I’m Leo Paciga and This Is How I Play

Several years ago I began working remotely for a startup non-profit after spending most of my career in retail and corporate offices. As any quality researcher would do, I immediately began looking into tips and tricks of how to be successful working remotely. I stumbled across an article series by Lifehacker, called “How I Work,” which essentially was a collection of interviews, focusing on best practices, workflows, workspaces, and gadgets used by successful business people.

This article series is a nod, or rather a direct copy of their idea, from a fantasy football perspective. I’ll seek to interview the most interesting minds in fantasy football, procuring their secrets, routines, bookmarks, and more in an effort to pull back the curtains and provide you with resources and information. I hope you enjoy!

Your name

Leo Paciga

Your Twitter handle

LP: @Ciga_FF

Your location (city/state)

LP: Stafford, CT…but anywhere along the New England coastline feels like home to me.

Current day job

LP: Supply Chain Logistics

Current fantasy job(s)

LP: Outside of running my dynasty squads and spending time on twitter, I’m currently more of a fantasy recluse. In the past, I’ve been a Senior Writer for a few sites, most notably right here at DLF.

One word that best describes how you play fantasy football

LP: Decisive

Who is your favorite (non-current) NFL player? Why?

LP: Just one? Wow, that’s tough. I’d have to say Bo Jackson, Billy Sims, and Walter Payton are all certainly in the discussion of all-time favorite player, but I’d have to give the nod to a RB who was half bulldozer and half jackhammer – the one and only Earl Campbell. I was 12 years old during Earl’s rookie season and I can still remember being mesmerized each time he touched the ball. Every hand-off was followed by a symphony of focused violence, as if his very life depended on gaining just one more yard.

Current mobile device

LP: Samsung Galaxy S7

Current computer

LP: I usually have 3 computers up and running when I’m home. My desktop is a Samsung All-in-One and I also use a Lenovo ThinkPad and/or an Asus flip-tablet.

First of all, tell us a little about how you got your start in fantasy football. How did that evolve to what you’re doing now?

LP: I started playing just over 30 years ago, right around the time man invented the wheel…or maybe it was fire? One of my former high school buddies had an older brother working up in Boston who started playing FF back in the early 80’s so we took those rules and started our own league. If I remember correctly our draft was in 1987 and my first two picks were Eric Dickerson and Curt Warner – not the grocery clerk turned QB, but the RB from Penn State. It was a painstakingly crude process back then and a commissioner’s best friends were a pencil, paper and the box scores in the USA Today.

As fantasy sports started to carve out a spot on the World Wide Web and I found myself lurking around a site called “Antsports.” Even though exchanges on that particular message board could get intense and combative rather easily, there were some really great fantasy football minds hanging out there, coming up with amazingly innovative ideas during the early stages of online FF. Ultimately my activity on a few message boards opened the door for me (then under the screen name of FFHoudini) to write about fantasy football both online and in print publications. I even found myself hosting a dynasty podcast for a while with one my favorite fantasy football personalities – Josh Haymond (also known as JPeso in many FF circles).

My final landing spot was as a senior writer right here at DLF. I’ve stepped away from writing on a regular basis over the past two years and now basically stick to interacting with the rabid FF horde via social media.

How many fantasy football leagues do you currently play in? What is your favorite league and why?

LP: 20 dynasty leagues, #SFB480 and a bunch of best ball redraft leagues that require no attention after drafting. My favorite league centers around a dynasty team I adopted back in 2007. That squad had the most gawd awful roster ever assembled with only two real assets – Michael Vick and Tiki Barber. As luck would have it, Tiki retired just before the ’07 season & Vick got himself arrested so obviously it was tough to contain my enthusiasm that first year. My team averaged just over 3 wins a season for the first four years, but I’ve won the title in that league every year since 2011….5 in a row! I’m 9-1 this year with sights set on title number six.

What’s your best time-saving shortcut or fantasy hack?

LP: I have a few spreadsheets to help manage my rosters so obviously I’m a fan of Excel, but being completely honest, I’m really old school and savor the process as much as the result. By that I mean I enjoy sitting down each week and writing out my line ups in each league, commenting on potentially tough line up decisions, logging the reasons why I should start a certain player. I love going back over previous weeks and challenging my thought process based on my notes and the outcome of my decisions. So in reality, my “hack” is probably the exact opposite of a time saving shortcut because it involves adding details instead of streamlining the process.

In order to be successful in fantasy football, you have to do at least one thing better than the average owner. What’s your secret?

LP: It’s more of my calling card than anything resembling a secret. The folks who’ve read my work know that I like to profile the behavior of my fellow league mates. I look for trends and patterns in draft history, waiver wire acquisitions, completed trades and even trade negotiations. The whole idea is very similar to identifying a “tell” at the poker table only it’s done over a longer time period with a wider range of interaction. As I mentioned earlier, I enjoy putting pen to paper and all the nuances associated with old school note taking and in this instance choosing the “long way home” provides certain advantages which I’m able to use in my favor.

What’s your greatest weakness in fantasy football? Startup drafts, mining the waiver wire, making trades, lineup decisions? How do you make up for it elsewhere?

LP: Sometimes I can be really stubborn and stick with my player evaluations too long, missing potential trade windows or off ramps.

How would you describe your fantasy football philosophy?

