Manual history

Web Site Lineup Entry

All lineup changes, cut-downs, trades, etc. must be completed using the PAFFL-OG web site. Lineups are not valid until the web site has been updated by individual team owners before kick-off. In emergencies, information can be relayed to the commissioner via telephone, text or email message, prior to any related deadlines, and the commissioner can then enter the proper information on the site. The same holds true for trades, roster cut-downs, etc. Lineups must be submitted prior to kickoff of the respective player’s game as determined by the website. When the website locks -- lineups lock. No whining. Owners may alter their lineups after the first NFL game of the week has started, provided that the players involved in the lineup change have not yet seen their games kick off.

All lineup changes, cut-downs, trades, etc. must be completed using the Sportsline website. Lineups are not valid until the web site has been updated by individual team owners before kick-off. In emergencies, information can be relayed to the commissioner via telephone, text or email message, prior to any related deadlines, and the commissioner can then enter the proper information on the site. The same holds true for trades, roster cut-downs, etc. Lineups must be submitted prior to kickoff of the respective player’s game as determined by the website. When the website locks -- lineups lock. No whining. Owners may alter their lineups after the first NFL game of the week has started, provided that the players involved in the lineup change have not yet seen their games kick off.

Improper Lineups

All toppers, and holdovers, must be declared before the auction.

Transactions (Trades, Cuts, and Buy-outs)

Trading among teams is strongly encouraged. We pride ourselves on exotic exchanges of value.

Through any trade, exchanged players carry any pre-existing contracts with them to their new team, so long-term contracts must be strongly considered in any trade.

All trades are unofficial until they are reported to the league website via the transaction form.

In the spirit of keeping the league a fun, social outlet between friends, team owners are expected to conduct trades in an ethical manner.

Trades must not violate 'the burrito rule'. Larry Centers was once traded for a Señor Taco Super Burrito which violated perverted the league economy, and was outlawed.

Pre-Auction Cuts

Cuts & Buy-Outs

There are two kinds of pre-auction roster cuts:

Conditional Cuts

Unconditional Cuts - Each franchise who did not qualify for the previous year's playoffs are granted one Unconditional Cut (it may be used on any player contract, effectively erasing all remaining payment due to that player). Unconditional Cuts are among the most tradable assets in the PAFFL-OG. They offer significant salary cap relief to owners who put players on rich contracts and then have them retire.

Conditional Cuts - Every franchise is granted one Conditional Cut that may be used on a 3-year contracted player. If exercised, the player is cut from the franchise's roster and returned to the player pool. Unlike the Unconditional Cut, the player's salary continues to count against the current year's salary cap. However, the contract will not count against any future years' salary caps.

Unconditional Cuts

Each franchise who did not qualify for the previous year’s playoffs are granted one Unconditional Cut (it may be used on any player contract, effectively erasing all remaining payment due to that player). Unconditional Cuts are among the most tradable assets in the PAFFL-OG. They offer significant salary cap relief to owners who put players on rich contracts and then have them retire. Dear Robert Edwards, did you really have to play sand football at the Pro Bowl rookie exhibition in 1999?

Conditional Cuts

Every franchise is granted one Conditional Cut that may be used on a 3-year contracted player. If exercised, the player is cut from the franchise’s roster and returned to the player pool. Unlike the unconditional cut, the player's salary continues to count against the current year’s salary cap. However, the contract will not count against any future years’ salary caps. Teams who exercise a conditional cut are free to bid on that player in the general auction and may re-sign the player, at their discretion. With conditional cuts, it’s possible that two franchises are paying for the same player in the same season. That’s OK. Good for him! Conditional cuts are also a tradable asset.

Post-Auction Cuts

After the auction, and before the season begins, owners must cut their rosters down to meet the following requirements at the roster cut-down date:

20 active roster spots

2 injured reserve spot

2 P.S. spots (teams are granted 2 each year, but may trade for more or less)

The roster cut-down date is 5:00 PM on the Wednesday before the first game of the regular NFL season. Every franchise is responsible for announcing their final rosters (active spots, D.S. 3-year, etc.) on the website’s message board. Any team that does not communicate its final roster forfeits its right to assign 3-year and D.S. designations for that season.

