In Appreciation Of Roster Construction

I’m still on a high from a Saturday afternoon spent in a downtown Los Angeles brewery participating in one of the worldwide Scott Fish Bowl 15 live drafts. When I say “worldwide,” that same day there were drafts happening in Australia, Lithuania, Brazil, and Mexico City. Pick a major U.S. city, and they’ve had one over the past few weekends. Or will.

The Scott Fish Bowl is a charitable fantasy football tournament that pits over 4,000 players against one another in 12-team leagues. All in the name of Fantasy Cares, which raises funds for Toys For Tots and other charitable organizations. You name anyone in the fantasy industry, and they’re participating. Yes, Matthew and a big chunk of the Fantasy Life crew are in it to win it. For charity. To say the scoring settings are chaos on steroids is an understatement. They change yearly, and this year all TDs are 6 points, while receptions are 2.5 per, with tight ends getting another point on top. All rush attempts are .5 of a point. This is just the tip of the iceberg.

Did I mention it’s “ultraflex?” Yes, nine positions can be any of RB/WR/TE, while two more are QB/RB/WR/TE. So you don’t have to start a quarterback, and Kendall Valenzuela tried that strategy. She’s still smarting over the QB she inadvertently autodrafted. 

Best Laid Plans …

Back to Saturday, there was all sorts of talk on what the right roster build would be. High-volume RBs would rule some teams’ rosters. And there was plenty of mention of waiting at QB. I was picking at the 1.12 in the Dodger division—all four of our drafts had LA team names—so I knew that any plan I could make would be wrecked by the 11 experts picking in front of me. Be water, which Ian Hartitz likes to remind us. 

When the dam opened and players started flying off the board, it was fun and chaos all at once. I knew with ultraflex that roster construction would drive value all over. I did know one thing: I would take a QB in my first two picks at the turn. When Jayden Daniels fell into my lap, it was an easy pick. “Faith in 5!” I yelled, and Matthew said we’re of like mind.

I really thought of picking Derrick Henry next, but CeeDee Lamb was there, and all I could think of was him getting 180+ targets like his WR1 season in 2023. I didn’t know I was starting something.

Round 3, thought about JT, clicked on Drake London. Round 4-5 Terry McLaurin to stack with Daniels and Tyreek Hill, because if he’s still the Cheetah, this is a steal. Round 6-7, the RBs just weren’t enticing enough to pass on Zay Flowers and Xavier Worthy. Round 8-9, I clicked on Trevor Lawrence—this is still superflex, no matter what Kendall was trying to pull—and Chris Olave. By Round 10-11, when we took a break, Michael Pittman and Matthew Golden. 

My starting lineup, with nine rounds still to go, was nine WRs and a pair of QBs. Seven of the WRs are the top targets on their teams, and the other two are promising speedsters. Maybe I’ll take an RB later. Not intended, but just an example that while it’s important to fill all the roster positions, whatever flexibility is to be had in roster construction, use it. Rookies picked later could pop. This year’s Sam Darnold could emerge. Be creative. Take shots. Talk some trash. Most of all, have fun. You might even bask in the glow of an accidental Zero RB build.