🏈 Welcome to NFL Fantasy 🏈

Hey Insight Community - are you looking to get into NFL fantasy for the first time & have no idea where to start? This one's for you.

Your No-Stress Guide to Formats, Tips & Starting Strong

If you’re brand new to fantasy football or just thinking about jumping in, this guide is here to walk you through the basics — from what kind of league to start with, to helpful terms and early tips that'll set you up for success. Whether you're in it to win it or just want a reason to care about Monday Night Football, you've come to the right place.

🚀 Getting Started

First time playing? Start with a Redraft league. It’s the easiest and most popular format — and a great way to dip your toes into the fantasy waters.

🟩 Why Redraft?

• It resets every year — no long-term commitment.

• You draft your team before the season starts and play it out week to week.

• Most redraft leagues hold their drafts in mid-to-late August, close to NFL kickoff.

• That late start gives you the best shot at avoiding preseason injuries or last-minute suspensions before you pick your squad.

💡 Bottom line: Redraft is beginner-friendly, super active, and fun from Week 1 through the fantasy playoffs. Perfect for learning the ropes.

**INSIGHT REDRAFT LEAGUES KICKING OFF IN AUGUST (Interested? Let us know below or reach out to any of the NFL team to lock up your spot)

🧩 League Types: What’s What? (Along with Redraft above)

🟦 Keeper Leagues

Keep a few players, draft the rest again.

Keeper leagues let you hang onto a handful of players (usually 1–3) at the end of each season. It’s like redraft… but with a little more continuity.

🛠️ Some Common Rules:

• You might have to “pay” a round to keep a player (i.e., keep a guy in the round he was drafted).

• Players are sometimes only eligible to be kept for 1–3 years.

• You usually can’t keep multiple players from the same round.

💡 INSIGHT tip: Late-round gems are gold here. If you snag a sleeper late and they blow up? You could be getting major value for seasons to come.

🟨 Dynasty Leagues

Draft your team once. Keep it forever (seriously).

Alright, this one’s for the long haul.

You draft your entire team in a startup draft, and then keep that same squad year after year — building through trades and rookie drafts. It’s the closest thing to being a real GM.

🗣️ My take? I started with redraft and caught the fantasy bug quick. Once I got into dynasty, I've been battling in trenches ever since. There’s just something that hits different about building your own squad from scratch, watching it evolve, and trying to turn it into a multi-year powerhouse. You’ll learn to love your rookie picks, trade them away for a championship run, or tear it all down and rebuild from the ground up. That’s dynasty life.

🔍 Key Things to Know:

• Your team rolls over every season.

• There’s a rookie-only draft each offseason.

• Player value changes a lot — age, depth charts, contracts, injuries… it all matters.

💡 INSIGHT tip: Build a balanced team early. Don’t go all vets or all rookies. Adapt your strategy depending on whether you're chasing a title or planning for the future.

Also — if you’re in a Superflex dynasty league (where you can start 2 QBs), quarterbacks are premium. They’re hard to trade for once the league starts, so I always try to grab at least one young stud QB in the startup draft to build around.

🟧 Best Ball Leagues

Draft once. Set nothing. Let the points do the work.

Best Ball is for the draft lovers and set-it-and-forget-it players. After you draft, that’s it — no waivers, no trades, no setting lineups. Your best players automatically get slotted in each week.

It’s simple, fast, and still super competitive.

🧠 Some Tips:

• Draft for big upside, not safe consistency.

• Depth is key — no adding replacements for injuries later.

• Stack QBs with their WRs (aka “QB-WR stacks”) for big-point combos.

💡 Think of it like a season-long mock draft — but one that actually counts. Great for learning how to draft smarter.

📚 Key Terms to Know

Here's a cheat sheet of fantasy lingo that’ll come up a lot:

PPR / Half-PPR; Points Per Reception. Full PPR = 1 point, Half PPR = 0.5 per catch.

Superflex (SF); A flex spot that can also be used for a second QB.

Tight End Premium (TEP); TEs get bonus points per catch (usually 1.5 instead of 1).

ADP; Average Draft Position — where players are being drafted.

FAAB; Free Agent Auction Budget — a blind bidding system for waivers.

Waivers; Weekly process to add players after games.

Handcuff; A backup RB who’d become valuable if the starter gets hurt.

Boom/Bust; High-risk, high-reward players.

Streaming; Swapping in new starters weekly based on matchups.

Roster Clogger; A player who’s not helping you — and blocking better pickups.

🚦 Starter Tips to Help You Early

Just getting going? These tips will help you avoid rookie mistakes and stay one step ahead of the competition.

✅ Tip 1: Use Rankings & Trade Calculators

There’s no shame in checking out consensus rankings online — they’re a great reference for figuring out player value and where guys are getting drafted.

You can also use fantasy trade calculators to get a rough idea of value in trades. Just know:

• They’re not gospel.

• Every league is different — settings, scoring, and player preferences all change things.

• In one of my home leagues, everyone’s obsessed with RBs, so WRs fall way lower than usual ADP.

Use calculators as a guide, not a rulebook.

📢 Tip 2: Keep Up with the News

Want an easy advantage? Stay Informed.

Want an even easier advantage? Listen to Insight NFL Podcast.

Following injury updates, preseason depth charts, suspensions, or even coach quotes can give you info before your league mates catch on.

Most casual players check out once the draft ends — so if you stay alert, you can capitalize with great waiver pickups and smart trades.

Sign up for alerts, follow beat reporters, and make a habit of checking in each week. It pays off.

💙 Tip 3: Have Fun with It

Seriously — draft guys you like. It’s way more fun when you’re watching your favourite team and rooting for a player that’s also on your fantasy squad.

You won’t always make the “perfect” pick, but you’ll care more, enjoy it more, and stay active.

This game’s about fun, competition, and bragging rights — so lean into it and play your way.

🎓 Wrapping It Up

Everyone starts somewhere. Use rankings, stay engaged, and enjoy the ride. There’s no perfect strategy — just consistent learning and figuring out what strategies work best for you.

🧠 You’ll Make Mistakes — And That’s Totally Fine

You’re going to draft someone who busts. You’ll make a trade that looks awful in hindsight. You’ll bench a guy who goes off.

It happens to everyone

But here’s the thing: every mistake teaches you something. Every bad beat sharpens your instincts for the next one.

Fantasy football is equal parts strategy, luck, chaos, and growth — with a side of trash talk amongst your league mates.

🎯 WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!

Fantasy football isn’t just a game. It’s a way to connect with the sport, build something from scratch, & the best thing of all - it encourages talking trash with your mates.

Don’t wait - jump right on in, & immerse yourself in the wonderful world of Fantasy NFL.

Appreciate you making it all the way through — and welcome to NFL Fantasy! If you’re looking for more in-depth help or just want to chat fantasy, feel free to join our NFL WhatsApp group. Whether it’s me (Mullin), Mav, or DFAB, one of us will be there to help out, talk strategy, or just straight up talk ball.

Jump in, ask away — we're building winners together. 🏆

Stay safe legends,

Mullin 🎙️