Preamble

We the Commissioners, in order to form a more perfect fantasy football league, establish fair play, insure league tranquility, provide for the common enjoyment, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of baseball to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the Get a Life Football League.

League Structure

League

The GET A LIFE FOOTBALL LEAGUE is a part of Get a Life Sports and was founded in 1989. It may be referred to as “the league” or “GLFL” throughout these Rules & Regulations.

There are three Get a Life Football League re-draft leagues: Bakersfield, Big Bear, and San Diego. The rules for all three are the same.

The league is comprised of 12 teams, which are all parts of the league and cannot be sold. If an owner or ownership group decides they no longer want to be part of the league, that team reverts to the league and the Commissioner will seek new ownership.

In order to promote a professional and consistent look and feel, all logos will be in the same format, and must be approved by the Commissioner.

Teams may not use the nickname or logo of any NFL team or the name of any team in any of the other Get a Life Leagues. Really stupid team names are not allowed.

The league is divided into three divisions of four teams each. Divisions will be named by the defending Division Champions, after honorable football men (players must be retired).

Commissioners

The office of Commissioner is not voted upon, but is occupied by an unimpeachable tyrant. Term of office is forever, or until the Commissioner loses interest.

There are no provisions for adding or changing rules based on a vote of team owners. Potential rule changes are sometimes put out for discussion, but the Commissioner will make the final decision. Rules will not be changed during the season unless a situation arises that makes a rule change necessary.

The Commissioner appoints a Deputy Commissioner prior to each season. The Deputy Commissioner assists the Commissioner when necessary, and in the case of a calamity involving the Commissioner, the Deputy Commissioner assumes the duties of the Commissioner.

All functions of the league are handled by the Commissioners in conjunction with CBS Sports, unless delegated to another individual.

If a situation arises that is not adequately covered by the existing Rules and Regulations, the Commissioner will make a ruling that he feels is in the best interest of the league.

Disputes that cannot be handled within these Rules & Regulations, or resolved by a ruling from the Commissioner, are decided by an outside arbitrator agreed upon by all parties involved. The arbitrator's decision is final.

The wisdom of the Commissioner will never be in question.

Teams and Owners

All owners must be approved by the Commissioner. There is no limit to the number of owners that a team can have. Unless the Commissioner is told otherwise in advance, it is assumed that any owner listed for a team is authorized to perform any functions for that team. Dumbshits may not own teams.

Ownership of teams in more than one league is legal, but ownership of more than one team in a league is not permitted.

The Commissioner may remove an owner or owners if he feels there is sufficient cause. Causes include, but are not limited to: collusion, inactivity, or gross mismanagement that affects league play.

If an owner disappears during the season, their team may be considered an "abandoned team." The Commissioner will attempt to find new ownership for the abandoned team, or may appoint an owner from one of the other leagues to act as interim owner for the remainder of the season. Any money won by an abandoned team is split equally among all remaining teams in the league. Any owner that abandons a team will be banned for life from all Get a Life Sports leagues and pools, as it will be obvious that they are unreliable idiots.

Calamities

A "calamity" is defined as death, illness, injury, relocation, or other unforeseen circumstances preventing an owner from completing the current season.

In the case of a calamity the Commissioner will solicit an owner from one of the other leagues to run the affected team for the remainder of the season. After the season any money due the affected team is forwarded to the owner or their family.

League Fees and Prize Pool

Prior to each season, each team will pay a Franchise Fee of $210. Teams will not be allowed to make any transactions or win any prize money until this fee is paid. $200 goes into the Prize Pool and $10 goes to league administration (CBS web site plus Championship t-shirt).

