If you are in an auction league – congrats! You’re playing fantasy football at the highest level, having access to any player you want and with the ability to create a roster to your own liking. If not – what’s holding you back? I’ve never heard of anyone that regretted the move.
Nothing like a pile of money and shiny things to buy. Yes, you can own anyone. Maybe not much else, but targeting a single player “damn the cost” is possible. But a budget means intelligent use of your money, and that’s always a good thing. The challenge of an auction draft is that everyone has the same amount of money to spend, and everyone wants mostly the same players. Let the fun begin!
Let’s run down some of the nuances of buying players instead of just picking from an ordered list.
Player Value
Search the internet and there’s a multitude of sites that carry these and they are all pretty much the same. They’ll consider a 12-team league with a $200 salary cap which is by far the most common. Let’s take a look at a sample to get an idea of what 2023 looks like in consensus player value as of this writing.
I could buy Patrick Mahomes, Christian McCaffrey, Justin Jefferson and Travis Kelce for around $178 but then would only have $22 for my remaining twelve players. Not unusual for someone to try some variation of that. Never saw it remotely work. Lose one top player and your team careens off into outer space. So you need to apply the money you have, against what that can buy. Oh yes, and you have to want that player more than any other team.
Enter the need to budget so you can know what is possible and what is too much to pay for a player.
Budgeting
Go into your auction knowing how you plan to apply your cash. It will never happen exactly like you think, but you need that guideline to keep you on the road to an optimal team.
Use this quick three-step process to make a $200 budget for a 16 man roster:
Step 1 – First Cut for Relative Positional Value : Make a rough cut at what you think each position is worth to your team. Consider how much the position scores for comparison.
Step 2 – Consider the Starting Players : For each position, distribute that cash down when the position requires more than one starter. Just take your total positional dollars and spread them out over the starting positions.
Step 3 –Consider Total Roster Depth: Spread out the money so that every player has an allocated value. You can save money on depth players but realize that at least a few will be called on because of injury, bye weeks or under-performance by starters. Play around with your values and decide where you want the bulk of your cash to go. I personally recommend spending big on the starters, but having backups that can step in and help does matter as well.
Here’s where you could end up:
You will adjust your budget with every player acquired. Some cost more than expected and others were relative bargains. A budget keeps you in tune with your money and how you spend it. Don’t end up with unspent money. Know what you can afford.
This is just a guideline, but keeps you aware of what you can spend on players. Just decide how much money you want to devote to the starting players, and how much your backups can cost. It feels great when you want a particular player and get him for less than expected – you add more cash to the remaining players you need. But when you overpay, you have to lower the bids on other players and that hurts.
Three styles of bidding
Before your auction, at least decide on which auction style is best for you.
Go Big – Going big means buying at least two if not three of the superstars. The above average auction values suggests you can buy Christian McCaffrey ($50), Justin Jefferson ($49), and Travis Kelce ($47) for a big start. But then you have to assemble the rest of your team with just $56. In a league with 18 players per team, you’d only have an average of $3.70 per player. Draft Equivalent – This is like getting three No. 1 picks, and then the rest of the team is from round ten or deeper.
Go Wide – This plan is the most common. It entails getting one top stud player, several good ones and then quality backups and filler. This lets you target individual players (within reason) and yet be flexible to pick up good values. This is great for those that are confident in their player valuations. This person bids – a lot. A very active player since he helps establish the bid value of most players. Draft Equivalent – The resulting team looks like it was drafted. Most people use this plan.
Go Deep – This strategy is not for the faint of heart. It entails sitting back while the expensive players are taken before winning a bid. Like maybe the first 40+ players are awarded. He packs the roster with upside guys hoping to land as many sleepers as possible. While owning no big-name players, he dominates the bidding starting mid-auction. Draft Equivalent – This is like having all your picks come between the fourth and tenth round of a normal draft. All of them. Have to hit the sleepers. But you have plenty of depth.
Final Tips
- The first player taken in each position is usually a good value. Teams hold back wanting to see what the positional cost will be and let that first one go too cheaply. There are so many others left to acquire anyway.
- Running backs that have handcuffs should have that second player thrown out immediately. Don’t let anyone pick up an insurance player for cheap at the end to complete their set.
- Winning in fantasy football means having difference makers. Don’t be afraid to go higher than budgeted for top players. Always lean towards investing more in starters instead of backups.
- If you really want a specific player, throw him out and do not wait. Chances are others want him as well and are holding money out to buy him. At least you’ll know early if you can get him and can still make other plans.
- There is nothing wrong with throwing out players you do not want. Particularly early on so that other teams burn up cash on someone you’d never buy. Just make sure he’s at the minimum bid or you run the risk of ending up with him.
- Kickers and defenses are no less risky or more of any advantage just because you can have anyone of them. Save your money.
- Check out the Average Auction Values at MyFantasyLeague.com or search for the many others on the internet. That gives you a sense of common player value this year.
- Never. Never. Never leave an auction with unspent bidding dollars. Spend them all. Always end up with at least a couple of $1 players at the end to make sure you don’t leave anything on the table. Nothing is worse than ending up with even a few dollars, knowing that you stopped bidding on players you really wanted and could have owned.