Fantasy Football Keeper Leagues: Why Everyone Should Join

At the end of every fantasy football season in standard re-draft leagues your team loses all of its players. But what if it didn’t have to? Thanks to my somewhat unnatural attachment to players on my roster and a closet full of now useless jerseys collected over many fantasy football seasons, I’ve discovered the joy of keeper leagues. And so should you. 
 
Like the name implies, in a keeper league you get to keep players on your roster at the end of the season. Imagine owning Adrian Peterson or Larry Fitzgerald for the duration of their careers. The number of players you keep is different for each league. Some let you keep anywhere from 1 to 4 or more. In fact, if you join a dynasty league and keep the whole roster. Or create your own league and you make the rules.  Sound interesting? Here are a few reasons fantasy football keeper leagues may be perfect for you. 


Stay Studly

Anyone who loves this game of football knows how valuable a stud player is. Get one in a keeper league and they’re all yours for as long as you want them. That should give you a warm, fuzzy feeling inside. However, a word to the wise, while it’s rewarding to have the right players, it can be just as punishing to have the wrong ones. Just ask the guy in my league who drafted Michael Vick and Plaxico Burress. 


Scratch your off season itch

Let’s face it, besides the NFL draft and free agency, the fantasy football off season can be slower than Peyton Manning on a quarterback draw. Keeper leagues give you the fantasy fix you need by providing plenty of stuff to keep you occupied until next season. Spend time researching or soul searching on who you should keep. You’ll want to initiate some trade talks and kick the tires on a few possibilities. Follow the buzz around the league to find out what’s happening with players, where they are going and how it may affect your roster. Plus, you’re definitely going to want to start scouting upcoming rookies in the NFL draft. Speaking of the draft…


Hey Rookie

For many of us, the NFL draft is one of the best days of the year. In a keeper league, oh boy oh boy, it’s even better and means a whole lot more to your fantasy football team. In standard re-draft leagues, the first rookie usually gets drafted in later rounds. In a keeper, these young, promising players are key pieces to putting together a dominating team year after year. Which is why scouting rookies is something I spend a lot of time doing in the off season. There’s plenty out there to read and research, tape and highlights to watch online and it’s a great way to harness your ability to recognize the pros and cons of each player. This can be helpful not just for keeper leagues but all your fantasy leagues. To give you an example of how important the NFL draft is to my fantasy football team. This year I traded for the first pick of our draft. You think I don’t care where Michael Crabtree goes?


It’s a family affair

It would be great if every Sunday my entire family sat down to a nice big dinner to catch up. For me, this is just not possible. Keeper leagues are a great way for families to do something together while not in the same zip code. I’m the commissioner of a league that includes my wife, my in laws and my immediate family and we’ve all become closer because of it. Our draft day is a huge family event. My sister calls on Sundays to talk trash even though she was never that into football. And nothing strengthens the bond between father and son like a blockbuster trade. The only downside is telling people you got beat by your Mom. 


If a keeper league sounds like something you would enjoy, there are lots of different websites where you can join. Football and fantasy football forums (see http://www.brunoboysforum.com) are also a great way to find people looking for new teams. By joining a new league or creating your own, you’ll be able to pick from a large pool of talented players on draft day. Remember though you may draft again the next season but the studs will probably already be on other teams so be sure to do your homework for that first one. If you join an existing league, chances are you’re taking over someone else’s team. Just hope their team wasn’t the reason they left. If it is, accept the challenge if you’re willing and start setting up a strategy to get better. Regardless of which you join, being part of a keeper can be very satisfying and brings new challenges and experiences to your fantasy football universe. If you want my advice, join a keeper and a standard re-draft league and get the best of both worlds.

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