A keeper league is a great way to tweak your standard fantasy football format and infuse some strategic decision-making. In a keeper league, you’re allowed to keep a set number of players year over year. If you’re interested in a dynasty league but not yet willing to fully commit to a yearlong grind, a keeper league can also be a great middle ground to satisfy that itch to become a
Keeper League Breakdown
A keeper league actually begins during the first year’s draft. There are a ton of considerations to make while selecting your players because, in many leagues, the draft cost of that player carries over to future years. Additionally, whether you are allowed to keep the player for a finite amount of seasons or for his entire career will weigh heavily on who you take and where you take them.
What’s really interesting here is that a keeper league adds strategic decisions surrounding everything you do. From the draft to waiver pickups to drops to trades, keeper value factors heavily into every decision. Will you send off a valuable keeper hit to win this year? Do you sell out for next season? Should you really drop the rookie who is bound to break out later on? It’s all a matter of how well you are performing and how well you can assess your lineup.
So how many keepers should you allow your league? That’s completely up to you. Just make sure everyone agrees and knows what they’re getting into beforehand.
Rosters
Rosters in a keeper league run as normal. They can contain any combination you prefer. However, if you go with standard settings, you might consider the following:
- More Flex Positions: though this is not a requirement for any league, more flex positions opens up the drafting and trading market in a keeper league. Fixed positions make plenty of sense as well, but swapping out a third WR slot for a flex or simply adding more flexes to the starting lineup encourages managers not to be so shrewd. The strategy will already be heightened, so why not allow for more ways to win?
- Deeper Benches: though not a full-on dynasty league, your keeper league is still an exercise in player evaluation. Why not reward managers who stash talent with a few more bench spots? This way, you also avoid weekly waiver battles. And, especially when teams not in contention start to check out, it helps to keep the league more balanced for future years.
- Additional IR Spots: because keeper value is paramount and players get hurt, dropping a sought-after keeper for a one-week rental is no fun. You may prefer the strategic element few or no IR spots provide, but I’d like at least 2. Adding as many IR spots as allowed keepers is a good start.
Waivers
Waivers are simple in a keeper league. They’ll also run as normal. However, in these leagues, it’s even more important to consider the switch to a Free Agent Acquisition Budget, or FAAB. Adding a set budget for waiver claims avoids a top-claim team getting lucky and hitting on a key keeper. It requires that each team bid a percentage of their total budget weekly on desirable free agents. Iit can also provide another strategic element within your keeper league.
Scoring
Scoring, again, doesn’t matter all that much. As always, know your scoring settings as they will influence your draft. But, as far as your keeper league goes, it’s not that relevant to the format.
Strategy
In a keeper league, you’ll want to draft and maneuver appropriately to gain an edge. Keep the following tips in mind
- Draft rookies and injured studs earlier than normal. These players are most likely to see a value increase over the course of the season. So if you see a future second round talent going in the sixth round, scoop him up and capitalize in-season.
- Use your keepers as trade leverage. We’re always trying to make our teams better, and the waiver wire and trades are our only options. So, if the wire is dry, it’s time to see which teams are needy. If you are looking for an edge, consider dangling that player with elite keeper value out there to upgrade your team this season. Conversely, if you’re out of contention, acquiring a stud keeper can really help you next season.
- Check in on players with untapped value. As always, you’re looking for breakout players before they hit. But in a keeper league, this is especially important. As mentioned in the above, keepers hold additional trade value. So, the more you can acquire, the better your prospects to win your league. Continually check in with managers on their players and determine if any potential keepers are available.
- Play the long game. Sometimes you’ll have to drop a guy with excellent keeper value. But, the whole point of the draft in a keeper league is to find players whose value will increase. As I do in dynasty startup drafts, I’m also trying to predict the player market one year in the future. Aging, productive stars are important – and if their value dips, I’ll absolutely scoop them up – but young, unproven players can win you your league. Give me a young potential stud over a 30+ year old star on his last legs in many cases.
There are plenty of opportunities to be strategic in a keeper league. From the draft to the waivers wire to trading, it provides an added element of decision-making week-to-week and year-to-year. And if you’re not quite sure if you’d like a dynasty league, a keeper league is an excellent starting point. But be warned: keeper leagues are the gateway league to Devy, C2C, and beyond. If you’re not yet ready for the addiction, you might want to go easy your first time.
Also, Sleeper is the best fantasy platform out there, and makes keeper league setup easy. If you haven’t tried out Sleeper yet, give it a go. The keeper league settings and startup are as simple as can be.
Jeremy Shulman
Jeremy is an avid football fan from New York who lives in Amsterdam and roots for the Patriots. This walking contradiction has played fantasy football for over than 20 years. He is now a Senior Dynasty Writer at The League Winners. In his spare time, he writes and edits professionally.