Fantasy Football: The Hidden Requirements
Fantasy football is a hobby that nearly 32 million Americans participate in annually.
Background
In Fantasy Football, players join leagues, which are groups of teams ranging from four teams up to twelve or fourteen teams, increasing in even increments (4, 6, 8, etc.). Scoring (depending on the league) is determined by NFL (National Football League) players’ performances week to week. Touchdowns, yardage, catches, and turnovers all go into each individual’s score. A team’s score is determined by the performance (score) of each NFL player added up. There are several types of leagues one can join with different scoring guidelines, different amounts of players in each position, etc.
Gee
James Gee is a linguist that wrote a journal entry called Literacy, Discourse, and Linguistics: Introduction. Fantasy Football is a Discourse because the members of it all have the same knowledge, actions, and sign systems. A capital ‘D’ Discourse is defined by Gee as “ways of being in the world; they are forms of life which integrate words, acts, values, beliefs, attitudes, and social identities as well as gestures, glances, body position, and clothes” (7).
Secondary Non-Dominant
Fantasy Football is a secondary non-dominant Discourse for me because it simply includes me in a group of people that also play; It brings no increase in social status. As Gee says, “non-dominant Discourses are secondary Discourses the mastery of which often brings solidarity with a particular social network, but not wider status and social goods in the society at large” (8).
Knowledge and Success
Sign systems and knowledge is an important aspect of the Fantasy Football Discourse because everyone must speak the same language (use the same terminology) and have the same knowledge, to a degree. Higher degrees of knowledge about football typically lead to greater success in all fantasy leagues. Knowledge important to being included in the Discourse would be teams’ strengths and weaknesses, player types and their roles on their team, and team tendencies/ playbooks. Knowing a player’s role on their team against certain opponents would make it easier to predict how well they will perform each week.
For example, a running back that catches a lot of passes out of the backfield playing a defense with a good secondary and athletic linebackers is unlikely to have a breakout (high performance) game. The defense will be able to contain that type of play more easily than a defense with a less talented secondary and less athletic linebackers would.
NFL Insider
One source of knowledge commonly used by Fantasy Football players is insider information from professionals in the Discourse. Matthew Berry, a football insider for ESPN (Entertainment and Sports Programming Network), comes out with a Love/ Hate analysis article each week for players he expects to do well or poorly each week. Such articles take into account previous matchups and performances, as well as any injuries, setbacks, or improved circumstances for a given NFL player.
Time is Money
There is also a set of practices involved in being a member of the Fantasy Football Discourse. These practices include reading up on current news within the NFL, keeping track of player performances, and updating one’s starting lineup each week. Each week a few NFL teams have what is referred to as a bye week. A bye week is a week that a team does not have a game and gets extra time to rest between games. When a team’s bye week comes around the NFL players throughout the Fantasy league must be switched out of the starting lineup for players not on a bye week.
These statistics also illustrate the values possessed by people that participate in Fantasy Football.
What’s Important?
Members of the Fantasy Football Discourse value dedication and winning. The fantasy players have to be dedicated to have the best team they possibly can each week and the NFL players have to be dedicated to perform to the best of their abilities on a consistent basis. Having dedication leads to better results and higher chances of winning in the NFL as well as in Fantasy Football.
Fantasy Football is a Discourse
The secondary non-dominant Discourse of Fantasy Football is a unique group of individuals that all share common knowledge, sign systems, practices, beliefs, and values. These sign systems and knowledge make up the backbone of the Discourse because without those aspects, one would not be successful in the Fantasy Football Discourse. The individuals within the Fantasy Football Discourse also believe in and value dedication and competition. One must stay up to date on information regarding NFL events, statistics, and injuries in order to have a successful season of Fantasy Football.
