Commissioner's Note



June 2018
This offseason, Fleaflicker has made several new options available for commissioners to implement in fantasy football leagues. These options include taxi squads, customizable individual defensive player categories (IDPs) and the introduction of punters. Some of these ideas would be great fits for the Ultimate Fantasy Footnball League, while others probably would not work out as well.

Taxi squads: Also known as practice squads, taxi squads allow fantasy owners to carry extra players on their team in an area separate from their main roster or the injured reserve section. This idea actually works best in dynasty formats with deep rosters, where knowledgeable owners who are looking toward the future are able to stash rookies with plenty of long-term upside without occupying valuable active roster space on players who won't contribute in the NFL immediately.

Individual defensive player categories: In the past, Fleaflicker commissioners who used IDPs in their leagues could only break players down into four categories: defensive linemen, linebackers, defensive backs or defensive flex players (which was inclusive of some or all of the aforementioned categories). Now, defensive linemen can be split into defensive ends and defensive tackles, while defensive backs can be split into cornerbacks and safeties. Currently, UFFL starting lineups include two spots for IDPs from any position and this is unlikely to change.

Punters: I have been interested in implementing punters for years, although I've never participated in any leagues which have used it. In fact, Fantrax was the only free website I was aware of which had the punter option available prior to the 2018 season. Rosters are likely to be expanded by one or two active slots in order to accomodate the new category, although it is uncertain what statistical categories would be used for punters at this point.

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
January 2018
In last month's Commissioner's Note, I referenced an article that I had written for the now-defunct website CommishTalk.com about the UFFL Pro Bowl, which was created about a decade ago as an option to fill the fantasy football void during the seventeenth week of the NFL regular season. The article was previously believed to have been gone forever after the website folded. However, I recently stumbled upon an original copy of the story in the sent folder of an e-mail account I rarely use anymore. Without further ado, here is a link to that story, which appeared as the "Bright Idea of the Day" on the site in January 2016:

Bright Idea of the Day: UFFL Pro Bowl

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
December 2017
Several years ago, I was interviewed for the "Commissioner Spotlight" feature on a now-defunct website called CommishTalk.com, where fantasy football commissioners could exchange ideas to improve their leagues. Once the website disappeared, the interview was thought to be lost forever, until an extra copy was found on my laptop computer. Here it is, in its entirety:

Commissioner Spotlight Interview: Jared Byrd

One of the ideas I discussed (the UFFL Pro Bowl) proved to be so popular that I was later asked to write a guest column explaining how the concept worked. Unfortunately, no additional copy of that article has resurfaced anywhere. However, if I am able to find it, then it will be posted here.

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
December 2016
The 15th season of the Ultimate Fantasy Football League has come to a close, which means that the time has come to begin thinking about ways to make the 2017 campaign even better. This year marked the return of individual defensive players for the first time since 2007, which happened to be the league's final season at Yahoo! Sports before relocating to Fleaflicker. However, the statistical impact of IDPs in 2016 was nowhere near as prevalent as nine years ago, due to the current scoring system (where, for example, a sack or an interception would have been worth the same number of fantasy points for an individual player as for a team defense).

After doing some research to compare various scoring systems, it turns out that this was not the case from 2004 to 2007 at Yahoo!; for instance, an individual player back then would have received three fantasy points for a sack but a team defense would have received just two points on the same play.

Featured below is a chart comparing four different league settings for individual defensive player scoring:

- 2016 Yahoo! Default: These are the standard settings for Yahoo! fantasy football leagues where the commissioner has not customized scoring rules for individual defensive players.

- 2004-07 UFFL: These are the settings which were in place for IDPs during the league's final three seasons on Yahoo!, prior to the Fleaflicker move. Veteran owners will remember that the concept of individual defensive players was dropped at the time only because it didn't appear as though Fleaflicker was designed to handle both IDPs and team defenses simultaneously. Please note that the scoring settings in several statistical categories were different for team defenses (as mentioned above).

- 2016 UFFL: These are the settings which are currently in place, typically resulting in very low scores for IDPs.

- 2017 UFFL (Proposed): This column features adjusted scoring guidelines which could go into effect for the 2017 season, after discussion with the league during the offseason, with asterisks denoting categories where point values would be adjusted. Other options being considered include the possibility of making interceptions and/or sacks worth three points or making all tackles (both assisted and solo) worth one point each. Team defense scoring guidelines are not expected to be changed.

