It's Personal: You Decide... FFL

My first experience with Fantasy Football didn't come until I reached Seattle. Even then, it was 3 years after I had arrived. Fantasy Football had never captured my fancy, as it were. I was content to cheer for the Giants and against the Cowboys. The idea of following individual players didn't seem to make much sense; in fact, it almost seemed disloyal. In 2005, I received an email from an old college friend. He told me that another member of the old clan had decided to cease playing, especially since he hadn't been terribly good. So, I said what the heck and threw my name in the mix. The name of my team? The Northwest NeeKnights for all you Monty Python fans. My draft consisted of Shaun Alexander, Larry Johnson, Tom Brady, Antonio Gates, Jimmy Smith, and Anquan Boldin. Now please don't laugh overly much, but I had fallen out of touch with football since moving to Seattle. I followed only the Giants and knew very few other players except for the superstars. And so, before the first week, I dropped Larry Johnson, Jimmy Smith, and Anquan Boldin. After some research, I had determined that Johnson was too young, Smith too old, and Boldin just had a weird-sounding name. I did realize my mistake after doing a bit more research and tried to get them back. Somehow, I succeeded in getting Johnson back. But not the other two. I recovered from losing Smith by picking up Jurevicius. But I could have used Smith. Nevertheless, I won that year by defeating the Gunslingers. And I haven't stopped playing since. Four teams in four leagues this year: New York State of Mind, A$$ Kickin Chickens, Seattle Buzz, and Spruce Moose.

My first experience with Fantasy Football came at the Outback at 27 Possum Park Mall in Newark, DE. The proprietor, an avid football fan, invited 14 of the staff - all guys, I seem to remember - to partake in the fun. As soon as I learned of the opportunity, I b-lined to a book store and purchased at least 3 separate magazines to make myself a fantasy expert. Having never played before, I didn't quite understand how points were awarded, so I concentrated on understanding what role running backs, wide receivers, quarterbacks, kickers, tight ends, and defenses played in the game. I soon learned that strong running backs were a must. Followed by at least 1 great receiver and a serviceable quarterback. I can tell you this. I didn't get Terrell Davis. No Randall Cunningham. Nor Jamal Anderson. Not Steve Young. Suffice it to say, I didn't draft particularly well. You see, I had spent so much time trying to figure out who the diamonds in the rough would be that I forgot to pick the studs, the guys who win FFL leagues. So instead of the highest ranking guys, I chose the likes of Keenan McCardell and Scott Brunell. Yeah, but they weren't bad, you might say. True, but I was only in the middle of the pack that year because I wasted my first 2-3 picks. A good lesson. Now if only I had used that and the other lessons I had learned. Instead, I decided against playing again until I reached Seattle. And only then, 3 years after I arrived. Which meant about 7 years between my first attempt and my second.