Drafting the Ultimate Puppy Bowl Fantasy Team

Ready for Puppy Bowl XIII on Sunday? Have you and your friends selected your fantasy draft picks? If not, no need to worry—we’ve outlined how to make sure your team comes out on top.

An estimated 33 million people play fantasy football each year, and now those people can also choose draft picks from a much cuter football league.

Animal Planet had its own Puppy Bowl Fantasy page for last year’s event where you could explore each player, its stats, and how the pup did during the game. Take advantage of the last 13 years of Puppy Bowl knowledge to pick your best fantasy team this year.

What are the rules?

Pick any 3 dogs from the lineup to be your fantasy team. As you watch the game, keep track of what your pups do on the field. Scoring is as follows:

• Touchdowns = 7 points
• Field goals = 3 points
• Stealing the ball = 3 points
• Tackles = 2 points
• Penalties = —2 points

So how do you pick the best pups of the litter?

1.Looks aren’t everything.

Any one of these adorable balls of fluff can easily steal your heart, but don’t let them steal your chances of winning. Don’t go simply for the cutest and cuddliest of the lot. Instead, look at the history of what specific breeds have done during previous games. You might think the littlest and cutest ones will go all the way, but you might be surprised.

2.Think terrier.

Since the beginning of the Puppy Bowl, four of 11 MVPs were terriers or terrier mixes. This breed can obviously pull its own weight on the field. No other breed has had this many MVP delegations in all 13 years of the event’s existence. This year, think about putting terriers Beebop, Bo, or Dawson on your team. We don’t think you’ll regret the outcome.

3.Pick the breeds that succeed.

Just as terriers often receive MVPs honors in the Puppy Bowl, some other breeds are better at scoring than others. Well-known breeds for scoring tons of touchdowns are clumber spaniels, Australian shepherds, and English springers. Tucker, an Australian shepherd on Team Fluff, might give you those extra points needed to beat your opponents, or Sully, a spaniel mix on Team Ruff, could score that winning touchdown.

The bottom line? Keep an open mind when it comes to your draft picks, have fune, and let’s play ball!