Fantasy Sports
The Basics

The FS industry has been one of the fastest growing Sports and Gaming industries in the last five years. FS can be played in many variations and have been around for over 20 years, but the last 5 years have yielded astronomical revenue and user numbers resulting in a multi billion dollar industry played by over 100 million people all around the world. If you're reading this guide, there's a good chance that you have some idea of what Fantasy Sports is, but just in case, here's the simplest way to explain.

If you are sports gamer, you are picking a sport, and assigning players from that sport to form a team that you will manage, and compete against other managers who have also assembled their own team.

There are plenty of fantasy sports events/contests to play for passionate sports gamers, so go ahead and have fun!

Fantasy Sports Games Glossary
Formatting

To participate, select the sport that interests you most and then join a league to compete in play. The most commonly played sport is fantasy football, followed by fantasy baseball, which will be detailed below. There are however many other sports that you can play including basketball, hockey, soccer and even MMA=Mixed Martial Arts. These sports are lumped together, because they are played on the international level.

If you're wondering about individual sports like golf and Nascar, these are offered as well, and in several formats. Once you decide on your sport, you can join a public league on one of many sport sites, or you can join a private league, that requires an invitation.

Private leagues are typically a group of friends that know each other and will compete against each other. You may not know all league members, but if you receive an invite to join, it could be an awesome chance to meet people.

Once you have your sport and your league lined up, a draft date will be assigned. The draft date is the most exciting day of any respective fantasy sports season, because this is the day that you will get to choose your team. Once you choose your team, it will be matched up against other members of your league that have all selected their own team of players to compete.

Everyone thinks they have the best team on draft day, but the true draft day winner is not determined until the championship is awarded at the end of the season.

Drafting players really deserves its own section, but naturally it's assumed you are at least a partial fan of the sport you are going to compete in. If so, you are going to draft players not only that you like, but that you think will be productive throughout the year. It is difficult to unpack any further without examining a couple of the bigger sports more closely.

Fantasy Sports Games Glossary
Let's Talk Money

50/50

A contest event in which the prize pool is split evenly among the top 50% of the entrants. The amount of cash won by each person is slightly lower than double the entry fee.

$/Point

Term for Dollars per point is the number of dollars each projected point costs. To determine the $/point, you would divide the player price by the projected points. You want to keep this number low in order to pay the least amount of salary possible for each point. The opposite of $/Point is Points/$ that follows.

Points/$

Term for Points per dollar is the number of projected points per each dollar of salary. You want to keep this number high in order to take full advantage of projected points for every dollar you spend.

Fantasy Sports Guide
Popular Sports

Fantasy Football

Fantasy Football is definitely the most popular of the fantasy sports. At the end of the day, many people enjoy watching football, and fantasy football allows them to attach themselves to a sport they already love, while being heavily vested into player performance and game outcomes.

With football every league has its own settings, which will determine how many managers will join (usually 10-12), what size roster you will draft and how points are allocated. A standard fantasy football roster will have at least 1 QB, 2 WRs, 2 RBs, 1 TE, 1K and a Defense.

At this point you likely have an idea who you would prefer to fill those spots, but understand; you won't get every player you want because there are others in the leagues who value the same players you do. The team you draft will likely be awarded fantasy points for TDs=touchdowns, any yardage metric, and sometimes receptions.

The next step is to draft your team. Traditionally drafts were snake drafts where every player would pick up the best player in the first round and the second round would happen in reverse order. After X amount of rounds (usually 15-17), your roster is full and you are ready to compete.

Every week you will match up against someone else in your league and if your chosen team accumulates more fantasy points than your opponents, then you WIN for that week.

Fantasy Baseball

Fantasy baseball is possibly the purest of fantasy sports available. Baseball is a numbers game and fantasy baseball organizes all of those numbers in a format that allows the manager to track the stats their drafted team has accumulated.

With baseball every league has its own settings, which will determine how many managers will join (usually 10-12), what size roster you will draft and how points are allocated. A standard fantasy baseball roster will consist of at least one player who plays every position including pitchers.

