You hope you learn something new every year. Sometimes its that what you learned the previous year was all wrong, and sometimes its something totally different. In any case, with the final gun sounded, I think I can look back and find a few things to take with me into next season.
- Fewer Daunte Culpeppers. Remember way back in 1999, when the Vikings didnt let Culpepper do anything his rookie year? There was a philosophy that early picks could be left to sit on the bench and collect a paycheck if you thought they needed time to mature. That was cute, wasnt it? Well, NFL teams now want rookie quarterbacks to earn that money. If youre drafted early, youre going to be behind center sooner rather than later. And like Andrew Luck, Robert Griffin III, and Russell Wilson proved, they can be viable fantasy starters as well. Aside from the obvious dynasty implications, it shows that even redraft leagues have a deeper quarterback pool than they did a decade ago. Your 2013 starter might not have played a down of professional football yet.
- Every body is different. No, not everybody like a lame Up With People Super Bowl halftime show from years past. I mean every body is different. Adrian Petersons body responded differently after his injury than, say, anyone else weve seen. In a way thats great, because your players might hold their value beyond a devastating injury. But it also means that fantasy owners will be hoping for a Peterson-like recovery even when that might not be realistic. Robert Griffin is not Adrian Peterson, but many fantasy owners will gamble next year that theyre not too far apart when it comes to rehabilitation and recovery. No telling yet if it will pay off or not, but at least theres more hope for owners than in years past.
- Teams keep an eye on the record books. Maybe I knew that already, but it seemed really obvious in 2012. Both Peterson and Calvin Johnson were chasing history, and it was clear that their teams would do everything to help them get there. Its one thing to let it develop based on the flow of the game, but thats not really what happened in Minnesota and Detroit. They made concerted efforts to get their best players the ball. Thats a good football philosophy, of course: You want the ball in their hands. But they were gunning for records, and the teams were doing everything they could to help them achieve those specific milestones. But I also learned that defenses follow records, too. Johnson broke Jerry Rices single-season receiving record, but he didnt get 2,000 yards. Teams werent letting him have anything. And while Peterson broke 2,000 yards and fell just short of Dickersons mark, it wasnt because teams were laying down for him. They were stacking the box and trying to shut him down. If you worried that there might be a professional courtesy at play where players help each other get records (Im looking at you, Brett Favre and Michael Strahan) I didnt see any of it in 2012. Fantasy owners need a Twitter account. Twitter has gone from a valuable extra to a must-have asset for fantasy owners. In addition to following us here, you can get valuable information in real time from a host of sports reporters and beat writers. Previously, you were a step ahead of the competition if you had an active feed on Sunday mornings. Now youre a step behind if you dont have one.
- Fantasy football is still about camaraderie. Sure, you can win money, a trophy and bragging rights. But playing with strangers will never be as fun as playing with friends, and the money never lasts as long as the memories. As fantasy football grows in popularity, well keep hearing stories of unscrupulous commissioners, Internet scams, throwaway leagues and other obstacles that detract from the fun. The best way to avoid these pitfalls is to play with people you know, in local leagues, with face-to-face interaction. Your buddy from high school might not be a football guru, but beating him will be more fun than beating GBFAN4LIFE1986. Its better to play with eight active, interested owners than a real league with 12 teams where a third of them are missing in action by week 8. Trash-talking in person beats a message board. A draft where youre laughing and mocking each others picks in person is superior to mouse clicks and a keyboard. And Ill tell you something else: A trophy you won from friends is better than a few dollars in your Paypal account. The game is only as fun as the people in your league. Thats worth re-learning each year.
Enjoy your off-season, watch some hockey (if you can forgive the NHL) and find me on Twitter here. See you in the summertime.
Youtube Clip of the week: I hope these guys are still best buddies.
What did you learn this season? Share your thoughts below.