Sun Tzu and the Art of Drafting
by Scott Gunaca for The Fantasy Jungle

Let me begin by telling you that this article will not suggest which players to choose, who the big sleepers are, or what position player you use at flex. Most of you reading this article don’t need that advice anyway. Sun Tzu was a Chinese General who has been written about and translated for decades. He was a master at preparation, evaluation and of course…battle. His work has been applied from business to personal relationships….so why not fantasy sports? After all…. fantasy sports IS war.

Let's get down to it.

Preparation- Nothing beats preparation when it comes to drafting. Let's face it, all of us have been guilty of putting off the prep work at one time or another. I can honestly tell you that FJ Mike and I have gotten caught up in the moment in Vegas (which isn’t hard to do) and asked each other…”what time is the draft?” “oh…in 2 hours?” .. “hell, we have time for one more round.”. “By the way…do you have that rankings page we did on the plane and that bye week chart?”. “No?” “That’s fine….we will wing it.” Of course WE blame the Spearmint Rhino for being open all night…but there really are no excuses.

Preparation is one of the keys to winning your league. You need to follow the players through camp. Use some of the great info services that are available. There are always surprises and you don’t want to miss out on that 8th round draft pick that catches the coach’s eye. If you drafted Boldin a few years back or Colston last season, you know what I mean. Just dedicate a little time to follow every player’s progress and it will pay off on draft day.

Planning- Plan for your draft spots. Take a spreadsheet and use it to explore various draft spots. This year more than ever, you can put together a nice draft from any spot, but you have to be ready. One day you may simulate your draft from the two spot and another day the ten spot. You may find that from the ten spot, your best bet is to go RB-WR-WR-RB. You can use several mocks or rankings to project where the other players are being taken and then model your draft accordingly. Chances are you can put together a good game plan for any draft spot if you take the time to map it out. This is time well spent.

Read the Rules- There are many new fantasy players coming on board each season and many veterans that play in various leagues, so some people forget the details of the scoring system. It is a really good idea to take five minutes to read the rules of the contest you are playing in, whether it be a home league or a national league like The Fantasy Jungle. The last thing you want to be asking in round 15 is, “Can we really play a second quarterback at flex?” or “do running backs get points for receptions?” By then, you are more than likely toast. So take the time to study the scoring system and the lineup requirements. You won’t regret it.

Practice- Speaking of mock drafts, USE THEM! They run every night. The Fantasy Jungle has our own draft software, it’s free to use and mock, and it’s good to get used to it before the main event. You can really benefit from getting comfortable with the software, whether it be this contest or another one. You can also use the satellites to get used to the software AND win a free team for 2008 in the process. I recommend you draft from the same computer you plan on drafting on the day of the Main Event, so you are certain your PC is compatible with the draft software. Try out all the features and get used to them. You should be confident that you know how to select a player or load them in your queue, and then draft them. You should also use the sort functions we have implemented which can sort by any category. It isn’t difficult but knowing how to navigate the software before the draft begins will put you at ease and allow you to think about how to draft the optimum team instead of how to load a player in the draft. If you are doing a live draft, it’s good to go over some live scenarios so you are prepared as well. Don’t be an A.I. ……”Practice?! You talkin’ bout’ practice, man!”

Draft Day- Be prepared with your notes, rankings, and bye weeks as well. Mike and I always found it best to print off our own rankings and cross players off when they are drafted. Searching for players that were taken 2 rounds prior and then scrambling to find a player before you time runs out is never a good idea. If you have all of your information in front of you and organized well, you will be able to look forward to a smooth draft.

Distractions - This may seem rude, but eliminate the distractions for that period of time during the draft. Wife, kids, friends, dogs, whatever. Tell them you need a few hours of total privacy. There is nothing worse then trying to track your leagues draft while your wife wants to know why you haven’t power washed the deck yet, your kids are having friends over for band practice, or your neighbor wants you to help him get his lawn mower started. This is your day and it comes around once a year. Plan ahead and put it on the family calendar so you have absolutely no distractions.

Chat Box- When the draft begins don’t abuse the chat box to the point where you lose focus on what you are trying to accomplish, which is winning the title. Don’t get into a battle of words with someone in your league just because he slams you for taking your sleeper too soon. What does he know that you don’t? After all, you are the one that is prepared! Don’t let anyone get in your head. Let your overall record do the talking. Remember, everyone is an expert before the games are played. At the same time, you shouldn’t try to slam the players in your league. It’s much better to take the cordial approach. It will allow you to focus on your draft. People that act like asses in the chat room rarely finish near the top of their league.

Drafting- Pre-ranking is a very good idea. Go in position by position and load your queue. This way, when it comes around to you, you will have the top rated player at every position available on your screen. Sure you can change your mind based on bye weeks, but it sure is helpful. Speaking of bye weeks, pay close attention to them. You sure don’t want to end up with 3 running backs who have the same bye week!

Know Your Opponents- No, you don’t have to take them out to dinner or hack into their computer. Simply pay attention to who they have and what they need. For instance, if you are in the 11 hole and it’s coming back to you in the 5th round, you may want to grab that stud Tight End. However, if you are paying attention and notice that the guy in the 12 hole drafted Gates in the 4th rd, You know he isn’t going to take another tight end with either of his picks, so you can take the highest rated player on your board that is not a tight end and wait for the swing back in the 6th round. This comes into play more than you might imagine and goes for all positions. Pay close attention to your opponent’s drafts as well as yours.

Have Fun- Like I said before, this is the most important day of the Fantasy Football season. Kick back in your favorite chair with some food and a nice cold beverage and enjoy yourself. The more comfortable you are in your surroundings, the better you will draft! That is a fact!
Good luck to all of you as the 2007 season looks to be the most diverse and interesting draft we will have in years!