Individual Defensive Player Scoring Settings

2016 Yahoo! Default
2004-07 UFFL
2016 UFFL
2017 UFFL
(Proposed)
Solo Tackles
1
0.5
0.5
1*
Assisted Tackles
0
0
0
0.5*
Sacks
2
3
1
2*
Interceptions
3
2
2
2
Forced Fumbles
2
2
2
2
Fumble Recoveries
2
2
2
2
Defensive Touchdowns
6
6
6
6
Safeties
2
2
2
2
Passes Defended
1
1
0
1*
Blocked Kicks
2
2
2
2
Extra Points/Conversions Returned
2
0
2
2

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
October 2016
As we head into the second month of the 15th season of the Ultimate Fantasy Football League, it is time to begin thinking about improvements for 2017. Due to the fact that the league has existed for so long, most (if not all) proposed changes should be relatively minor in nature.

One possible adjustment that is likely to be discussed involves the timer for the live draft. Currently, each team has up to 90 seconds to make their selection, although owners are encouraged to use as little time as possible if they know who they want to choose. However, the 2016 draft had three rounds tacked on in order to accomodate the addition of individual defensive players, resulting in this year's draft running approximately 30 minutes longer than the 2015 version. The league is expected to vote on whether or not the timer should be reduced from 90 to 60 seconds on this offseason's questionnaire.

In addition, one owner asked during the draft if it was possible to reduce the value of a defensive touchdown (which is currently set at six points) for team defenses due to the inclusion of individual defensive players (IDPs), because one touchdown could theoretically be worth 12 fantasy points if the same UFFL franchise owns the IDP and the NFL club who scored. However, this change might be more difficult to implement because it has been possible for the league's entire existence for a receiver or running back to score 12 points on a touchdown on a kickoff or punt return if their UFFL franchise also owns the NFL team defense/special teams.

As always, owners should feel free to send potential rule changes to jared259@alumni.upenn.edu and they will be taken under consideration.

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
July 2016
The Ultimate Fantasy Football League is back and better than ever for its 15th year! When this league was created as a way for former members and admins of the old CBS SportsLine chat rooms to stay in touch prior to the 2002 season, no one could have ever predicted that it would be as wildly popular and successful as it has turned out to be today. Thanks to a dedicated core of knowledgeable, passionate owners, the UFFL has continued to thrive as one of the most competitive free fantasy football leagues on the internet.

Earlier this month, the annual league questionnaire was distributed to all owners, in order to gauge everyone's interest for competing during the 2016 season. As of this writing, I have heard back from nine owners who have pledged to return (and of course I am coming back, giving the UFFL 10 confirmed participants). I am still waiting to hear from Mark Bender (Shelburn OrangeHats), Grace Cloud (Sisyphean Endeavors), Jim Douglas (CheeseWhiz) and Andrew So (The Catch) regarding their plans for 2016. For those of you who have already submitted your answers, thank you.

Aside from the typical questions asked, this year's survey is asking for opinions on possible rule and setting changes covering categories ranging from using individual defensive players in starting lineups to awarding points for fourth-down conversions and yardage on interception and punt returns. Although there are nine questions, the survey will take less than 10 minutes to complete (and may take many owners less than five minutes to finish). If you misplaced your copy of the e-mail containing the questionnaire, click here and please send your answers along as soon as possible, so that necessary adjustments can be made to the league.

Remember, the live draft will be held Wednesday, Aug. 31, at 9:30 p.m. Eastern on the Fleaflicker website. I hope to see everyone there!

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
December 2015
Some of you may have noticed that I have been sending out fewer UFFL-related e-mails and updating the league website less frequently this season. This is because I have increased my work schedule with USA Today Fantasy Sports over the last few months (going from two days a week to five days a week) and have less spare time than in previous years. Rest assured, I am still actively monitoring and participating in the league and continue to enjoy serving as a fantasy football commissioner. Since I am currently on winter break from my other job, don't be surprised if website updates and e-mail correspondence are more common over the next few days (although I will try my best not to clog everyone's inbox). In the event that I will be unable to perform commissioner duties over an extended period of time, assistant commissioner Mozelle Meyers will step in for me.

In other news, I am looking at various free fantasy football hosts to see if they are better than Fleaflicker. I am participating in seasonal leagues on Yahoo! and NFL.com this year, and I have competed in leagues on ESPN.com in the not-too-distant past but I haven't been compelled to uproot the league to another platform yet. Fantrax (which recently became the home of one of my dynasty fantasy baseball leagues) looks promising and extremely customizable but it's difficult to determine which features are available to paid leagues only and which ones are available to everyone. If anyone in the UFFL has prior experience with Fantrax as either an owner or a commissioner, I'd like to hear from you because reviews of their fantasy sports games are difficult to find (aside from testimonials posted on their site).

