Where do the current rankings for the Auto Pick come from?
It seems like the current rankings aren't consistent with how players really draft. One of the biggest problems is that QB's are frequently ranked much higher than they would be ranked by informed FF players.
The current rankings are also not consistent with the rankings made by the Fanhouse "experts"...aren't you all controlled by AOL?
The best solution might be to rely on an external service mockdraftcentral.com and use there real world (or close to it) rankings for a scoring system that is similar to fleaflickers standard scoring system.
You can now choose a "dumb" auto-draft (on the rankings page) which will just blindly follow your rankings, regardless of roster needs.
It won't try to be smart unless the number of remaining rounds equals the number of players you still need to draft (e.g., you neglect the kicker position until the last round so the AI has to draft a kicker for you then).
When using this new option, I did have the problem that is the biggest concern with this new option; because of my rankings versus the fleaflicker rankings I didn't get a respectable starter on one position, QB. I didn't have QB's ranked low compared to where they are typically drafted, but I did have them ranked low compared to where the current fleaflicker system ranks them. This system will work much better when you are competing against other smart players who draft players in reasonable positions and/or when the fleaflicker internal player rankings are improved. It sounds like fleaflicker will soon be using the Fanhouse blogger rankings, which would help out. On the plus side, because the current fleaflicker player rankings are so bad, I was able to get lots of great players at other positions at very reasonable draft values.
Fleafounder - there has been a loud silence regarding improving the default player rankings. Can you please give us some background on where the current rankings come from? Is there any reason that they can't be updated more frequently from a reliable source?
Another possible source of better rankings would be to rank players based on there Average Draft Position by owners who are drafting live in fleaflicker. Obviously, this could only be done once drafts start. Also, you might want to only measure ADP in those leagues that use the fleaflicker standard scoring rules. The initial rankings would need to come from a different source.
I really like the idea of using a 3rd party. MockDraftCentral is good. I like Fantasy Football Nerd better though. More comprehensive and you can see the rankings for more than 1,000 players regardless of position (or by position if you want to see it that way). It's free and they have an API.
So, keep the broken thing why? I am always at my drafts, but there are some people that can't make it to theirs. If there is a ranking system on the site it should work properly, at least you would hope so. But thanks Scotto.
Ranking doesn't work well. The system drafts kickers and defenses way way too early. It also sometimes has you draft more players at a position than desired (e.g. two kickers). The player rankings are really bad and not very close to the rankings a somewhat knowledgable owner would make. Occassionally owners (particularly if they are new to fantasy sports) need to rely on these rankings.
I have only missed one draft due to my sorry ass embarq ISP, (which no longer offers redundant dial back-up). Oh, it was so damn heart breaking. I had a decent team full of old farts(like I am becoming). Young and fast baby, that is what I want. We want to go Vertical. ya know... but sometimes Embarq doesn't want me to have my way ya know.
I had a problem with the auto draft ignoring my pre-ranks too.
I think the FF algorithm tries to fill the starting line up first. Below is how I wish it would work.
Please don't break pre-rank until minimum requirement levels left are equal to draft picks left
if you have a 19 player roster. maxqb=2 min=1, maxRb=6 minRb=2, maxWr=6 minWr=2, ..... maxK=2 minK=1.
Don't fill minumums until last chance possible.
So if it is round 4 and I have already picked 3 RBs, and my highest ranked player on the board is still a RB... PICK THE RUNNING BACK!!! Not a Kicker, QB or TE...
Don't start breaking the rankings to filling minimums until the end of the draft or all MAX levels have been reached.
So if I have all my minimums filled except for TE and K and there are three rounds left with players ranked higher than all TEs and Ks, don't break rank to pick the K or TE until the next round. So if there are two rounds left and I have two positions that haven't reached min level, draft the highest ranked of the two possitions, if the next highest player in my rank is a kicker before the TE, pick the kicker... vice versa.
Please don't break rank until minimum requirement levels left are equal to draft picks left
Honestly, I fear to miss a live draft on this site because the results will not come anything close to the order you ranked your players. it will get your first 2-5 rounds in line but after that... you will not be happy with the results. Expect two kickers, threeQbs, 2-3 defenses....
advice... don't miss the live draft... or have the commish populate the rosters.
Have you tried doing a mock draft this year? The auto pick system works a lot better this year than last year. Not sure if they changed anything, but it looks like they did.
I just did a mock draft. The auto-rankings used by the computer drafter is still horrible which makes the results of the mock draft meaningless. The mock draft is useful just to learn how the draft system works before you do a real draft. The current mock draft has no value in regards to making a draft strategy because of the extremely poor rankings put on players.
Fleafounder - how is it looking to have this available soon/now? My league is drafting tomorrow and I know that some people won't be available to do the draft live. It'd be great to have this feature available then. Thanks for the work!
Currently the auto-draft will take the best starter available, discounting Kickers and Team Defenses. This is a lot better than it was last year. But it could use more customization.