Prizes based on regular season performance (Weeks 1-14)
▪ Division Champions $100

Prizes based on regular season performance (Weeks 1-14)
▪ Best Record $100
▪ Highest Total Points Scored $100

Prizes based on single game performance (regular season only)
▪ Unluckiest Bastard $25 (most points scored in a loss or tie)
▪ Luckiest Bastard $25 fine (least points scored in a win or tie)
▪ High score each week $20
▪ All other wins each week $5
▪ All tied teams each week $2.50
▪ Highest scoring player each week $5 (non DST)

Prizes based on finish in the playoffs
▪ League Champion 60%
▪ 2nd place 25%
▪ 3rd place 15%
▪ 4th place $100

All prizes based on a percentage are calculated after the guaranteed set amount prizes have been subtracted from the Prize Pool.

Annual Draft

Prior to each season the Annual Draft will be held.

Schedule and locations for the 2025 drafts:
San Diego - Saturday, August 30 at 12:00 (Rob's house in Fallbrook)
Bakersfield - Tuesday, September 2 at 6:00 (Online)
Big Bear - Wednesday, September 3 at 6:00 pm (Online)

Draft position is drawn at random prior to the draft. Each successive round is the opposite of the previous round (snake draft). Players at any position can be drafted in any round, so long as there is an open roster spot for that player.

The Commissioner or person running the draft announces the name of the team that is on the clock, and that team has one minute to make their pick. If the team does not pick within that minute, they are passed. After the next pick has been made, the passed team will have an opportunity to make an immediate pick. If there is still no pick, that pick is passed until the end of the draft.

After keepers have been named, but before the draft, the defending Division Champions will select the teams who will be in their divisions. Division Champions will select teams in order of record from the prior season until all divisions have four teams.

NOAH RULE: Teams must announce the player name, team name, and position in a clear voice at sufficient volume to avoid having to incessantly repeat the information.

RUSS RULE: If a team drafts a retired, injured, cut, or dead player, they are stuck with that player and may not retract the pick after learning the awful truth about their boneheaded choice. They immediately receive The Bone and should expect to catch some crap. If a player selects a player already on another roster, they receive The Bone. If a team drafts a player that they do not have space for and it is not caught during the draft, they receive a retroactive Bone. All fines for getting The Bone are $5.

DREW RULE: Owners cannot mention undrafted players, and owners cannot ask other owners if a player has been taken. Violations of this rule results in a $2 fine.

PAUL RULE: No cell phone use during the draft area or within such a distance that it is a distraction to other owners. If an owner must confer with a co-owner, or if they need to take care of some business, they must do so during breaks or leave the draft area. Violations of this rule result in a $5 fine.

Some drafts may take place after the first game of the NFL season has been played. In such drafts, any player taken as a team's first QB, first RB, first WR, first TE, first K, or first DST, must be started the first week. Any other drafted players may either be started or benched, at the discretion of the team owner.

Wagers

Wagers between teams are acceptable, but are outside of the league. No money from wagers will be added to or subtracted from team accounts.

Roster Management

Legal Roster

Each team will maintain a legal roster at all time. A legal roster must have at a minimum the players necessary to field a starting lineup.

The starting lineup is made up of nine positions:
▪ Quarterback (1)
▪ Running back (1)
▪ Wide receiver (1)
▪ Tight end (1)
▪ Flex players - RB/WR/TE (3)
▪ Defense/Special Teams (1)
▪ Kicker (1)

Teams may also have up to six reserve players (bench). Bench spots may be used for players at any position, and/or defense/special teams. Teams may not carry more than two quarterbacks or two kickers on their roster plus bench at any time. IR players do not count against these limits. There are no positional limits for any other positions.

Lineups are submitted at the CBS Sports web site. Each lineup spot can be changed up until five minutes before each player's game time. If circumstances prevent an owner from submitting changes at the CBS Sports web site, they may be submitted by phone, e-mail, or in writing directly to the Commissioner.

MICHELLE RULE: Never contact the Commissioner's wife to submit a lineup, she does not give a shit.

There will be absolutely, positively, unequivocally, no late lineup changes accepted. Save your sob story, the Commissioner will be completely uninterested.

