As of 2017, around 60 million people in America play fantasy football. I would guess that number is even larger now, especially as the NFL begins to embrace legal gambling and the windfall of cash it will provide. No matter how you look at it, fantasy—where fans assemble virtual rosters whose players accumulate points through their on-field performance—is now part of pro football's national profile. If you go to a live NFL game, the sideline chyrons usually prioritize fantasy statistics, to the point that fantasy talk is unavoidable; that's how deeply fantasy is baked into football culture in 2019. "How's your fantasy team doing?" is probably the most common icebreaker that no one actually wants to hear the answer to. How can you prepare?
If you're someone that's looking to dip their toes into the phenomenon, it can be an intimidating process. There's so many players, so much information, so many pundits who speak authoritatively about how to draft or who to pick. That can be reason enough not to try; I understand that. However, if you're looking for a few threads to guide your thinking on your pioneering foray into fantasy football, ONE37 has compiled a few tips to follow. It's not rocket science and it'll be fun.