Sunday, September 23, 2012

Fantasy Football: Fun for all

The first ever fantasy football league began in 1963 in Oakland, California by a group of west coast football guru’s and avid Oakland Raider fans who were looking to make the AFL a little bit more interesting that season.  Since that first league, Fantasy Football has been played by over 30 million people.
What is Fantasy Football?  Fantasy football leagues are often made up of groups of friends, co-workers, classmates, or just people from the same area that get together and create a league. Websites such as ESPN, YAHOO, and CBS offer free fantasy football for users to join as either a private group or you can join and play in a league with random people from across the country. Most leagues are on-line; however, leagues can function without the aid of the internet though this is a less popular option.
Fantasy football leagues are made up of 6-24 teams that generally consist of a quarterback, two running backs, three wide receivers, a tight end, a kicker, and a defense. Fantasy teams draft their players prior to the start of the NFL season and manage their team throughout the year by determining which players to start each week, which free agents to pick up, and making trades with other teams in the league. Points are awarded to each team based on how well each player performs in their game each week. Points are awarded to offensive position players based on touchdowns and yards gained. Kickers gain points by making their field goals and extra points with more points being awarded for making longer kicks.  The defense scores points by getting turnovers as well as performing well on special teams.
Fantasy teams are given a schedule and play a different opponent each week. The team that scores the most points during the week is the winner of the game. Just like any other sporting league the top teams go on to make the playoffs and compete in a bracket leading up to the fantasy football Super Bowl usually held during the final week of the NFL season.  
Go Play!  Whether you are a huge fan of the NFL or you have never even seen a football game you should give fantasy football a shot. Fantasy football can be as simple or as complicated as you choose to make it. Avid football fans love to compete with fantasy football and it allows them to study and keep up with teams and players throughout the season all while enjoying a friendly competition with friends. People with little to no knowledge of the NFL play along with friends just for fun as well as use it as a tool to learn the game. Try something new this season, create a team and manage your group of NFL stars to a fantasy league victory!

4 comments:

  1. I have come to conclusion that Fantasy Football, with me personally anyways, is a “LOVE/HATE RELATIONSHIP”. And I do not say that based solely on my personal experiences with it but off of how I and all my friends watch football these days. Gone are the days of just sitting around and watching the games in a relaxing fashion. Fantasy Football has created an importance to every game as long as you or the person you are playing that particular week has someone on their fantasy team playing. The new Dr. Pepper 10 commercial with the football player sums up Fantasy Football in one sentence that relates to every person who participates. The football player begins the commercial with a simple question and answer, “Ladies, why is your man watching this snoozer of a game? Because I’m on his fantasy football team.” Fantasy football has created meaning to games that otherwise would not be on the average fan’s radar.

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  2. Draft day for fantasy football has become something like a national holiday for my friends and me for the past 5 years. A month in advance we are getting our league together, planning our draft party, talking draft strategies and talking smack for the highly anticipated fantasy football season. For myself and my friends who are in a league together every year, fantasy football has become a way for us all to always keep in touch and compete with each other. No matter how long we all go without seeing or talking to each other we always know we have fantasy football coming. Fantasy football not only brings people together in friendly competition, it makes the entire NFL season more exciting and interesting. Because your fantasy football team is comprised of players from a number of different teams, you find yourself watching games and keeping up with players stats and game scores that you wouldn’t usually bother with. I agree with Arthur’s comment on fantasy football creating importance to almost every game played, but I believe that is what makes fantasy football so exciting and why it has become a worldwide phenomenon.

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  3. Fantasy football is a game that will change your view on how you watch football. The ordinary way you would watch a game would be to turn on the television and watch one of your favorite teams or maybe one of your favorite players. Fantasy football totally changes that perspective; you no longer watch just your favorite team but every player that is starting on your fantasy roster, you may even root against your team if the opposing team has one of your fantasy players. Every time one of your players touches the ball you start yelling at the screen: “come on, come on, I need these points,” When you’re playing against a friend, you text or call each other to talk trash and rub it in each other’s face. Fantasy football is very exciting because of that friendly competition involved in your league play and the two way street of trying to remain a dedicated fan to your favorite team but secretly root for the success of their opponent just so you can receive fantasy points. In conclusion, I would like to just say my fantasy team is doing quite well at 4-0!

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  4. I never really had a chance to be a part of a fantasy league because I was a collegiate athlete and as an athlete that is against the rules. I didn't understand all the hype surrounding fantasy football until this year. One of my good friends decided to create a league and instantly I was hooked. I have found myself rooting against my favorite teams in real life because my opponent in my fantasy league may have some of the star players on his team. I check my updates every time one of my players make a good play. I also check my opponents point total as well. Its not just the in season experience that I enjoy most about fantasy football. The draft is hands down my favorite part of the fantasy league. Fighting for position to get lottery picks because some players are consider sure points in the league. Players like Drew Brees, Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers are all at the top of the list. Fantasy football is just a good way to bring friends together to enjoy some harmless competition.  

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