Every year, with the screaming fans, tailgating, wings and beer, inevitably comes the hoards of people posted up at their computers at 11am on Sunday desperately checking to make sure their rosters are set. "P"? "Q"? "IR"? "SSPD"? WHAT?? There is one thing that Fantasy Football always provides, and that is a little extra drama on game day.
Most of the men folk who have stopped by this post have probably already stopped reading. "Why is a girl claiming to know anything about Fantasy Football?" I don't know, but I schooled ten people last year (3rd place woohoo), and am poised to do the same this year, so I feel as though I can say something on the subject. But I digress.
Why do I love Fantasy Football? It's simple - it connects you with the game and the league in a unique way. It opens the eyes of die-hard fans, and forces them to be aware of goings-on outside of their little NFL boxes. I'm not judging, I'm speaking from experience. Going into my first draft last year, I had done my research alright. I printed out all of ESPN's goodies, did some colorful highlighting, the works. I even showed up early to avoid the inevitable failed internet connection that would surely doom my season. Despite my efforts, however, my draft order remained as follows: Brady, Welker, Gronkowski, Green-Ellis. Oh, I need a kicker? Gostowski. Oh, I need a D? Patriots D. I think you get where I'm going with this.. I was going to recreate the Patriots on my Fantasy lineup and I would be golden. Right?
WRONG. Drafting 6th, Brady was gone before you could say "Shut Up Gisele". In fact, the only player from the 2011-12 Patriots squad that I nabbed was Green-Ellis, who, after a mediocre season, is now with the Bengals. Enough said. So I was left with my highlighting, and nervously pulled together a lineup. As my justifications weren't "he's hot", I figure I was miles ahead of other female rookies.
Fast forward to the end of the season and there I was, in third place, and seriously addicted to the game. Not in a weird, obsessively-reading-stats-every-day way, but in a there's-interesting-things-outside-of-the-Patriots-way. Don't get me wrong, I'm still an avid Pats fan, but I started taking an interest what else was going on in the NFL, and who else might be able to get me a few extra fantasy points (and a little more street cred). Case and point: Wallace-Brown receiving duo. Thank you very much.
So here we are, preparing for the first game of Week 2 of the NFL Season. Where am I now? Well, due to circumstances outside my control, I had to autodraft this year. Insert GASP here. I did what I could - I set my position order, player order, etc. - but it's just not the same. I've made a few waiver moves (thanks for the 23 points Garcon!) and am currently 1-0. How will things end up? Who knows, but that's the beauty of the game.
Game On
One final thought: There is a game tonight. Don't be that person. Set your lineup.
SJ
No comments:
Post a Comment