Championship Spotlight: FORTYS
The Fantasy Hut began last season’s championship article referencing the longevity of “The League” and what that meant for how we perceive franchises. Given the amount of time we’ve spent playing against each other and the history written along the way, it’s easy to see franchises as they are what they are. The theme for last season’s champion SampDeez was how it was bucking that trend and rewriting the franchise’s narrative given recent strong play over the last couple of seasons.
The idea is similar for FORTYS, but it falls in a different bucket. The longevity of “The League” has also created franchise eras, where the performance and perception of franchises has evolved over time and for certain periods of time. It seems like a lifetime ago that FORTYS went to three straight finals — the first to do it at the time and now one of three franchises to ever do it — and four in a six-season span. While it was victorious in only one of those four trips, it was a period that led us to define the franchise as a postseason winner. It’s been anything but that since.
FORTYS owner Joe Melillo is the latest owner in "The League" to rid himself of past failures by achieving the ultimate goal of winning a fantasy football championship.
The last of those four final trips came in 2015, which was also the last time FORTYS won a playoff game prior to the 2024 season. In the eight seasons since 2015 and prior to the 2024 campaign, FORTYS qualified for the postseason just twice, posted seven losing seasons, and won four or less games on three different occasions. It was a new era for the franchise, one defined by Draft Day mistakes, injuries, and losing.
“My mentality for fantasy football was in the shitter, literally,” FORTYS owner Joe Melillo said through email. “I felt every move I made was the wrong decision for
eight years. I didn’t take it seriously before the draft and I think ultimately the last eight years that was the reason I was doing so poorly was my drafts were really bad. The main culprit would be the draft strategy going in each year was not tight and I panic picked, and I fell back on old names that weren’t going to get the targets that I needed. So, this year I made the conscious decision to change that strategy going in making sure I did the research prior with the understanding of young players first.”
FORTYS parlayed that new Draft Day approach into one of the best seasons in franchise history. Its 9-4-1 record was the best single-season finish in franchise history, winning nine games for just the third time and the first time since 2015. It tied a franchise-record with six straight wins during the middle of the season, got back to the postseason for the first time since 2019, won its first playoff game since 2015, advanced to its fifth final — third-most all-time — and became the sixth franchise to win multiple championships.
“Thank God. Thank you, Jesus. I wanna give it up to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ because honestly getting number two was giving me anxiety,” Melillo said about what it means to win a second championship. “I don’t know what you want me to say here other than it feels great to finally be back. I just needed to make sure that I stayed out in front of the zero championship owners. And honestly, now it gives me excitement to try to go after number three.”
Melillo’s draft strategy was something him and The Fantasy Hut discussed many times this season, and The Fantasy Hut harped on it throughout the season as a main reason for its return to playoff contention. An excerpt from The Fantasy Hut’s Draft Day preview gives you a sense of just how important a new approach was: “Perhaps fear of the past leads to a safer draft strategy, focusing on players with less risk which could raise the overall floor of its roster.” If The Fantasy Hut knew something had to change, Melillo certainly did and he has to be given credit for putting in the time, making the commitment to the plan, and then executing that plan en route to a title.
“Draft young and keep drafting young paid off tremendously. The entire goal was to only draft players who were either rookies, second-, or third- year players,” Melillo said in detailing his Draft Day strategy. “I needed to implement this because I’m sick and tired of old guys getting hurt. I don’t know how much stock I’ve invested in Keenan Allen over the years, but I can tell you right now it was way too much. Every draft I felt as if I was always defaulting to the name as opposed to the player upside, and by using the strategy to draft younger players, I was able to curb my own lack of knowledge and really invest in a longer-term game. There was one stat that I found to be overarching the most important thing that I read all offseason and that was young players get better throughout the season versus older players tend to get a lot worse over time by the end of the season.”
