The New Way to Watch Football

Everyone knows football right? Running, throwing, defense, same old same old. Everyone on the field is out there to win games in hopes of bringing home the Lombardi trophy in February. 

What if there was a new way to watch. What if instead of cheering for an entire team rooting for a single player. What if people were cheering for just one wide receiver to get that touchdown or catch that pass instead of it doesn’t matter who catches the pass or scores as long as the team wins. That is what fantasy football is all about.

When playing fantasy football leagues start off by drafting 16 players. Usually there is one quarterback, two running backs, two wide receivers, one tight end, one flex (which can be any running back wide receiver or tight end), one kicker, and one team’s defense. The other spots are backups that are drafted for bye weeks, if a starter gets injured, or if there’s a favorable matchup. There are always opportunities to trade throughout the year or add new players that are available in the free agency. 

The object is to score the most points possible to beat the opponent’s fantasy team.

 There are many different ways of scoring but here are the two biggest one’s. Non ppr format is where each player gets one point for every 25 passing yards, four points every passing touchdown, one point every rushing yard, six every rushing touchdown, one every receiving yard, and six for every touchdown. Kickers are scored by getting a single point for a kick following a touchdown and three for a made field goal. 

Defenses get one for every sack, two for every interception or fumble, two for a safety and six if they hold the opponent to zero points. In ppr formats the only difference is each player gets one point every time they make a catch. Defenses and kickers can also vary because some leagues may give defenses more points if they hold the other football team under 17 or negative points if the opponents team scores over 28. Kickers may get negative points for missing a field goal or extra for making a long one. 

Fantasy football has been getting more and more popular as years go by but it is definitely peaking now. “ I love this game and how addicting it is. It never gets old just praying for your player to catch that pass or score that touchdown. Or nervously watching the sunday night football game to see if your player will score those 15 points to win your fantasy game”, Hayden Klein, junior, said.  “I have been playing for several years and usually have 3 to four different teams because it is so fun”,  Klein said.

 As popularity for the NFL increases, so does the mania surrounding fantasy football and its’ thousands of users.