There is NO excuse for having known inactive players in a team's starting lineup. All games might affect playoff races, and all owners should field the best possible team each week, even if they are out of contention. Teams will be fined $10 each time their starting lineup contains a player who is on a bye, suspended, or on the IR. Pay attention to your team!

Draft Keepers

Teams can take up to three players from the previous season into the draft.

Keepers are assigned to their team in the round two rounds earlier than where they were selected in the previous season's draft. If two keepers were taken in the same round the previous season, then the next lowest pick is used for one of them. EXAMPLE: Two keepers were taken in the 10th round the previous season, so that team would have to use their 8th pick for one of them, then the other one would drop down a round and they would have to use their 7th to keep the other one.

Keepers can be traded in the week between the naming of keepers and the draft, but no team may have more than three keepers after the completion of the trade.

Keepers can only be released if the player is placed on the IR or PUP after the deadline for keepers, but before draft day. Players must be released before the day of the draft.

Players taken in the first two rounds, players suspended by the league, and players on the IR or PUP, are not eligible to be kept as keepers the following season.

Free Agency

Any player not on the active or inactive roster of any other team is considered a free agent, and can be claimed by submitting a sealed bid at the CBS website.

Players on the IR/PUP or under suspension by the NFL cannot be claimed.

Each team is allotted a $100 Free Agent Budget (FAB). Teams are not required to spend any money on free agents. The FAB is for the entire season, if a team depletes their FAB they cannot claim any more free agents. Players may be claimed during the regular season and playoffs.

Teams can claim free agents at any time. The minimum bid is $1, the maximum is whatever the team has left in their FAB. Bidding is in increments of $1. Some time late in the evening each Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday of each week, CBS Sports sorts out all of the free agent bids and awards free agents to the winning bidders.

Any player may be claimed for $1 on Sunday and Monday mornings.

For each player claimed, a player must be released or sent to the IR (if eligible). A team may not have more than 15 players on their roster (IR/PUP/Suspended players are not counted against that total).

Players claimed as free agents cannot be released the same week they were claimed.

Trades

Players may be traded freely between teams. Trades should be made using CBS Sports, and become official when a proposed trade is accepted. Trades can also be made by notifying the Commissioner, and those trades become official when all teams involved in the trade have reported the details to the Commissioner.

During the off season and during the draft, players can be traded for other players and/or draft picks. Teams cannot trade any draft picks that are in a round that they are retaining a player, unless they are trading draft positions for the entire draft. Draft picks for future seasons cannot be traded.

Trades cannot involve contingencies, cash, property, first born children, or any other considerations outside of the league.

During the season no trades can be made after 11:59 p.m. PST on Wednesday of Week 12.

Teams must have a legal roster by the roster deadline for the next week of play following any transaction.

Injured Reserve

Only players who meet the following conditions can be placed on the GLFL IR:

1) The player has been placed on the NFL IR or PUP (Physically Unable To Perform) List, or was suspended by the NFL (team suspensions do not count).

2) The player was on a GLFL roster when he was injured and placed on the NFL IR or PUP List.

Any player activated from the IR or PUP by their NFL team, or reinstated by the NFL from suspension, must be activated by their GLFL team before that player's next game, or they will be released by the Commissioner.

Rules of the Game

League Year

The season runs concurrent with the NFL regular season.

Weeks 1-14 make up the GLFL regular season. Each team will play the teams in their division twice each, and all other teams once.

Weeks 15-17 make up the single elimination playoffs.

Head-To-Head Play

Each week teams will play Head-to-Head against another team.

Points are scored as follows:
▪ Touchdown run or reception - 6
▪ Touchdown pass - 4
▪ Field goal - 3
▪ Conversion run or reception - 2
▪ Conversion kick or pass - 1
▪ Defense/Special Teams touchdown on a returned kick/punt, returned fumble, returned interception, or returned blocked kick/punt - 6
▪ Defense/Special Teams safety, turnover, or blocked kick/punt - 3
▪ Defense/Special Teams sack - 2

Any player can score in any fashion.

Quarterbacks are awarded one bonus point for each 25 combined yards (passing + rushing + receiving).

