Don’t get me wrong I love fantasy football. That said, please allow me to continue.

Stop the Madness
Often times a Top 25 Fantasy Football list hardly resembles the starting lineup for the annual Pro Bowl or the All-Pro list. The demographics often times break down pretty unevenly with one quarterback, fifteen running backs, eight wide receivers and one tight end on the list.

Seriously?!?!?

Does anyone real NFL GM believe a young running back (e.g. Frank Gore or Joseph Addai) is more valuable than Peyton Manning?

It makes me believe more and more than the ‘godfathers’ of fantasy football either drank themselves into a miserable stupor with Duff beer or were frustrated band geeks that wished mortal discomfort on the quarterback who happened to be the BMOC (big man on campus).

To me, an ideal fantasy football league rewards players and fantasy league owners with the ‘true value’ of a skilled position player. 

For example, Patriots quarterback Tom Brady has an average draft position (ADP) of 36 this season, which equates to being the last pick of the third round in a 12-owner league.

Seriously?!?!?

Does any sane NFL fan believe that arguably the best quarterback in football today and future Hall of Famer with three Super Bowl rings should go behind the likes of Ronnie Brown and Thomas Jones – two running backs who couldn’t get into Canton without a ticket.

How can a League Commissioner fix this discrepancy?

Simple.

In a standard 1-2-3-1-1-1 (one QB, two RBs, three WRs, one TE, one DEF, one K), adding two, three or four ‘flex’ starters will add value to the truly valuable players in the league.

As Commissioner of a league for 16 years, we utilize the standard starters listed above but also have a 16-owner league. To deviate from the standard and the inflated value placed upon a running back, our starting lineup includes four ‘flex’ starters from any position.

The key is to test the scoring system to be utilized and do a ‘smell test’ on the results.

For our Fantasy League Draft last year, we had the following Draft results:

   ~ In the first round, seven quarterbacks, eight running backs and one wide receiver were drafted.

   ~ In the second round, three quarterbacks, eight running backs, four wide receivers, and one tight end were drafted.

   ~ In the third round, seven quarterbacks, two running backs, and seven wide receivers were drafted.

For a demographic breakdown, that translates to the following for the first 48 selections:

Adding the 4-flex positions allows the better managers to win out more often because the league requires more decisions. Further, since QBs typically score the most, they become much more valuable with 4-flex and this is especially true in larger leagues.

League commissioners... Do you want a league that goes heavy RB in the first two rounds and WR in rounds three through five or do you want a league that more closes mirrors true NFL value?

Despite the Fantasy World not aligning Fantasy Value with real NFL Value, 4for4.com again proves itself as the premier fantasy football consultant on the planet. An elite sports journalism staff breaks down every skill position player in the league. Greg Alan displays his unmatched abilities as a mathematical guru throughout the preseason and regular season. 4for4.com also gives us fantasy owners the best in class ‘fantasy tools’ like pcDrafter's ‘Mock Draft’ and 4for4.com's Draft Simulator, which is essential for forecasting. And by the way, having killer tools really makes a huge difference when you go 4-flex.


2007 Heavy-Flex Sample Results from
the 4for4.com Full Impact Draft Simulator
(inputs = start: 3-qb, 2.7-rb, 2.3-wr, 1-te, 1-k, 1-def; Computer Strategy Mode)

While we might be able to find a few exceptions, the above draft list certainly does a better job of mirroring true NFL value. Manning is a top-2 pick and franchise QB Tom Brady wins out over most running backs.

Think about Flex-4 next time you want to shake up the rules in your league.