Ben Harris
Show Bio
With the NFL preseason winding down, we’re reaching that key time on the calendar where the decisions you make could determine whether the final quarter of your year is enjoyable or torture. Fantasy football is more than just a game for so many people. The countless hours spent researching rosters, analyzing statistics, and scouring the waiver wire becomes like a full-time job rather than a hobby.
We’ve surveyed 3,200 fantasy football players from the 50 biggest cities in the United States to find out where the most obsessed competitors come from. How soon do they draft? How much time do they spend researching each week? And how frequently are they checking the waiver wire? We’ve discovered the most successful fantasy football cities and the parts of the country where players are willing to do whatever it takes to win.
Never too early
Players in Columbus, Ohio are the most eager drafters. Like true NFL scouts ahead of the Combine, they’re researching players 44 days before the start of the season. That’s double the time the average player commits to their research (22 days). Fantasy fanatics in Orlando are researching on average 41 days before the season begins, while players in Memphis and Phoenix are tied third as the most keen in the country, exploring talent 39 days before opening weekend.
Titletown
But how useful is that early analysis? As it turns out, not a lot. Phoenix is the hotbed of fantasy talent, with players winning an average of 7.39 titles to date throughout their competitive careers. However, none of the other three cities that are home to the biggest fantasy draftniks came in the top 15 for most titles won. Out of all the people we surveyed, the average player has won 3.5 titles. Orlando (2.36), Columbus (1.6), and Memphis (1.33) are all below-par in terms of championship success.
Fantasy players in Raleigh, North Carolina spend the least time researching for their leagues, averaging just nine days before the big kick-off. There is as little skill as there is hard work for the Raleigh folk, averaging 0.9 title wins in all their years playing. Our survey discovered that people across the country have been playing fantasy football for 8.7 years.
Phoenix isn’t as lucky as it seems because it’s also home to the highest proportion of fantasy losers. The average fantasy football player has come last in their league 1.3 times. However, in Phoenix, they’ve finished at the bottom of the leaderboard 4.56 times. Players from Richmond, Virginia have come last in their leagues the second-most (3.8). Incidentally, there isn’t a huge dearth of talent in Raleigh. Players there fare well below the national average, coming in last just 0.9 times.
More than just a game
As we know, fantasy football can take over our lives throughout the season. Every minute detail needs to be checked. It’s a game of whole numbers played in decimals. We all know someone who’s been defeated by 0.01 points. No one wants to be that guy.
During the season, the average player checks their lineup 9.5 times a week. There are places where people are going above and beyond that. Is there more at stake in Salt Lake City? There, the average fantasy football player is checking their roster 23.5 times a week. Perhaps they need all the research they can get because they’re 41st out of 50 for titles won (1.4). They are definitely hungry for success because players from Utah’s capital scour the waiver wire for that hidden gem 14.89 times per week. From our survey, the average player looks at waivers 8.2 times a week.
Kansas City fans know all about success and what’s needed to build a championship roster. Not all fantasy football players from KC will be able to draft Patrick Mahomes, but they do spend the second-most time each week checking their fantasy lineups (21.9). They’re also the second-most committed to the waiver wire, scanning it 14.33 times a week.
Show me the money
Friend leagues aren’t for everyone, especially those fantasy football enthusiasts who like to make some extra cash for their knowledge. Daily fantasy sports (DFS) is big business, pitting players against each other on a game day, with huge sums for the winner. The average earnings per week among surveyed participants is $286. That’s a cool $5,184 in your back pocket for the regular season.
Players in Memphis are making almost three times that much with their fantasy skills, averaging $848 a week. The high rent in Miami and New York City could be covered for successful fantasy ballers, averaging $809 and $759, respectively.
Last-place punishments
Finishing dead last in your fantasy competition is bad enough, which may be why only 11.1% of leagues have a punishment for the loser. You might not want to introduce some of these to your home leagues: running a 5K while holding a gallon of milk after eating a habanero pepper in a clown suit. Others include getting a tattoo or being forced to do a beer mile.
Milder forms of punishment range from wearing the jersey of your most-hated player to putting a sticker next to your license plate that says, ‘I am the last place finisher in my fantasy league’.
Whatever the league, it’s clear that fantasy football is more a lifestyle choice than a fun hobby. Buckle up, because no matter what you’ve achieved in 2023, your year will be defined by the lineups you pick between now and the New Year.
Methodology
We surveyed 3,200 fantasy players from America’s biggest 50 cities to determine the country’s fantasy football habits. The research was conducted in August 2023, with a range of questions from how soon people research players before the season, to how much preparation they put into the lineups each week.
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