Running backs, receivers, tight ends, and flex players are awarded one bonus point for each 10 combined yards (passing + rushing + receiving).

All players are awarded one bonus point for each 25 kickoff return yards.

All players are awarded one bonus point for each 25 punt return yards.

All points scored by players in the starting lineup and their performance bonuses are combined to reach a team score. The team with the higher score is declared the winner.

All regular season games can end in a tie except playoff games. In playoff games, the following tiebreakers will determine the winner:
▪ Higher total points scored during the regular season
▪ Better record for the regular season
▪ Better head-to-head record in games between the tied teams
▪ Higher total points scored in games between the tied teams
▪ Coin toss

Statistics

The official source of stats for scorekeeping purposes is CBS Sports. If disputes occur in scoring, the Commissioner must be notified as soon as possible. The Commissioner will investigate the discrepancy and adjust the score if necessary. Any disputes regarding scoring must be resolved before the beginning of the next week's games. Scores will not be corrected after that point.

Live scoring at CBS is UNOFFICIAL. Often times stats are corrected through the course of the day, and sometimes overnight. If you notice a potential problem with the scoring, please wait until after their system updates overnight before bringing it to the Commissioner's attention. Usually the problem will be corrected by the following morning.

Standings and Playoffs

There are three divisions or four teams each. Teams are ranked from best to worst within each division based on record. For purposes of ranking, a tie counts as half of a win.

All 14 regular season games count toward the standings.

At the conclusion of the regular season the best team in each division is crowned the Division Champion and advances to the playoffs. If there are ties in the divisional standings, the following tiebreakers will determine the winner of the division:
▪ Higher total points scored during the regular season
▪ Better record in divisional games
▪ Better head-to-head record in games between the tied teams
▪ Higher total points scored in games between the tied teams
▪ Coin toss

The remaining two teams with the best records advance to the playoffs as the Record Wildcards. If there are ties when determining the Record Wildcard, the following tiebreakers will determine the winner of the tie:
▪ Higher total points scored during the regular season
▪ Better head-to-head record in games between the tied teams
▪ Higher total points scored in games between the tied teams
▪ Coin toss

After the three division Champions and the two Record Wildcard teams are determined, the remaining team with the highest total points scored advances to the playoffs as the Points Wildcards. If there is a tie for the points wildcards, the following tiebreakers will determine the winner of the tie:
▪ Better head-to-head record in games between the tied teams
▪ Higher total points scored in games between the tied teams
▪ Coin toss

After the playoff teams are determined, they are seeded 1-6 by record in the Championship Bracket. The two Division Champions with the best records are the top two seeds and earn first round byes. The remaining Division Champions is the #3 seed and gets to choose which of the other three teams they wish to play and the remaining two teams play each other.The top two seeds earn first round byes.

In the second round, the #1 seed gets to choose which of the other three teams they wish to play and the remaining two teams play each other.

The teams who do not make the playoffs are seeded 1-6 and play a consolation bracket using the same format as the Championship Bracket. The loser of the Consolation Bracket earns the not so coveted title of Toad of the League.

Final Thoughts From the Commissioner

COLLUSION BETWEEN TWO OR MORE TEAMS WILL NOT BE TOLERATED!

While it might be difficult to prove that owners acted in concert to affect the outcome of a game or season, any owners who exhibit behavior that strongly points to such conduct will be removed from the league and banned from any future Get a Life Sports activities.

This league requires a commitment. It is expected that all owners pay a reasonable amount of attention to their teams at all times during the season. This includes, but is not limited to, prompt response to emails from the Commissioner, timely responses to trade proposals, and generally just paying attention.

The purpose of this league is to compete and have a good time doing it. There are twelve teams, and they are all going to run things how they best see fit. Someone else's idea of a good player or trade might be different than yours. Some teams might make a lot of moves, some not much at all. The Commissioners will run the league, you run your team and let others run theirs.

All that having been said, let's have some fun!