5 Things That Will Happen In Your League

Those of us who play in long-standing fantasy football leagues with the same group of friends may have noticed that there are certain situations that are bound to happen every year. While confrontations and consternations are quite common in fantasy football, the following scenarios are practically universal. Read on to see if these situations occur in your league.

#5. Insane claims from your opponents as to whom they will draft. Despite playing with the same experienced people for many years (dating back to when commissioners had to calculate scores by hand and verify stats with a newspaper), there is always one owner who has unrealistic expectations of who will be available to them to draft. For example:

TODD: So, who are you thinking about grabbing with the #12 pick, Joe?
JOE: Well, I figure I’ll use the snake pick to grab Brian Westbrook and Adrian Peterson and lock down my starting running backs.
TODD: You really think they will be there at picks 12 and 13?
JOE: Probably. Worst case scenario, I figure I’ll grab Westbrook and Tom Brady.

There is no use trying to argue the implausability of their logic. It is best to just let them learn the hard way. Sadly, they never do.

#4. Drafting a player no one has heard of and then telling everyone they better watch out for this guy. This scenario usually occurs as a result of watching garbage time in a preseason game and seeing a back-up player excel. While it is more likely that this player is simply fighting for a roster spot, your friend is convinced the player is well on his way to a Hall of Fame career. Moreover, your delusional friend is now ready to proclaim himself the Mel Kiper Jr. of fantasy drafts. For example:

DAVE: I will take Marcus Mason with my pick. Remember that name, chumps! Mason will be the find of the draft! Mark my words!
YOU: Dude, you know you just drafted a 4th-string running back?
DAVE: Did you see him during the preseason? He was ripping it up. I guarantee he will be starting by Week 6. You can’t keep that kind of talent on the bench.

Again, it’s just better to let him learn the hard way. He knows what he saw in this player and no amount of reason or logic will change that.

#3. Someone will take trash talking too far. Trash talk is common in fantasy football and for the most part it is all friendly banter, but there is always someone that takes it a little too far. For example:

DAVE’S PUNISHERS: You are going down this week, Steve. Your team is a bunch of chumps. Brady is on a bye week, so he won’t save you like he always does. Make sure you watch the games with tissues because you are going to cry when you see the beat down I am going to hand out.
STEVE’S KILLA CREW: Dude, your team is weak and falling apart just like your marriage did last year. The only beat downs will be served up by me.

Incidents like this require immediate action. Hopefully the commissioner of your league steps in and deletes the message quickly. If not, the next time your league meets in person it could be a very awkward get-together.

#2. An owner offers a one-sided trade and claims he is doing the other owner a favor. Without fail, someone will offer up a lopsided trade and claim he is the one not receiving fair value. He might even attempt to put into practice the remedial concepts he learned in Psychology 101 at the local community college. For example:

DAVE: Dude, I really shouldn’t do this, but I am willing to give you Matt Jones and Ladell Betts for Steven Jackson and Tony Romo.
YOU: Are you serious? I am not even sure Jones is still in the league and Betts is a back-up to Clinton Portis.
DAVE: Well, I hate to tell you this, but Betts is not a back-up. He is a change-of-pace back. There’s a big difference. Jones is about to blow up, and besides, I don’t know if you saw but Romo is injured. I am the one taking a risk.
YOU: Romo has a bruised shin.
DAVE: That kind of injury can haunt you all season. If you don’t want to make the deal, that’s cool. I’ll sweeten the pot by throwing in Marcus Mason if that helps, but you’re kind of robbing me here.

It is always better to just walk away from owners like this. You will never be able to get a fair deal out of them.

#1. Someone will be very angry over a trade. This is a guarantee. The degree to which the league is disrupted depends largely on the person and the trade. There are some owners that, no matter how fair the trade seems, will turn into a raving lunatic and reenact the infamous Jim Mora playoff tirade. For example:

CHRIS: This is BS. I can’t believe you guys won’t vote to veto this trade. I swear – this is my last year in this league. I mean, Brian Westbrook for Adrian Peterson? That is insane. Are we really going to allow this trade? Why don’t we just give the prize money to Dave right now? Is this what our league has become? You guys are so bush league!

You can never please these kinds of owners. They make outrageous claims and threaten to leave the league, but always end up coming back for more.

I hope you can relate to and enjoyed this list. It was fun putting it together and brought back a lot of great memories. With my draft mere days away, I can’t wait to see these familiar scenarios again.

 
Like most people here Todd lives and and breathes football, and has been playing fantasy football for many years. You can catch up with Todd in the Cafe Forums where he posts as toddrules.
 

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