How To Play Fantasy Footbal in 2024? - A Complete Beginner’s Guide

The 2024 NFL season is exactly a month away. Teams and players are gearing up for the preseason games.

The fans are more excited than ever as they finally get to watch their favorite superstars put on a show in the gridiron.

This is also the season of fantasy football. If you’re an avid follower of the NFL, chances are that you know what fantasy football is and you may also be playing fantasy football.

But if you’re new to the sport or if you want to get started with fantasy football, do not worry, we have you covered.

The following page will give you a complete understanding of what fantasy football is all about and how to go about playing fantasy football.

What is fantasy football?

In a nutshell, fantasy football is an online game where you create your own team and draft players and compete with other teams in a league for the championship.

Think about your favorite players, from Derrick Henry to Tyreek Hill, you will get a chance to draft these players from the National Football League. When the player performs well, you score points.

Just like the National Football League, you can trade players in fantasy football as well. Fantasy football also has playoffs and the team with the most points at the end of the season is declared as the champion.

As a fan of the game, Fantasy Football allows you to enjoy the sport with more involvement. It gives an opportunity for the fans to manage the team, just like the General Managers in the NFL and build rosters that secure championships.

Creating a fantasy football team

Creating a fantasy football team is a simple process. To create a fantasy football team, you have to sign up for a league. Websites like ESPN, Yahoo, CBS Sports, Sleeper, NFL’s official Fantasy Football site often host fantasy football leagues.

There are multiple options of joining a league. One way is playing in the private leagues which can be played via invite. In this league, you can invite your friends and family to compete with you. Another option is joining a public league where you join random users to compete in a league.

Now that you’ve created your team and joined a league, it is important to get to the most important step - drafting your team.

Also Read: Inappropriate NFL fantasy football team names to consider before 2024 season

Drafting a fantasy football team: What you need to know

A Fantasy Football team’s success completely depends on the performance of the real NFL players on the field. There are so many variables and factors that define the performance of a player. Hence it is important to draft the players that will help you, not just to score more points but also to win your league.

The fantasy football draft usually happens late in the month of August or early in the month of September, before week 1 of the new season of the National Football League.

The fantasy football players start doing their research once the NFL season gets over in February. They become more meticulous since the end of July because that’s when the training camps begin for the NFL teams and it is the best time to evaluate players, understand team rosters and depth charts, assess the draft picks, and forecast the draft projections.

There are usually two types of draft. One is the “standard draft” or “snake” where the league follows an order of selecting players. Another type is “auction.” As the name suggests, the teams can acquire players based on the budget they have to spend on players.

Once the draft is done, get ready for some real football action.

Are you gettng a trade offer in your fantasy football league? Utilise Sportskeeda's Free Fantasy Football Trade Analyzer and Calculator to assess trade proposals in redraft and dynasty leagues.

Trading and Waiver wire: How to use it to advantage

The NFL is one of the most unpredictable sports leagues across the globe. Fantasy Football team owners are always looking to improve their rosters and if they feel a particular player could be on the rise soon, they will be willing to make a trade offer for the player. If the other team owner approves the package, the trade is successful. The key here is understanding the value for both the player you offer as well as the player you receive.

Waiver wire is an interesting concept in fantasy football. Consider this as free agency in fantasy football. The undrafted players and the players released by their respective NFL teams automatically fall in the waiver wire.

From replacing injured players to dropping poor performing players in your roster, waiver wire helps you throughout the fantasy football season in building a team that can help you win games.

As a fantasy football team owner, it is your job to make full use of trading and waivers in your championship run.

Also Read: What are Dynasty Leagues and Keeper Leagues in Fantasy Football?

Enjoy playing fantasy football

If you’ve read the till here, chances are that you have a better understanding of how to play fantasy football. Join a league, create a team, draft players, use the waiver wire properly, make trades when necessary and you’re on your way to a championship.

As much as competitive fantasy football managers can get during the season, it is important to not forget the ultimate goal - to enjoy playing the game. At the end of the day fantasy football is a virtual game.

Enjoy the game. Have fun competing. Learn from your mistakes and come back with a better plan and team next year.

Good luck for the upcoming NFL season.