IR slot in fantasy football

[chrisfab 0]

As our league enters its 10th year, there has recently been some grumbling from a few owners who, last year, have suffered multiple injuries on their roster at the same time. From day one, our league has used the one IR spot rule, where a player who is "O", can be dropped to the IR, opening up a roster space. I like it, think it is fair, but am trying to see things from another point of view. Here is a post by an owner who'd like to see things changed up. I'm just looking for thoughts and insight..

 

The problem with the current number of IR slots is this, the first injury a team gets they get to replace the injured player with a healthy one from the wavier/free agents. The 2nd, 3rd or 4th injury starts to penalize the injured team in the amount of healthy players they can choose from to set their roster each week. It also gives the injured team less options to overcome the injuries due to being forced to carry the injured player on the active roster.

 

Under the current system the only options you have when trying to overcome multiple injuries is to cut the injured player, trade the injured player or have the injured player clog up valuable active roster space.

 

Nobody is giving anything up in a trade for a player who will be missing the next 4 weeks. It would be stupid to cut an injured starter who's is out for 4 weeks to make room for 3rd stringer (not very much talent out there when we have 13 teams and 16 roster spots). Your only logical choice is to leave the injured players on your active roster and handicap your team and pray that the bye weeks don't force you to drop injured talent just so you can set a lineup.

 

Last year if i remember right Tag, Brett and myself all had 3 or more injured players at the same time. This gave us 14 healthy player to choose from during these weeks when our competition could choose from 16. It also made waivers and free agency decisions a lot more difficult.

 

With our current rosters (16) and number of teams (13) the amount of players out there on free agency is very thin. I think Anderson said it best last year when he said " players are off the radar till they are back on everyones radar". A team with multiple injures is forced to cut a player whom they know will be productive when the recover from injury, for a player who is nothing more than a shot in the dark. There are no insta-starters in this leagues free agent list.

 

The irony of the whole situation is that teams who are dealing with injuries are already behind the 8-ball due to losing key players, but are also locked out of ways of compensating for injuries due to having an active roster clogged up with the injured players.

 

Its a new year and I have no injuries at this point so i have no dog in this fight. But I have experienced it and its terrible to be playing in a 13 team league with a deep bench of 16 and being locked out of waiver moves and free agency because you have 2-3 productive players clogging up your active roster due to injury.

 

If a team has 1 injury its no problem, drop the player to IR. If a team gets 2 injuries it becomes a penalty and compounds higher with each subsequent injury. If anyone can explain how this provides and even playing field.....Im all ears.

 

And then offers some alternatives:

 

1. Eliminate the IR slot all together That way all injuries effect each team the same, a cost of an active roster slot or dropping an injured talent to waivers.

 

2. Reduce the size of the bench to 13 This way we would create and additional 39 players on the free agent list. This would allow teams with injuries to be able to pick up a player who was actually getting touches on Sundays.

 

3. Making only players who's prognosis is minimum of 3 weeks out eligible for IR That way teams with game day inactives cannot add a last minute free agent and get a "free look" at a prospect who might becomes next weeks top waiver wire add.

 

So what do you guys think?

[Evil Genius 0]

The value/importance of the IR slot is relative to the format.

 

Dynasty: IR slots are a must in this format, IMHO. Two, I figure, is about the right number.

IR slots are for guys on the NFL IR, only, and do not impair other roster/position limits (if any)

 

This allows an Owner to maintain a star and otherwise operate a valid line-up. Certainly does not compensate for injuries - the junk monkeys you pick up are usually barely serviceable. But it's what you get, which is more than nothing.

 

Keeper: In between format is tough to call. I personally have IR slots for this type in my Keeper League, but they come with a financial cost. You could charge, say, $5 for using the slot (or what have you), but anyone is eligible. Gets the diehards spending money if they want to speculate on a flyer. The other dudes simply save their money.

 

ReDraft: In this format, there is no reason to have injured slots, again IMO. What's at stake in the Orig. Post is the depth of bench, if it's a ReDraft.

 

Depth of bench controls FA talent, and sure, deeper benches make the FA pool very thin. This is a matter to toy with to get the right level, but if you have three starters get serious injuries, there is practically no FA pool out there that will save you. Dem's da breaks.

 

If you want to protect Owners from injuries, an argument could be made to have a more shallow bench, but it depends - in 14 or 16 Owner redrafts, you can usually make the benches as thin as you want (say, 4 slots), and there is still practically nothing in FA in terms of QB, RB or TE that would equate with a drafted starter.

[We Tigers 71]

The post from your league is confusing--I don't really get your setup. Dynasty should have a couple of IR spots that are exactly that--IR spots. A player can go on there if he's on the NFL IR, and that's all. 2-3 is probably plenty. In a keeper league, IR spots should also be allowed, but if it's something like a keep-3, you only need one IR slot.

 

I don't get the penalties your post is talking about, nor do I see a need for any special "injury but not on IR" type slots. That's just roster management, and a cost/benefit decision every manager has to make for his team.

[chrisfab 0]

The post from your league is confusing--I don't really get your setup. Dynasty should have a couple of IR spots that are exactly that--IR spots. A player can go on there if he's on the NFL IR, and that's all. 2-3 is probably plenty. In a keeper league, IR spots should also be allowed, but if it's something like a keep-3, you only need one IR slot.

 

I don't get the penalties your post is talking about, nor do I see a need for any special "injury but not on IR" type slots. That's just roster management, and a cost/benefit decision every manager has to make for his team.

 

Our league is a redraft league...

[Evil Genius 0]

Our league is a redraft league...

 

Then you should not have Injured slots at all. Injured slots facilitate Keeper and Dynasty formats.

 

As I said before, your issue is Bench Depth.

 

With 13 Owners, I would suggest that 16 roster slots may be slightly too big. Maybe go 8/9 starters and 5 or 6 Bench.

 

This should allow plenty of movement and interesting talent in the FA pool.

 

However, nothing is going to solve 3 serious injuries to drafted starters. Now, if you have a player who is out for 4 weeks, that sucks, and is the toughest of calls in terms of keeping the dude on the bench or dumping him back in (and risking another guy getting him when he returns).

 

However, this is simply just one of the 'realities' of Fantasy Football: Guys will get hurt and this will screw your team, and you will have to do the best you can do to remain competitive in the interim.

 

Tell your buddy you will put the total slots question to a League vote. Otherwise, he should suck it up.

[Evil Genius 0]

Duplicate.