Bruno Boys Fantasy Football

The two auction articles I wrote have generated many questions and comments by email and the Bruno Boys Forum. I have to admit, I am really psyched that so many fantasy football owners are giving auction drafts a try and are thinking and planning on a different level than most other fantasy owners. This week, I decided to take the best questions I’ve received and answer them in a mailbag format. These mailbags are going to be a regular feature here at Bruno Boys. If you have a fantasy football theory question, feel free to email me at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). Your email just might make my next mailbag. Here are the questions that made this week’s mailbag…

QUESTION:  Hi Matt —  I was reading your article concerning auction drafts.  I’m the commissioner of a 12 team league.  I’m desperately trying to get my league mates to switch to an auction format.  I’ve tried unsuccessfully for a few years, however this year I think I’m going to be able to pull it off.  The main concern most people have is the actual logistics of the draft.  What will be the budget, what is the bidding process, how do you resolve disputes, how long will it take compared to a normal draft are some of the questions.

A proposal someone mentioned was doing an auction until everyone had 8 people on their team.  At the point, we’d switch to standard drafting for the duration of the draft.  Have you ever heard of such a system?  If so, how would it work?  I’m fearful that, because it is so weird, people would not understand it at all and it wouldn’t be much fun.  For instance, I would know to spend a large amount of my budget on the top few guys, because I won’t need to save any money for late round sleepers or defenses or kickers.  If you could get the top RB, WR, and QB for 95% of your cap, I’d be happy to spend the remaining 5% on what would essentially become late 8th round picks.

Also, I’ve heard of a system that is called “poker style.”  Basically, a player is nominated with a starting bid.  It then goes around it a predetermined order.  Each owner must “pass,” eliminating themselves from bidding on that player again, or outbid the original bidder.  This process continues until all have passed but one owner, who is the winning bidder.  Have you played in a league like this?  If so, is it fun?

Finally, do you have any just general thoughts on how to run an auction draft?  I’m intelligent and energetic enough to handle it as commissioner, but my main concern is that this entire concept rides on people having fun at this particular draft.  If this auction draft sucks, I’ll never be able to convince any of my other leagues to go to an auction draft, as there is at least one person from the league I’m doing an auction draft in all of my other leagues.  How can I make sure this draft runs smoothly so that people understand that auction drafts are the way to go?

Thanks for any help and thanks for your time. — Bobby — Miami, FL

ANSWER:  Hi Bobby, — Excellent questions all. Getting the guys in your league to switch to an auction format is not easy. The personal league I run switched to an auction four or five years ago, but I had been lobbying for the change a couple years before. You can start by making the obvious arguments like auction drafts are more challenging and skillful, auction drafts are faster paced and exciting, and auction drafts are more fun because of the aforementioned attributes. You can appeal to a guy’s need to stay current or “hip” and explain to them that auction drafts are the wave of the future. Fantasy football continues to evolve each season and more and more leagues switch to auction formats every year. Does your league want to get left behind in the stone age? 

If this doesn’t work, appeal to their egos. Tell them you understand their reluctance toward not wanting to switch since you would dominate and steamroll the rest of the league. More than a few will agree to switch and have the opportunity to prove you wrong.

Finally, if none of that works, make an agreement with the rest of the league. This is what I actually had to do. Since I was commissioner, I said we’re going to try this for one season, if you don’t want to try it, you don’t have to be in the league this year. If you try it and don’t like it, we’ll go back to a serpentine format if that’s what the majority wants. I can assure you once your league tries the auction format, they will be hooked. This year, I jokingly sent out an email to the guys in my league saying that the auction format had gotten stale so we are going to switch back to a serpentine format this season. My inbox exploded with emails from the guys asking me what the hell I was thinking and that under no circumstance do they want to go back to a serpentine format. A few even request that I schedule our league auction as close to the start of the regular season as possible, because all the serpentine drafts they do after the auction are too boring.

I hate to say it, but if none of this works, find new owners or find a new league because they are unfairly holding you back and being unreasonable.

I don’t like the half draft, half auction format. Bill Simmons (Sports Guy @ ESPN) mentioned he liked this format in one of his recent columns. I’m a big fan of Bill’s, but I have to respectfully disagree with him. Some people argue because this format has both an auction and a serpentine format, it requires more skill. I can assure you this format does not require more skill than a full auction. I mean, let’s be serious here. Who wants to settle for just half of a good thing?

Along the same lines, I am also not a fan of the poker style auctions. They take too long, they’re more structured and less exciting than a regular auction, and they require less strategy because the bidding isn’t wide open at all times.

