SNAPIQ OPTIONS GUIDE
How options work
Calls, puts, covered calls and uncovered writing on NFL player stocks and indexes — with fake money, explained step by step.
1. What an option is
- An option is a contract on where a player stock or index price will finish on a set date. You don't buy the stock itself — you buy (or sell) the right to be paid based on its price.
- Every contract covers 10 shares. A price of $1.20 means $1.20 per share, so one contract costs $12.00.
- All money is fake. Options use the same SnapIQ cash as the rest of your account.
2. Calls and puts
- CALL — pays off when the price finishes ABOVE the strike. You buy a call when you think the stock goes up.
- PUT — pays off when the price finishes BELOW the strike. You buy a put when you think the stock goes down, or to protect shares you own.
- Example call: a stock is $40. You buy one $42 call for $0.80 ($8.00). If the stock finishes at $45, the call is worth $3 a share = $30. Profit: $22.00. If it finishes at $42 or lower, it expires worthless and you lose the $8.00.
- Example put: a stock is $40. You buy one $38 put for $0.70 ($7.00). If the stock drops to $34, the put is worth $4 a share = $40.
3. Strike, expiration, breakeven
- Strike — the price the contract is measured against. Each stock lists 9 strikes around today's price.
- Expiration — weekly contracts expire every Saturday for the next 4 weeks; monthly contracts expire on the last Saturday of each of the next 3 months.
- Breakeven — the price where you neither win nor lose at expiration: strike + premium for a call, strike − premium for a put. The ticket shows it for every strike.
- In the money (ITM) — the option would pay something if it expired today. Out of the money — it would pay nothing.
4. How prices are set
- SnapIQ prices each contract from today's stock price, the strike, the days left and how much the stock has been moving day to day. More time and bigger daily swings make options cost more.
- Buying pays the ASK and selling receives the BID — the bid is a bit lower than the ask, just like a real market.
- Option prices update once a day with the stock prices, and orders fill at that day's price. Trading hours are the same as stocks: 8:30 AM – 3:00 PM Central, Monday–Saturday.
5. The four order actions
- BUY TO OPEN — buy a call or put. You pay the premium. The most you can lose is what you paid.
- SELL TO CLOSE — sell a contract you bought before expiration to lock in its current value.
- SELL TO OPEN (writing) — sell a contract you don't own. You collect the premium now, but you owe the payout if it finishes in the money.
- BUY TO CLOSE — buy back a contract you wrote to end the obligation and get your collateral back.
6. Covered calls
- You sell a call backed by shares you already own: 10 shares per contract. You keep the premium no matter what.
- While the call is open, those shares are reserved — you can't sell them until you buy the call back or it expires.
- If the stock finishes above the strike, your shares are "called away": they're sold at the strike price and the cash lands in your account. Example: you own 10 shares bought at $40, sell a $44 call for $0.60. Stock ends at $48 → your 10 shares sell at $44 ($440) plus you kept $6.00. You miss the gain above $44.
7. Uncovered calls and cash-secured puts
- Uncovered call — you sell a call without owning the shares. SnapIQ holds collateral of 150% of the stock's value (× 10 per contract) from your cash. If the stock soars past the strike, the payout comes from that collateral and then your other cash. This is the riskiest trade on the site: the loss has no fixed limit.
- Cash-secured put — you sell a put and SnapIQ holds the full strike × 10 as collateral per contract. If the stock finishes below the strike, you pay the difference from the collateral; the rest comes back to you.
- Collateral still counts toward your portfolio value — it's simply locked until the contract closes or expires.
8. Expiration and settlement
- Trading in a contract stops when the market closes on its expiration Saturday.
- The next morning, after the overnight price refresh, every expired contract settles at that newest price.
- In the money → bought contracts pay (price − strike for calls, strike − price for puts) × shares in fake cash; written contracts pay that amount out. Out of the money → it expires worthless and the writer keeps the whole premium.
- Everything is cash-settled except covered calls, which deliver your shares at the strike.
9. Good to know
- Options are available on every tradable player stock and on the NFL 50, NFL 100, team and position indexes. They aren't offered on the 3x leveraged indexes or the Rookie Index.
- Options don't earn dividends — only shares do. Rookie/sophomore lock-ups don't apply to options, but shares backing a covered call are still locked.
- Your open options, their current value and profit/loss, and every option trade appear in Account → Options. Leaderboard value includes your options.
- Nothing on SnapIQ is a recommendation to buy or sell.
SNAPIQ is a simulated sports market for entertainment and educational purposes. Player stocks and indexes are not securities, have no cash value, and cannot be redeemed for real money.