All highlighted rules are new or revised for the 2021 Season.  Examples are provided in blue text.

 

 

A.  Teams will consist of 1 Quarterback (QB), 3 Running Backs (RB), 3 Wide Receivers &/or Tight Ends (WR), 1 Kicker (K), 1 Defense/Special Teams (DST), and 1 Supplemental player (Sup) from any position.  The starting lineup will consist of 1 QB, 1 RB, 1 Flex (RB or WR), 2 WR, 1 K, and 1 DST.

B.  The season is 14 weeks long with 4 weeks of playoffs.  Week 15 is the Wild Card games; Week 16 is the Divisional games; Week 17 is the Conference Championships; Week 18 is the Fantasy Bowl.

 

C. Playoff Positions will be determined based on final conference standings.  In the case of a tie for the Division Title the 1st tie-breaker will be head to head play; the 2nd tie-breaker will be Division Record; the 3rd tie-breaker will be Conference Record; the 4th tie-breaker will be Points For (PF); the 5th tie-breaker will be head-to-head PF.  In the event of a tie for the Wild Card, the same system will be used with the exception of tie-breaker #2.  In the event of tie involving three or more teams the same system will be used.

 

E. League fees are $30 per team.  The Commissioner will be exempt from this fee to help offset incidental costs of running the league.  $20 will be directed to the regular season prize pool; $5 will be directed to the Playoff Challenge pool; the remaining $5 will be used to pay for the web hosting fee.

 

F.  The Prize fund will be based on the following % of league fees: 1st=65%, 2nd=35%.  The prize for both teams will be divisible by 5.  If the totals are uneven they will be rounded in favor of the WaFFL Champion.

2016 Prize Pool:  WaFFL Champion = $195, WaFFL Runner-Up = $105, Playoff Challenge Champion = $75

 

G.  Official stats will be taken from www.nfl.com.  

 

H.  Any lineup, transaction, protest or other league business that is sent via email must be sent to the league email address, waffl@hotmail.com.  Any league emails sent to any other email address will not be accepted.

 

 

A.  The draft will consist of 9 rounds.  Order of the draft will be reversed each round - ie 1 . . . 14, 15, 16, 16, 15, 14 . . .

      1.  The Draft will begin online TBD.  Teams will have 24 hours to make their selection and notify the next team as well as the Commissioner.  Online Draft picks may be submitted via email, text or telephone.

      2.  The Commissioner reserves the right to stop the online draft at the end of a round until all teams can meet at a designated time to conclude the draft.

      3.  Should a drafted player becomes seriously injured or retires during the preseason that team shall receive a compensatory pick at the end of the current round to replace the injured/retired player.

             a.   A post-draft player signed to replace an injured player is required to start Week 1 (barring injury to that player); A post-draft player signed to replace a waived or retired player is not required to start week 1.

         b.   All post-draft transactions must be completed by midnight TBD.  Rosters will then be locked until the completion of the week 1 games.

 

B.  The draft order will be determined randomly and announced at least 1 week prior to the draft.

 

C.  Players from any position may be drafted in any order during the 9 rounds provided there are spots open at a given position.  Teams may not draft more of a position than there are available roster spots.  [EX: Teams may not draft 2 QB, K, DST or 4 RB, WR.]

 

D.  If the draft is held live, each team will have a maximum of 2 minutes to make a selection (this can be adjusted in the event of technical issues.)  The Commissioner may receive additional time to make their selection if running the draft is interfering with the ability to make a selection.

     1.  The Live Draft will begin online using Zoom Sunday August 30th 4pm PST.  Teams that are unable to participate in the Zoom draft session will be allowed to submit their picks via phone/text or designate an alternate method of entering their picks.

E.  Teams may trade their picks to move up or down in the draft order, however, they may not have more than 9 draft picks.

      1.   Any trades involving just picks will be approved by the commissioner (or Deputy Commissioner if involving the Commissioner).

      2.   Any trade involving drafted players must go through standard league approval, even if involving picks.  The timeline will be accelerated to keep the draft moving.

