Midseason Fantasy Football Strategy: For Those in the Middle of the Pack

As time goes on, things have a way of working themselves out. The Zune was no match for the iPod, Jim Belushi was not the second-coming of John Belushi, and Temptation Island was not the most successful television series in history like we all thought it would be. The same thing has happened in your fantasy league by now. The elite have risen to the top, a couple teams with rosters that couldn’t compete in the Big East sit near the bottom, and your team is left somewhere in the middle. With the fantasy trade deadline looming, now is the time to make adjustments and find a strategy to take you to the top.

Before continuing, if you’re not in the middle of the pack, check out the article on fantasy football strategy below that fits your team’s description. Also, if you belong to a custom fantasy league where 6 or 8 teams make the playoffs, then I would urge you to use the strategy in the article for the frontrunners.

This article aims to give you a strategy rather than specific advice. There are plenty of places on the internet that give an onslaught of fantasy football tips on who to pick up, who to dump, etc. With the overflow of information to sort through, it is easy to see why a businessman such as New Jersey Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov does not use a computer (It’s true!). Now, I’m not calling on you to go Stone Age, far from it. What you need to do is develop an overall strategy of your own so that you have the ability to discern what moves are best for your fantasy football team.

Now back to all you owners of teams that have been in the D+ to B- range thus far. At this point you have had your share of the good, the bad, and hopefully not too much of the ugly. Certain players have panned out while others you would probably choose an ill-advised fight with if you ever walked past them on the street. The good news is that you are in a position to still do some real damage. Obviously you aren’t in the best position; otherwise you’d be at the top. However, the climb to the top is not far. There is a tendency for owners with teams coasting along to become complacent. This means that with a good in-season fantasy football strategy and some clever moves, your team can not only catch up, but surpass them come playoff time.

While your end goal is still to win a championship, you must focus first on making the playoffs. Try to find balance between making moves with long term in mind versus those moves with the short term in mind. As the season progresses and you find yourself leaning comfortably in or nervously out of the playoff picture, you may want to move over to the other strategy options: "For the Frontrunners" or "For Those in the Cellar".

Before making any transactions, it is necessary to do some whole scale analysis of your team. Assess each group of positions. Where are your weaknesses/strengths? Compare the weekly averages of your quarterback(s), running backs, wide receivers, and tight ends to those of other teams. Do you have an excess at any position? Keep these things in mind as we move on to the transactions that can improve your team.

First of all, make sure you are aware of your league’s trading deadline. Most leagues have deadlines around November 20.

When proposing trades, many owners forget that a trade is meant to be advantageous for both sides. In order to have a trade accepted, you need to propose something that is just that. Consider your team assessment. Maybe you have a couple starter caliber running backs sitting on your bench. Scour through the rosters of your fellow owners and find those that could use some improvement at running back. Now check to see if any of those teams are strong in areas you are particularly weak at. Found one? You have yourself a deal.

There may owners that are obstinate and difficult to trade with, but check around enough and you should find something that works.

Maybe you aren’t particularly strong or weak at any one position, but have many solid/average players all over. In this case, you should look to make 2 for 1, 3 for 2, etc. trades. You can read more about this style of trade in my hub "For the Frontrunners". Become familiar with what I call Total Team Value (TTV).

As a team in the middle, you also can’t be afraid to take risks when it comes to trades. This is especially true if the team(s) at the top of your league is extremely dominant. But take smart risks. A good in-season fantasy football strategy is to buy low and sell high. A perfect example right now of buying low is Phillip Rivers. His fantasy numbers have been down. What makes him even cheaper right now is that his poor performances this season have received considerable media attention. At this moment, you can get a quarterback who has been one of the most dominant players in fantasy football over the past several seasons for half of what you would have given up a year ago. And ultimately, the odds are that his numbers will rebound during the second half of the season.

Without abundant depth you are most likely already in a position where free agent pickups are filling in for bye week spots on a weekly basis. When considering players to add or start, take a look at the defensive rankings of their opponents. Check out http://www.nfl.com/stats/team. Look at passing or rushing defense depending on the position of your player or the one you hope to pick up. You can also use a nifty tool from Yahoo that shows how specific offensive positions do against each team: http://football.fantasysports.yahoo.com/f1/pointsagainst.

Whenever possible, try to save your waiver priority so you can add one of the pickups of the year when they present themselves. Players that suddenly breakout such as Maurice Jones-Drew in 2006 or Miles Austin in 2009 will be the desire of every team in your league. One of these players alone can oftentimes propel you to a championship. To remain on the lookout for such players, check out fantasy football sites such as the following.

They feature weekly columns on the top pickups of the week. They’ll give you the low-down.

I hope this article on fantasy football strategy assists you in your quest for domination. I should probably offer you a few words of inspiration but I don’t really feel up to it, and as you know, true inspiration comes from within. Wait a second…