Down and Dynasty
Recapping the season
Fantasy can be a cruel mistress. You scout the prospects, evaluate the team situations and dig deep for those hidden gems, but there can only be one champion. Sometimes we are fooled into thinking our team is better than it really is. Maybe we start off with four or five wins against only a couple losses even though we are scoring in the middle of the pack. The other side of the coin we have a team that stumbles out of the gate winning only two or three of our first six because of injuries or bad luck.
How did your season go?
Mine was a mixed bag. I am currently in eight dynasty leagues of different sizes and formats, so winning them all is probably not realistic. I enjoy the competition and the friendships made through joining leagues with people I don’t know. When I travel, I will try to meet up with my “new friends” that I share this passion for fantasy football with. I was able to make one of those connections this past off season when I had meet up in Virginia with the commissioner of a couple leagues I’m in. We enjoyed some barbecue and got to know a little about each other outside of fantasy football. Let’s take a look at a few of my leagues.
Nerd Herd Writers Dynasty — 12 team PPR — Ben and Eli’s Senior Living: 1–12
Nothing quite as humbling as getting into an expert’s league and getting your butt handed to you. This was a new league and I really like my team after the start up. I thought I had built a win now team, but alas it was not to be. I made a couple of questionable trades looking back on them and I had some guys — David Johnson, Larry Fitzgerald, Doug Baldwin, LeSean McCoy and Demaryius Thomas — underperform due to injury or age. After Week 5 and an 0–5 start I moved Johnson, Emmanuel Sanders and a fourth for Kerryon Johnson, Marquez Valdez-Scantling and first, second and fourth round picks. Re-build underway.
Final Destination Empire — 12 team, super flex, PPR— Hot Wet Trash: 2–11
This is an orphan I took over in 2017. That year we finished 6–7 after going 5–8 in the inaugural season. Clearly something needed to be done. The team I took over was bereft of draft capital, so I had made some moves leading into 2018. In the rookie draft I took Josh Rosen, Christian Kirk, Dallas Goerdert and Daurice Fountian and placed them all on my taxi squad as I went into tank mode. I did activate Rosen late in the season as I was down to zero starting quarterbacks in a superflex. Tanking does not come without risk as this is an empire league, and if someone wins in consecutive years the league will re-set. I have picked up James Washington,Valdez-Scantling and Chris Herndon to go with 1.01, 1.04, 2.06 to start the draft. My team is young but is on its way to competing so keep your fingers crossed that the defending champion gets knocked off in the playoffs.
Official Dynasty Questions League — 12 team, half PPR — Columbus Panhandles: 6–7
In 2017 I was in the playoffs, but was knocked out in Week 12 of 2018. Poised in the middle of the first round for the rookie draft with a fairly young team I do not think I’m ready for a total tear down just yet. This league is home to my biggest trade regret. In the 2017 rookie draft I selected Alvin Kamara with the 1.11, but for some inexplicable reason wanted Zay Jones and traded Kamara for the 2.01 and a fifth-round pick. My thought was I could get Marlon Mack at the 2.04, which I did. Mack and Jones have a ways to go to match Kamara’s production, but back to 2018. This is a team in need of a couple bona fide superstars. There is some potential in Sony Michel, Antonio Callaway, Carson Wentz, Elijah McGuire and Mike Williams, but each will need to take a big step in 2019. I have some depth with Kenyan Drake, Alshon Jeffrey, Julian Edelman, Vance McDonald and Drew Brees. This off season will need to produce some upgrades or I will be burning it down next off season as the worst place to be in fantasy football is that 5–7 to 7–5 range.
Private Dicks League — 16 team, PPR, super flex, 2 tight end, 9 IDP — Chief Wiggum — 6–7
Ezekiel Elliott, Russell Wilson and Matt Stafford were to be the centerpiece of this team. Zeke did his part, and Russ got off to his usual slow start, but man Stafford really struggled. I got off to a 1–4 start and made a trade for Kareem Hunt, which I have written about before. I just missed the playoffs after a winning streak I closed with games against the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds and was knocked from the playoffs in Week 13. This is a really deep league and as part of my push for the playoffs I spent a lot of draft capital. We do not have a trading deadline, so I have since become a seller and have picked up a couple of draft picks for some veterans. I did handcuff Elliott and Hunt for insurance and Spencer Ware is a free agent next year. Ware showed this week he has returned to his rookie year form. I was able to trade Stafford and Elijah McGuire for Austin Ekeler and Big Ben when I was trying to close the deal. My biggest shortfall was missing on the IDP spot. We start 3 DB, 3 LB, 3 DL with balanced scoring, so IDP scoring is on par with offensive scoring. The first half of the season I did not maximize my IDP. Lesson learned. Time to move on to draft prep.
Fantasy Life 20 Dynasty- 20 team, half PPR, 3 IDP — Columbus Panhandles: 8–5
I took over an orphan team in this league and it was my first dynasty team, so I have a soft spot for it. The team I took over had Phillip Rivers, DJ, Mike Evans and TY Hilton, and I went on to win the title that first year I was in. This league has four five-team divisions, and I won my division again in 2018 and secured a first round bye. Twelve teams make the playoffs (I know, it’s a lot) and the regular season is 12 weeks instead of 13. My team now has Aaron Rodgers, DJ, Kerryon, Melvin Gordon, Evans, Kenny Golladay and Trey Burton. My next opponent is rolling out Tom Brady, Saquon Barkley and Keenan Allen. Brady and Barkley have tough matchups, but Golladay has really been struggling and Kerryon and Gordon will be coming off an injury. My teams are matching up against the Buffalo, Baltimore and Chicago defenses in Week 15, so it could go either way.
So that is a recap of some of my dynasty teams this season. I have plans for the teams that need work and will keep my fingers crossed that my last playoff team makes it through next week. Good luck to you this week. Don’t forget there are Saturday NFL games this week. Drop me a note on Twitter @culture_coach and tell me how your dynasty season is going or went. What is you plan to get to the championship next year? You do have a plan, right?
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