 

F.  Upon drafting a QB or K, the drafting team receives the rights to all backups on that player's NFL team.  Backups cannot be drafted by another team.  [EX: Matt Hasselbeck is drafted in the 2nd round.  Along with Hasselbeck go the rights to Seneca Wallace and Charlie Frye.]

 

G.  Upon conclusion of the draft, owners may submit their starting lineup for week 1.

 

H.  Immediately following the final selection, all undrafted players are placed on waivers.  Players will remain on waivers until TBD or until the completion of the supplemental draft - whichever comes first.

 

 

 

A.  Lineups are due by kickoff of the first game of the week.  However, lineup changes may be made following the lineup deadline provided that none of the effected player's games have kicked off.  [EX A:  Clinton Portis plays on Thursday and Jamal Lewis plays on Sunday.  Marshawn Lynch is the backup and also plays of Sunday.  The owner can replace Portis with Lynch by kickoff Thursday or replace Lewis with Lynch before kickoff Sunday.  EX B:  Portis and Lewis are listed as starters of the official starting lineup.  Lewis plays the 5pm Sunday game and Lynch plays on Monday night.  During the 10am games it is announced that Lewis will not play.  The owner may substitute Lewis with Lynch or a WR that plays 1pm Sunday or later.]

 

B.  Rule deleted - see IV.H.1 for updated version

 

 

E.   In the event a roster change was made and a player was started by his former team, the spot in the lineup will remain vacant until the owner makes a lineup change. All lineup changes are subject to league rules.  [EX A:  Team A trades Russell Wilson for Tom Brady but starts Wilson at QB.  The QB spot will be remain vacant unless Team A submits a lineup change prior to the start of Brady's (or a QB in the supplemental roster spot) NFL game.]

 

F.  Lineups may be delivered to the Commissioner in person, via phone, text or email.  It is recommended that you submit your lineups via email and cc a copy to yourself.  Generally, I will try to reply to verify receipt but at times my schedule prevents me from responding prior to the lineup deadline.  Feel free to leave a message if no-one answers the phone but please speak clearly and include first names in the event of a common surnamel like Johnson.  If, for some reason, the lineup was delivered on time and I receive it late, I will accept it without a point deduction provided there is evidence the lineup was submitted on time.  (See III.G below for further clarification.)

      1.  The timestamp that is recorded on each email will be used to determine is a lineup was sent on time.  At times emails are delayed due to server volume but the time stamp records when the email was originally sent.

      2.  The time and date option will be used to verify messages left on my cell phone to determine when the lineup was submitted.

 

G.  In the event a lineup is sent via email and is not received by me, the owner must present a Deamon Undeliverable Mail message with complete date and time the original message was sent.  The only time a change will be made is if themessage was not deliverd to me due to a computer error.  Emails sent to the wrong address will not be accepted.  If your browser supports it use the link found on my name at the top left-hand side of this page.

 

 

A.  The trade deadline is 6am PST Wednesday November 11th (Week 10).

 

B.  The Free Agent deadline is 10pm PST Wednesday TBD (Week 14).

 

C.  Trades may be submitted via the ESPN Fantasy site at any time.  All league owners will be contacted via emial from ESPN of accepted trades and will have 24 hours to vote to approve or deny.  If 5 or more owners deny the trade it will be cancelled. 

     1.  Players are immediately eligible to participate for their team following the completion of a trade provided their NFL game has not started.

 

D.  Following the completion of the draft, the commissioner will announce the waiver list.  Any player who is waived by a WaFFL team will remain on waivers for 24 hours.  The team with the lowest waiver number that claims a waived player will receive the rights for that player and will be moved to the bottom of the waiver list.  If no-one claims the player during the waiver period, he will clear waivers and will be available to any WaFFL team on a first-come-first-served basis.

     1.  Once a player has been signed off waivers or from the Free Agent pool that player must remain on the roster through the completion of the subsequent week's games.  This will be voided in the event a newly signed player suffers and injury and is listed as OUT by their NFL team for the upcoming game. [Ex: Team A signs Tyler Lockett as a Free Agent on Wednesday.  Lockett must remain on the roster through the completion of the final game that weekend (usually MNF) before he can be released - unless Lockett suffers an injury in practice and is declared OUT for that weekend's contest.]

