Fantasy football was first invented in 1962. Since then the NFL has changed in itself. The sport of football has grown.
And fantasy football has evolved. The rules and formats are very different now. There are so many formats of the game right now. From redraft to keeper to dynasty leagues.
Dynasty leagues, especially, have seen a stellar growth in the last few years. And like any other fantasy league format, dynasty leagues also have different rules and regulations.
One such variation in dynasty leagues is taxi squad. Do not worry if you’re a newbie to fantasy football. Things might seem confusing and overwhelming at the beginning. In this page, we try to simplify the concept of taxi squad for you.
Also Read: 700+ Funny Fantasy Football Team Names To Try Out In 2024
What is Taxi Squad in fantasy football?
Before we get into the concept of taxi squads in dynasty leagues, let’s first breakdown what a dynasty league is.
In fantasy football, dynasty league is where the fantasy manager will carry the entire squad from the current year to the next season. The managers can hold onto the player indefinitely unless the player retires or the manager trades the player away during the season.
Now let’s get to taxi squads.
Think of taxi squads like practice squads in the NFL. Taxi squads are basically a specific number of players in your current fantasy team roster who are not included in the total roster limit.
A player who’s on the taxi squad is still part of your team, but doesn’t count in the overall limit of the roster.
Also Read: What is Dynasty Fantasy Football? All you need to know
Who does taxi squads matter in fantasy football?
Dynasty fantasy football is all about building your roster in such a way the team is able to win consistently for a long term. Hence players who have higher ceiling, longer shelf life and have long-term success are crucial to winning in dynasty leagues.
Hence this concept of taxi squads is important.
Stashing a player is not an option but a necessity. It helps the fantasy manager to preserve an asset (a player) for the long-term success of the team.
One of the important things to understand with taxi squads is that the manager cannot insert the player in the taxi squad to the starting lineup. A player generally stays on the taxi squad until the fantasy manager decides to promote the player to the active roster.
One of the common misconceptions with taxi squads is that with bench strength. Players in the taxi squads are not part of the fantasy team’s bench.
A fantasy manager keeps a player in a taxi squad when they believe there’s a huge upside to the player and can contribute in the future. Since dynasty leagues are winning long-term, managers tend to pick younger players and add them to the taxi squad.
The fantasy manager decides to keep the players in the taxi squad depending on the goal of the team. What does this mean? If the manager is all in on winning now, there are more chances that they will stash the taxi squad with players who will serve that goal. Handcuff players.
One important aspect to note here is that the rules differ in different leagues. Many dynasty leagues allow the managers to only stash the rookies in the taxi squads.
With the 2024 fantasy football season on the horizon, be sure to check out our free Fantasy Football Trade Analyzer to lock down your squad for the year.
FAQs
A. In fantasy football, a taxi squad is the set of players who are part of your team but not the overall active roster.
A. In general, fantasy managers can keep a player on the taxi squad for the entire rookie season of the player. However it depends again, since the league commissioner decides the rules and the duration changes in every league.
A. It depends on the league. Few leagues allow activation during the season. There’s no set date. However there are leagues with windows to activate players.
A. The rules for taxi squads vary in different leagues. In general, many leagues have taxi squads. But it is ubiquitous. Fantasy managers will have to know the rules and regulations before joining a league.