FORTYS’ return to championship glory may have started before Draft Day, however, way back near the end of the 2020 season. That’s when FORTYS acquired Lamar Jackson from Team Triple Beam, filling the giant franchise quarterback hole left by Cam Newton. Jackson has been a member of FORTYS ever since, and despite finishing second in the MVP voting Jackson may have enjoyed the best season of his career. Jackson averaged 30.34 points per game — up to 35.33 per game in the postseason — he scored at least 20 points in all but two games, and surpassed the 40-point mark four times including a season-high 46.10-point performance in FORTYS’ quarterfinal victory over The Sorge.
Another pre-Draft Day difference maker was the decision to keep Tee Higgins over Alvin Kamara. Both players were great all season, but running back ended up being an area of strength for FORTYS so it badly needed Higgins’ services. Higgins was also cheaper on Draft Day and came through when it mattered most. Higgins posted double-digits in nine of the 11 games he played, including a season-high 40.10 points in the championship. Him and fellow FORTYS Draft Day selection Malik Nabers finished as top-10 receivers on a points per game basis. Melillo also highlighted Jonnu Smith as a key late-season addition given the state of the tight end position all season long. Smith was added prior to Week 11 and scored in double-digits in every game the rest of the way.
So what’s next for FORTYS? That’s the question for every team at the end of a season of course, but for the champion it carries a little extra weight. Repeating is a difficult thing to do and Melillo is the latest owner tasked with the endeavor. “The League’s” keeper reset adds an extra level of intrigue that if Melillo drafts like he did this season may make the task a little easier to achieve.
“Anytime we do something like this to mix it up is dope. Reset keepers and find a new way forward,” Melillo said through email when asked about his opinion on the reset. “I feel like it also could change your mentality on which keepers you would normally go after. For years, I’m always down for two QBs, but maybe now with the keeper reset I’ll be down for three wide receivers. As for my approach going forward, obviously this year was a good start. I’d like to try to do that again with my draft strategy, but really paying attention to NFL news would be high on my priority list over the next couple of years.”
The 2022 Championship Trophy Acceptance Video
"The League" Record Book
"The League" history
2005
Scoring title: Jamie A.
Regular-season title: Jamie A.
League champion: Jamie A. (defeated Pat)
2006
Scoring title: Jamie A.
Regular-season title: Jamie A.
League champion: Jamie A. (defeated Pat)
2007
Scoring title: Jamie C.
Regular-season title: David
League champion: Keith (defeated Alex)
2008
Scoring title: Keith
Regular-season title: Alex
League champion: Keith (defeated Jamie A.)
2009
*Realignment: first season with two five-team divisions. The Eastern Division: Alex, David, Keith, Jason, Pat; the Western Division: Jamie A., Jamie C., Joe, Kevin, Scott. Winner of each division is guaranteed a bye in the six-team playoffs.
Eastern Division title: David
Western Division title: Kevin
Scoring title: Kevin
Regular-season title: Kevin
League champion: Kevin (defeated David)
Third place: Pat (defeated Alex)
2010
*Keeper rules: owners draft knowing they will be eligible to keep three players from their roster for the following season.
Eastern Division title: David
Western Division title: Jamie C.
Scoring title: Kevin
Regular-season title: Jamie C.
League champion: Joe (defeated Jamie C.)
Third place: Keith (defeated David)
2011
*Year 1 of keepers
Eastern Division title: Jason
Western division title: Scott
Scoring title: Jason
Regular-season title: Jason
League champion: Jason (defeated Joe)
Third place: Keith (defeated Scott)
2012
*Year 2 of keepers
Eastern Division title: David
Western Division title: Jamie A.
Scoring title: David
Regular-season title: Jamie A.
League champion: David (defeated Joe)
Third place: Jason (defeated Jamie A.)
2013
*Year 3 of keepers
Eastern Division title: Alex
Western Division title: Jamie A.
Scoring title: Jamie A.
Regular-season title: Jamie A.
League champion: Jamie A. (defeated Alex)
Third place: Kevin (defeated Keith)
2014
*Year 4 of keepers
Eastern Division title: David
Western Division title: Jamie A.
Scoring title: Jamie A.