E.  A team will be allowed a MAXIMUM of 2 trades (MAXIMUM of 6 players or draft picks combined) with the same team during the course of the season.  [EX:   Team A trades Donovan McNabb and Darren Sproles to Team B for Drew Brees.  This will count as 1 trade with 3 players involved.  Both teams can trade once more with each other but only 3 more players can be moved.  Later Team A and B swap kickers.  Team A and B have now traded 2 times with 5 players involved and are no longer allowed to trade with each other but are free to trade with other teams.]

 

F.  A WaFFL owner is entitled to start any of the QB's for a NFL team whose QB is on their roster.  Stats will only be earned for the QB selected to start the WaFFL game unless the starter is injured or benched during the NFL game.  [EX:  Team A drafts Brady Quinn.  They have the rights to start any QB on the Cleveland roster.  Team A starts Derek Anderson week 2.  Anderson starts but is benched for Quinn.  Team A will receive stats for both QB's.  Had Team A started Quinn he would only receive the stats for Quinn.]

      1.  KOENEN CLAUSE - A WaFFL owner is entitled  to start any kicker on the NFL team whose K is on their roster.  Stats will only be earned for K selected to start the WaFFL game unless the starter is injured or replaced during the course of the game.  In the event the WaFFL starter is not the first of the K's to attempt a FG, points will be earned for all K's provided the starter actually plays in the NFL game.  This allows for WaFFL teams to earn (or lose) points based on the performance of a long distance specialist.  [EX:  The Atlanta Falcons have used Michael Koenen (Punter) for long FG's attempts.  A WaFFL team starts Jason Elam, the regular Atlanta kicker.  Due to circumstances Koenen is the first called upon to kick a FG.  As long as Elam plays in the game, which includes performing kickoff duties) the WaFFL team will receive Koenen's stats in addition to Elams.]

               a.  OCHOCINCO ADDENDUM:  In the event the replacement kicker is also a skill player on another WaFFL team, both teams will be given points for successful kicks.

  

G.  Teams may begin signing their Supplemental players beginning 12am PST Tuesday TBD.  All teams must submit a name prior to 6am PST Thursday TBD.  All signings will be confirmed as received.  In the event multiple teams claim the same player, the WaFFL team with the lower waiver number will "win" the claim and will be dropped to the bottom of the waiver list.  Owners who "lost" the claim will be notified immediately after the commissioner rules on the conflicting claims and will be asked to submit a new claim.  All teams must have a supplemental player on their roster prior to the 10am kickoff of Week 2 or they will be moved to the bottom of the waiver list and will not be allowed to make roster moves until the spot is filled. (The supplemental round may be completed immediately after the conclusion of the draft by unanimous consent of the owners)

      1.  Any roster moves made during the first weekend of games will be resolved prior to the start of the supplemental selection process.

 

 

J. All transactions will be made through the ESPN Fantasy website and will follow ESPN rules for waiver claims.

 

A.  JEFF GEORGE RULE - This rule is the result of the 1996 season in which Jeff George was first suspended for 4 games games and then waived by Atlanta for his role in a sideline tirade directed at then-coach June Jones. - In the event a NFL player is waived during the season, his WaFFL owner may waive/replace and start him at any time up until kickoff of the first game of the week.  This includes players waived after the trade deadline.  If the NFL player is waived after the start of the first NFL game of the week he WaFFL owner may still replace him and start the replacement as long as he hadn't already played a game that week.  This rule is in effect for 1 week after the NFL player is waived by his NFL team.  In the event of an NFL trade the same rule applies.  [EX: Jeff George is waived by Atlanta.  The Eskimoes, his WaFFL team, had the option to keep him on the roster and hope he signed with another team or waive him for another QB or supplemental player if that's the spot George filled on the roster. (The Eskimoes chose to keep him for several weeks before waiving him just prior to the deadline.  George did not play for the remainder of the 96 season.)  EX B:  George is traded from Minnesota to San Diego.  The FFL owner can keep him or waive him at their own discretion.]

