I used to think that, if you didn't pay attention to any offseason developments, it would take you about an hour to get up to speed. If you have other things to do, you really don't have to follow every NFL-related piece of news that occurs after the Super Bowl. In no time at all, you'd be all caught up with the people who follow it daily.
But things are different now. Free agency was active, coaching changes were significant, and the draft results now mean plenty of week 1 starters who are new to the league. Some folks have been following these things every step of the way, spending hours going over the ramifications of each transaction. It's unrealistic to expect to be at their level in just one hour.
This year, better make it two hours. You might not need all of that second hour, but it will be more than enough to get you caught up.
First things first: If you truly enjoy the free agency analysis, following the coaching carousel, the pre-draft discussions, the projections and mock drafts, more power to you. Maybe it's a fun or relaxing way for you to spend your time, so enjoy it. Those managers aren't trying to gain any advantage over their competition in fantasy leagues. They're just enjoying the developments as they happen, because it's a fun diversion for them.
But if you're somebody who does think it gives them a leg up on everybody else, I'm sorry to break it to you: You're a couple hours ahead of them, max. You don't have any real advantage. In fact, you could argue you're at a disadvantage because you've given too much attention to events that simply won't matter in September. All that analysis will be stored in your brain somewhere, and it could affect your decisions on draft day subconsciously.
Let me give you one example: There are some players who have tweaked a hamstring, or hurt their foot, or something else in the past month or two. They've been held out of practices, letting the backups get quality reps. The coaches, being the expert liars they are, have talked about how amazing the other player looks, floating the idea that they might get significant reps in the regular season. Factoring in the fantasy gossip shows, websites and random posts, and the typical over-analysis from eager managers, and now there's talk that the guy might end being a draft-worthy contributor!
In most of those cases, the starter will be fine and the backup will drop back down the depth chart and become a candidate for your league’s free agent pool. And if your brain was a computer, you could simply delete that information and keep going. But your brain is not a computer. It's organic, and it will retain information you don't even mean to keep. So that burst of optimism for the backup when they were looking so great in practice with the 1s? Traces of that will linger. Concern about the injured starter that created a mental red flag in June? Elements of that will be in your head in late August. And in the middle or end of the draft (when playoff teams are created) you could make decisions based on information that doesn't matter anymore, and you aren't even aware you're doing it.
I didn't mention any specific names on purpose. I don't want that information in your head, and I definitely don't want it in my head. You can look them up, but I guarantee you that if an injury becomes a real concern, you'll know about it by mid-August. You'll have time to react, but not enough time to overreact. And that's exactly where you want to be. So if you have any anxiety about not keeping up, let it go. You're never more than two hours behind, no matter when you start paying attention.
I understand that you're ready to get going, the spring football leagues didn't really do it for you (though some parts were kind of entertaining) and you just want to get your fantasy team ready. I'm in that same boat. But you're wasting your time by getting too deep in the weeds in early July. Besides, Ian and Andy do all of that, and they distill it down in a meaningful way. So even if you think you're missing out on something, they'll catch it and bring you up to speed. You can even count it as part of your two-hour prep to catch up with the folks who never had a fantasy offseason.
So what should you be doing now to make your fantasy season as fun as possible? We'll be covering that right here in the coming weeks. In the meantime, fire up the grill, enjoy some fireworks, and catch up on season 3 of The Bear. Welcome back!
How closely do you follow the NFL offseason? Does it affect your draft strategy? How much weight do you give what you see in the spring and early summer? Share your thoughts below.