Regular-season title: Jamie A.
League champion: David (defeated Kevin)
Third place: Jamie A. (defeated Jamie C.)
2015
*Year 5 of keepers
Sacko Bowl: First season in which the consolation bracket is played to determine draft order selection order for the four non-playoff teams, and the team to finish last is deemed the "Sacko." Year 1's punishment is wearing a tutu for the entirety of Draft Day.
Eastern Division title: Pat
Western Division title: Joe
Scoring title: Pat
Regular-season title: Pat
League champion: Jason (defeated Joe)
Third place: Pat (defeated David)
Sacko: Keith
2016
*Year 6 of keepers
*Year 2 of Sacko Bowl
Eastern Division title: David
Western Division title: Kevin
Scoring title: Jamie A.
Regular-season title: Kevin
League champion: Kevin (defeated David)
Third place: Jamie A. (defeated Jason)
Sacko: Pat
2017
*Year 7 of keepers
*Year 3 of Sacko Bowl
Eastern Division title: Pat
Western Division title Jamie A.
Scoring title: Alex
Regular-season title: Jamie A.
League champion: Pat (defeated Alex)
Third place: Jamie C. (defeated Jamie A.)
Sacko: David
2018
*Year 8 of keepers
*Year 4 of Sacko Bowl
Eastern Division title: Keith
Western Division title Jamie C.
Scoring title: Jamie C.
Regular-season title: Jamie C.
League champion: Scott (defeated Keith)
Third place: Jamie C. (defeated David)
Sacko: Pat
2019
*Year 9 of keepers
*Year 5 of Sacko Bowl
Eastern Division title: David
Western Division title Jamie C.
Scoring title: Jamie C.
Regular-season title: Jamie C.
League champion: David (defeated Pat)
Third place: Jamie C. (defeated Jamie A.)
Sacko: Jason
2020
*Year 10 of keepers
*Year 6 of Sacko Bowl
Eastern Division title: David
Western Division title Jamie C.
Scoring title: David
Regular-season title: David
League champion: David (defeated Jamie A.)
Third place: Jamie C. (defeated Scott)
Sacko: Alex
2021
*Year 11 of keepers
*Year 7 of Sacko Bowl
Eastern Division title: Jamie A.
Western Division title: Alex
Scoring title: Alex
Regular-season title: Jamie A.
League champion: Jamie A. (defeated David)
Third place: Alex (defeated Jason)
Sacko: Scott
2022
*Year 12 of keepers
*Year 8 of Sacko Bowl
Eastern Division title: Scott
Western Division title: Pat
Scoring title: Jamie A.
Regular-season title: Scott
League champion: Kevin (defeated Jamie A.)
Third place: Pat (defeated Scott)
Sacko: Alex
2023
*Year 13 of keepers
*Year 9 of Sacko Bowl
Eastern Division title: Scott
Western Division title: Alex
Scoring title: Alex
Regular-season title: Alex
League champion: Scott (defeated Alex)
Third place: Jamie A. (defeated Jason)
Sacko: Kevin
2024
*Year 14 of keepers
*Year 10 of Sacko Bowl
Eastern Division title: David
Western Division title: Jason
Scoring title: Jason
Regular-season title: Jason
League champion: Joe (defeated Scott)
Third place: David (defeated Pat)
Sacko: Keane
"The League" all-time records
(All records are current as of 2024 season)
Longest regular-season winning streak (within one season) — 11 (Jason - 2011)