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
October 2015
Recently, several UFFL owners have written to me expressing their concern about teams that have gone extended periods without setting their starting lineups or updating their rosters (for instance, to put injured players on the bench or injured reserve or releasing players who are no longer on NFL rosters). Some of these owners have even threatened to leave the league following the season due to the lack of perceived commitment from everyone to field the most competitive squad.

I'd like to take this moment to remind everyone to please set their starting lineups and check your roster regularly to insure that situations like this don't happen again. There have been weeks in years past where injured players remained in a team's starting lineup and, predictably, they scored a big fat zero for their team ... and the opposition cruised to an easy victory.

Not only is this unfair to the fantasy owner facing the shorthanded team, it's unfair to the rest of the league as they battle for potential playoff spots, because one team's lack of lineup and roster activity could impact the postseason picture. This message is not meant to target any owner or franchise in particular but just to remind everyone to be mindful of their actions (or lack thereof).

In addition, if you place players on injured reserve, you are allowed to pick up players to replace them on your active roster. I noticed several teams that had multiple IR-eligible players occupying spots on their active roster while they had zero players stashed away on injured reserve.

These things might be somewhat understandable if this were a first-year league with rookie owners and no history but as we compete in our 14th season, scenarios like this should not be happening. A league where all owners are actively involved is infinitely more enjoyable (this goes for fantasy baseball, basketball and hockey as well).


- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
September 2015
Welcome back for the fourteenth season of the Ultimate Fantasy Football League! All of the owners who competed last year have returned and only one rule change was instituted during the offseason, thanks to an adjustment to the NFL rule book - team defenses will now receive two points whenever they successfully return an extra point or two-point conversion attempt.

As far as the maintenance of this website goes, certain areas of ultimatefantasyfootballleague.net will be updated regularly throughout the season, while other areas will remain untouched until the season has ended, due to time constraints for the webmaster. Here is the 2015 update schedule:

MONDAY - No updates planned
TUESDAY - NFL pickem and survival football pages
WEDNESDAY - Horse trailer and schedule/results pages
THURSDAY - League transactions and franchise pages (current roster section only)
FRIDAY - Current standings page
SATURDAY - League transactions and franchise pages (current roster section only)
SUNDAY - League transactions and franchise pages (current roster section only)

League news articles and new commissioner notes will be posted as necessary.

The following areas will remain untouched until the offseason: league owner pages, franchise pages (aside from the current roster section), all-time roster pages and league record book pages.


- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
January 2015
Happy new year! Hopefully everyone is enjoying a great start to 2015.

I just found out that it's possible to make UFFL trades right now even though leagues can't be renewed on Fleaflicker until February. Apparently, trades (and trade proposals) have been allowed since the championship game ended and there's no way for any commissioner on Fleaflicker to turn off this feature.

The free agent pool, however, is unable to be unlocked until after the draft (which will take place sometime in late August).

That being said, I'd like to announce that all players on my roster are available for trade with the exception of Odell Beckham. In return, I am looking primarily for running back help and draft picks.

In other news, time is running out to register for the UFFL Postseason Challenge contest on NFL.com. If you'd still like to register, click here.
 
If prompted, the group name is UFFL and the password is playoffs. Thanks to Tony, George, Mozelle and Craig for signing up. Good luck!

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
August 2014
In an attempt to bring you the best fantasy football experience possible, I compete in games on many different websites each year. For the 2014 season, I have committed to participating in eight different fantasy football leagues - two on Fleaflicker, four on Yahoo! and two on NFL.com. Some are public leagues, while others are private. Some are keeper leagues, while others are redraft. In several of these leagues, I am the commissioner, while in others, I am just an ordinary owner.

I do this to see if better options exist for the Ultimate Fantasy Football League, as we enter our 13th season. So far, Fleaflicker remains the gold standard among free fantasy football websites, although Yahoo! has gained a lot of ground since 2007, when the UFFL left for greener pastures. Keep in mind that seven years ago, the following options were either completely unavailable on Yahoo!, or only available for paying customers:
a. Live scoring
b. Divisional play
c. The ability to create injured reserve slots (IR) or slots for non-active players (N/A)
4. The ability for league owners to designate keeper players on their own
5. Awards (league trophy case)
6. League record book
7. An app for smartphones and tablets
There are many other improvements that Yahoo! - and their competitors - have made over that stretch, but until other websites create fantasy games that are accessible year-round like Fleaflicker, they won't merit serious consideration for the UFFL.

One league that I am not participating in this year is the KFFL staff fantasy football league, whose round-by-round recaps had been posted on this website in past seasons. The primary reason is that KFFL.com merged with USA Today Fantasy Sports earlier this month and did not conduct their typical offline draft. (Both websites had the same parent company for several years but had operated separately until approximately three weeks ago.) The secondary reason is that e-mails for the replacement league, which combined former KFFL personnel and USA Today personnel, went to my spam folder and weren't discovered until it was too late. This year's draft happened to be a live event and did not feature the round-by-round recaps from the KFFL days. Hopefully, I can return to action for the 2015 season.