What if I made this an option--
* Take best available starter
* Take best available player regardless of position (Like pee-dee's suggestion above).
Please post any other ideas you have here. I agree--this is definitely something that needs to be addressed.
It's just a difficult problem to solve. Not everyone pre-ranks as comprehensively as you guys do.
If you mean that owners would have the option to select between the two options (1-best available starer or 2-PeeDee suggestion) then, yes this would be a VERY VERY significant improvement. In fact, the default option should be PeeDee's suggestion. It'd be great if you could make this happen for when drafts start up this year in a day or so. THANKS!!
I did not know it was changed. I do like the way it is this year then. I think the option will also be nice. I really think the staff has been doing great work this year. Thank you for all you do.
PigskinPlagueFri 6/12/09 4:12 PM
Where do the current rankings for the Auto Pick come from?
It seems like the current rankings aren't consistent with how players really draft. One of the biggest problems is that QB's are frequently ranked much higher than they would be ranked by informed FF players.
The current rankings are also not consistent with the rankings made by the Fanhouse "experts"...aren't you all controlled by AOL?
The best solution might be to rely on an external service mockdraftcentral.com and use there real world (or close to it) rankings for a scoring system that is similar to fleaflickers standard scoring system.
fleafounder AdminFri 6/26/09 5:51 PM
Pee-Dee's suggestion is now live.
You can now choose a "dumb" auto-draft (on the rankings page) which will just blindly follow your rankings, regardless of roster needs.
It won't try to be smart unless the number of remaining rounds equals the number of players you still need to draft (e.g., you neglect the kicker position until the last round so the AI has to draft a kicker for you then).
Please try it out and let me know how it works.
PigskinPlagueSat 6/27/09 9:20 AM
I tried it with a mock draft. It works well. Thanks for the upgrade!
Ideal solution would be to allow owners to select the position to be chosen in each round. I hope this is on the to-do list.
Again, thanks for the system upgrade!
fleafounder AdminSat 6/27/09 12:14 PM
Yeah, that one is a little tougher to implement, but I agree--that would be best way to do it.
PigskinPlagueSun 6/28/09 5:03 PM
When using this new option, I did have the problem that is the biggest concern with this new option; because of my rankings versus the fleaflicker rankings I didn't get a respectable starter on one position, QB. I didn't have QB's ranked low compared to where they are typically drafted, but I did have them ranked low compared to where the current fleaflicker system ranks them. This system will work much better when you are competing against other smart players who draft players in reasonable positions and/or when the fleaflicker internal player rankings are improved. It sounds like fleaflicker will soon be using the Fanhouse blogger rankings, which would help out. On the plus side, because the current fleaflicker player rankings are so bad, I was able to get lots of great players at other positions at very reasonable draft values.
PigskinPlagueTue 6/23/09 12:56 PM
Fleafounder - there has been a loud silence regarding improving the default player rankings. Can you please give us some background on where the current rankings come from? Is there any reason that they can't be updated more frequently from a reliable source?
Another possible source of better rankings would be to rank players based on there Average Draft Position by owners who are drafting live in fleaflicker. Obviously, this could only be done once drafts start. Also, you might want to only measure ADP in those leagues that use the fleaflicker standard scoring rules. The initial rankings would need to come from a different source.
FFCSR_DougTue 6/23/09 3:17 PM
We will be updating them with the rankings from the fantasy Fanhouse bloggers shortly.
PigskinPlagueWed 6/24/09 7:38 PM
That's good to hear. Do the Fanhouse bloggers update their rankings throughout the pre-season or just make one list at the beginning of the year?
fleafounder AdminFri 6/26/09 5:43 PM
Yes, default rankings come from Fantasy Fanhouse writers.
I am working on an ADP option too--that is very valuable information.
jdykenSun 6/21/09 5:55 PM
I really like the idea of using a 3rd party. MockDraftCentral is good. I like Fantasy Football Nerd better though. More comprehensive and you can see the rankings for more than 1,000 players regardless of position (or by position if you want to see it that way). It's free and they have an API.
How difficult would that be?
ShockIndustryMon 6/15/09 8:19 PM
The auto-pick should change depending on the leagues scoring system.
scotto1959Mon 6/15/09 8:40 PM
Bottom line!!! Shut up and be there for the draft or live with it!!!!
ShockIndustryTue 6/16/09 2:02 AM
So, keep the broken thing why? I am always at my drafts, but there are some people that can't make it to theirs. If there is a ranking system on the site it should work properly, at least you would hope so. But thanks Scotto.
scotto1959Tue 6/16/09 3:14 PM
It's not broken, be there for the draft and ther is no problem. Player ranking works great. Just show up or shut up imo.
ShockIndustryTue 6/16/09 3:25 PM
Last year I watched a guy in my league who drafted M. Strahan and M. Vick because of auto selection.
