  They cost money, though.  So, be prepared.
  • Know Your Team – Now that you have your team assembled, go in depth with each player with the information listed above.  Your team should consist of 3 groups of players:  1) Studs – your no doubt starters every week, 2) Current starters who fill in your starting lineup but can be replaced and 3) Upside players who could break out aka Lottery Tickets.
    • Who Are Your Studs? – Now, there are guys on your team that should start every week of the year.  Don’t think too much about it.  If you picked them at the top of the Draft, then they should start (unless injured).  Don’t over think the match up.  If your guys are in the Top 12 at a position, then start them.  It’s the other guys you have to scrutinize over.  That is what the rest of this section is mostly about.
    • What slots in your lineup do you need to decide on each week?  Hopefully, you only have 2 spots or less that you have to decide upon each week.  You should have 3-4 guys who can start each week for you, but of course, you can upgrade throughout the season if others emerge.  Those are the guys you want to focus your week in week out analysis on until you feel like they are a borderline stud.
    • Lottery Tickets – Who on your team is a lottery ticket, which means a guy you have on your bench that may be a league winner come the playoffs.  These are the guys who you have speculated on in the Draft, but may not play a lot early.  They will be the first cut if you need space on the roster, but you need to keep guys on your bench that could be a starter if something changed.
    • Byes – Don’t worry about byes just yet.  The first bye is in Week 4.  People look too closely at that at the start of the season.  A lot can happen in 3 weeks.  Sure, take note of the byes, but we will get to that in Week 3 and beyond.
  • Weekly Activity
    • Recommended Schedule:
      • Monday/Tuesday –
        • Review your entire team’s performance – Stats recorded, but more importantly the other things.  You may need to pull up the game log to get some of these stats, but it is worth it.
          • QB – attempts are more important than completions early on.  Who is throwing the ball more?  Does my QB run at all?  Red Zone Efficiency – how many times did the team get inside the 20 yard line and throw?  How did my QB fare in the match up? That is how you look at QBs.
          • RB – Rushing Attempts, Targets and rushes inside the 10 yard line are the most important things to look at here.  Did your RB lose touches inside the 10 yard line to another player?
          • WR – Targets to the player, Was your WR the top target in the offense?  Red Zone targets?  I want guys who get the most targets total and in the Red Zone.
          • TE – Targets and Red Zone targets – really important for TEs
          • DST – Sacks and Turnovers – Points against is big, of course, but steady production comes from the Sacks and TOs
          • K – Efficiency – be sure your Kicker didn’t miss multiple kicks
        • Who are my Waiver Wire targets this week?  More on this next week, but who had a big week and is actually not on a team.  Hint:  You are looking at the same info as your own team mentioned above by position.
      • Wednesday
        • Set your initial lineup – We all get busy.  Don’t be that guy who forgets to set their lineup, so do an initial pass by Wednesday at the latest.  Plus, you should make your decision on a Thursday night start as early as possible.
        • Review your players practice report, especially if injured.
      • Friday – Review practice reports, especially for injured players
      • Sunday (morning) – Lock in your final lineup with all the info you collect.
      • Sunday (afternoon/night) – Try to watch as much of the games as you can.  Highlights can be misleading.  You want guys on your team who score TDs, sure, but the strongest Fantasy Teams have the guys who are the biggest parts of their offense – Targets, Touches and Throwing Attempts.  A big play could be the only play for that WR or big run from a RB.
  • Key Information to Review (in Detail):
    • Injury Status – One of the key elements of having a good fantasy team is knowing when to play your player or not.  The injury designation is pretty simple these days – Questionable (50% chance to play or better) or Doubtful (Less than 50% chance to play) or Out (will not play).  Obviously, some injuries are more problematic than others.  So, know what each player you have is doing from a health standpoint.  In a typical week, practices are Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.  So, if a player is injured, then they will be on a practice report or not.  Most fantasy sites update this daily during that period if there is a status change.  So, know where your players are come Tuesday morning and again by Friday (if it is a Sunday game).  I tend to stay away from players who are injured and are playing in the Thursday Night Game.  You should have another viable option at that position, unless it is your stud guy you have to have in the lineup (that’s why we handcuff the stud RB).
    • Practice Reports – Most sites give you updates on your player if there is a status change from practice.  If a guy is losing reps in practice or they are looking to involve them in the offense more, then you can track this accordingly.  Twitter follows will also update practice reports for you.
    • What are the Experts Saying? – Look at your favorite rankers. Where do your favorite experts rank your players this week given the match up? If you are between 2 players, then maybe that can help. You can only manage your team, but it does not hurt to see where your opponent’s players are ranked to see if you need to take a bit of risk at certain swing positions than others. Again, I’ll be putting a few plays out there, but these other experts have time and resources to get everything figured out.  I use them, too.
    • Match Up Analysis – The most important bit of information is the match up, especially in Daily Fantasy Football.
      • Vegas Expected Point Totals – Look at the Over/Under and the Spread for the game.  If there is a high total, then there may be a lot of points in that game.  You can figure out the expected total for a team like this:  Take the O/U amount, subtract the projected spread, then divide by 2.  That number is the team expected to lose the game.  Add back the spread to get the team expected to win.  You want as may players in the highest scoring games as possible.  This is especially true in Daily Fantasy.  When building a weekly lineup, look to the high scoring games and highest expected team totals first.
      • Position against the Defense – So, if your WR is going to face off against a top CB, then you need to adjust your expectations or find another player.  Pro Football Focus has a CB match up chart that they update every week for this.  Again, I do not use it, but I do listen to their show on Sirius and can piece together the general gist.  After a couple of weeks, you will know the top CBs and plan accordingly.  RBs will look at Run Defenses.  QBs will look at general pass defense.
      • Secondary Options – When a team has a stud CB or great rushing defense, then considering looking at the secondary option.  For example, when a team plays Jacksonville who have a great pass defense, then maybe start the TE in that match up.  Or a pass catching RB against the Ravens who have a good run defense.  Again, this is only if you are between 2 non-studs in your lineup or looking at Daily Fantasy match ups for cheaper players.
    • In Game Research – When watching the games themselves, look for things that may not be on the stat sheet like:
      • Over Throws – to WRs or TEs down the field – these are big plays missed
      • Offensive Tendencies – Does your player’s team run the ball inside the 10 or throw it?
      • Other Targets – Who in the game you are watching is making a big impact or looks really good?  Are they on the waiver wire?
  • Tracking System – The last thing I recommend as part of your routine is to create a spreadsheet.  I’ve attached one of mine.  Yes, your site will track the performance, too.  However, I like to layout the performance over the course of the weeks.
    • Consistency of Performance – Averages are one thing, but seeing a player week in and week out and what they will give you is key.
    • Starters/Bench/Total – It is important to know if you are leaving points on the table each week.  Sure you may see that in a given week, but maybe you are doing it every week.  Maximizing your lineup is the key to winning your league.
    • League Performance – Where do I stack up against my league every week?  That helps me understand if I just was unlucky in a loss or got lucky with a win.  I update this spreadsheet every Monday and Tuesday morning.

