There can be coaching changes during the regular season, and early in the offseason. Sometimes there may even be a change made later, but that leaves teams with few options from which to choose, so it's not the standard practice. Coaching changes can seriously affect the fantasy landscape. Whether it is a head coaching change or a coordinator, every change to a coaching staff should be considered.

In early February, teams can start Franchising or Transitioning a player on their roster. This has a major affect on the free agency market. Good players who do not have new contracts yet are often kept by their team with these tags. After being tagged, players can still sign multi-year deals with their teams. If they do not sign new deals, they get the maximum of their salary for the previous season plus 20% or the average of the top five or ten players (depending on whether it is a Franchise tag or a Transition tag) at the same position. Players who get Transition tagged by their team can still sign with other teams, but it costs the signing team top draft picks rendering the practice less profitable, and one that occurs seldomly.

In late February, college athletes are invited to Indianapolis, IN to showcase their athletic ability. They run, jump, catch and throw while under watchful eyes of agents, scouts and league officials. They also have their intelligence and personalities tested. They are given Wonderlic tests and personality tests in a vain attempt to determine who is the best bet for teams. Every year future busts raise their stock at the combine, and future stars drop in value. The combine is a dangerous time for NFL teams as well as fantasy teams. Do not read too much into 40 times and standing high jumps. Speed does not translate to success. Speed is important, but not the determining factor in an athlete's potential in the NFL.

In early March, free agency and trading enter the NFL spotlight. Every year there are key signings that affect the fantasy football landscape. These signings aren't limited to offensive skill position players. Offensive linemen have a tremendous affect on skill players from their previous and future teams. It is important to keep close tabs on all free agency and trade moves though, because every position affects others. The signing of a big time DT may free up a MLB to become a major playmaker, and could result in a huge surge in the fantasy value of that team's defense. Then, there are the moves that involve offensive skill position players. Some RBs will go from being a backup on one team to being a starter on another, or vice versa.

In mid-March, teams begin their voluntary off-season workout programs. They are not allowed to mandate participation, and this allows us to get an idea of what players and teams are building nice chemistry, and which players and teams are setting themselves up for failure because they are still too full of themselves to be team players. When WRs and TEs don't show up for these programs, you know they aren't building as good a rapport with their QBs as players who are spending as much time as they can with their QBs. Some players workout in the offseason with players with whom they played at college, some players want to workout with their current teammates. We shouldn't read too much into attendance, but we can take note of it.

In late March, the owners get together at a fancy resort somewhere and mingle and talk some trades maybe, but mainly they decide on rule changes. It was at these meetings that it was decided to give WRs and TEs the freedom to roam the secondary untouched five yards after the line of scrimmage. Rule changes like these affect fantasy football. Since that rule, it has been easier to pass in the NFL, raising the value of QBs, WRs and TEs. If any rule changes emerge from the owners' meetings, their affect on the play in the NFL needs to be considered.

A month later, in late April, we witness the most boring exciting event of the NFL season. The best athletes available from college are drafted in NYC. Players we have been hearing about for months are paraded on the stage as their names are called by our favorite teams. It is a very exciting weekend to see who your favorite team(s) add to their roster, and to what teams the impact players go. All of that seems pretty exciting. Not to mention, the draft is held in the middle of the offseason, when we are all facing the seemingly unmanageable lack of football. To tame the excitement, teams are given an awfully large amount of time between first round picks, so that after an hour of watching the draft, only four picks have been made. This is an extremely painful reality of it all, and one that the NFL is making efforts to fix.

By mid June we have a very clear picture of where players aer going to be playing in the fall, as the deadline for restricted free agents to accept qualifying offers arrives. Unrestricted free agents may still be available, but most have probably signed somewhere to ensure their future. In mid July, the deadline to sign franchised players to multi year deals arrives, and we have an idea of who will be playing for a different team in the following year, usually those franchised players who do not get long term deals.