Top 5 Fantasy Football Alternatives in Case of a 2011 NFL Lockout
Since Week 1, it's been lurking around the corner. In the back of our heads we knew it could be true. But we chose to stay optimistic, naive even. However, entering Week 14, it's time for all of us to face the bogeyman—the potential 2011 NFL Lockout.
The NFL Players Union advised its members this week to be ready for it in March. Owners are still unwilling to negotiate and neither group is worrying about the thriving subculture that the NFL has created.
Fantasy football has over 30 million owners. That is 30-million dedicated fans that are watching NFL games. And not just of their favorite team, but of the individual players they own. With the number of fantasy players increasing drastically over the last few years, it is obvious that the NFL owners and players are not taking the fans into consideration.
What can we do to combat this?
Well, I don't know. What I do know is that we need to start planning ahead. So it is time to unionize as fans and owners. It is time for us to stand up and say, "fine, you sissies go off somewhere and argue about the money we are feeding you."
It is time for us to develop our fantasy alternatives. Cold turkey is not an option.
The Obvious: Fantasy Baseball, Basketball, Hockey
1 of 5
The fantasy NFL season routinely runs from the second week of September to the first week of January.
So, by playing fantasy baseball (last regular season game on Sept. 28), basketball (begins the last week of October) and hockey (begins second week of October), we manage to cover all the ground left by the holdout.
Pros:
With about 80 percent of all fantasy sports players opting for football, it would be a refreshing change of pace and strategy to see a few million new faces in these sports.
The leagues and systems are already in place on fantasy sites, so no extra work is necessary.
By performing well, you can boost your resume to audition for the soon-to-be vacant professional positions left by GMs who thought signing Jason Werth or Rashard Lewis for $100 million was a brilliant idea.
Cons:
Virgins to the head-to-head style or Roto play would see a few bumps and frustrations, and those who solely focus on the NFL won't know much about the teams or players. Since hardcore fantasy footballers won't know much about the sports or players, they will have to rely purely on statistics and advice columns for information.
Loss of competitive edge and excitement if you don't truly care about the sport you are playing.
Does anyone really want to sit through an entire regular season baseball or basketball game? Or even worse, suffer through Barry Melrose's damn accent and heinous suits? Thanks, but no thanks.
Going Beyond Pick'em: Translating NFL Fantasy to the NCAA
2 of 5
Since EA Sports can't use the names of players, a little retooling of the fantasy football form we all know and love will have to occur. But it has been done. There are small circles that exist where this game is taking place.
Rather than drafting players at each position, the owner will draft entire positions from the BCS teams. For example, rather than drafting Adrian Peterson with your first pick, you would draft the Oregon running back squad.
Pros:
Easy transition as the scoring format would stay the same. Owners don't have to switch sports.
College is far more stat-heavy than the NFL, so there will be more interest each week, upholding the competitiveness of fantasy football.
Fantasy commissioners, in true college football tradition, can create their own senseless BCS scoring style to ensure that you have more points than your opponent each week. Possible statistics for this category include family history, high school GPA, current salary, popularity or other intangibles to give you the edge.
Cons:
Though the system is already set up, it is hardly mainstream, so unless ESPN or another fixture adopt the system, there will be a lot of math involved for owners.
With so many teams to choose from and the lack of parity in college football, drafting will take intense strategy and there is a chance for fantasy teams to be unevenly matched.
Possible forfeiture of your league title in 3-5 years when NCAA officials announce that your star's stats will be stripped after being claimed ineligible all year, a la Reggie Bush and Cam Newton.
Across the Pond: Adopt the Other Fantasy Football
3 of 5
The Premiere League offers solace for the neglected fantasy American football owner. I won't even begin to pretend that I know anything about the sport or the fantasy format, but I can't imagine that it is a far cry from the fantasy football layout we all know and love.
Also, America could use a little reintroduction to soccer. Maybe it will act as a good bit of PR that we definitely need. Especially after losing a World Cup bid to Qatar, a country that many of us thought was actually some kind of kitchen utensil or Japanese weapon. Perhaps following the Premiere League for a season wouldn't hurt.
Pros:
Everyone starts out on a pretty even playing field, having to get used to the system, scoring and players. Since it is already popular overseas, Fantasy Premier League is already laid out.
The league starts in August and will completely eclipse the NFL season.
You can own an entire team of players with worse hair than Tom Brady, something that has been considered impossible in the standard NFL format.
Cons:
Games are never televised on major American networks, so interest will likely be lost throughout the season if you can't watch your players.
Almost guaranteed that a high percentage of owners at the beginning of the year will abandon their team throughout the year, making the game less competitive.
Soccer is not football. Americans simply aren't very big fans, and what possible stats could there be other than goals, assists and saves?
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Keep It Social: Small Group Fantasy Alternatives
4 of 5
Colleges have Facebook, business people have the office, we all have Twitter. So why not find a way to imagine these things into a competition? Social Fantasy would be a very personalized specific form of the game. One can choose to play a pick'em style format or go more in depth as a head-to-head game with a playoff system.
Categories on Facebook could consist of status updates, word usage, pictures and comments. Office Fantasy could examine the efficiency of workers by using departments as positions or turning common work tasks into statistics.
Pros:
Though it takes some thought and planning, this allows for endless possibilities and creativity.
You update your fantasy team at work anyways, so why not make it a game?
Annoying no-lifes who sit on Facebook updating their status hourly to inform others of their meals, their bodily functions resulting from said meals, those god damn twitpics and how their more-adorable-than-yours child did the funniest thing today will jump to overnight superstars in Fantasy Facebook. You can re-add them to your block list once the NFL starts again.
Cons:
Productivity likely suffers, unless it is a very competitive office environment.
No layout or ground rules already established, so being lazy is not an option.
Not exactly a pound-for-pound alternative to football.
You have to suffer through hourly status updates informing you about their meals, their bodily functions resulting from said meals, those goddamn twitpics and how their more-adorable-than-yours child did the funniest thing today.
To the Playground: Kicking It Old School with Some Peewee Football
5 of 5
The teams are everywhere and, essentially, laid out into divisions. It would just take some vast organization and a hell of a lot of research to make this possible.
Just contact members from surrounding teams and have everyone attend games and keep stats. Crunch the numbers on Sunday and you're good to go.
The rules are the same as standard fantasy football, except little Dylan Keller from your daughter’s fourth grade reading class is replacing Drew Brees at your QB position.
Ethically, this is probably a bit of a gray area, so maybe leave the gambling aspect out of it, but it's a refreshing change of pace from your normal Sunday routine.
Pros:
You can feel good about yourself for supporting local sports programs and children's organizations.
The season is a little shorter but runs mostly parallel to the NFL season.
With a number of age ranges to choose from, you can own multiple teams or combine all of them if your league has 12 or more players.
Fans always complain that NFL players don't play for the love of the game or say that they are all about the money. Welcome to football in its purest form.
Cons:
Can't expect the same stat lines as you would in the pros, so categories might have to be altered slightly. Rather than passing yards, you can include "grass eaten," "PWPFCD (percentage of plays with all players facing correct direction)," "non-fumbled snaps" and bonus points to any player who can put on their own helmet.
Suspicions will likely be raised if you aren't a father of one of the kids playing.
Eight-year-olds playing football is borderline unwatchable.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
.png?w=480)
.jpg?w=600 "Post-June 1 Trade Candidates ☎️")
.JPG?w=600 "TO Talks Cowboys Relationship")
.jpg?w=600 "Taylor Heinicke Retiring")
.jpg?w=600 "49ers OC Hypes Mike Evans 🤩")