The team you draft will likely be awarded fantasy points for hitting stats such as Runs, HRs, RBIs, and batting avg. on the offensive side and Ks, SVs, Ws, and ERA on the pitching side. Once you draft your team, there no question that baseball is as much fun to follow as football or any other fantasy sports available.

Traditionally drafts were snake drafts where every player would pick up the best player in the first round and the second would happen in reverse order. After X amount of rounds (usually 15-17), your roster is full and you are ready to compete.

Baseball leagues can be both head-to-head or rotisserie which means your total stats in each category are tracked for the year and the higher you rank in each category the better your team is deemed.

Fantasy Football Abbreviations

QB
Quarterback
WR
Wide Receiver
RB
Running Back
TE
Tight End
W/T
Wide Receiver/Tight End
W/R
Wide Receiver/Running Back
W/R/T
Wide Receiver/Running Back/Tight End
Q/W/R/T
Quarterback/Wide Receiver/Running Back/Tight End
K
Kicker
D/ST
Team Defense/Special Teams
D
Defensive Player
DL
Defensive Linemen
DB
Defensive Back
LB
Linebackers
DT
Defensive Tackles
DE
Defensive Ends
CB
Cornerbacks
S
Safeties

Fantasy Baseball Abbreviations

P
Pitcher
C
Catcher
1B
1st Baseman
2B
2nd Baseman
3B
3rd Baseman
SS
Shortstop
OF
Outfielder
DH
Designated Hitter
1B
Single
2B
Double
3B
Triple
HR
Home Run
RBI
Run Batted In
R
Run
BB
Base on Balls
HBP
Hit by Pitch
SB
Stolen Base
CS
Caught Stealing
W
Win
IP
Inning Pitched
K
Strike Outs
ERA
Earned Run Allowed
H
Hit Against
BB
Base on Balls Against
HBP
Hits Batsman
CG
Complete Game
CGSO
Complete Game Shut Out
NH
No-Hitter
SV
Save

Fantasy Sports Glossary

Fantasy Sports Glossary A - B

ADP
refers to average draft position that reports where players are being picked in fantasy drafts. A helpful resource to determine where players are expected to go when draft day arrives.
Auction Draft
refers to a draft system in which team managers bid for players. Each manager is given a specific amount of cash and builds the lineup/roster without exceeding budget.
Bench Players
lingo for those players ‘sitting it out' of the starting lineup.
Blind Bidding
system used in many leagues to protect against cheating. This system permits teams to submit bids on players without the knowledge of bids from other teams. After all bids are in, the highest bidder gets the player.
Bust
lingo for a particular player that does not play to his/her estimated potential, but rather performs below that level.

Fantasy Sports Glossary C

Cash Games
if you want to play it safe, these games like Head to head, 50/50s, and double up league types are typical cash games. Keep these in your play book to increase your daily profits. Otherwise, tournaments are the opposite of cash games.
Cheat Sheet
jargon for rankings guide – the short version - put to good use during fantasy drafts.
Ceiling
is the tops or upside relating to the results of a player, team or lineup. Good news all round as opposed to the bad news of Floor.
Contrarian
lingo for a rebel or maverick that picks players others would pass up. If picked correctly, you have just created a valued selection for tournament entry. Well done!

Fantasy Sports Glossary D - E

Deposit Bonus
term for % of monies matched by daily fantasy site placed in your account for use in play.
Depth Chart
term for a listing of players by team, position and rank.
DFS
abbreviation for Daily Fantasy Sports. These contests are frequently offered online.
Donk
lingo for donkey player as one who makes bad selections with little or no playing strategy. Also known as a Fish. If you are here, that will not be you!
Double-Up
winners double their entry fee and congrats to you.
Draft
special event where Fantasy owners alternate in selecting players for their team.
Draft Guide
term for fantasy owners' resource offering upfront info to include rankings, articles, depth charts, etc. in preparation for the fantasy football season.
Dynasty League
term for a league that maintains rosters from season to season.
Entry Fee
also known as the buy in. The amount of money you must pay in order to enter a contest that includes the rake collected by the daily fantasy sports site. Not all entry fees apply as there are some free public leagues.
Exposure
refers to the $ or % of your bankroll invested in a player.It is good strategy not to invest too much on one player as the increased exposure also brings on increased risk.

