The Psyche of Fantasy Football

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So I was sitting in my philosophy class at Reston today, thinking about fantasy football as I usually do. Only this time my I was actually thinking about fantasy football in relation to the topic of the class that day, the philosophy of making choices. We read an article by psychologist Barry Schwartz called the “The Tyranny of Choice,” in which he presents research showing that “increased choice and increased affluence have...been accompanied by decreased well-being in the U.S. and most other affluent societies.” His basic hypothesis is that some choice is better than none but too much choice can decrease happiness.

This struck me as the answer that I’ve been looking for

to the question of: why does fantasy football always leave me with an empty, unfulfilled feeling in my stomach? And no, the answer is not because I never win. I’ve won multiple leagues in the past and have a successful track recorded. Schwartz’s article made me realize, fantasy football is a game of choice. It’s not a game of choice and chance the way Yahtzee is because there is certainly some skill and knowledge required to successfully predict the performance of players. But fantasy football is also not like real sports in which you not only have to make decisions, (do I pass the basketball or shoot it?) but you have properly execute the play.
Fantasy football is fundamentally about making choices. From the beginning, you have to decide on a draft strategy (should I take a pair of top RBs in the first to rounds or a stud WR and QB?). During every round of the draft you are comparing players and have to decide between a few players which you’ll pick (do I take Reggie Williams or Reggie Brown in the 8th round?). Once the season has started, your job as manager is to pick which players on your roster to start and which to bench each week. In a tricked out league like the cash league I play in, the decisions that must be made are endless. How many points should I wager to pick up so-and-so off the waiver wire? Which players that I drafted after the 7th round should I keep on my team for next year? Hell, we even have a draft to pick which draft position each owner will pick their team from!

According to Schwartz, all of these choices do not make for a happy group of 10-12 nerdy football-crazed guys. Schwartz says that each choice we make carries with it opportunity cost, the potential for regret, and a phenomenon called adaptation (enthusiasm about positive experiences does not sustain itself). In fantasy football terms he means: “Fuck, I took Marshawn Lynch in the 2nd round and now I’m not going to get an elite receiver.” “Fuck, I can’t believe I took Steven Jackson in the first round.” “Fuck, my team is good but not as good as it should be after I spent two months researching to draft this team!” No matter how successful you are, you’re going to make incorrect decisions every week that are disappointing. For instance, my friend’s team was the highest scoring team in the league in week one, but he didn’t start Michael Turner, the highest scoring fantasy performer of week one. The key point of Schwartz’s theory is that the bad feelings from wrong choices outweigh and outlast the good feelings of correct choices. More choices to make, more times you want to punch yourself in the face.

So why do we play? Well, because fantasy football is really fun. The thrill of pretending that you’re a GM for an NFL team is fun. And making choices that are correct (all of you who drafted Eddie Royal) is really fun. Playing fantasy football enhances my experience as a fan and I am not going to stop playing. But if you’re like me, and sometimes wonder where that disappointed/frustrated feeling is coming from during fantasy football season, well, now you know.