Today we’re taking an BEHIND THE FRAMES look at the perspective of a married woman (my wife) playing fantasy football with her husband (me), the pressures associated with playing fantasy football in a league with experienced players, strategies approached and used this past season, and most importantly how great it felt for that married woman (my wife) to defeat (sigh…. me) in our fantasy football league’s championship game.
Below is a Q&A session from two seasons ago:
Q: Have you ever played fantasy football before and what made you want to join your husband’s league?
Previously, I primarily participated in Pro Pick’em Leagues and picked my teams for the typical girly reasons (color, team loyalty, etc.) I had only been in a fantasy football league one other time and came in 2nd place!
As for joining my husband’s league? Did I really have a choice?! Honestly, we already have a fun football rivalry so it was a way to add another opportunity for us to trash talk one another. That’s a healthy dynamic for a relationship, right?!
Q: Were you nervous about playing fantasy football?
A little bit. I’m competitive and a perfectionist so it was intimidating entering a league with experienced guys when I lacked the same level of knowledge and expertise as them.
Q: What did you do to prepare for your draft? Resources?
My husband showed me how to mock draft, so I practiced a couple times from the position I was going to be drafting. I don’t think I ever scored above a B- though so I gave up. But that was pretty much it. The day of the draft he had printed out a list of players ranked by position so I just used that to check off the taken players.
Q: What was the draft day like?
Stressful. Intimidating. Nerve-wracking. Overwhelming. I honestly can’t say too many positive adjectives about the draft day. It was very fast-paced, and I felt pressured to make a quick pick without really knowing if it was a good choice. It didn’t help my uncertainty when I heard my husband make the comment “you picked THAT old guy?” But it was a name I recognized, which is why I picked him!
Q: Were there other women in your league? How would you gauge the level of interest? Why do you feel they joined?
There were 3 other females in the league. I think they had moderate level interest. None of them are overly competitive so I think they viewed it more as something just for fun than for bragging rights.
Q: Did you feel intimidated by other more experienced members of the league?
YES, initially. The guys were all nice and didn’t say or do anything to make me feel intimidated. But it definitely took some time for me to figure out some strategy and being inexperienced I often second-guessed myself. Their experience level just gave me the perception of being at a slight disadvantage since they knew what they were doing.
Q: What advice would you give other people for how to prepare for a fantasy draft?
I don’t think everyone has to go into it with the same level of extreme preparation as my husband. I think mock drafting a few times from your draft position is helpful. More importantly, it helps to have a list of players ranked by position and gain an overall sense of which players you’d ideally want to draft. You should also consider players beyond just the BIG names that will go quickly in the first rounds so you have a few alternate choices as a backup.
Q: Did you enjoy your time during the season last year? What frustrations did you encounter? Were you interactive in your league as far as trades and waiver wire acquisitions?
I definitely enjoyed it! But remember, I’m also competitive. My main frustration was figuring out which players to put in and then realizing a player on my bench outscored a starter! I didn’t utilize the waiver wire or trades that much. Trades intimidate me since I have no idea if I’m getting a fair deal. It was much easier for me to check the waiver wire if I was looking for a player.
Q: How did it feel to defeat your husband and become the Fantasy Football League Champion!
(Insert your own positive adjective – because it was all of those words!) Of course, I loved beating him and getting the extra bragging rights. Especially, since he was adamant about not helping me at all! It was also a nice confidence boost that maybe I’m not as awful at fantasy football as I thought.
Q: Are you looking forward to the upcoming season?
Yes, definitely. I have a title to uphold!
Q: What advice would you give other women who feel too intimidated to play in leagues with their significant others or mostly male participants?
Just have fun with it! In some ways, it comes down to luck. Aside from that, I’d suggest doing a little research before the draft. A well-drafted team can get you far without too much additional research and work throughout the remainder of the season. Get the hard work out of the way at the beginning and just focus on maintaining that throughout the season.
Q: How will you prepare THIS year for the upcoming draft/season? What will you do differently if anything?
I will do some mock drafts from my draft position again. My plan is to go into the draft slightly more prepared beyond knowing just the Tier 1 players. I definitely want to print some lists of players ranked by position to use as a reference. I’m also going to make notes to myself about the player names I hear being mentioned often on the many fantasy football podcasts my husband is listening to constantly (just don’t let him know that I secretly pay attention to what they’re saying)!
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