This past weekend may have been my last fantasy football game.
Like many people in their mid-30s, I’ve played fantasy football for the better part of the past 20 years. I really enjoy it.
For the past 13 years or so, I’ve looked forward to and listened to a weekly fantasy football radio show/podcast from the local sports radio station. I even made a trip or two out to the “Fantasy Football Training Camp” to see a live broadcast of the radio show, followed by a couple additional hours of presentations and discussion. For a number of years, I listened to ESPN’s daily fantasy football podcast. I haven’t listened in a long time, but do have fond memories of my time as a member of the 06010. Now I don’t even download…
Over the years, I was in many leagues. I was never too crazy – I think I maxed out at four leagues in a given year, but often had two. The last few years, I’ve been in just one.
From the local radio show, about 10 years ago, I learned about the idea of an Empire League – a traditional dynasty league with a twist. Half of our buy-ins each year went into a side pot which would be won by the first team to win two consecutive championships. After that occurred, the league would dissolve.
The first iteration of the league lasted only 3 years, and we immediately rebooted. 5 years later, and this past weekend’s championship game is possibly the final fantasy football lineup I will ever set.
Throughout the entire season, it wasn’t quite a foregone conclusion that we would have a repeat champion, but it seemed entirely possible, if not even likely. Heading into the championship game, it was projected to be close. He had a few players perform well; I had a few players underperform significantly. And he won.
Congratulations!
Our league no longer exists. I don’t have any keepers to select. I don’t have any league to roll over to next season.
I’ve been the commissioner of our leagues the past 8 years, and a few before that with many of the same people. We’ve had turnover throughout the years, but the core of the league has remained for well over a decade.
But it’s time for me to step down as commissioner. I just don’t have the time and energy to put into it to ensure that it is a good experience for everyone involved. The experience of the league is important to me.
There is interest in rebooting, but I’m not sure there is enough. I’m not sure somebody else wants to take the reins as commissioner. Many people had very kind things to say about how I ran the league, and I have to say they all made it very easy. But I just can’t commit to finding enough teams, setting up the draft, managing the buy-ins.
The end of the league was not a shock. The champion had a good team that only got better this season. And I came up a little bit short.
But the end of this league isn’t the unexpected ending I’m talking about. What has been setting in these past few days is the possibility that I may have played my last game of fantasy football.
I’m not going to join some public league on ESPN. Even though I’d never met some of the people in the league in person due to turnover we’ve experienced over the years, I really enjoyed playing with this specific group.
So, I’ve found myself a little sad these past few days, as it sets in that I may be moving onto a new station in life – one in which I look back with fondness on my years wasting so much time on football statistics and having a rooting interest in nearly every game in a weekend in the NFL.
I don’t even know where I would place the odds. I tell myself it’s 50/50, but honestly feel that’s a lie. Based on nothing at all, I’d say it’s maybe 70/30 that I’m done. Maybe 30% that somebody else wants to run the league, that we find enough people who want to participate in a dynasty league which could go for 2 years, or 15. But do I see myself playing fantasy football when I’m 50?
I honestly don’t know.
Due to the league rules, I was prepared for this to be the final season of this iteration of the league. But I hadn’t given a second thought to the possibility that this could be it.
And now that possibility feels like a likelihood.
Maybe as we roll into July and August next year, we’ll all get drawn back in. For right now, I just have this feeling that it’s over.
Something that has been a part of my life for almost 20 years is just done – like that.
And the crazy part is that I’m not entirely sure if I’m disappointed about that or not. Not simply fine with it, but actually a little glad to be done, bittersweet as it may be.
But maybe it’s like growing up a little bit. Putting away the games from my youth. Over the past few years, I watch less football than before. If I don’t have fantasy to consider, I may be back to only caring about the Vikings’ games.
RIP Empire League 2.0 – 2016-2020. A fun league that will be missed. If this is how my fantasy football career ends, I’ll retire in the full knowledge that it was a good run.