Fantasy Sports Glossary F

FA
refers to Free Agents are players that can be found in a general player pool that are not on anyone's roster. In some leagues FAs can be added as need as long as you drop someone of your current roster. In other leagues FAs must be purchased or lobbied for and assigned to the highest bidder and you still would have to drop someone on your current roster back into the Free Agent pool.
Fade
refers to the strategy of steering clear of a certain players. The reasons range from players who appear to be bad value or otherwise heavily owned or you prefer the contrarian route.
Fantasy General Manager/Owner
term for the Big Boss and main decision maker for drafting, trading, dropping, setting lineups, etc.
Fantasy League
term for a group of owners in competition for the championship.
Fantasy Sports Games
Football is the most popular. Other fantasy sports played are baseball, soccer, basketball, hockey, golf, NASCAR and MMH=Mixed Martial Arts.
FBB
fantasy sports glossary abbreviation for Fantasy Baseball
FFB
fantasy sports glossary abbreviation for Fantasy Football, arguably the most popular fantasy sports games.
FPPG
refers to the average number of Fantasy Points Per Game scored by each player. When you draft a lineup, you can rank players by their FPPG scores. Doing so will help you to identify those who may be on streaks. Most formulas used to value players take this number into account. This levels the playing field for injured or suspended players who haven't played every game.
Fish
lingo for inexperienced or poor player open to those nasty sharks seeking an opportunity. Also see Donk.
Floor
is a ‘downer' or worst of the results of a player, team or lineup. Bad news all round as opposed to the good news of Ceiling.
Freeroll
term for a contest that does not require an entry fee to participate. Some freerolls offer real money prizes to the winners. Others provide free entry into contests with relatively high buy-ins. Still others are just for fun; there are no prizes.
FS
short form of Fantasy Sports used in this Fantasy Sports Glossary

Fantasy Sports Glossary G - H

Game Versions
term for types of contests offered by daily fantasy sports sites. They include H2Hs, 50/50s, qualifiers, multipliers, and guaranteed prize pool (GPP) contests.
GPP
term for Guaranteed Prize Pool. It is a type of tournament for which the daily fantasy sports site guarantees a specific prize pool amount to be divided among the winners. The prize pool is generally large as is the number of entrants allowed to join.
Grinders
lingo for a daily fantasy players who are in the game for increased profits over time. These players seek out safe cash games with a steady as you go attitude.
H2H
refers to Head-To-Head, a type of event in which there are only two entrants. The winner of the match-up takes the prize pool, less the rake.
Hedge
as with casino games, this strategy reduces your risk with a back-up plan. For example, to offset bankroll losses, you might hedge with a second lineup with different players.

Fantasy Sports Terms I - K

IDP or Individual Defensive Players
refers to fantasy owners drafting defensive position players--lineman, linebackers or defensive backs.
Injury Report
is a weekly report published by the NFL that lists all players who are injured. It includes the player's name, position, type of injury, practice status, and game status. Daily fantasy football fans find this a useful tool to note whether certain players are scheduled to play.
Keeper
yes, this is a player that stays or is kept on a fantasy team's roster from the previous season by the same owner.

Fantasy Sports Terms L

Large-field Contest
refers to an event that involves a high number of entrants. The number of participants allowed to join is often unlimited. Therefore, a large number of winners each share the prize pool.
Late Swap
refers to swapping one player for another before the event/game starts.
Lineup
also known as a roster, it is composed of the players drafted before the first game of the contest. In daily leagues your line up is discarded at the end of each day. In standard leagues you choose your line up for each day of games based on the lineup you drafted.

