Welcome to Taking Over a Dynasty Orphan: An Unexpected Journey! The redraft season ends. Best Ball season is essentially year-round at this point, but it certainly cools down. However, dynasty leagues are unwavering. There is no stopping point. They continue on and on and on.
In redraft and best ball, the NFL Playoffs are relaxing. You can sit back and enjoy them without stress. (Unless you are in fantasy playoff contests!). In dynasty, a massive playoff performance from a young player can help them gain value…while others can see their values crater with an untimely injury or abysmal performance. Is it right? Is it fickle at times? Absolutely. But there is no fantasy format more addictive and more rewarding than dynasty.
All dynasty leagues have start-up drafts. Their maiden voyage starts with every manager on an equal playing field, and teams are drafted. But there is another often untapped marketplace for dynasty teams- buying dynasty orphans. Instead of drafting a team, you take on a pre-existing one in an established league. The team already has players and draft picks. Sometimes managers abandon truly awful rosters, but often, a manager leaves a team for many other reasons. Managers may want to scale back on teams or sell a team- sometimes for a profit. Taking over a dynasty orphan can be an excellent and rewarding way to add to your number of dynasty teams or a great starting point for playing dynasty fantasy.
I purchased a dynasty orphan in a $250 FFPC League this off-season. I bought the team on DynastyDepot.com, a secondary marketplace for FFPC teams. In this article series, I will write about my experience not only in the offseason but also in the regular season, the rookie draft, and discuss my trades and player cuts.
FFPC $250 League Cost and Settings
Cost: $310 (I paid up for this team). The FPPC also requires a half-season deposit.
Scoring: 1 PT PPR, 1.5 PT PPR for TEs, 4 PT Passing TDs
The Roster and Draft Picks
Quarterbacks
Trey Lance, Jared Goff
Running Backs
Kenneth Walker, Alexander Mattison Keontay Ingram, Pierre Strong, Trestan Ebner, James Robinson, Malik Davis
Tight Ends
Greg Dulcich, Chig Okonkwo, Cade Otton
Wide Receivers
DK Metcalf, Drake London, Terry McLaurin, Jameson Williams, John Metchie, Skyy Moore, Chase Claypool, Josh Palmer
Notable Draft Picks
1.02, 1.05, 1.11, 2.02, 2.04, 2.06, 2.11, 3.02, 4.02,
Team Analysis
This team has some glaring holes. RB is a disaster besides Kenneth Walker, although Mattison, Ingram, and Strong could all be handcuff running backs to start the 2023 season. But there is a lot to be excited about as well. WR has a strong core four with Metcalf, London, Williams, and McLaurin. There is enough at tight end to compete in the TE Premium FFPC with intriguing young players like Dulcich and Okonkwo. QB is tricky, Goff is a bridge quarterback, and Lance is a player we are more hopeful for than confident in.
Trey Lance Advanced Stats & Metrics Profile
From an orphan perspective, the strength and appeal of this team are the draft picks. With eight of the first 26 selections, I can completely reshape and strengthen this roster for future seasons. The 1.02 will allow me to draft a player like Jahmyr Gibbs or another top wide receiver. The 1.05 will be another potential stud. I am also very excited about 1.11 and the multiple early 2nd rounders. With this class, I can turn those picks into long-term assets for my roster. All I need to do is make the correct selections (gulp).
Next month, I will write about what players I choose to cut. The roster cut date for the FFPC is March 31st. At that point, I will have to trim this list of players down to 16 total, including a kicker and defense.
I am looking forward to sharing this Journey with you! Hopefully, the ending of the story is fantasy titles and cash.
