This is the third in our series of articles taking you through the basics of how to start a dynasty fantasy football league.  You can read article 1 and article 2 too.

Dynasty league scoring in many cases can be just like redraft league scoring except that if you’re using both offensive and IDP scoring the scores can get very high, very fast.  I find that there is a sweet spot for scoring where if you are too low it’s hard to reward solid team management and so to if it gets too high.  Too avoid having your fantasy matchup becoming a circus score of 350 to 265 here are a few tips to keep in mind.

Don’t use a lot of “big play” or “bonus” scoring gadgets – Many redraft leagues try to increase their scoring by giving extra points for long yardage plays or extra points if the TD was long.  Avoid doing this in dynasty leagues.  The typical offensive scoring  (6 pts for TD, 1 pt for every 10 rush or receiving yard and 1 pt for every 20 -25 yards passing) will put you in the 70 to 100 range.  When you add in IDP scoring it will add another 30-60 points and if you want to score special teams (usually 1 pt for every 20 – 25 yards plus 6 pts for any special teams TD) it will add another 4-15 points.  Put all of those together and you have a matchup that will run between 100 – 180 points in most weeks.  That is a wide range that is pushing 200 and any more points than that you may risk creating a scoring system that one or two teams thrive in and dominate while the rest don’t.  In our league we don’t even have points per receptions for WR or TE.  Keeping points within the 100 – 150 range is the sweet spot that I find most teams can achieve on a given Sunday and therefore it is easier to keep parity.

IDP Scoring  - Many people have never used Individual Defensive Players (IDP).  If you haven’t and you want to in your league, here is a quick refresher on scoring for them.  While you can score many different defensive statistics the main ones to score include tackles, assists, fumbles, interceptions, sacks, defensive TDs and passes defensed.  Tackles usually go for 1 pt. and assists get a half a point, while INTs, fumbles and sacks get 2 or 3 pts.  Passes defensed get a point and TDs get 6 pts.  Of course these are just the norms and you can tweak these to your liking.  Typically your linebackers are the big scorers in IDP because they have lots of tackles and have chances for big plays (sack, INT, Fumble).  Defensive linemen and defensive backs usually score a bit less although either on can explode for a big play here and there (a DE that strips the ball and runs for a TD gets 2 pts for a forced fumble, 2 pts for a fumble recovery and 6 pts for a TD for a 10 point play, not too shabby).  It’s important to keep in mind that IDPs will never score like offensive players but they can make or break a dynasty team as those 30 – 50 points can make the difference between a win and a loss in this format.  The bottom line with IDP scoring is keep it simple to start and tweak it to your liking over the course of a season or two.

Special Teams Scoring – A unique part of a dynasty format is that you can score points for special teams play above and beyond field goals.  In my league we each have a special teams team (much like a defensive team in redraft where you get all points that the team scores).  Our special teams scoring includes 1 point for every 25 yards of kick return or punt return and 6 points for a special teams touchdown.  Other ways of scoring for special teams can include points against for special teams yards against your team, points for blocked kicks or points for  blocked punts.  Scoring for special teams doesn’t usually add up to a ton of points but it is a fun way to add to the experience and to the strategy.

Dynasty league scoring usually gets pretty high and you want to actively manage it so it doesn’t become too outlandish or high that there is no reward for good team management and it ends up being all about big plays and gaudy stats.  Following the suggestions above will help you manage scoring for offense, defense and special teams and putting together a system that is both rewarding and fun to follow.

Our final installment of The Basics of Dynasty Fantasy Football will touch on tying all of the aspects of the three previous articles by making sure you create a league that is fun, challenging and simple enough for you to manage and your friends to enjoy.

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