2023 Fantasy Football Strategies: How to Manage “Too Many” Fantasy Football Leagues

Fantasy football is a funny thing. Depending on whether you play dynasty fantasy football, best ball leagues, regular redraft leagues, or a combination, there really is no NFL offseason. As a football lover, it’s perfect; you get to play fantasy football all year long! As an adult with a job, family, various other priorities, etc., the NFL season can sometimes sneak up on you. There’s an orphan dynasty team here…sure, I’ll take over! Our work friends are starting up an office league…yeah, I’m in! There’s a charity league my favorite analyst is doing…count me in! Before you know it, your fantasy obligations are looming larger than the Jolly Green Giant.
So how do you manage your fantasy football leagues when you have different days to attack your fantasy football waiver wire pickups, different platforms, different scoring settings, etc.? How do you parse out different 2023 fantasy football rankings and NFL player projections to keep your leagues straight? Sure, the Fantasy Football Draft Guide, the Fantasy Football Cheat Sheet, and current fantasy football ADP are helpful for your fantasy football drafts, but in-season management is another animal. As someone who has stretched herself thin more than once, let’s talk about some tips and tricks I’ve used in the past to keep everything straight and continue a run of fantasy supremacy.
2023 Fantasy Football Strategies for Managing Multiple Leagues
Organize, Organize and Organize Some More
The worst thing you can do when you’re trying to manage multiple leagues at a time is get in the weeds and forget when your waiver wire moves and rosters have to be set. When your leagues are spread across different platforms, this gets particularly difficult to keep track of. Do your waivers process Tuesday nights or Wednesday afternoons, do your waivers lock until Saturday, or can you go in and pick up the leftovers? It can all get very overwhelming unless you have a system. A system I found helpful is to pick up a white board (because, yes, I am a nerd), and color code it based on the platform and when waivers are due. Of course, most people utilize their phones and computers these days, so do whatever works for you. The point is, set up some kind of reminder system and grid so that you don’t forget to set your waivers. Find a system that works for you.
I’ve also found that keeping track of who you have submitted a waiver claim for is helpful. There’s nothing worse than thinking you submitted a waiver claim for a player in a particular league only to find out you submitted it in another where you didn’t really need them. Again, I’m a huge fan of old fashioned pen and paper, but excel spreadsheets or Google docs are an excellent way to keep track of this. Just figure out what works best for your learning style and what you will see on a daily basis.
Utilize Fantasy Football League Sync and Other Fantasy Football Tools on Fantasy Alarm
Not to toot our own horn (but I will because we’re amazing), but utilize the League Sync feature we have available on FantasyAlarm.com. League Sync is another extension of keeping track of who is available in your league, who to start or sit on any given week, and how to evaluate trades. It’s another extension of organizing your leagues, and rather than switching between platform to platform on your phone or PC, all of your leagues can be found in one single place. With league sync, you also get all your news and stats in one place to help you kill two proverbial birds with one stone. Why check data for each of your leagues individually when you can check them in a one-stop shop? The time you save with league sync will help you manage your time efficiently, especially when you’re trying to manage 20+ leagues like yours truly.
Diversify Your Fantasy Football Drafts
This one is more of a strategy tip, but there is nothing worse than when you have flag planted so hard on a particular player (or two or three) and they either underperform or, even worse, go down with injury. I’m speaking from experience here. If you put all your eggs in one basket and that player goes down, all your teams can crumble. Example? I was so in on Javonte Williams last year that I went out of my way to get him everywhere, and I mean EVERYWHERE. He did fine the first few weeks, but when he went down, oh man…it was ugly. I’m not saying don’t get your guys, but when you’re in multiple leagues, you want to diversify. Look at players in the same tier and figure out who works best with your build and where you can deviate to insulate yourself from an injury catastrophe. (This is where another shameless plug for the dynamic tiered rankings and cheat sheet come in.)
Play For the Long Haul
When you play in multiple leagues, it can admittedly get exhausting when you’re rostering one player and playing against him in another league. That’s just the nature of fantasy. Some teams are going to excel and some are going to falter. If one of your teams isn’t doing so well, don’t give up. Keep making those waiver moves, keep playing, and keep the competitive spirit alive. Seeing a team give up halfway through the season and giving a non-competitive team a playoff berth when you could have just made a few moves and kept your team alive is infuriating. Take your inner “Field of Dreams” and “go the distance.”
It’s the Little Things
Managing multiple leagues can be a challenge, but in the end, if fantasy football is something that you love, it should be fun. Don’t let the work that goes into it take away from your enjoyment. Take these tips and learn from them. After all, fantasy football is only around for a few precious months out of the year, and when it’s gone, we’ll be begging for next season to start.
