Static Baseline: Ever debate what position to draft with your current draft pick, always wondering who you will be able to draft with your next draft pick? How do you choose between taking a QB, RB or a WR in round 4? You may be able to get the highest valued player on the board with your current pick, but what will it cost you by foregoing taking a top player at one of the other positions? You probably ask yourself that question with almost every pick of the draft...or at least you should!

Static Baseline values enable you to make more accurate comparisons between players at different positions so you can draft the best combination of players (i.e. team) with each draft pick.

How Static Baseline works: Baseline values are subtracted from every player prior to the draft. These values are different for each position and are based on the worst player expected to be drafted at each position. In the following example, there will be 12 players drafted at each of the two positions, therefore the value of the 12th player is used as the baseline value. We use the term Static because this exercise is done prior to the draft and the values do not change during the draft - they are static.

The following illustration provides a simple example of why the relative value of a player is more important than their absolute value when drafting players from multiple positions.

Situation: You and your opponent need to draft one player from Position A and one player from Position B. There are two players remaining at each position as shown in this chart.

You draft first in a snake style draft: If you pick the player with the highest absolute value, you will actually draft a losing team. Here is why:

• (Round 1) You draft the 300pt player from Position A (the player with the highest absolute value)
• (Round 1) Your Opponent drafts the 275pt player from Position B
• (Round 2) Your Opponent drafts the 200pt player from Position A
• (Round 2) You draft the 100pt player from Position B

See the Draft Board and Draft Results below.

Despite the fact that you drafted the highest valued player available, you still drafted a losing team. Why? Because the value of the 300pt player at Position A relative to the other player available at Position A (200pts), was much less than the value of the 275pt player at Position B relative to the other player available at Position B (100pts).  It is the relative value of players, not the absolute value, that is more important when drafting a team of players at multiple positions.

If you pick the player with the highest relative value, you will draft a winning team. Here is why:

• (Round 1) You draft the 275pt player from Position B (the player with the highest relative value)
• (Round 1) Your Opponent drafts the 300pt player from Position A
• (Round 2) Your Opponent drafts the 100pt player from Position B
• (Round 2) You draft the 200pt player from Position A

See the Draft Board and Draft Results below.

Congrats! Drafting players based on their Static Baseline value enabled you to draft the player with the highest relative value and the winning team!

How this will help you on draft day: Static Baseline calculates the relative value of all players for you and therefore helps you draft the best overall team. As demonstrated in the example above, the relative value of players, not the absolute value, is more important when drafting a team of players at multiple positions.

Draft Dynamix enables you to automatically reduce the Dynamic Draft Value (DDV) of all players based on a Static Baseline value that you define for each position.

The limitation to Static Baseline lies in the fact that this calculation provides you with the value of each player relative to the last player to be drafted at their position.  However, during an actual draft, you rarely make that comparison. During the draft you should be comparing your current pick with your next pick, not with the last pick of the draft. This is where Static Baseline falls short and Dynamic Baseline picks up (see Dynamic Baseline for more information).