LP: Play with the strategy that provides the most satisfaction, learn from those who are successful using a different strategy and always remember that integrity matters even in fantasy football.

Walk us through what your week looks like during the season as a fantasy owner. When do you watch games, process waivers, propose trades, etc?

LP: Early in the week I go through all my leagues and plug in a rough starting lineup, jot down some notes on tough decisions, update any relevant information into my league specific notebooks and submit any waivers.

I’ll do a quick check on lineups again on Thursday before the game but very rarely do I watch a Thursday night game past the 1st quarter. 3:30 AM comes really early on the east coast. Sunday I try to catch a few hours on RedZone – I love the commercial free format.

What’s your favorite article you’ve ever written? Why?

LP: “A Fantasy Football Odyssey” is easily my favorite. A friendship formed through online football leagues can be a peculiar thing and with 30 + years under my belt, I’ve befriended more than my fair share of folks. Through all those years and out of all those people, however, my friendship with CoinFlip (Carla Gruse) stands out as the most unique. Carla is an outstanding league commissioner, a very skillful owner, and most importantly, a tremendous friend. The article talks about the sexism and challenges Carla had to overcome to find her rightful seat at the FF table.

Who is the best fantasy football owner you’ve ever played with and why?

LP: Although I know he doesn’t play much fantasy football these days, the best player I’ve competed against is the guy I hosted a podcast with a few years ago – Josh Haymond. Josh had an uncanny knack for spot on player evaluations draft class after draft class. He was an aggressive trader willing to overpay for his targets and he was often ahead of the curve when it came to identifying breakout players before they became household names. My favorite owners are generally a mash up of skill, candor, insight, commitment and integrity and Josh checked the box for each of those qualities. Honestly, I’ve learned a lot from my friendship with Josh and our conversations about strategy, player values and life in general.

What’s your current workspace (for fantasy football) like? Coffee shop with laptop and headphones? Home office with a standing desk?

LP: My work space is anywhere I can open my laptop. Real life has been so busy lately that I really don’t have one designated spot. Best case scenario is on the couch, in front of my TV, scribbling notes into one of my many league notebooks.

Besides your phone and computer, what gadget can’t you live without and why?

LP: My PS4. I’ve been a gamer since the first Atari home systems hit the market in the late 70’s

What apps, software, or tools can’t you live without?

LP: I’m really not dependent on any one thing. As long as I have my notebooks and an internet connection, I’m fine. If I fall off the grid, or MyFantasyLeague goes offline for an extended period of time then we have an issue. Also, misplacing my reading glasses can be quite traumatic.

What is your go-to site for your tough start/sit decisions?

LP: I’d really rather swing and miss with my own instincts/insights than trust outside start/sit advice. That said, I’m all for gathering as much match up data as possible and I love using DLF, FBGs, 4for4 and RotoViz so I can make my own informed choices.

If you could only read one website (other than those you contribute at) for the rest of your life, what would it be and why?

LP: It would have to be FootballGuys. There are just so many smart folks putting out content at that site year round and they cover every format. One of the few sites I’m actually willing to pay for every year.

Take a quick peek at your bookmarked sites. What are the top 3-4 sites on the list?

LP: Top 4 are: Rotoworld (NFL news-feed is a must), MyFantasyLeague, DLF and FBGs

What podcast is currently queued up on your phone?

LP: Ugh…I hate singling out just one because there are so many really good podcasts out there and twitter makes them all so easy to find. That said, I’ve got a RotoUnderworld podcast queued up. I enjoy the work Matt Kelley puts out there and I try to get caught up with his stuff whenever I can.

What are you currently reading? A novel, comic book, website, magazine?

LP: First and foremost, I’m a history nut, but I can never read just one book at a time or cover to cover. I usually have two or three books going at the same time and bounce from book to book for variety. Right now I’m reading “The Quartet” by Joseph Ellis and “Custer’s Trials” by T.J. Stiles.

I’m also a comic book fanatic. Batman is my all-time favorite character, but once we get past the Dark Knight, I’m a Marvel guy through and through.

What do you listen to while you play? Got a favorite playlist? Maybe a podcast? Or do you prefer silence?

LP: I usually prefer silence. This probably sounds crazy, but I like getting lost in my own head and silence provides the best platform for doing that. When I do listen to music, I like the older alternative stuff like Godsmack and Sevendust.

Do you have any superstitions on game day? Wear the same lucky T-Shirt? Always make homemade chili before the games?

LP: I like to go for a run early Sunday mornings during football season. Just a quick 2 or 3 mile jog just to clear any cobwebs.

How do you recharge?

LP: Spending time with my wife, hitting the gym and playing some video games all factor into my recharging routine.

What’s your sleep routine like? Are you a night owl or early-riser?

LP: I’m up for work by 3:30 AM every morning during the week which means I shut the lights off pretty early Monday through Friday.

Fill in the blank: I’d love to see _________ answer these same questions.

LP: Pete Davidson

What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?

LP: Never go to bed mad at the people you really care about.

Is there anything else you’d like to add that might be interesting to readers and fans?

I’ve probably bored everyone to tears already. I’ll shut the lights off on my way out.

The How I Play series asks writers, developers, editors, and fantasy football degenerates to share their secrets, bookmarks, routines, and more. Have someone you want to see featured, or questions you think we should ask? Email Eric Dickens or start a conversation with him on Twitter.