NFL Links:
- 2023 FANTASY FOOTBALL DRAFT GUIDE
- 2023 Fantasy Football Cheat Sheet
- 2023 NFL Pre-Season Player Projections
- 2023 Fantasy Football Position Rankings
- 2023 NFL Preseason Week 2 Roundup and Fantasy Football Advice
- Britt's Fantasy Blitz | Dynasty League Strategy
Player News
NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco said “it’s not out of the question” for Brandon Aiyuk (knee) to play in Week 1, but believes landing on the physically unable to perform list is still likely.
Maiocco said Aiyuk is “doing really well” in his ACL and MCL injury recovery, saying the knee is even ahead of schedule.” However, the 49ers “want to be extra cautious with him” and “the feeling inside the organization has always been don’t take any chances.” Maiocco expects Aiyuk to be placed on the PUP list when veterans report to training camp on July 22nd and to remain on the PUP list when the regular season begins. Returning in Week 5 or Week 6 is “quite possible” and Maiocco believes Aiyuk will be “getting up to speed quickly.”
Najee Harris’ agent Doug Hendrickson said that Harris “sustained a superficial eye injury” during “a fireworks mishap” on the 4th of July, “but is fully expected to be ready for the upcoming NFL season.”
There is more to learn about Harris’ injury specifics and his road to recovery, but this is good news. A surface-level injury suffered by the eye is, of course, different than an elbow abrasion. But from a vision standpoint, Harris is seemingly expected to be in football shape come September after suffering an eye injury that resulted in two hospital visits just last weekend. We will wait for more details to fully assess his 2025 outlook, though it stands to reason that the coaching staff will safely ease him into live action.
The Mercury News reports Najee Harris was injured by a “fireworks explosion” during a July 4th celebration.
The incident reportedly occurred at 12:20 a.m. on July 5th. Per the report, “the nature and severity of Harris’ injury could not immediately be verified” and “officials said that other people had been hurt in the blast, but did not specify their number or how severely any of them had been injured.” Harris reportedly visited two hospitals following the accident. Neither the mode of transport nor the reason for the relocation was shared. Rumors swirled online and locally earlier today about the nature of the injury, but details have been difficult to come by and “Antioch police said on Thursday they were still investigating the incident actively.”
ESPN reports that Demarcus Robinson “pleaded no contest this week to a misdemeanor DUI charge and was sentenced to three years’ probation.”
Robinson “was ordered to pay a $390 fine and to complete court-mandated programs, including a three-month alcohol education program.” He was arrested in November 2024 after being observed by police officers driving more than 100 MPH. The arrest occurred while Robinson was a member of the Rams. Robinson could still be suspended by the league, but a ruling has not yet been given. The 49ers reportedly knew that a suspension was possible when they signed him this offseason.
ESPN’s Don Van Natta and Kalyn Kahler report that NFLPA head Lloyd Howell Jr. “is working as a paid, part-time consultant for The Carlyle Group,” a private equity firm with league approval to invest in NFL franchises.
Last August, the NFL approved just “three private equity firms and a consortium of firms” as potential NFL-team investors, for minority stakes that are not to exceed 10.0 percent. The Carlyle Group is one such firm, where Howell works as an “operations executive in The Carlyle Group’s aerospace and defense investment team.” He earned $3.4 million in the role last year. Although Howell’s department does not directly overlap with a potential NFL investment, a union lawyer asked him “to consider resigning from the private equity firm to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest.” Howell also notably serves on three boards of directors, including GE HealthCare, Moody’s and ManTech, earning six-figure compensation with at least two of them. Per the report, “longtime union observers and executives said they find it baffling that Howell would continue to work at The Carlyle Group while leading the union,” and Jim Quinn, the NFLPA’s former lead outside counsel, notes that neither of Howell’s predecessors were allowed to be paid for outside work. The NFLPA recently “struck a confidentiality agreement with the NFL to keep the details of a January arbitration ruling under wraps from players,” following an investigation into potential top-down collusion regarding player salary guarantees. Last month, the union reportedly hired a law firm “to work with a special committee of players to review Howell’s activities as the executive director,” after ESPN broke, in May, that “the FBI and federal prosecutors are investigating the union’s financial dealings related to a multibillion-dollar group-licensing firm,” which Howell holds a board seat on.
Falcons reporter Tori McElhaney believes UDFA WR Nick Nash has long odds of making the 53-player roster, but notes “there absolutely could be a practice squad spot for him.”
Undrafted free agents always have an uphill climb toward a spot on the 53-player roster. Nash intrigued the dynasty community by leading 2024 FBS wide receivers in targets (171), receptions (104), yards (1,382) and receiving touchdowns (16). McElhaney projects Drake London, Darnell Mooney, Ray-Ray McCloud and KhaDarel Hodge are locked in as the Falcons’ top four wide receivers. WR/KR Jamal Agnew “could be the Falcons’ return man.” WRs Chris Blair and Casey Washington could also be ahead of Nash, though McElhaney did compliment Nash’s high-pointing ability through spring practices. The former San Jose State Spartan will likely find his way onto a practice squad this year, be it with the Falcons or elsewhere. He is not relevant in re-draft formats at this time.