Longest regular-season winning streak (across seasons) — 17 (Alex - 2006-07)
Longest regular-season losing streak (within one season) — 13 (Scott - 2007, 2021)
Longest regular-season losing streak (across seasons) — 23 (Scott - 2006-09) ... *no 2008 season
Regular-season winning percentage:
- David 159-108 (.596)
- Jamie A. 157-110 (.588)
- Jamie C. 144-123 (.539)
- Pat 142-125 (.532)
- Alex 134-119 (.530)
- Keith 93-92 (.503)
- Kevin 123-129-1 (.488)
- Joe 114-138-1 (.453)
- Scott 108-145 (.427)
- Keane 35-47 (.427)
- Jason 108-159 (.404)
Best single-season record: David (12-1, 2007)
Worst single-season record: Scott (0-13, 2007)
Best single-season record (including playoffs): Jamie A. (15-2, 2006)
Most wins in a season: David (12 - 2007)
Most wins in a season (including playoffs): Jamie A. (15 - 2006)
Most division titles: David (8)
- David 8
- Jamie A. 5
- Jamie C. 4
- Pat 3
- Scott 3
- Alex 3
- Kevin 2
- Jason 2
- Joe 1
- Keith 1
- Keane 0
Most regular-season titles: Jamie A. (7)
- Jamie A. 7
- Jamie C. 3
- Alex 3
- Jason 2
- David 2
- Kevin 2
- Scott 1
- Pat 1
- Keith 0
- Joe 0
- Keane 0
Most scoring titles: Jamie A. (6)
- Jamie A. 6
- Jamie C. 3
- Alex 3
- David 2
- Kevin 2
- Jason 2
- Pat 1
- Keith 1
- Scott 0
- Joe 0
- Keane 0
Most playoff appearances: Jamie A. (17)
- Jamie A. 17
- David 16
- Jamie C. 14
- Pat 14
- Keith 10
- Alex 10
- Kevin 9
- Scott 9
- Joe 9
- Jason 7
- Keane 3
Most playoff games: Jamie A. (31)
- Jamie A. 31
- David 26
- Pat 23
- Jamie C. 20
- Joe 18
- Alex 18
- Keith 18
- Kevin 16
- Jason 15
- Scott 13
- Keane 3
Most playoff wins: Jamie A. (18)
- Jamie A. 18
- David 14
- Joe 11
- Kevin 10
- Keith 10
- Pat 10
- Jason 10
- Alex 8
- Jamie C. 6
- Scott 6
- Keane 0
Most championships: David, Jamie A. (4)
- David 4
- Jamie A. 4
- Kevin 3
- Jason 2
- Keith 2
- Scott 2
- Joe 2
- Pat 1
- Alex 0
- Jamie C. 0
- Keane 0
Most championship appearances: David, Jamie A. (7)
- Jamie A. 7
- David 7
- Joe 5
- Kevin 4
- Pat 4
- Alex 4
- Jason 3
- Keith 3
- Scott 2
- Jamie C. 1
- Keane 0
Longest playoff winning streak — 6 (David 2019-2021)
Longest playoff losing streak — 7 (Jamie C. 2017-Present)
Playoff winning percentage:
- Jason 10-5 (.667)
- Kevin 10-6 (.625)
- Joe 11-7 (.611)
- Jamie A. 18-13 (.581)
- Keith 10-8 (.556)
- David 14-12 (.538)
- Scott 6-7 (.462)
- Alex 8-10 (.444)
- Pat 10-13 (.435)
- Jamie C. 6-14 (.300)
- Keane 0-3 (.000)
Sackos — Pat, Alex (2)
- Alex 2
- Pat 2
- Jason 1
- David 1
- Keith 1
- Scott 1
- Kevin 1
- Keane 1
- Joe 0
- Jamie A. 0
- Jamie C 0
Weeks at No. 1 in Power Rankings: Jamie A. (18)
- Jamie A. 18
- Kevin 15
- Jason 12
- Jamie C. 12
- Alex 12
- Pat 11
- David 7
- Keith 3
- Scott 2
- Keane 1
- Joe 0
Consecutive weeks at No. 1 in Power Rankings: 8 (Jamie A. 2012, Jason 2011)
Weeks won: Jamie C. (32)
- Jamie C. 32
- Pat 27
- David 27
- Jamie A. 27
- Alex 19
- Kevin 18
- Joe 15
- Jason 11
- Scott 9
- Keane 6
- Keith 4
Weeks won in a season: 5 (David 2018, Jamie C. 2018)
