Recently some of you have asked if you can donate to the blog. The answer is "absolutely." As you know, FF4W has been -- and will continue to be -- free for everyone. At the same time, donations help keep us going, as we all have busy lives outside of fantasy football, including spouses and kids and jobs and everything else that fills up a day.
So if you want to donate during the season, there's a "tip jar" near the top of the fantasyfootballforwinners.com page. Or if you use PayPal, donations can come directly through the account fantasyfootballforwinners@gmail.com.
To be clear, whether you donate or not, everyone on this page will continue to be treated the same. We'll respond to your questions just as quickly, and with the same effort at accuracy / good judgment.
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A word today on trading -- a topic I haven't covered as much as in years past. We all know some leagues don't allow trading, while others seem to be trade averse. So I've deliberately cut down on trade talk because it seems to impact a relatively smaller segment of the FF4W community.
That said, we're nearing most leagues' trade deadlines. So it's a good time to bring up one strategy that works more often than not.
In the FF4W Premier Fantasy League, I'm facing the fearsome Alan Polyak in Week 9. He'll have Odell Beckham Jr. and Zach Ertz on bye. For me, T.Y. Hilton and Carson Wentz are on bye. Now this isn't a trading league, but if it were, I might offer him T.Y. and Wentz for Keenan Allen and Big Ben. That might or might not seem fair to many of you. But T.Y.'s averaging 16 points per game vs. Allen's 14, while Wentz is averaging 19 vs. Ben's 22. On paper it's a pretty even swap. Yet in Week 9, T.Y. and Wentz are on bye. Allen and Ben are not. Essentially, through this seemingly fair trade, I'm trying to dramatically increase my odds of grabbing a critical win against a tough opponent.
Alan's a savvy fantasy footballer. So surely he'll check to see how this deal would shake out week by week. But not everyone in your league will take the time to do that. You pitch it as a 2-for-2, where you get a slight QB upgrade and your opponent gets a slight WR upgrade. Maybe you need to sweeten the pot by throwing in an RB3 or WR3. But if your opponent doesn't see what's coming, at the very least you've started a conversation that could lead to a head-to-head takedown.
And "conversation" is key here. How often do you propose trades online -- two, three, eight at a time -- hoping that one strikes gold? A better approach is e-mailing -- or even picking up the phone and talking to -- your opponent to discuss your fantasy needs and ask about theirs.
So back to Alan: I wouldn't just send him that 2-for-2 and sit back and wait. I'd e-mail him and explain that "I've had Ben several times over the years and would prefer to root for him than for Wentz." Or "I need a QB upgrade and view T.Y. (Indy's clear-cut #1 receiver) above Keenan (a #1 who isn't earning #1 usage in a packed receiving corps). What are your thoughts?" This is about starting a dialogue, not trying to pull a fast one on him.
Trading takes communication, patience, and finding a perceived win-win. Except in the back of your mind, using this scenario, you know those Week 9 byes will give you the ultimate win.
So if you want to donate during the season, there's a "tip jar" near the top of the fantasyfootballforwinners.com page. Or if you use PayPal, donations can come directly through the account fantasyfootballforwinners@gmail.com.
To be clear, whether you donate or not, everyone on this page will continue to be treated the same. We'll respond to your questions just as quickly, and with the same effort at accuracy / good judgment.
---
A word today on trading -- a topic I haven't covered as much as in years past. We all know some leagues don't allow trading, while others seem to be trade averse. So I've deliberately cut down on trade talk because it seems to impact a relatively smaller segment of the FF4W community.
That said, we're nearing most leagues' trade deadlines. So it's a good time to bring up one strategy that works more often than not.
In the FF4W Premier Fantasy League, I'm facing the fearsome Alan Polyak in Week 9. He'll have Odell Beckham Jr. and Zach Ertz on bye. For me, T.Y. Hilton and Carson Wentz are on bye. Now this isn't a trading league, but if it were, I might offer him T.Y. and Wentz for Keenan Allen and Big Ben. That might or might not seem fair to many of you. But T.Y.'s averaging 16 points per game vs. Allen's 14, while Wentz is averaging 19 vs. Ben's 22. On paper it's a pretty even swap. Yet in Week 9, T.Y. and Wentz are on bye. Allen and Ben are not. Essentially, through this seemingly fair trade, I'm trying to dramatically increase my odds of grabbing a critical win against a tough opponent.
Alan's a savvy fantasy footballer. So surely he'll check to see how this deal would shake out week by week. But not everyone in your league will take the time to do that. You pitch it as a 2-for-2, where you get a slight QB upgrade and your opponent gets a slight WR upgrade. Maybe you need to sweeten the pot by throwing in an RB3 or WR3. But if your opponent doesn't see what's coming, at the very least you've started a conversation that could lead to a head-to-head takedown.
And "conversation" is key here. How often do you propose trades online -- two, three, eight at a time -- hoping that one strikes gold? A better approach is e-mailing -- or even picking up the phone and talking to -- your opponent to discuss your fantasy needs and ask about theirs.
So back to Alan: I wouldn't just send him that 2-for-2 and sit back and wait. I'd e-mail him and explain that "I've had Ben several times over the years and would prefer to root for him than for Wentz." Or "I need a QB upgrade and view T.Y. (Indy's clear-cut #1 receiver) above Keenan (a #1 who isn't earning #1 usage in a packed receiving corps). What are your thoughts?" This is about starting a dialogue, not trying to pull a fast one on him.
Trading takes communication, patience, and finding a perceived win-win. Except in the back of your mind, using this scenario, you know those Week 9 byes will give you the ultimate win.