My first encounter with fantasy football happened in 1996. I was 11-years old and somehow came across one of those preseason magazines. I literally have no idea how I got my hands on the publication and much of the its contents didn’t make sense to me at the time. But I would grow to love the game.
That being said, fantasy football in 1996 was weird. Analysts predicted big things from questionable players, running backs dominated everything and there was no depth at the tight end position. Actually, it wasn’t all that different than today’s NFL landscape. Anyway, here are some random observations from fantasy football in 1996.
Related: The best fantasy football seasons you don’t remember
Fantasy football in 1996
Bam Morris moves weight
The magazine I read was extremely bullish on Bam Morris who had helped the Pittsburgh Steelers reach the Super Bowl in 1995. However, he was arrested for having six pounds of weed a few months later and cut by the team.
Morris ended up signing for the Baltimore Ravens which was going to unleash his full potential, according to the magazine. It did not as he took part in 11 games in 1996 and was most likely focused on his side hustle–moving weight. He eventually made his way to the Kansas City Chiefs where he played a little football and mostly operated a drug trafficking operation.
Tight ends have always been bad
Even in PPR, a fantasy football format not used much in 1996, the tight end position was barren. Only four of the top-100 scorers were tight ends. Last season the number was six. Some 25-years later and the problem remains the same.
Christian Fauria: helluva player
Speaking of tight ends, the magazine called Christian Fauria a helluva player. This stayed with me mostly because I was 11 and didn’t see curse words in print. It must be noted that Fauria was a solid blocking tight end who never caught more than 40 passes in any given season and was never fantasy relevant. Who knows why a fantasy football publication thought he was going to be worth drafting.
Vinny Testaverde is the O.G. garbage time all-star
Vinny Testaverde finished as the second highest scoring fantasy player in 1996 behind Brett Favre. Non-PPR formats, of course. He did that on a 4-12 Baltimore Ravens who were pretty awful on defense. That gave Testaverde plenty of opportunities to throw which he turned into 4,177 yards and 33 touchdowns. There were also 19 interceptions, nine fumbles and 34 sacks, but these didn’t factor into scoring in most leagues.
Lack of PPR makes things dull
While there were some PPR fantasy football leagues out there, most people played standard scoring which made wide receivers fairly useless. The top-13 players were running backs and quarterbacks. Additionally, pass catchers only comprised four of the top-26 spots. It’s safe to say RB0 was not a viable strategy in 1996.
More Fantasy Football: The keys to being a good fantasy football commissioner
