I started playing online when getting our first computer. No Todd, not a Commodore 64.
That was dial up though, and the arguments over the importance of fantasy sports or teenage friends of our daughters were too much and I relented. For Christmas that year, we got ourselves another phone line.
I played both fantasy sports with vigor for a few years. Not bragging, but dominating most leagues.
Then came a time where I thought that football was changing too much for the fantasy game. The standard one qb, one rb, two wr, one te offense was changing. Specialization moved in. Some felt this made for more strategy. I felt the game was being watered down.
Instead of a guarantee of Rice or Owens catching a long pass down the field, now it could be anybody in a four receiver set.
Third down backs came in to receive passes. The Emmit Smith's who we could depend upon for almost every carry, now had changed to running backs who had a 15 yard carry and needed a breather (even near the goal line).
When playing head to head, which I was in BOTH sports, we know about the luck. But for football, the luck in my eyes, was changing on the field. If I owned Willie Mays in a fantasy league, I knew that he'd get his four hacks every game.
It's the same now.
If I draft Ryan Braun, he gets his four hacks.
In football, the game has changed.
We can't count on anybody.
If a defense decides to gang up on a back or one receiver, we're screwed. One of the best receivers in football, Larry Fitzgerald, never gets his 'four hacks' because he doesn't have a quarterback capable.
It's unfair.
Besides rules in scoring/playoffs, the fantasy football game has not changed. It's that watered down product on the field.
I can still get Doritos at two for five bucks. 10 years ago, they came in 14 oz bags, now nine.
That is the way the game of football has changed for the fantasy community.
We don't get as much product.
And this is without even talking about the scoring to accommodate those changes over the years. I now don't play it for big money. And still, I respect those that do. They have more patience, or cahones, or something....whatever it is, they have more than I do!
Since these days, I've changed from the head to head game in baseball to roto. Everybody knows about luck and head to head. No need to expound.
What I don't get is why footballers have playoffs.
Why?
It puts importance on weeks near the end of the year. Players performing well in week 15 is better than players performing well in week eight.
Why?
The game on the field hasn't changed. At least, not for the better. Some teams might try untested players, offenses, or defenses in looking forward to next year. Some players may be sat out for minor injury if there team has clinched or is out of the real playoffs.
It's a head scratcher.
Why not just play the game out?
Sure, the word 'playoffs' makes it seem more important. But, in reality, it only provides a chance for a team to move quicker up the ladder.
A little bit of a lotto ticket.
Maybe changing the game to 'Roto football' is needed.
Yards passed, passing touchdowns, rushing yards, rushing td's, Receiving Yards, receiving td's, receptions, kicking points, and defensive points can be the categories.
I don't know.
The simplicity is missing. The game is just plain hard to navigate.
The fantasy baseball game needs little tinkering. The beauty is in the simplicity. The biggest argument over fantasy baseball rules was how many innings a team can minimally throw.
Right now, the game is a thing of beauty.
Granted, baseball has been watered down too.
Pitchers don't throw as long and utility players are used more than in the past.
But until pitchers continually throw less than enough innings to garner a win, the fantasy baseball game will continue to be the best.