Patience, Patience, Patience A Two Steps Ahead column written by clv Previous Columns: 9/11/20049/6/20048/27/20048/21/2004 Back to main Written 9/18/2004 One of the toughest attributes to develop for fantasy GMs is also one of the most important - PATIENCE. It's what often separates the consistently competitive GMs from those who have a chance for a little glory one season followed by mediocrity for several more. Exercising patience is important in every aspect of managing your fantasy "franchise", but it can be immensely more important when you're trying to make decisions about potential "keepers" for next season. The reason? When you participate in "keeper" leagues, you must view EVERY player on your roster as a potential "keeper", making it imperative that you value each one of them correctly. The way each GM values each player reflects how complete his (or her) thought process is, consequently affecting every decision they make during a season. There are many issues that face (and often force) you to make decisions you often don't want to make every season, and the GMs who consistently compete for championships are the ones who can calmly and patiently follow their plans and think rationally - regardless of what situation arises. For example: Your team is in a league that allows each GM to keep any 2 players, plus one rookie from their final roster for next season. This should be your blueprint for not only your draft before the season starts, but also as you consider trades and waiver-wire pickups throughout the season. As you prepare for your draft, always remember (even if you need to jot it down on a sheet of paper you'll have with you) that you get to retain the rights to a rookie as well as the 2 players you decide to build around for next year and beyond. One thing I practice (and strongly recommend) is when you build your spreadsheets and draft boards, always make sure to leave rookies in a separate section, regardless of what their role on the team that drafted them may be THIS season. This will allow you to keep an eye on them, which in-turn will help you to be "Two Steps Ahead" of other GMs at the end of the season. Why? Because you're already casting an eye towards that third (and quite likely) very important "keeper" to build your team around next season. Its not necessarily important that you draft rookies, but it is important that you're always aware which teams have them on their rosters, giving you a little edge in potential in-season trades as well as insight as to a way another GM in your league will try to shape his/her team next year. Always keep these important facts in mind when you propose trades (or they're proposed to you), as well as when you're considering potential waiver-wire acquisitions. I have a team in a league of this type this year, and have to consistently remind myself how important it is that while I continue to strive to improve my roster this season, I also must keep an eye (at least intermittently) peeled towards the end of the season as well. The reason this is so important is that it allows me flexibility that many others in this league may not have next year because when the time comes that everyone has to declare who their "keepers" are, some may only have two where I'll have three. The reason you have to exercise so much patience here is simple - no matter how deep your lineup is, you are only able to start so many players each week. This shouldn't affect your pursuit of the best players available to strengthen your team at any time, however, be careful to think every factor through when making those decisions. In the league (20 player roster/10 teams) I compete in with the above mentioned setup for example, I acquired 3 very solid QBs in the draft - Trent Green, Brett Favre, and Jeff Garcia. To someone unfamiliar with the plan I had, this could easily seem to be overkill. The reason I went for so many QBs rather than players at other positions was rather straightforward frankly - most GMs were picking one QB, then somewhat "ignoring" the position until much later in the draft, choosing instead to fill their rosters out with solid yet unspectacular backups even though they hadn't addressed their bye-week needs at QB. This put me in a position of strength as the end of the draft approached, and even though other GMs had one possibly better option (Culpepper, Manning, McNabb, Vick, etc.) than I, they were faced with the distinct possibility that their starter during his bye-week would be Fiedler/Feely/Brunell/Warner/etc. (not to mention begging the injury gods that nothing happens to their "main man"). After the draft ended, and the usual four or five day "honeymoon" period which most of us go through with high expectations for all the players we draft wore off, several of the aforementioned GMs realized the mistake they'd made, and the e-mails began filtering in - "What in the world are you going to do with 3 QBs? Maybe I can help you at another position." (We've all gotten them at some point, haven't we?) My reply? Not sure how much help I need, you have something better to offer me than Portis, Dillon, TO, and my other starters? This is where the "building for the future" begins. Through several deals (which I'm sure the other GM felt he walked away the big winner), I was able to maintain the starters I drafted - Trent Green, Clinton Portis, Corey Dillon, TO, Jimmy Smith, Todd Heap, New England's D, and Josh Brown, and added Eric Moulds as a third WR, while filling a bench with loads of potential third "keepers", at least one at each position (Eli Manning, Julius Jones, Roy Williams, Michael Jenkins, Keary Colbert), and I'm now in a position to be much more patient than their "real-life" GMs might have the liberty of being with them because I know I have the next 16 weeks to evaluate them without being overly concerned with whether-or-not their teams are winning. The key? Always know where those potential third "keepers" are at all times, and remember to value them correctly keeping "Two Steps Ahead". (If you're interested in the results, I'll update the team from time-to-time throughout the season)