Two ways to
play the depth chart.

Who is eligible?

Eligibility uses the complete, confirmed NFL depth chart for the league’s selected season and its published opening date. If the chart is incomplete or does not match the selected season and opening date, eligibility cannot be established. A player’s position and status must be clearly listed; missing, unknown, or conflicting information means that player is not eligible.

A player’s fantasy position and depth are judged from that opening chart date. An established starter listed as injured or suspended on that date is not eligible. A later promotion, demotion, or NFL team change does not change eligibility for that season.

A player needs a confirmed position and listing on that opening depth chart to qualify. An established starter listed as injured or suspended on that opening depth-chart date is not eligible. An injured backup can still qualify if their depth meets the cutoff. There is no performance or power-rating cutoff.

Lineup and roster

Start nine: QB, 2 RB, 2 WR, TE, FLEX (RB/WR/TE), P and team ST. Carry six bench players for 15 roster places total. A quarterback must fill the QB starting spot, even if they score zero. A roster can hold at most three quarterbacks.

The depth cutoffs above are eligibility rules; they do not change the number of starters or roster places.

Free-agent claims

Each team gets 100 FAAB units for the season. These units cannot be bought. A bid of zero is allowed, and all submitted bids must fit the team’s remaining budget.

You can claim more than one player if your total bids fit within your remaining budget.

Higher bids win. When bids tie, rolling priority decides; after a team wins a claim, it moves to the end of the priority order. Each player can be awarded once, and a team cannot claim the same player twice. If a quarterback claim would give a team a fourth QB, that claim is skipped and the next eligible claim can win.

Specialist scoring

Punter (P) and team special teams (ST) score separately. Punter points use gross punt yards. A punt inside the 10 earns the inside-20 point and one additional point. A missing or incomplete punting stat line is pending, not zero. The final punter total is rounded once to two decimal places.

A missing or incomplete team special-teams stat line is also pending, not zero.

Punting stats must be complete nonnegative whole numbers. Inside-10 punts cannot exceed inside-20 punts, inside-20 punts cannot exceed total punts, and inside-20 punts plus touchbacks cannot exceed total punts. Blocked punts cannot exceed attempts; with zero punts, gross punt yards must also be zero.

Team ST scoring uses only its listed special-teams events. Ordinary defense, return yards, kicking, and punting statistics do not change the team ST score. Punter scoring remains separate.

League and roster

Each league has eight teams and a 15-round snake draft. Start nine players: QB, 2 RB, 2 WR, TE, FLEX (RB/WR/TE), K and D/ST. Each team has six bench places.

Players lock individually at their NFL game’s kickoff. Your roster carries forward each week; you can replace players whose games have not started from the free-agent pool.

Human draft picks default to two minutes. Before the draft starts, the commissioner can choose 60, 90, or 120 seconds per pick. Automatic managers draft for their own teams; missed human picks are selected automatically.

Full PPR scoring

Every reception scores one point. Yardage contributes fractional points.

D/ST scoring includes the following plays, plus a points-allowed bonus:

An officially cancelled or no-contest game scores zero for its players and D/ST only after the cancellation and voided statistics are confirmed. No D/ST shutout bonus applies. A postponed game or missing or delayed data is pending, not zero.

Season and playoffs

The regular season runs through NFL Week 15. The top four teams play two playoff rounds: seeds 1 vs. 4 and 2 vs. 3 in Week 16, then the championship final in Week 17. The other four teams play for consolation places. There are no divisions.

Regular-season ties count as half a win for each team. Standings and playoff seeds are ordered by win percentage, points for, then stable team order. Tied playoff games advance the higher seed.

Playoff places lock at each round’s first kickoff after the previous scores are confirmed. Later stat corrections can change scores and outcomes, but do not change the places in a round that has started.

For a midseason start, everyone begins 0–0 in the next NFL week that has not started. If any game that week has kicked off before the draft finishes, play begins the following week. Earlier results do not count, and at least four full weeks must remain through Week 17 when the league is created and when the draft starts or finishes.

Published box scores update after game days, not play by play. Pending scores are not final results; later stat corrections can change standings.

Existing leagues that predate the current settings keep their original standings-based finish and first-come free-agent rules. There are no entry charges or paid prizes.

Waivers and free agents

New leagues use standard waivers. Initial priority follows reverse draft order. After a successful claim, that team moves to the end of the priority order, which is updated after each award.

Undrafted players wait 48 hours after the draft, and dropped players wait at least 48 hours. Once a player’s game has started, claims process Wednesday at 07:00 UTC. When more than one hold applies, the latest release time controls.

Trades

Two human managers can exchange equal bundles of one to three players. The other manager must accept; acceptance starts a 24-hour commissioner review. Either manager may cancel while the trade is pending, and the commissioner may veto it during review.

Review must finish before the first Week 16 kickoff. Player ownership, roster legality, and kickoff locks are checked again when the trade processes.