Taxi squads are used in fantasy football to keep rookies and other potential talents on your team as they develop. They are usually used in dynasty leagues to keep rookies and other potential talents on your team as they develop.
Most leagues allow fantasy managers to only add rookies to taxi squads, but some leagues may not.
In your taxi squad, you do not earn fantasy points unless you promote them to your active roster. Think of your taxi squad as a practice squad or a scouting team.
Once they are performing well enough, you can call these players up to your active roster.
As taxi squad players are not on active rosters, they are not in high demand. However, every once in a while a taxi player will make his way to a successful NFL career.
Find out what bye means in fantasy football or what ECR means in our guides.
How Long can you keep a Player on the Taxi Squad?
Your commissioner will determine how long fantasy managers can hold their taxi players. In most cases, players can only be held on the taxi squad for their first few seasons.
Once a player has played one full season in the NFL or two full seasons in the NFL, they can be removed from a taxi squad.
Poaching from an Opponent’s Taxi Squad
A fantasy manager may be able to poach a player from another team’s fantasy taxi squad. Similar to the real NFL, if a player is on the practice squad, another team may be able to sign him as an active player.
When taxi players are allowed to be poached, fantasy managers often have the option of promoting their player from the taxi squad to their own active roster. This is before the player is poached.
Poaching is not permitted in most fantasy football leagues that use taxi squads.
What Sort of Players are Added to a Taxi Squad?
You may be wondering what kind of players you should add to your taxi squad, since all the top players will already be on your active roster.
Backup for an Injury-Prone Player
The most difficult task for rookies drafted late is getting reps. The most common tactic taxi players use is to target backups for injury-prone players.
A player with a history of injuries has a high chance of seeing the field at some point in the future.
It may be possible to make a day three draft pick one of a team’s biggest contributors by targeting players like this.
The Player Who Produced in College
It is also possible for fantasy managers to select their taxi squad players based on college production. When choosing players for the taxi squad, you will find there are not a lot of options.
Starting with college players who put up high fantasy numbers is a smart idea.
Since these players were drafted late, teams are not expecting them to replicate their college stats. However, there is something to be said for players who have proven they are capable of producing.
The Athletic Freak
Several NFL prospects demonstrated their incredible athletic abilities. However, these players are often quite raw, so they will need time and training to succeed.
Giving these players time on your taxi squad may allow them to discover their potential and ultimately become fantasy contributors in the future.
You can learn more about taxi squads in fantasy football by checking out our guide to serpentine drafts or our definition of boom or bust players.