- 1). Understand your league's rules. There are many different types of leagues and scoring systems, so it is very important that you know how many points each fantasy category can earn you. Some are points-per-reception (PPR) leagues, awarding half or one point to a player for every reception. Some leagues award six points for a passing touchdown while standard leagues award four. Some leagues allow teams to play two or more quarterbacks, while others stick with the standard one. Fractional points, individual defensive players (IDPs) and negative points are all possibilities, so make yourself aware of your league's intricacies.
- 2). Rank all the players before the draft. Popular outlets release fantasy football rankings to the public, including ESPN, Yahoo!, CBS, AOL, and NFL.com. These lists have been created by fantasy football analysts who rank players overall and by position. Although these lists were researched by people paid to do so, you should always go through and change the rankings based on who you feel has the highest upside and best chance to earn maximum points over the course of the season. Also rank your players based on your league's rules: in PPR leagues, running-backs who catch lots of passes should be ranked higher than running backs who only run the ball. If your league allows more than one QB, think about drafting two QBs in the early rounds.
- 3). Do plenty of mock drafts. The major fantasy football outlets offer mock drafts, where you can choose where you pick in the draft and see how it unfolds without any strings attached. Mock drafts allow you to see what players typically go with what picks and in which rounds, decreasing your chances of drafting someone too early. Mock drafts are illuminating because, if you do enough of them, you see lots of possible outcomes and, more importantly, see which players routinely fall to you. They also get you used to the pressure of making picks if you've never been through a fantasy draft before.
- 4). Create a draft plan. This is the most critical aspect of the flawless draft. Unless you join a public league, you ought to know the draft order and where you pick in every round. Most drafts employ a "snake" process, meaning the last pick of the first round gets the first pick in the second round, with the order reversing from there. Based on your own rankings and the information you collected from mock drafts, you should be able to gauge which players will be available for each of your picks in the draft. As such, you can see which rounds you should fill each of your major positions. The first round is mostly devoted to star running backs and maybe an absolute stud wide receiver or quarterback. Tight ends can wait until the mid-to-late rounds, while kickers and defenses should always be taken at the end.
- 5). Identify key "sleeper" picks. Sleepers are late-round picks who have demonstrated tremendous upside but haven't received enough playing time to know for certain how they'll perform; they could also be previously-stellar players coming off major injuries and/or have questions surrounding their current abilities and talent-level. Either way, identify players you know you can take late in the draft who will perform at levels way higher than where they're drafted. This frees you up to take best-available players earlier in the draft, but you must do your homework on these sleepers.
- 6). Watch preseason games and read training camp reports. Preseason games have become increasingly essential in the era of free-agency since players move around so frequently. Preseason games provide opportunities for new signees to play with their teams, break in new coaches or coordinators, and give you a sneak peek at how the season may play out. Since first-string players hardly play past the first quarter of these games, preseason games provide excellent stages for identifying sleeper picks who excel in these game situations. Training-camp reports operate the same way: These reports clarify depth charts and provide information on how the coaching staff feels about certain players. These reports can tell you if a rookie has supplanted a veteran at the starting running back, for instance, and you can change your rankings accordingly.
- 7). Execute your draft plan. Do not become anxious or quick on the trigger at your draft, and always pay close attention. With all your preparation, you should have a good idea of how the draft will play out, but don't be too concrete. If the rest of the players in your league pass on a player because of injury or performance-related issues, but you firmly believe that player will be fine, decide whether you want to pick them up then or wait for your next pick to get them at better value. If you had planned to go RB-RB-WR in your first three rounds, but a WR you had ranked in the first round falls to you in the second, it might be a good idea to snag him while he's available and alter your plan slightly.
- 8). Draft a well-rounded team. Be as strong as possible at every position, and make sure to draft quality backups. Don't be afraid to load up on a particular position, either, if the right players fall to you. Look at these excess players as assets with which you can leverage trades after the draft or later in the season. Chances are if you've taken lots of running backs, somebody else has taken lots of wide receivers, and you should be able to broker deals that will be mutually beneficial.
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