DOREY - Fantasy Football the Next Level: How to Build a Championship Team Every Season

Copyright 2007 by David Dorey

All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Warner Books

Hachette Book Group

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New York, NY 10017

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The Warner Books name and logo are trademarks of Hachette Book Group, Inc.

First eBook Edition: August 2007

ISBN: 978-0-446-19858-5

Dedicated to my son, Brian

Believe in yourself

Challenge yourself

And always face the sun

Any book is the product of long hours spent left alone, but it is only through the love and support that my wife, Karin, and son, Brian, have given that allows me a career in a field that most people consider only as a pleasure. Its never a solitary pursuit knowing that the meaning of life is just down the hallway.

I was once described as a jack of all trades and a master of most (no, really, I was). For that I would most need to thank my parents. Somehow I inherited both my fathers sense of analytical perfection and my mothers love of writing and humor. Put them together in the Internet age and you get a Web site, even if they still struggle to explain to their friends what I do for a living.

I would also be remiss in not recognizing my friend and business partner Whitney Walters, who nudged me in a local draft in 1996 and mentioned we should open a Web site. The Huddle has been a huge part of my life for over a decade now and remains my passion and purpose. It would have never been possible without Whitneys vision and hard work, nor would it have been as thoroughly enjoyable and life-changing. If it all went away tomorrow, it would always be the most exciting thing I have done.

This material banged around in my head for a few years but it took teaming up with my literary agent, Byrd Leavell III, to recognize the possibility after we fleshed out the bones that would become this book. The reality was realized thanks to Warner Books for giving me the only thing in life Ive ever really wantedan opportunity.

Lastly I must thank the thousands of Huddlers from the past decade who have graciously given me a reason to stay up late nights pounding away on the keyboard doing what I love to do. I have greatly enjoyed interacting with you all on the message board, on the phone, via e-mails, and even in person. Lou Gehrig was the first to say it and I may not be the last, but I honestly believe I am the luckiest man in the world.

Chances are pretty good that you are holding this book while wondering if it could help you become a better fantasy team owner. Youve played fantasy football before so you dont really need to know how to create a league, make up rules and schedules, or conduct a draft. You have already learned all those basics and probably did pretty well in the past. Maybe you won your local league. Perhaps you even did well in a large contest. Regardless of where you are coming from, youre just wanting to take your skills and knowledgeand therefore fun and entertainmentto The Next Level. While almost anyone armed with a cheat sheet can luck into some surprise player and a magic year, you want more than a hot tip about some sleeper this year. You want to be the best team owner in the room both before and after the season. And again next year. And the next.

Fantasy Football: The Next Level was written for you.

Ive played fantasy football for close to two decades now and have been the Senior NFL Analyst for TheHuddle.com for over 10 years. While perhaps my bread and butter there is advising people on who to draft each summer and later which players to start each week, there are far larger dynamics at play in fantasy football. Most people approach a fantasy draft as if it were a chance to pick the winner of 16 consecutive horse races. It isnt. As any savvy fantasy team owner can attest, the best rosters will have not only as many top players as possible but also depth for future needs and players that will either remain good or improve as the season progresses. Their roster is strategically created to build the best total team. A hot start is a major advantage but the best finish wins the league.

If you are still fairly new to fantasy football, this book is filled with tools and insights to better understand your fantasy team. Everything contained in these pages is the product of many years of research, analysis, and experimentation. The Next Level will help you build a better team, manage it more wisely, and go deeper into your playoffs than ever before. There are 25 rules discussed through the course of the book intended to summarize the general dynamics that will affect every fantasy team. Only by understanding them can you ensure that the effect is always positive for you.

If you are a fantasy football veteran with a wallful of trophies and the reputation of being the guy to beat in your league, this book is especially for you. Ive written so much about the basics of fantasy football over the years and spent so much time dwelling on the immediate situation in the NFL every year that this book was a breath of fresh air to write. The Next Level was written so that even the most experienced fantasy football fanatic will get something out of every single chapter. Be it a new tool, an insight, a statistical breakdown, or whatever, every chapter delves into the finer aspects of the hobby and offers samples based on actual statistics and NFL results over the past 10 years. Its not enough to just tell you somethingyou deserve to have it broken down and proven. More than anything, I wrote this for the guy who already knows quite a bit and yet realizes that he can never know enough.

The premise of this book is all about playing at The Next Level. What is true in this book you are now holding was true five years ago and will be true five years from now. The underlying principles and trends in the NFL do not change from year to year, and even in the rare event that they do, youll find the tools to recognize and understand what is new. Improving your skills and fantasy teams is a never-ending process (and delightfully so, I will add). Oh yeah, Im sure that youre already good. The only question is: Do you want to be better?

The Other Side of the Goal Line

Back on a late-summer day in 1970, I gathered with about 20 other fourth-grade boys to form a Pee Wee football team. I already loved football to be sure, but I didnt yet know how it was really played. I only knew that I wanted to participate in a sport that seemed to be popular, fun, and actually encouraged me to bash into other people. After we took a knee in front of the dads-turned-coaching-gods, we listened as our head coach, Mr. Henderson, stood before us casually spinning a football in his hands.

So who can tell me what football is all about? he asked.

Being only nine years old, we didnt know enough to say endorsements, hot chicks, or signing bonuses. After listening to a few futile attempts regarding snow cones or serving the unfulfilled lives of our fathers, Coach Henderson held out the football.

Its very simple. Football is about one thingthe other side of the goal line. We get this ball on the other side of their goal line, we score. We let them bring it across our goal line, they score. At the end of the game, biggest score wins.

Woo-hoo! Were ready! Lets play! Lets play!

We figured that was about all we needed to know. Football, like any sport not involving Tiger Woods, is just about scoring more points than your opponent. It was true thirty years ago, and it is true today.