Fantasy Sports Terms M - O

Mock Draft
refers to a practice draft to determine where players are being taken.
Multi-Entry
contest where multiple entries are allowed. Examples are big GPP tournaments and qualifiers that usually allow multiple entries.
Multiplier
term for a contest in which the points for a given player are multiplied by a predetermined factor.
Overlay
Many daily fantasy sports sites host guaranteed prize pool tournaments in which a specified amount of prize money is made available to the winners. The site expects that the entry fees from the entrants will cover the prize pool. If there are too few entrants, the DFS site must contribute its own cash to cover the deficit. That deficit is known as the overlay.

Fantasy Sports Terms P - Q

Pay Up
jargon for doling out a premium amount of salary on a player or position
Performance League
term for a fantasy league that rewards players for yardage as well as touchdowns.
Pick
refers to the slotted draft position for a team.
Playoffs
event carried out post regular season to determine the league champion.
PPR
refers to Points Per Reception. It is a type of scoring used in daily fantasy football where players earn points for each completed reception. It was originally introduced to lessen the importance of a team's running backs. To that end, the PPR scoring system has increased the importance of a team's wide receivers.
Full-PPR
term for fantasy scoring system that awards one point per reception.
Half-PPR or 0.5-PPR
term for fantasy scoring system that awards 0.5 points per reception.
Prize Pool
term for the entire sum of money that is up for grabs in a daily fantasy sports contest. With the exception of GPP contests, the amount of the pool is usually equal to the sum of the entry fees collected from the entrants minus the DFS site's rake.
Punt
lingo for spending a little to get a lot. A lot referring to grabbing the high priced or valued players for your lineup. While this strategy may reduce your output, there is the risk of a value imbalance for the entire lineup.
Qualifier
term for a contest in which the winners earn a seat at a future contest, typically one with a relatively high entry free.

Fantasy Sports Terms R

Rake
lingo for money collected by the daily fantasy sports site and kept for profit. It is sometimes referred to as a percentage of the entry fee. The percentage varies by site.
Rakeback Program
based on your play, this program may result in a credit to your favor.
Re-draft League
the opposite of a keeper league, these team lineups are wiped clean after the season. Therefore, every player is available to be taken from season to season.
Roster
also known as the lineup.

Fantasy Sports Terms S

Salary Cap
refers to the total amount of money allocated to draft your lineup. Every team manager must stick to the same salary cap. The cap varies by site and sometimes by sport. In standard leagues the salary cap usually refers to draft day in auction drafts.
Shark
a skilled and opportunity-seeking player on the prowl for fish.
Sleeper
lingo for a player who has possibilities but attention is not being paid. This Sleeper could turn out to be a Keeper?
Snake Draft
also known as a serpentine draft, it is a system in which participants take turns drafting players. The name refers to the snake-like structure defined in the order that the participants take their turns. The entrant who leads off the first round picks is last in the second round. He/she then picks first in the third round.
Sportsbetting
is offered in 5 parts at gamerisms as it is a natural extension of fantasy sports games and fantasy sports terms. Find a sportsbetting glossary, quiz and facts-trivia.
Stack/Stacking
lingo for matching more than one player from the same team or in the same game. This strategy is employed to increase lineup volatility or decrease lineup volatility. A typical match would be a QB=quarterback with one or more receivers.
Studs-and-Scrubs
jargon for the roster mix of cheap and high-priced players.

Fantasy Sports Terms T - Z

Tilt
as with poker, refers to making wild and bad decisions that are detrimental to player and bankroll.
Train
lingo for repetitive strategy as with submitting the same roster multiple times in a multi-entry tournament.
Transaction
refers to a lineup action like dropping, trading or picking up a player.
Value Pick
term for a player who is considered to be more valuable than his salary implies. Good values are often found among players coming off the injury list with daily fantasy football. Additionally, sports players who are going through a bad streak should be a consideration. In both cases, the players' salaries are often lower than they should be based on their past performance and career.
Waive
refers to a player dropped from the lineup.
Waivers
refers to a dropped player now placed in the position of a possible pick up by other teams. Generally, the team with the worst record in the league has first waiver priority to add a released player.