Fantasy Tracking Sheet

4/4/4 Segment

Each week I will post a group of players to target on the Waiver Wire, Trade Targets and Sneak Starters.  I’ll list 4 for each, hence the 4/4/4.  Early on, the trade targets may be pretty speculative, but it will come together in time.

Waiver Wire Targets – I’m going to focus on players that are less than 60% owned in most leagues.  So, guys you should see on your Waiver Wire.  Of course, in deeper leagues, these guys may be on rosters, but for each, I’ll give a rationale that you can look to use in your league.

  • Alfred Morris, RB, San Francisco – The starter Jerrick McKinnon, tore his ACL over the weekend, which opens the door for 2 guys – Matt Breida (who on CBS is 75% owned) and Alfred Morris (59% owned).  Both should be on your team, but Morris is likely available to you since the news is so fresh.  Morris is better in Standard leagues, since he is not a proficient pass catcher.  However, I would expect Morris to get early down work for at least the 1st month of the season.  Breida just came off of a shoulder injury.  Morris has a tough match up at Minnesota Week 1, but DET and KC are pretty good match ups going forward.
  • James Connor, RB, Pittsburgh – Le’Veon Bell has not reported to the Steelers or signed his franchise tag tender.  CBS lists Connor as owned in 47% of leagues.  If Bell signs, Connor is at worst a lottery ticket in a great offense.  If Bell sits out Week 1, then Connor can start against Cleveland.  Bell may not be ready for his full workload with the holdout, so even if Bell signs this week, Connor could get 10-15 touches.  Pick him up.
  • Keelan Cole, WR, Jacksonville – Marquise Lee, the top target, is out for the season.  Jacksonville will run the ball a lot, but they have to pass to someone.  Cole shined late in the season and playoffs last year.  He is the starter and could be their top target.  CBS lists him at 59% ownership.  I would pick him up just to see how the targets shake out, but Cole is also a deep threat and can score in any game – they play the Giants in Week 1 – not a terrible match up.
  • Mike Wallace, WR, Philadelphia – CBS lists him as only 13% owned.  Wallace was the top WR in Baltimore last year and still has good speed.  With Alshon Jeffery out for at least 6 weeks, that leaves a good spot in this offense for Wallace.  He may be the 3rd target here behind Ertz and Agholor, but Wallace is a pro WR that could make plays up the field and in the red zone.  I don’t love the match up against the Falcons in Week 1, but Wallace will be productive for the period Jeffery is out of the lineup.

