FanNation

Fantasy football comes to the rescue of horse racing in MN

From here:

While some states have used the development of racinos and the introduction of slots at tracks as a method to subsidize and save the horse racing industry, Montana has come up with an intriguing alternative. The state legislature has passed a plan to create a statewide fantasy football league, which would pay funds to horse tracks.

So let me make sure I have this straight. Horce racing isn't doing so well in Minnesota, due, according to this article, to "rising costs and diminishing returns." In order to save it, the state will operate its own fantasy football league, with payouts of "74% for participants." The leftover cash will be "divided 15 % to the fantasy operator, 24% to the facility, and 61% into a reserve fund." I assume the "reserve fund" part goes to the horse racing industry. Who knows what the "facility" is.

Trading down in fantasy football drafts?

Is there ever a good reason to trade your mid-round pick for a lower pick? We say no - usually.

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Fantasy football: 17, fantasy baseball: 3

Here's an interesting stat:

...while Rotisserie baseball is recognized as the granddaddy of all fantasy sports, football has emerged as the most popular fantasy sport among the 15 million Americans who spend hours massaging statistical data and picking teams. There are now 17 million unique users of fantasy football sites, compared with 3 million fantasy baseball players.

17:3 sounds about right to me, but it's the first time I've ever seen it tallied up.

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What's the best fantasy football keeper-league ruleset?

Brandon and I are in a keeper league that got its start in the '06 season. I'm the commish, and I've been pretty happy with the system we have in place for keepers. It's relatively conservative, it's fair, and it rewards good judgment on player potential while not going so far as to slam the door shut on teams who didn't make the best keeper decisions the previous season. The system we use is after the jump, and after using it for two seasons, I feel comfortable recommending it.

I'm already sick of the Tony Soprano jokes

...and I haven't even heard one yet. They're inevitable, though, now that the Dolphins plan to offer their head coaching job to this guy:

His name? Tony Sparano. Close enough for Boomer!