Fantasy Football Strategy: Playoffs Vs. Regular Season

As we enter the playoff season, I thought it would be interesting to discuss how fantasy football strategies differ in December from other months. Weather will play more of a factor, the structure of the game itself has changed, and the NFL schedule needs to be considered as well.

December brings weather challenges—baby it's cold outside. The Northeast and the Great Lakes are going to see snow; we just don't know exactly when it will come.

Running backs who are going to play in these areas should be priced with a little bit of skew to the upside—if major snow falls, they should see more carries and point production.

Quarterbacks and wide receivers playing in these cities should be priced with a little bit of skew to the downside for the exact same reason. Some of these players could see their roles eliminated if old man winter blows into town.

The win-or-go-home nature of single-elimination tournaments changes fantasy football strategy dramatically. In all games, one who is able to properly adjust his thinking to the current environment will often reap big rewards.

I’ve written previously about how point volatility can be detrimental to the long term health of your franchise during the regular season. Now that we are playing a single elimination tournament that theory goes right out the window.

During the regular season if you score a consistent amount of points throughout the year, you can take advantage of the volatility that exists on your opponent’s rosters and win more games over the long haul. Like a poker player playing in a cash game: The antes never change, so you can wait around and only play premium hands.

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