As far as auction logistics go, this is where things can get difficult for a lot of people and probably the biggest reason why more leagues don’t utilize an auction format. There has to be an auctioneer. Now, I’ve been in leagues where we’ve actually hired an auctioneer to come and run the draft for the day. The commissioner is still involved with keeping track of which team won which player, but he doesn’t have to worry about the bidding. If you don’t want to hire someone, bring a friend or family member not in the league who you trust to run the auction and manage the bidding. If this is not an option, then the commissioner would be in charge of running the auction. I have run the auction for my personal league since we switched to an auction format. The first year was tough and the auction took much longer than it should have, but it has been smooth sailing since. My teams haven’t suffered in the league either, despite not being able to give my own team my full attention. As I said, the first year you try an auction, it will take longer than normal. Auctions take longer than serpentine drafts because teams aren’t just reading and crossing names off a fantasy football cheat sheet. The extra time is actually nice because every fantasy owner knows the best day of the year is draft day. Who really cares if it takes a bit longer?

I would also recommend using an auction software to manage the auction. FantasyDraftTools.com is good. I have used their software in the past because its solid, inexpensive, and easy. FanDraft is also good, though much more expensive. I don’t think the extra cost is worth it, but you may find it is a better option for what your particular league needs. I don’t care which software you choose to use, just make sure you use one. Don’t try to be proud or cheap. Trust me on this one. It will make your life much easier and minimize (if not eliminate) any mistakes while running the auction.

As far as setting up auction cap, I usually recommend a cap of $7-$9 per player and every player must go for at least $1. So, if your league has 15 man rosters, an ideal auction cap would be $125 or so. Make sure you don’t set it at more than $9 per player. That inflates the value of all players and you start having some top RBs going for $70 or more which is ridiculous. In my league, very few players have ever gone for more than $50, which is the perfect ceiling price for the best players in the league.

You are not responsible for making sure people have fun at an auction draft. If someone doesn’t have fun at an auction draft, its their own damn fault and they probably don’t have a pulse. A few things you can do this first year is make sure you answer any and all questions people pose about the auction. You don’t want to have to stop in the middle of the auction or, worse yet, in the middle of the bidding to answer questions or concerns. Also, this first year, take your time and make sure you get it right. If something gets messed up because you’re rushing, its going to turn owners off the auction draft format and you’ll have problems in the league before the season even starts.

I hope this helps you and answers your questions, Bobby. Please feel free to email me again if you have any further questions about this.

QUESTION:  Hi Matt — Our league has never done an auction before and it is now a $100 PPR non keeper with the previous 6 yrs being the snake. What I’m struggling with is the mass varieties of player values. If I am reading correctly it is actually the % of one player to another as the draft progresses IE: I’ve seen Chris Johnson as high as $40 & Gore at $20. So if someone picks up CJ for say $30 does that mean Gore might be had for around $15 or am I totally off here lol. Thank you in advance. Very thorough article. —  Scott — Submitted via BrunoBoys.net

ANSWER:  Hi Scott — You are sort of reading this correctly. Its not a percentage of one player as the auction progresses. It’s a comparison of the two players based on previous winning bids. Going back to the article, Aaron Rodgers can be worth $36 or $52 depending on how much Drew Brees and Peyton Manning go for. If Brees and Manning go for $34 and $32, Rodgers is probably worth $36. If Brees goes for $48 and Manning for $46, Rodgers is probably worth $52. Don’t get hung up on the exact numbers themselves. By the same vein, if Rodgers sold early in the auction for $50, you can estimate that Brees and Manning should be around $47 or $48 when their names come on the block. Now, if Aaron Rodgers isn’t the best fantasy QB in your opinion, you may be willing to spend more than $50 for Brees and Manning when they come on the block. Its all about comparing players at their position and the prices others players at that position went for earlier in the auction. If you wanted to get really technical, you could assign percentages and say that Peyton Manning and Drew Brees are worth 95% of what Aaron Rodgers is, but those numbers for the most part would be fairly arbitrary. Simply put, winning bids earlier in the auction make the auction values of other players at their position change as the auction progresses. But remember, its all based on your opinion. In the example you gave, obviously Chris Johnson is a better fantasy RB than Frank Gore. Now, your league cap, scoring system, and other league rules will determine the actual numbers, but say Frank Gore goes early in the auction for $25. With Gore going at that price, I am comfortable spending $40 on Johnson and maybe even a bit more. If Johnson hits the block first, he will obviously establish the ceiling price by which all other RBs should be evaluated. Hopefully, this explanation helps you understand the concept a bit better. If you’re still not clear on it, feel free to email me or post other questions in the comments on this mailbag.

