After watching thousands of games played on Pickem Trivia, we've identified the habits and knowledge patterns that separate top scorers from average players. Some of these tips are about what to know. Others are about how to think during the 30-second clock. All of them will improve your game immediately.
The single biggest mistake new players make is naming a great player based on their career reputation rather than their best single-season score. Pickem Trivia scores you on a player's peak fantasy season — not their lifetime numbers.
This means a player like LaDainian Tomlinson (2006 peak: ~418 fantasy points) is worth naming for almost any RB category. But a solid 10-year starter who never had a breakout year might score far lower than a journeyman who had one incredible season. Before committing to a name, ask yourself: "Was this player ever dominant for one specific year?"
You don't need to memorize thousands of players. You need to know the top 5–10 at each position by peak fantasy season. These are the names you should reach for first when a category fits them. A short list:
If a category fits any of these players, they should almost always be your answer.
Pickem Trivia uses half-PPR scoring, where each reception is worth 0.5 points. Over a full season with 100+ catches, that adds up to 50+ bonus points compared to standard scoring. This matters because it systematically boosts the value of pass-catching backs and high-volume receivers.
When you're deciding between two running backs for a category, the one who catches more passes will almost always score higher in Pickem Trivia. Christian McCaffrey, Alvin Kamara, and Austin Ekeler are all more valuable in this format than their rushing yards alone suggest.
Thirty seconds feels like plenty of time until you're staring at a category you've never seen before. The key is having a mental hierarchy before you sit down. When the category appears, run through this quick checklist in your head:
Never let the clock run out. A lower-scoring valid answer is always better than zero.
Tight end is where most players lose the most points relative to the theoretical maximum. The pool of high-scoring TEs is small and well-defined. If you have the top 8–10 TEs memorized by peak season, you'll almost always find the right answer. Outside the top few, TE scoring drops off dramatically, so there's no benefit to searching for obscure picks here — go for the best one that fits the category.
Kelce alone covers a huge range of categories: Kansas City Chiefs, Big 12 conference (played at Cincinnati — wait, that's MAC conference), multiple Pro Bowls, 1,000+ receiving yards, 10+ touchdown seasons. When in doubt, try Kelce.
In Pickem Grid, rarity is everything. The lowest-penalty picks are players that almost nobody else will think of. This is where journeymen — players who spent time on 4, 5, or 6 different teams — become your secret weapon. They qualify for multiple team categories but aren't the obvious pick for any of them.
Players like Ryan Fitzpatrick (9 different teams), Josh McCown (10 teams), and Brandon Marshall (6 teams) are grid gold. They satisfy team categories across multiple divisions and eras, and almost nobody reaches for them first. Build a mental list of 5–6 well-traveled players at each position and run through it when you're stuck on a grid cell.
A significant chunk of Draft Battle and Pickem Grid categories reference college programs. You don't need to know every college — just the schools that have produced the most high-scoring fantasy players. The short list of mandatory knowledge:
In Pickem Grid, an empty cell penalizes you heavily (100 penalty points). A "Red" pick — one that 50%+ of players also chose — costs far less than leaving a cell blank. If you genuinely can't think of an obscure pick for a particular cell, name the most obvious player there. Your real goal is to average a "Green" or better, but an average penalized "Red" across all 9 cells beats a mix of Unicorns and empty cells.
Most players have a clear weak spot. Some people know quarterbacks and wide receivers cold but blank on tight ends and flex picks. After a few games, you'll notice a pattern. Identify your lowest-scoring position on average and specifically study the top 15–20 players at that position. One afternoon of targeted research pays dividends for months.
The daily challenge lets you take your time relative to other players. Head-to-head forces you to think fast while knowing someone else is answering the same category simultaneously. This time pressure is actually fantastic training. After 20–30 H2H matches, your recall becomes sharper and faster because the competitive pressure forces your memory to form stronger associations. Your daily challenge scores will improve as a side effect.
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