Why You Should Love Fantasy Football
Don’t think you have the time? Don’t get why people love it? Don’t worry: we have all the reasons why you should try it this fall.
Around this time of year, when you hear the word “Fantasy” — do you think of skinnydipping with Gronk or do you think “Oh jeez, I gotta do my homework for my draft!?” If you’re like us, the answer is YES.
Starting this week, we debut The Relish Fantasy Football League. Our entire crew is on board for our first-ever draft next week — and we’re sharing a series of Fantasy-focused stories, tips, tricks and juicy nuggets with our Relish fam, whether you’re a fantasy pro or probie.
First up, reasons to love Fantasy Football in the first place:
1. IT WILL EXPAND YOUR LOVE OF THE GAME:
Instead of just watching just your home team, you will truly enjoy watching pretty much every NFL game that is ever on, any device, any time — because chances are it will have an effect on how you’ll do this week. You’ll keep up on injuries, suspensions, rising stars, sleepers, and you can spend an entire Sunday Funday at the bar, not just a few hours watching your game and then going home. Borrrrrring.
2. IF YOUR HOME TEAM SUCKS, YOUR SEASON IS NOT LOST:
Some years, your real team is 🔥. Others, you can start planning a January vacay because you know you won’t need to stay put for the postseason. With fantasy, YOU COULD WIN THE SUPER BOWL! You. By yourself. Fame, glory, ticker-tape parades. Or cash if your league plays for a few bucks, a trophy if you’re like my family or at the very least bragging rights.
3. THE MORE THE MERRIER:
Fantasy is the perfect activity for your squad, your co-ed couple group, your family. (My family has a pretty intense league that involves lots of trash talk during the draft, through Thanksgiving and continuing through Christmas when the fantasy season is over. Then we exchange gifts, do a trophy ceremony and all is forgiven. Sort of.) Whether your crew lives near or far, your FFL can be a touchpoint each week where you gather in person, or virtually.
4. THERE’S GOOD TRASH TALK … ALL SEASON LONG!
Like I was saying: Who does not enjoy some good, clean trash talk!? You can mock someone for choosing a QB in the first round of the draft (never do that, by the way). And let the in-season heckling begin when your brother’s first-round draft pick gets injured in Week 2. Heckling during your live or online draft is a must, and via email is best during the season, with the rest of your crew cc’d so they can catch your clever jabs + comebacks. Social media is ok, but the rest of us won’t be in on your jokes, unless you and your fantasy buddies have a special Facebook group, specifically for trash-talking during the season.
5. THERE IS SOMETHING FOR EVERYBODY
Not ready for a Dynasty Draft (where you keep players over a period of years) or an Auction Draft (where you have a certain amount of pretend money and each player has a pretend value)? You can start with a “You Pick ‘Em” where you just have to pick who you think will win each week. Not very social, but start there and then think about moving up to a Standard Draft League.
6. STOP YOUR NONSENSE, YOU HAVE TIME FOR IT.
I am very busy. I make time for Fantasy Football. I take a few hours to prep for the draft. I use a ton of online tools and cheat sheets (which I’ll share next week). And then I take about 30 mins a week on Thursday mornings or at lunch to research and set my teams for that night and the weekend. I honestly don’t do a ton of trading throughout the season. Some people obsessively switch up their teams … I tend to draft my team and get very attached to them. I did a ton of homework and busted my butt during that exhilarating draft —why would I want to trade them every five minutes?!
See you soon for tips for your draft, inside info and juicy nuggets to make all of your fantasy dreams come true. Well, almost all of them.
Sports served up fresh to in your inbox, on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Follow along!