Trade Targets – Again, this is a bit early given the season hasn’t started.  So, we will speculate here on who to target given some trends before Week 1.

  • Jordan Howard, RB, Chicago – The Bears just acquired premiere pass rusher, Khalil Mack from the Raiders.  This makes the Bears’ defense a lot better.  So, I would expect Howard to have more games he will be icing away leads for the Bears.  I’d target him now.
  • Rashad Penny, RB, Seattle – Chris Carson won the training camp battle over Penny.  However, the Seahawks didn’t draft Penny in the 1st round to have him sit on the bench.  I would expect Penny to take this job by October.  You can get him for a cheap price now, so make that move if you can.
  • JuJu Smith-Schuster, WR, Pittsburgh –  Everyone knows about Antonio Brown, he is the best, but there are 2 things I know – 1) the Steelers can draft good WRs and 2) Bell will not be full speed for the first few weeks.  So, that mean, JuJu could get more work early on here and I see that lasting through the season.  He will cost more than some guys, but trade for him before he goes off in Week 1.
  • Austin Hooper, TE, Atlanta – I expect the Falcons to be a lot better this year on offense, especially in the red zone.  Hooper should be the beneficiary (along with Julio Jones).  It’s pure speculation, but Hooper is an inexpensive trade option (or waiver wire pick up – 25% Owned) that you could get before Game 1 against Philly.

Week 1 Sneaky Starters – These are not the Top 10 guys at each position from Draft Day.  Those are clear studs that should be in your lineup.  These will be 4 guys you may be on the fence about in good match ups.  I like them for Daily Fantasy lineups, too (Fan Duel price listed).

  • Alex Collins, RB, Baltimore (FD $6700) – The Ravens host the Bills in Week 1, and the Bills are starting Nathan Peterman. Ravens are favored by 7 points at home, and I expect them to get a lead and pound the ball with Collins to kill clock. Some rankers have him in the Top 10, but he wasn’t drafted that way, so start him if you have him. He should get over 100 yards and a score.
  • Jordan Wilkins, RB, Indianapolis (FD $5100) – Marlon Mack has yet to practice with a hamstring injury.  Wilkins will be in line for the start against the Bengals who are a solid defense, but the line is set at 48.5 and the Colts are a 3 point favorite, so I like the amount of work Wilkins could get in this one with 20 touches and 100 total yards.
  • Kenny Stills, WR, Miami (FD $6000) – Stills is the default #1 WR for Miami.  Devante Parker should be the #1, but Stills is a pro who can run every route.  The Titans are not stellar in the secondary, and Stills should lead the team in targets and receptions in Week 1.  He was under-drafted in most formats.
  • Jared Cook, TE, Oakland (FD $5000)– The Raiders losing Mack will really hurt their defense, which means the offense will probably trail a lot in games this year.  In Week 1, the Rams come to town with a reloaded defense, especially at CB with Marcus Peters and Aquib Talib.  I do not see the outside WRs in Jordy Nelson and whoever they line up out there doing much.  I think Cook could get 10 targets in this game as the Raiders should get blitzed early.  Most rankers are not with me on this, but the logic seems sound here.  I’m seeing 5 catches and 70 yards with a TD.

Alright one last look at the Draft Rankings if you are drafting this week.

Standard 150

Fantasy List 2018 – Standard 3

PPR 150

Fantasy List 2018 – PPR 3

Good luck this week!  Enjoy the games and start your routine.

Wegs

 

 

About the author

I'm a 49 year old, twice divorced guy with a 20 year old. The blog has morphed a bit lately. Not just sports or dating, social commentary and now some stories from my past experience.