      1.  WaFFL owners may keep a minimum of 1 player not on a NFL roster for a maximum of 2 weeks.

      2.  WaFFL owners may keep a player suspended by the NFL on their roster as long as needed.

     

B.  JOHN ELWAY RULE - Deleted prior to 2006 season.  See Rule IV.F for replacement.

 

C.  INTERIM COACH RULE - This rule was the result of the 1998 WaFFL season.  The owner of the Erasers spent a third of the season in USMC Boot Camp and was unable to run his team. - In the event an owner will be unable to participate for a portion of the season they may appoint a substitute to run the team during their absence.  The interim coach will be able to make ALL decisions regarding the team, including lineups, trades and other transactions.  The Commissioner reserves the right to take over an additional team in the event of illness with the assistance of the Deputy Commissioner.

 

D.  PETE STOYANOVICH RULE - This rule is the result of the 2000 season in which Pete Stoyanovich was waived by Kansas City and signed by St. Louis to replace injured Jeff Wilkins - In the event a WaFFL kicker is cut or traded by his NFL team and is signed to replace an injured WaFFL kicker, the rights to the first Kicker go to the team with the injured Kicker.  [EX:  Pete Stoyanovich, owned by the Bellevue Renegades, is cut by KC.  St. Louis signs Stoyanovich to replace an injured Jeff Wilkins who is owned by Anal Clenching Technicians.  The rights to Stoyanovich are transferred to the Technicians and the Renegades must sign a new Kicker prior to the signing deadline.]

      1.   KRIS HEPPNER CLAUSE - Also the result of the 2000 season, Kris Heppner was cut by Seattle and signed by Washington - In the event a WaFFL kicker is cut by his NFL team and is signed by another NFL team to replace a kicker who was cut or traded by another NFL team to replace a kicker who was cut, the original kicker's rights are retained by his original WaFFL owner persuant to Rule V.A.  [EX: Kris Heppner, owned by TD Matrix, is cut by Seattle.  He is signed by Washington to replace Brett Conway, owned by the Marauding Nomads, who was cut by the Redskins.  The Matrix retains the rights to Heppner and the Nomads must find a new kicker by the signing deadline.]

 

 

F.  PERCY HARVIN RULE - This rule is the result of the 2014 season in which the Seahawks traded Percy Harvin to the Jets on a Friday.  The Jets had played the previous night - In the event a player is traded by his NFL team after that player's new team has played their game, the WaFFL owner can remove him from the starting lineup provided he has not played for his old team. [Team A starts Percy Harvin.  Following the completion of the TNF game, Harvin is traded to a team that played in that game.  Team A can remove Harvin from the starting lineup as Harvin cannot play for either team that week and Team A's owner would not have had a chance to make a lineup change.]

 

 

A.  Passing

1 point per yard; BONUS: 300yds = 50pts, 400yds = 100pts, 500yds = 150pts, etc.

Touchdown (TD) = 1 point per yard; BONUS: 50+yds = 50pts

Two-Point Conversion = 25pts

Interception = -50pts

 

B.  Rushing and Receiving

1 point per yard; BONUS: 100yds = 50pts, 150yds = 100pts, 200yds = 150pts, etc.

Touchdown (TD) = 1 point per yard; BONUS: 50+yds = 50pts

Two-Point Conversion = 25pts

Fumble Lost = -25pts

 

C.  Kicking

Extra Point (XP) = 33pts

Field Goal (FG) = 1 point per yard; BONUS: 50+yds = 50pts, 64+yds = 200pts

Missed XP = -33pts

Missed FG = minus 1 point per yard (-1x)

 

D.  Defense

Interception = 50pts; Interception Return = 1 point per yard

Fumble Recovery = 25pts

Sack = 10pts

Safety = 50pts

TD = 1 point per yard; BONUS: 50+yds = 50pts

In the event a WaFFL game ends in a tie, the team that scores the most NFL points will be named the winner (TD=6, FG=3, Safety=2, XP=1.)
If the game is still tied, the WaFFL scores will be calculated for the WR and RB sitting on the bench. The team with the most points on the bench will be named the winner.
If the game is still tied, the team that scores the most NFL points with their bench will be named the winner.
If the game is still tied, the team with the best turnover differential will be named the winner.
If the game is still tied, the team with the longest TD will be named the winner.
If the game is still tied, the team with the longest FG will be named the winner.

