Rosterwatch Doctrine: Diversify your Portfolio
Byron Lambert, Rosterwatch.com

Whenever possible an important football strategy is to diversify your portfolio. This applies to your team as a whole and even more so to your starting line up. What I mean by this is, with exception to a few scenarios, it is best practice to avoid starting multiple players from one team. In a few extenuating situations this also applies to starting several players from the same game.

The logic?

From the perspective of your roster as a whole, Peyton Manning is a perfect example. Many people owned 3 or even 4 Colts. When Manning went down they all went down the tubes and so did a major portion of your roster. Allocate your risk properly to avoid this snafu.

In terms of your starting line up, diversification raises your points floor due to the above mentioned risk allocation. Not too many eggs in one basket because if the basket breaks so do all of your eggs. The other benefit to your starting line up is an increase in your points ceiling. Barring a miracle it is only possible to get so much fantasy production out of several players on one team. They share that production and what one player produces another cannot. Having starting players from all different teams opens the possibility of you starting the highest producing player from each of those teams. This is how you have a week where you set a league points record; having players from many teams that go bananas. It would be very rare that several players from one team, even in a high scoring affair, would out score several high scorers from completely separate teams.

When is it ok to employ a multi-player / single team strategy? If you have #1 WR stock in a top 5 QB. If you are buying stock in a super prolific offense that has a ridiculously juicy match up. When you are in a bye week or injury bind. For example, there are bye weeks I would be perfectly happy starting Darren McFadden and Michael Bush if necessary.

What about starting several players from the same game? Typically ok, except when the weather is terrible. Or you may want to avoid if you have strong alternatives and are expecting either a low scoring defensive struggle or complete offensive ineptitude from both teams.