If you have been on Twitter lately or have checked out any fantasy football podcasts, you’ve probably come across some discussion about #SFB9, the ninth iteration of the Scott Fish Bowl.
In what is annually one of the quietest periods for NFL news, the fantasy community is abuzz as the SFB is set to begin next Monday.
The super league was formed by Scott Fish, who runs the Safe Leagues series of fantasy leagues and creates content for Fanball, as a way to bring the fantasy community together. The idea of matching “pros” (fantasy football analysts) and “fans” against one another is a common idea, but Fish takes it to another level. The league has grown each year and is up to a whopping 1,200 teams this season.
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Take a moment to think of your favorite fantasy football writer or podcaster. Whoever it is, they are almost certain to be playing in the prestigious event. Rotoworlders Rich Hribar, Pat Daugherty, Raymond Summerlin, John Daigle, Thor Nystrom, Connor Allen, Jesse Pantuosco, Josh Norris, Hayden Winks and Aaron Solomon are all taking part this year. In fact, Summerlin is among the elite group to defeat the entire field and be called a Scott Fish Bowl Champion, taking home the title in 2016.
Perhaps the best part of all of this is the way the league has become a vehicle to raise money for another Fish endeavor, Fantasy Cares. The charity organization raises money year-round through fantasy football and then supports Toys for Tots during the holiday season. In 2018, Fish and Fantasy Cares raised over $44,000.
SFB History
Fish started the league in 2010 when he ran a site called FF Oasis. It was meant to serve as a way to reward his regular users with a chance to play against some of their favorite analysts. Mike Clay, now of ESPN, took down the first title. As previously mentioned, the league grew each year and even when Fish shut down his site, the league continued and adopted the clever name of Scott Fish Bowl.
League Popularity
It is difficult to pinpoint exactly when or even why the SFB became a hobby-wide phenomenon, but it certainly has. Fish is on record saying that over 12,000 people signed up for the 2019 version while less than 10% of those will actually receive the good news and an invitation. Although the 100 different drafts that make up SFB9 won’t begin until next Monday, #SFB9 has already been trending on Twitter twice in the past month. This is an obvious sign of the sheer amount of people who are interested in the event.
1,200 teams…really?
The first question anyone might ask when first hearing about this league is “how does it even work?” That is very understandable. This year, with 1,200 teams in the field, Fish creates 100 different 12-team leagues. These leagues will draft and run separately from all others until Week Thirteen. At that point, the top teams from each of the 100 divisions advance to the SFB playoffs. Each week moving forward, a certain number of teams advance as top scorers for the week, culminating in a narrowed down pool and ultimately, a champion!
Scoring
Fish has a stated goal of wanting a balanced scoring system which will result in all four positions (QB, RB, WR & TE) to score relatively equally over the course of the season. This means the scoring system for SFB is tweaked each year. This also keeps things fresh and requires the SFB players to always adjust their respective strategy.
This year is no different. Here are some of the unique scoring details of SFB9…
- QBs are penalized 4 points for an interception (and an additional 2 points if that becomes a pick 6)
- All players earn .5 points for a reception or a first down, but TEs earn an additional .5 points for either, making them very valuable.
- There is bonus scoring for each position as players hit certain yardage milestones. For example, a running back who rushes for 50 yards and has 50 yards receiving earns an extra 10 points.
SFB ADP
Believe it or not, fantasy players are so invested in this league that they organize and participate in mock drafts. This makes sense given the unique scoring system of the league. There are no rankings or pre-existing ADP for this format. Those mock drafts, now numbering more than 50, combine to give us SFB ADP. Here is what the first round might look like…
1.01 Saquon Barkley
1.02 Ezekiel Elliott
1.03 Christian McCaffrey
1.04 Alvin Kamara
1.05 Travis Kelce
1.06 David Johnson
1.07 Melvin Gordon
1.08 DeAndre Hopkins
1.09 Patrick Mahomes
1.10 Davante Adams
1.11 Le’Veon Bell
1.12 Julio Jones
The seven RBs among the top-12 is no surprise and typical of any league, but Chiefs stars Kelce and Mahomes stand out. I’ve already discussed the premium scoring for tight ends and the thin top tier at the position results in Kelce as a top-five draft pick. Coming off a record-breaking season, Mahomes is the clear QB1 for most fantasy players and the superflex format, allowing each team to start a pair of signal callers, increasing the collective value of the position.
Get Involved
If you are not already involved in the Scott Fish Bowl, it is very easy to change that. You can sign up to play in next year’s SFBX by visiting ScottFishBowl.com. The 2020 sign up should be open in the coming days. While you’re there, click the #FantasyCares button at the top of the page to donate to FF Cares and Toys for Tots.
Also, you can buy your own #SFB9 shirt from RotoWear.com or support SFB by listening to the 25-hour “podathon” which will take place Sunday, into Monday, leading up to the kickoff of this year’s draft.
