Is there such a thing as fantasy football etiquette? I get the whole “Play until the whistle” or “It’s not over ’til its over” garbage. You know those dumbass clichés everyone on the losing end of something says.
Week 13 is possibly the most important regular season week in fantasy football. It gives hope to owners still fighting for their playoff life. It also gives clarity to playoff positioning for owners who have already clinched a spot. Most importantly, it gives an owner, with nothing left to lose, the opportunity to ruin another owner’s season. You know those owners? The ones that have a 4-8 record and are still salty because you beat the piss out of their shitty ass squad way back in week 2? Now they want to extract revenge on you when it matters most. I get it. Misery needs company. I can’t say that I wouldn’t do the same. But when does playing for pride cross the line of playing like a prick?
A prime example, would be spitefully claiming waiver wire players once mathematically eliminated from playoff contention. Is this ok?
I understand there is an argument to be made for playing your season out and playing for pride. I completely agree with all of that. No league wants an owner to throw in the towel and hand someone a free pass. However, is it okay for these owners to claim waiver players, even though they will not be playing after week 13? Or should these owners simply play the guys currently on their rosters and only add free agents?
Another etiquette uncertainty may not always have the opportunity to rear its ugly head in a season, but it begs to be answered. Is it acceptable to purposely lose a week if you already clinched a playoff spot and it helps another team miss or make playoffs?
This question came up because a follower of the show, who is in 1st place in his league, has an opportunity to let the 6th place team “Team 6” beat him this week on purpose. By doing so, this will keep the 7th place team “Team 7” out of playoffs. Digging deeper into the strategy, Team 6 has Alshon Jeffery and AJ Green making the team extremely vulnerable in the playoffs. Team 7 is the owner with the most points scored in the league, but has also been the victim of having most points scored against. With a win for Team 7 and a Team 6 loss the positions flip flop. Do you beat Team 6 and help the stronger Team 7 get in, or do you lose to Team 6 and let the injured fawn, fresh for the picking, into the dance?
Let me know what you guys think about these, or any other fantasy football etiquette scenario that you can think of, in the comments below.
-Paulie “Bagga Walnuts”