QUESTION:  Hi Matt — This season will be our first auction draft.  I am curious about any tips or suggestions you may have on preparing for the draft.  Both articles on BB have been very helpful but do you have any more details available?  Mainly, I would like to know how you rank your players.  Do you create a list and order them by perceived value by position?  Do you actually assign a dollar amount to them to prevent over spending during the draft?  Thanks for your expertise!!  OakenD — Submitted via Bruno Boys Forum

ANSWER: Hi OakenD — Glad the articles were helpful for you. I’m also thrilled to hear you will be participating in your first auction league. You will never look at serpentine drafts the same way again!

As far as ranking my players, everything I do is based on position, not overall ranking because I don’t believe that’s the best way to measure a player’s true value. As a big believer in Value Based Drafting, I place a premium on guys that significantly outscore the other players at their particular position. I will first start with by ranking the players at their particular position based on that particular league’s scoring system, lineup setup, roster requirements, and other league rules. This season, Aaron Rodgers is my top QB, Chris Johnson my top RB, Andre Johnson is my top WR, and Dallas Clark (with Jermichael Finley hot on his heels) is my top TE. I just work down from there. I will assign initial dollar amounts to most players with the understanding that as soon as 10 players or so are auctioned off, those numbers will change and continue to fluctuate as more players are auctioned as the auction progresses. So with my auctions, Rodgers, Johnson, Johnson, and Clark will set the price ceiling at each individual position. For example, if the winning bid on Rodgers is $35, no QBs (in my estimation) should go for even a $1 higher. If Manning or Brees go for $36 and $37, I would say that Rodgers was great value at $35 because two QBs who I think are worse than him went for more money than him. Conversely, Manning and Brees would be poor values because a better QB went for less money than they did.

If you are patient and plan ahead, you won’t have to worry about overspending. Remember, proper preparation prevents poor performance.

QUESTION:  Hi Matt — This is also my first auction draft, and what i am doing is kinda creating tiers at each position and then assigning each tier an approx dollar value, usually in $10 increments. I also am trying to create a budget for each position, and then have it all on a spreadsheet, and then if I overpay for a RB1, I can see how much less I should put towards my other positions, and then see what guys I have at that value. It’s def much more involved than a snake draft.

Right now, with $200, my budgets are… QB-$20, RB1-$50 , RB2-$30 , FLEX-$15 , WR1-$30 , WR2-$15,  TE-$10, DEF-$2, K-$1, 6 bench spots at $4 each = $24

I realize I have $3 left over, but I just prefer the even numbers for my budget. My bench spots are usually broken up into a few $5-10 buys and a few late $1 buys.

Does this sound like a solid budget/strategy? Leppy — Submitted via Bruno Boys Forum

ANSWER: Hi Leppy — I really like the fact that you’re planning this out and trying to come up with a strategy. My only worry is that I feel you may be taking away some flexibility by sticking to certain rules and budgets at each position. Let me throw something out there for discussion. In this league, if Aaron Rodgers goes for $45, you’re going to have to spend more than $20 to be competitive at the QB position. I don’t like assigning specific dollar amounts for each position because auction values constantly change and you won’t know until the auction starts how much you’re going to need to spend at each position. This makes your numbers arbitrary, thus constructing them was a waste of your research and planning time. Now, I recommended a percentage system in my first auction column as an example to help a beginner understand auction leagues. Those percentages are going to change based on your league scoring system, roster and lineup requirements, and other specific league rules. I would rather you analyze your league’s scoring system and setup and figure out which positions are most valuable in the league. Obviously, the players at these identified positions will be worth more when it comes to your league auction.

The other issue I have with your strategy is that you are essentially allowing and giving yourself permission to overpay, which is a mistake. Overpay and overspend are not a part of my auction planning or strategy and they should not be a part of yours. In setting up a backup plan for overpaying, you’re creating a self-fulfilling prophecy, almost guaranteeing that you will overspend at some point in your auction. Leave this kind of thinking to your opponents. You should be concerned about where you can find value and also cause your opponents to overspend.

I really appreciate the great questions and feedback I received on my latest auction article. I’m really glad to see all the excitement surrounding auction drafts this season. Should you have any further questions, feel free to email me at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). You can also post a question in the comments of this mailbag or in the Bruno Boys Forum. Thanks for reading and best of luck in your auction drafts this season!