 

 

A.  Special Teams will be linked with Team Defense (DST).  Points will only be scored if the return results in a touchdown.

      1.  In the event a WaFFL player starts an offensive player who scores on special teams, the WaFFL team will not receive special teams points.  [EX: Team A starts Devin Hester at WR and Team B starts the Chicago DST.  Hester scores on a 87yd kick return.  Team B is awarded an 87tdst as Hester is considered part of the special teams.  Team A receives no points for the return.] 

 

B.  Any offensive player who plays more than one position will receive points for all stats, excluding Special Teams.  See Rule VII.A.  The only exception is for defensive players.  [EX A: Team A starts Ronnie Brown.  Brown rushed for 80 yards and throws a 12 yard TD pass.  Brown receives 104pts (80r, 12p, 12tdp).  EX B: Team A starts Chicago DST.  Devin Hester plays defense but also catches 3 passes for 12 yards as a WR.  Team A does not get Hester's points for receiving yards.]

 

C.  Any disputes must be made within 24 hours of the posting, otherwise the outcome is final.  Players are responsible for checking their own stats to ensure no mistakes were made when scoring.

      1.  Should a mistake in scoring be found after the 24 hours, the outcome will remain the same but the change in points will be updated in the standings (PF, PA.)

 

D.  Only the teams contesting a scoring decision will be allowed to notofy the commissioner and a gag order will be in effect until a decision has been made.  The commissioner will contact both teams in question immediately after the decision has been made.  Failure to comply with this rule will result in the forfeiture of the right to contest the score and a 50pt penalty, for the week in question, for the owner who violated the rule.  [EX:  Team A loses to Team B by a score of 986-939.  Team C beat Team D 1020-990.  The owner of Team C realizes that Team A did not receive the 50 point bonusfor Darren Sproles 54yd TD run.  Team C notifies the commissioner and Team A, then tells Team B that (s)he actually lost the game.  Team A will forfeit the right to contest the game and Team B will remain the winner.  The correction will be made in the PF and PA colums, but it will not result in a change of record.  Team C will receive a 50pt penalty for the week in question.  In this example, Team D would not beat Team C 990-970 as a result of the penalty.  Team C is allowed to notify Team A of the error but may not take any other action.  It is the SOLE RESPONSIBILITY of the owner to contest his or her scoring error.]  {Commissioner's Note:  This rule is the result of a dispute between 3 teams in the early years of the league.  All efforts are made to ensure the accuracy of the scoring but mistakes occasionally happen.  This event was the one time in this leagues history that it was no longer enjoyable to run.  The rule was created in the hopes a similar situation would not happen again.  To date, this rule has never been used.}

 

E.  In the event the defense receives a turnover inside their opponents endzone, the DST will receive 1 point for the TD yardage despite the fact that it is officially listed as a 0yd score.

 

 

 

A.  Each WaFFL team will compete in the Playoff Challenge assuming they have players on their roster that participate in the NFL Playoffs.

 

B.  Players must be on a WaFFL roster as of Week 14 to be eligible for scoring.

 

C.  Each NFL player in the playoffs will be handicapped based on their regular season production for their WaFFL team.  The handicap will be the players % contribution to their team during the regular season.  [EX: Team A scores 14,000 points in the regular season.  Joe RB scored 1,400pts for Team A.  This calculates out to a 10% contribution to his WaFFL team.  Joe RB will have a .10 handicap for the playoff season.  if Joe RB scores 150 points in the playoffs, he will earn his WaFFL team 15 points in the playoff challenge.]

 

D.   The WaFFL team with the most Playoff Challenge points after the conclusion of the Super Bowl will receive the prize pool list in Rule I.F.

 

 

A.   The Pigskin Pick contest is an optional game that all WaFFL members may participate in if they wish.

 

B.  All participants pay $5 to enter the Accuracy contest.  The owner with the most Weekly Points at the end of the season wins the entire prize pool.

      1.  The total number of points earned over the season will continue to be calculated but will not have an official bearing on the winner of the contest.