7 Tips to Drafting in a Fantasy Football Keeper League

1. Draft Young in Early Rounds - If you are starting a keeper league with your buddies this year, draft only young players in the early rounds. Obviously unless a proven stud is available. You need a good foundation for your new team and the only way to do that is to start drafting for youth right now. If you draft old players they will age quickly and lose all their value they once had.

2. Who to Keep After the Season - Mix whoever had the best season with your young draft picks. Since you don't always want to play for 3 years down the road, keep some of your good players that are guaranteed to give production, and also keep your futures for the years down the road.

3. Play for the Upcoming Season - In your next draft, do not just pick the top ranked rookies with your draft picks. This will get you to the bottom of the standings quicker than anything else. You need to keep a good mixture of who you are drafting or else your team will soar to the bottom very quickly.

4. Don't Keep Old Players Unless... - For the love of God, please do not keep old players unless they are one of the top players at their position. Don't keep Brett Favre because you think he has a chance of coming out of retirement and shining. It is just as easy to keep a different player then draft Favre in the last round of your draft.

5. Make Sure to Draft for Strength - I'll say it over and over again, do not draft all of the top rookies with your draft picks. A couple of rookies are okay, but once your team is flooded with unproven rookies it is time to look for a change. It is known that the proven stars usually put up much better numbers than the rookies, but if you want to draft a couple rookies with some of your picks then go for it. Just do not get out of hand and, most importantly, draft for strength.

6. Running Backs are a Premium - Just like any other league, keeper leagues value running backs much more than any other position. This is why if you see a young running back is up and coming, draft him or get him in any way you can. Make sure to set aside atleast 2 spots for running backs in your keepers because everybody will be targeting running backs in the draft and it will leave nothing left for you.

7. Get a Stud Quarterback - Again, just like in any other fantasy football league, you need a star quarterback to win. Sure you can get by with a subpar quarterback, and I have done it. It is just much more difficult to win when you do not have a star quarterback. Take a waiver on a young quarterback with one of your draft picks and see how it works out for the next year.