Your roster is a perfect snapshot in time. It represents your best efforts given the most current information, opinions and strategies you had at your disposal. You mixed all that together, added your gut feeling, and came away with the best possible lineups given what you had at that particular moment.
Unfortunately, that moment is now ancient history. And it's time to modernize.
The decisions you make could be affected by information you get just a few hours later. Certainly an extra few days can change things. And when you add in a whole week or two of pretend football (preseason) and the related injuries and roster cuts, the guys you chose are the result of variables that don't exist anymore.
I'm not talking about the early selections. You need to give your stars a chance to shine. I mean the late-round pickups, the fliers, the lottery tickets and the guys you chose when fatigue set in. Some owners bail on the later rounds and let auto draft take over. That's always a fun way to surprise yourself with players you never wanted.
So what do you do? The same thing you do during the regular season, when things also change from week to week. You update your roster through the waiver wire.
In some leagues, the free-for-all has already begun. In others it starts a couple days before the first game. In some instances, you can't make changes before week 1. It depends on your league. Find out when you can make changes and plan accordingly.
But don't tweak things once and wait for Thursday night. Guys who were cut will inevitably end up on other teams, shaking up depth charts and offering new value on the waiver wire. There's even a slight chance of a trade or two. It can also sink the value of guys you already have, so an upgrade might be in order.
See, while people are waiting for the fun to start, they might miss the fact that it's already started. This is the real fun: The team management, the talent evaluation, the roster moves and the feeling that you're upgrading your squad. You'll spend much more time during the season tending to your roster than actually watching football. I think this weekly maintenance is part of the challenge and the fun of fantasy football. If you ditch one flier for another you like a little better, you're playing the game. Even if you never use those guys, you're doing your job as an owner. Just like a real team stocking their practice squad and updating their emergency list, shuffling the end of your roster is part of the due diligence of good ownership.
Besides, it's fun and it can make a difference during the year. You never know when an after-thought will be pressed into duty. An injury or suspension can turn a nobody into somebody in just a few days. You might have a starter on your hands. Or some valuable trade bait. Or just some peace of mind. Whatever it is, there's a lot of satisfaction in knowing you're reaping dividends from the entire roster instead of just patting yourself on the back over your first three picks.
I've seen good fantasy players leave injured guys on their roster for weeks. I've seen owners stash the "wrong" backup, even though the news was there for everyone to find. Maybe they find it boring, or unimportant. I don't. Maybe I won't use them. Maybe the owner who ignores the last couple spots on their roster won't be hurt one bit by doing that. And that's fine. Whether it's insurance, or strategy or just having fun playing the game, I have my own roster bubble. And some might not make the cut before the first games start. I'm watching, and I hope you are, too. Good luck.
Do you make post-draft changes, or do you stand pat and wait for the games to start? Any scenarios you're watching closely for their fantasy fallout? Share your thoughts below.