Daily Haze, fantasy football, <a href=NFL, sports news" style="vertical-align: top;" width="351">

Fantasy owners have a lot on their minds this time of year. Cheat sheets. Rankings. Training camps and preseason football. Draft strategy. Average draft position. Mock drafts. Getting the league back together.

Another thing all fantasy owners need to consider is where to host their fantasy leagues this year. Entrenched leagues tend to use the same provider every season. But new leagues need a home, and there are several popular options to choose from. Below are the three I have used the most:

 

Fleaflicker

Free live scoring. Highly customizable for any type of league. User-friendly interface but not over the top with the aesthetics. Fleaflicker keeps it simple but provides a robust league platform. My favorite site for hosting fantasy football leagues.

 

Yahoo! Fantasy Sports

Been a fan favorite for years. People love the way it looks and the ease of use. The trophies are nice to accumulate as well. Yahoo! continues to be one of the pioneers in the fantasy industry, keeping it fresh with new looks and features. Drag-and-drop rosters are amazing, and the pages look clean and are easy to navigate. Lacked customization and free live scoring in past years, but Yahoo! is starting to come along in those areas.

 

ESPN

Feels clumsy. Navigation to league pages and other fantasy info is cumbersome. Roster pages are elementary. For all that ESPN has going for it as a sports giant, its fantasy service could use a face lift. That being said, having those four letters—E S P N—on the web page does wonders for the popularity of its fantasy service.

Have a favorite hosting site not listed above? Share it in the comments below!

Here are today's great reads:

  • Every fantasy owner is in search of gold this summer in the form of a mid-or late-round fantasy draft pick who absolutely goes berserk during the 2010 season. Several players have the potential to become breakouts this year and could come at bargain prices in fantasy drafts. [SI.com]
  • For those scoring at home, the now JaMarcus-Russell-less Oakland Raiders check in at No. 29 on the Fantasy Juggernaut Index . A little higher than I expected, actually: Jason Campbell is an improvement at quarterback, but then again, who wouldn't be? [Roto Arcade]
  • Good fantasy football draft prep: Dissecting all the running backs likely to be drafted this summer and figuring out where they rank based on injury risk . Good to know which players carry a significant risk heading into the season—here's looking at you, Ronnie Brown. [FanHouse]
  • It is official. Everyone's favorite fantasy football sleeper this summer seems to be Philadelphia quarterback Kevin Kolb . A buddy at work even dropped his name last week. Prepare for a gigantic leap in value, to the point where he can no longer be called a sleeper. I say  let someone else take him at this point. [Fantasy Guru]
  • As quarterbacks like Drew Brees, Peyton Manning, and Aaron Rodgers continue to light up NFL scoreboards, fantasy owners have taken serious notice. In turn, quarterbacks are going sooner than ever in fantasy drafts . I say, let someone else reach for an "elite" quarterback. You can always get a quarterback in the middle rounds who produces just as well, like Matt Schaub last year. [ProFootballTalk]

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