Photo: Imagn Images

This section will give you a rundown of the different types of fantasy leagues that one can participate in. From a standard redraft league to a full-fledged dynasty league to an IDP league, there are many styles of leagues that all offer various challenges and enjoyments to the fantasy footballer.

STANDARD REDRAFT LEAGUES (HEAD-TO-HEAD)

The standard redraft leagues are by far the most common fantasy leagues. The league has a draft that is usually serpentine in nature (first pick overall in round one will pick last in round two, the last pick in round one will pick first in round two, etc.). The owners will pick out a starting lineup each week depending on the regulations of the league and match up against a different owner each week. Scoring more points than your opponent results in a win whereas scoring fewer points will result in a loss. The best win/loss records meet in the playoffs. Each new season, all of the NFL players go back into the pool and can be drafted all over again.

Example of Head-to-head Competition

Team 1 would win the above head-to-head matchup by a score of 113-104.

STANDARD REDRAFT LEAGUES (TOTAL POINTS)

These leagues start off the same as head-to-head leagues. Once the draft is finished however the ultimate goal is to finish with the most points overall instead of the most wins. There is no weekly head-to-head schedule and it is simply a matter of building up as many points as possible. Over the last decade or so, the total points' leagues have become less popular.

Example of Total Points League

Team 10 would win the above league because they scored the most points over the 16-week season.

AUCTION DRAFT LEAGUES

Auction drafts can be a ton of fun and offer unique challenges but it also takes up a lot more time on average than a standard draft. Some owners swear by these leagues as every player is available depending on how much you wish to spend. As an owner in an auction draft, make sure to devote a block of six to ten hours in order to complete your draft. Each owner in this kind of league gets a sum of play money in which they will use in order to build their fantasy roster. Each owner can bid on any player on the auction block as long as he/she has enough money remaining to win the bid. The best part of an auction draft is simply that every player in the league is available to a fantasy owner. If an owner wants to build a squad featuring Carson Wentz, Todd Gurley, Saquon Barkley, and DeAndre Hopkins as part of their starting unit, they can do so (although he won't have much, if any, money left to add other strong players).

Example of the first six bids of an auction draft

"Thus those skilled in war subdue the enemy's army without battle .... They conquer by strategy." - Sun Tzu, Art of War

KEEPER LEAGUES

This style of league is very similar to the leagues above. The difference is that the owner can keep a predetermined number of players from his draft in the previous season to carry forward into the new campaign. In some leagues, you can keep one player, in others three, and in others five or more. Sometimes it costs an owner a draft pick to keep a player from the previous season and sometimes no penalty is paid. It really depends on the league's rules.

Example of a 5-player keeper league
(the teams will keep the players in bold)

As you can see, in a keeper league, some teams will start off the draft with a core that can be far better than other teams in the league.

DYNASTY LEAGUES

A dynasty league is similar to a keeper league but each team can keep their entire roster of players from one year to the next. After the inaugural draft in year one, the players will stay on the team they are drafted to unless they are traded away or released. Each offseason a rookie draft will take place in which the owners can add talent to their rosters. These leagues can be really challenging to rebuild a poor roster as it may take years of wise trading and shrewd drafting in order to rise to the top. Great leagues if you want to challenge yourself.

SURVIVOR DRAFT LEAGUES

These leagues can use either the auction draft or the standard draft. Once the rosters have been filled out however the rules are much different. Similar to the television show Survivor, in this style of league, the team with the fewest points scored in a week is booted out for the season. It is very important in this kind of league to build a well-rounded squad that can withstand the perils of injuries, bye weeks and other similar challenges. Usually, in this kind of league, no free agent pickups or trades are allowed. Because of the format, there is possibly a higher degree of luck involved as you can have one bad week and be eliminated from the title chase.

IDP LEAGUES

These leagues use defensive players as well as offensive players. This is only for the diehard fantasy player as it takes a lot more research, knowledge, and experience to know not only what defensive players to draft but when. Depending on the scoring rules, offensive or defensive players may fly off the draft boards in the early rounds.