Top-10 Live Draft Tips

Facing your league mates on draft day in a dark stinky basement, there is just something about that exciting time that I miss.  Fantasy football how it always used to be before the internet where you may never meet your league mates or see where the money goes once you PayPal it.  Knowing your competitors by size and smell (and I do mean smell Rick) and the satisfaction of throwing the money down in front of the commissioner.  There was something special and intimate about getting everyone together, drafting your team, and looking up at the draft board. Talking about your team with a rival over a beer.  Man, I miss those days. I live in Maine now, with live drafts being few and far between.  As a survivor of ten years of live fantasy drafts, I want to bestow some of my finest live draft tips to you.

1) Be organized and ready to go. No, I am not talking about having your eyebrows waxed and tie pressed.  Make sure that you have your information at your finger tips.  Have a file or a spreadsheet organized.  Set your tiers and roll.  Even better, do all your homework so well that you show up to your live draft with a single pencil.  There is nothing that causes fear among other owners than seeing someone so prepared that they don’t need to keep track of the players except with their mind!  Yes I have done this and it can make a huge difference in psyching league mates out of the draft before it begins.  I won the league that year, but I had completed over 20 mocks drafts and had memorized the top 200 fantasy players that year.  It did help that it was a shallow league only drafting 13 rounds.

2) Use alcohol wisely. Drinking is a great way to unwind.  I don’t really feel like unwinding during a draft.  Having a beer to start the draft is perfect as it sets the tone for everyone else.  It gives them permission to let their guard down.  Be the first to drink a single beer and then go right to the caffeinated soda pop.  Alcohol can lead to silly decisions and that means a better team that I get to draft. A tipsy owner may draft a guy like Thomas Jones, before he should if he has had enough adult beverages.

3) Use misdirection. Talk up players that you don’t like.  I have talked other owners into picking players that I was never going to select.  I got a buddy to pick Willie Green, a former Browns running back, who ended up getting stabbed by his girlfriend.  My buddy selected him, because I “thought” he was going to have a great year.  I then took Randy Moss.  I made it to the playoffs that year; Dave didn’t.  Also wear the football jersey of someone you will not draft.  I wore a Priest Holmes jersey and people were convinced he was going to be my first pick.  I got someone else to snake him the pick before mine.  Bringing last year’s magazines or magazines that you think their advice stinks are good misdirection schemes as well.  Don’t be obvious that you brought them and depending on the draft location and membership, slip in a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit edition or more blood raising material.

4) Have a fake cheat sheet. Bring a fake cheat sheet with you.  If an owner has seen you draft before, they may want to take a peek at it.  Don’t be obvious that you are leaving it out, but leave your draft area for food or the restroom.  If you can’t find a fake cheat sheet, just use ESPN’s Matthew Berry’s cheat sheet.  Make sure you take his name off it so they might be fooled.

5) Draft either super quick or super slow. This will get into the head of your other draftees.  Some will be more than ready and others will be pressed for time.  Switch it up drafting slow and quick, they won’t know what hit them.  You will keep the other owners on their toes.

6) Always be closing. Be socializing during the draft.  Always talk trades, find out what players each owner likes.  Gage interest when you are talking with other owners about the player that got away.  Find out their favorite teams. This hard work will be rewarded later you get the trades you need to win the championship!

7) Be helpful, but not too helpful. If someone is asking you about the next best player, give them the third best player.  If you are asked about strategy, give them a strategy you have seen work yourself, but never give out your own strategy.  This will let people know you are a good league mate, but not the easy mark either.

8) Keep your special message board or site to yourself. If everyone is thinking the same thing, no one is thinking.  Make sure if you do use printouts that your league mates can’t tell where they are from or your unique perspective will soon become everyone else’s ideas.  Always keep something back for yourself.

9) Bring your phone. Get Adam Schefter and Jason La Confora Twitter updates along with updates from @rookieblitz or maybe even me @realanakin so you can keep up with the late breaking news as your draft is going on.  G.I. Joe and I have always said knowledge is power. And with your phone, you can do that privately.

10) Biological warfare. Eat/drink the most gaseous combination.  The stinkier the better is key.  It really is an individual chemistry combination that can put your personal touch on the live draft event.

So you are lucky enough to have a live draft in your league.  Please remember the following: Organize. Alcohol should be used well. Misdirect them all.  Use ciphers.  Speed is your friend.  Socialize. Help a brother out, just not too much.  Protect your sources.  Get Twitter real-time updates. Gas is explosive.  Have fun!

Good luck.