Tyreek Hill's strained hamstring is a reminder that our current pandemic likely will directly and indirectly impact the fantasy landscape. The direct impacts are obvious: even if they live and play in "bubbles," at any time a team could face a rash of infections. Can the NFL achieve what so many schools and governments and communities haven't?
Then there are the indirect impacts. Is there enough time for players to get into game shape, or for fringe-starter rookies to stand out in camp?
And more pointedly, will teams be excessively careful with players--particularly top players--showing any signs of illness? Suppose Hill wakes up on game day with a low-grade fever. From what I understand, it could take at least 12 hours to get a COVID test result. So surely Hill would be quarantined and ruled out, right? Regardless of the diagnosis, if there's even a shred of risk, teams will be extraordinarily cautious.
This means fantasy leagues might want to establish late Sunday morning waivers--maybe as late as an hour before the opening kickoff. Give managers enough time to process what could be a frenetic morning of breaking player news. Leagues also might adopt rules mandating immediate acceptance of approved trades, rather than a fairly common two-day delay. Because during those two days, a lot could happen (more than in a typical season), and you don't want one side to feel cheated between initial approval and ratification.
Then there's the obvious bench size. Bye weeks could be disastrous for most managers if you're limited to, say, 4-5 bench spots and are juggling whether to drop a bye-week WR3 simply because two of your guys are quarantined, so there's no flexibility to jettison anyone else. I think this is one of those years where benches should be 12-14 deep. I hesitate to say "should," since leagues can thrive regardless of bench size. But you don't want managers to feel cheated by bad luck, and this season is destined to have more than its fare share of bad luck. So let folks stock up on "handcuff" (#3) WRs to prepare for the strong possibility that a #1 or #2 is a last-minute scratch. Or give people enough room to double-handcuff each starting RB.
What other rule changes are you considering / hoping for? Again, this isn't about finding a perfect system. It's about empowering fantasy managers to prepare for the inevitable storms of 2020.
Then there are the indirect impacts. Is there enough time for players to get into game shape, or for fringe-starter rookies to stand out in camp?
And more pointedly, will teams be excessively careful with players--particularly top players--showing any signs of illness? Suppose Hill wakes up on game day with a low-grade fever. From what I understand, it could take at least 12 hours to get a COVID test result. So surely Hill would be quarantined and ruled out, right? Regardless of the diagnosis, if there's even a shred of risk, teams will be extraordinarily cautious.
This means fantasy leagues might want to establish late Sunday morning waivers--maybe as late as an hour before the opening kickoff. Give managers enough time to process what could be a frenetic morning of breaking player news. Leagues also might adopt rules mandating immediate acceptance of approved trades, rather than a fairly common two-day delay. Because during those two days, a lot could happen (more than in a typical season), and you don't want one side to feel cheated between initial approval and ratification.
Then there's the obvious bench size. Bye weeks could be disastrous for most managers if you're limited to, say, 4-5 bench spots and are juggling whether to drop a bye-week WR3 simply because two of your guys are quarantined, so there's no flexibility to jettison anyone else. I think this is one of those years where benches should be 12-14 deep. I hesitate to say "should," since leagues can thrive regardless of bench size. But you don't want managers to feel cheated by bad luck, and this season is destined to have more than its fare share of bad luck. So let folks stock up on "handcuff" (#3) WRs to prepare for the strong possibility that a #1 or #2 is a last-minute scratch. Or give people enough room to double-handcuff each starting RB.
What other rule changes are you considering / hoping for? Again, this isn't about finding a perfect system. It's about empowering fantasy managers to prepare for the inevitable storms of 2020.