PigskinPlagueTue 6/16/09 5:39 PM
Ranking doesn't work well. The system drafts kickers and defenses way way too early. It also sometimes has you draft more players at a position than desired (e.g. two kickers). The player rankings are really bad and not very close to the rankings a somewhat knowledgable owner would make. Occassionally owners (particularly if they are new to fantasy sports) need to rely on these rankings.
Pee-DeeWed 6/17/09 5:25 AM
IMO, if it is like FF staff said below I think we would all be happy:
"
What if I made this an option--
* Take best available starter
* Take best available player regardless of position (Like pee-dee's suggestion above).
"
Pee-DeeWed 6/17/09 5:22 AM
I have only missed one draft due to my sorry ass embarq ISP, (which no longer offers redundant dial back-up). Oh, it was so damn heart breaking. I had a decent team full of old farts(like I am becoming). Young and fast baby, that is what I want. We want to go Vertical. ya know... but sometimes Embarq doesn't want me to have my way ya know.
Pee-DeeWed 6/17/09 5:22 AM
ya know ya know
Pee-DeeSat 6/13/09 6:49 AM
I had a problem with the auto draft ignoring my pre-ranks too.
I think the FF algorithm tries to fill the starting line up first. Below is how I wish it would work.
Please don't break pre-rank until minimum requirement levels left are equal to draft picks left
if you have a 19 player roster. maxqb=2 min=1, maxRb=6 minRb=2, maxWr=6 minWr=2, ..... maxK=2 minK=1.
Don't fill minumums until last chance possible.
So if it is round 4 and I have already picked 3 RBs, and my highest ranked player on the board is still a RB... PICK THE RUNNING BACK!!! Not a Kicker, QB or TE...
Don't start breaking the rankings to filling minimums until the end of the draft or all MAX levels have been reached.
So if I have all my minimums filled except for TE and K and there are three rounds left with players ranked higher than all TEs and Ks, don't break rank to pick the K or TE until the next round. So if there are two rounds left and I have two positions that haven't reached min level, draft the highest ranked of the two possitions, if the next highest player in my rank is a kicker before the TE, pick the kicker... vice versa.
Please don't break rank until minimum requirement levels left are equal to draft picks left
Pee-DeeSat 6/13/09 6:53 AM
Honestly, I fear to miss a live draft on this site because the results will not come anything close to the order you ranked your players. it will get your first 2-5 rounds in line but after that... you will not be happy with the results. Expect two kickers, threeQbs, 2-3 defenses....
advice... don't miss the live draft... or have the commish populate the rosters.
PigskinPlagueSat 6/13/09 5:27 PM
I agree. Auto-pick is scary bad on this system.
VoltSat 6/13/09 6:50 PM
Have you tried doing a mock draft this year? The auto pick system works a lot better this year than last year. Not sure if they changed anything, but it looks like they did.
PigskinPlagueTue 6/16/09 8:25 PM
I just did a mock draft. The auto-rankings used by the computer drafter is still horrible which makes the results of the mock draft meaningless. The mock draft is useful just to learn how the draft system works before you do a real draft. The current mock draft has no value in regards to making a draft strategy because of the extremely poor rankings put on players.
fleafounder AdminSun 6/14/09 7:52 PM
Good point, I will rewrite the algorithm to use that strategy and deploy it later this week.
We'll see how it works.
PigskinPlagueSun 6/14/09 10:35 PM
Great!
PigskinPlagueTue 6/16/09 2:24 PM
Fleafounder - how is it looking to have this available soon/now? My league is drafting tomorrow and I know that some people won't be available to do the draft live. It'd be great to have this feature available then. Thanks for the work!
fleafounder AdminWed 6/17/09 1:24 PM
Not that soon guys sorry. It'll take at least until July 1 due to some other obligations.
scotto1959Wed 6/17/09 2:04 PM
we know basketball....
fleafounder AdminSun 6/14/09 8:06 PM
Currently the auto-draft will take the best starter available, discounting Kickers and Team Defenses. This is a lot better than it was last year. But it could use more customization.
What if I made this an option--
* Take best available starter
* Take best available player regardless of position (Like pee-dee's suggestion above).
Please post any other ideas you have here. I agree--this is definitely something that needs to be addressed.
It's just a difficult problem to solve. Not everyone pre-ranks as comprehensively as you guys do.
PigskinPlagueSun 6/14/09 10:30 PM
If you mean that owners would have the option to select between the two options (1-best available starer or 2-PeeDee suggestion) then, yes this would be a VERY VERY significant improvement. In fact, the default option should be PeeDee's suggestion. It'd be great if you could make this happen for when drafts start up this year in a day or so. THANKS!!
Pee-DeeMon 6/15/09 5:27 PM
I did not know it was changed. I do like the way it is this year then. I think the option will also be nice. I really think the staff has been doing great work this year. Thank you for all you do.