In-Season Contract Buyouts

In addition to voiding contracts before The Auction, PAFFL-OG teams may erase 3-year contracts by “buying out” a contract with money not spent during the annual auction. To buy out a contract, a team must use the transaction form on the website. The owner must pay the total amount of money due to a player for all of the remaining years of that player’s contract. This can be done any time before the last day of the league year (the last day in February). For example, Talk Birdie To Me signed Michael Irvin to a 3-year contract of $22 in 2006. During that season, Irvin suddenly retires to spend the rest of his life at the White House. Talk Purdy To Me’s ownership group still has $45 left over from the auction, so they buy out the remaining $44 (two more years (2007 & 2008) at $22). Salary cap dollars are not transferable from one season to another.

Trades

Trading among teams is strongly encouraged. We pride ourselves on exotic exchanges of value.

Through any trade, exchanged players carry any pre-existing contracts with them to their new team, so long-term contracts must be strongly considered in any trade. All trades are unofficial until they are reported to the league website and transaction form and confirmed by The Commissioner. In the spirit of keeping the league a fun, social outlet between friends, team owners are expected to conduct trades in an ethical manner.

Individual team owners, as well as the league Commissioner, are expected to assess each trade, when announced. If a trade appears to be unfair, any owner may voice his/her concern within three days following the announcement of the trade. The Commissioner will mediate the dispute between the offended owner(s) and the two trading parties. If three (3) or more owners believe a trade to be grossly unfair, then it will be brought to a league vote. Should a simple majority of teams deem the trade grossly unfair (see Rule Changes and Votes, below), the trade is immediately negated and players are returned to their original teams. This shouldn’t really ever happen - again, we like the trades, the trades that go boom.

If a trade is voided, players are returned to their teams after that week’s NFL kickoff, the commissioner or secretary will work with all teams involved in the trade to revise the lineups in the most-fair manner possible. Trades may only be blocked because they are deemed grossly unfair to one or more teams involved in the trade. Trades may not be blocked in an effort to impair another owner’s ability to improve his team.

Additionally, teams are forbidden from trading non-fantasy value for fantasy value. For example, in 1996, the PA Firefighters traded a Señor Taco Super Burrito to Horse & Pepper for Larry Centers. This trade was later voided and the PA Firefighters never received any compensation for having the trade reversed -- not even the burrito!

Trades may be made for next year’s cash, topper/holdovers, rookie picks (even if the exact order of the rookie picks is not determined at the time of the trade) or other forms of future compensation. Frequently (as in real life sports), teams will trade future value, just prior to the trading deadline, in order to be able to better contend in the playoffs. These trades are still subject to the aforementioned “fair trade” rule.

While we encourage trading deadline deals, to mitigate ‘Tank for Tua’ scenarios, in which ‘super’ teams are made by acquiring highly-priced stars at the trade deadline, we have instituted a rule that says no team may carry more than $600 worth of players on its roster at any point in time. Deals that lead to violations of this rule will be immediately voided.

Any “Future Value” trades are subject to the following provision: If an owner leaves the PAFFL, any previous trades where they traded future value such as cap space, rookie picks, D.S. spots or Cuts are returned to the ownerless franchise. The new franchise owner has no obligation on previous trades to existing owners. The existing team involved in the trade receives no compensation for this reversal, as it is the responsibility of both owners to trade fairly, and each individual to assess the risk profile on trades involving future value.

Once an owner has traded a player, that owner may not re-acquire that player via trade from that same owner or as part of any multi-team transaction for a minimum of eighteen months (18), unless agreed upon by a majority of the league’s owners, or the player was acquired via the annual league auction in an open bidding format (w/o particular rights). Furthermore, no team is allowed to include a “Substantial” contributor as compensation for a player now or at any later date, unless agreed upon by a majority of the league’s owners. A “Substantial” contributor is defined as a player having started more than half of the games the player has been on an active roster that season. For the purpose of transactions, a majority is defined as a majority of participating votes and/or if there are no objections, then a vote is not necessary.

Weekly Free-Agent Pick-Ups

Each week during the regular season, PAFFL-OG owners may bid on any player not on another team’s roster (AKA ‘Free Agents’) (following the first weekend of NFL games). Franchises have until Wednesday at midnight to place a bid via the league website (Sportsline), the following morning, any players who have received a bid will be allocated to the highest bidder. The free agent draft preference is set each week by the league website using a formula that includes the power rankings (wins scoring breakdown). If two teams bid the same amount on a player, the higher preferred team (worst team in terms of rankings) will win the player. Zero dollar bids are permitted. In order to complete a FA transaction, a team must waive another player if their active roster is at twenty (20). If the active roster isn’t reduced to twenty (20) by the start of the first weekly game, the free agent is released automatically back into the free agent pool.

III. The Auction Weekend