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
November 2013
In this edition of the commissioner's note, I will provide a list of frequently asked questions for the Ultimate Fantasy Football League.

1. Do playoff results affect seeding for the following year's draft?
The draft order is determined by the regular season worst-to-first record, with the exception of the last pick of all odd-numbered rounds going to the league champion and the next-to-last pick going to the runner-up (like the National Football League). Because the UFFL draft is serpentine, this means that the league champion picks first, and the runner-up picks second, in all even-numbered rounds.

2. Could a team protect fewer than three franchise players for next season if they wanted to?
By default, if a team selected fewer than three keepers, the extra picks (to insure that all rosters had the same number of players) would be awarded by Fleaflicker at the end of the draft - not the beginning. Therefore, it makes no sense to nominate fewer than three franchise players.

3. Will the UFFL ever refert to the pre-2008 postseason setup, where the teams who were not ranked in the top eight at the end of the regular season completely missed the playoffs?
It appears unlikely. On Fleaflicker, all teams compete in the postseason, although only the top eight franchises are eligible for the UFFL championship; the rest compete in the consolation bracket. Another oddity of Fleaflicker is that any team that loses during the first week of the postseason (regardless of whether they are in the consolation or championship bracket) is completely finished for the year. However, if they lose during the second week, they are guaranteed to play again in the third week - even if they had a bye in the first week of the postseason. None of these things can be changed by the commissioner and it is uncertain when, if ever, these powers will be granted to Fleaflicker commissioners.

4. Will the league ever expand to 16 teams?
Right now, there are no immediate plans to add additional franchises. The last expansion process took place in 2009, when it was known that two experienced, committed owners were coming on board. In order for expansion to be seriously considered, at least of the following things must happen: (1) reduction of roster sizes - either by making the bench smaller or by eliminating one of the positions in the starting lineup or (2) Fleaflicker overhauling their system to allow for conferences, not just divisions. Allow me to elaborate on this point below.

In the fantasy football world, there are some larger leagues - usually with 20 or more teams - where the same player belongs to two different franchises in the same league competing in different conferences. The only time during the year where teams from different conferences would meet  would be in the championship game. In other words, it would have been like an American League baseball player (in the days before interleague play) cloning himself and also playing on a National League team.

Obviously, the first situation is much more feasible than the second one ... and if two more teams were added under that scenario, the league would go from two seven-team divisions to four four-team divisions. This would mean that it would no longer be possible for every franchise to see every other franchise once during the regular season - but on the other hand, it would give me an opportunity to use the name "Metropolitan Division."

Have any questions for the commish? Send them to jared259@alumni.upenn.edu.

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
August 2013
For the fourth consecutive year, I am participating in an offline fantasy football draft with other staff members at KFFL.com, one of the best sources for fantasy football information (among other sports) anywhere on the internet. While the draft's primary purpose is to help owners view different strategies for putting together their teams, it will also be the basis for a real 12-team head-to-head PPR (points per reception) league. In other words, it's like a mock draft except for the fact that the league actually does exist.

Entering this year, I have a regular-season record of 13-26-0 and a postseason record of 1-1-0. However, I finished last season with a winning record, made my first-ever playoff appearance and came within a game of participating in the league championship, so things appear to be looking up ...

The league will be hosted at MyFantasyLeague.com. Click here to view the scoring rules and here to see team rosters.

KFFL's Fantasy Football Analysis Draft
Round 1
Round 2
Round 3
Round 4
Round 5
Round 6
Round 7
Round 8
Round 9
Round 10
Round 11
Round 12
Round 13
Round 14
Round 15
Round 16

EDIT: Unfortunately, I had to disable these links because of website security concerns (there was a malware problem associated with the KFFL links that were featured in this edition of the commissioner's note. If the problem is resolved, I hope to restore these links to this site. For the time being, you can e-mail me at jared259@alumni.upenn.edu if you want direct links to the original pages.

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner

December 2012
No matter how long you've played fantasy football, there's always some unusual, bizarre circumstance that pops up every season that has never happened before (and may never happen again). This year, I happened to lead the league in both points scored (a very controllable category) and points allowed (a category that is completely out of one's control) and nearly missed the championship bracket for the first time ever despite having an offensive juggernaut. I had a successful draft and made some solid waiver-wire pickups and trades, yet continued to wallow in mediocrity all season long, struggling to hang around the .500 mark. As the season was winding down, I wasn't worried about defending my championship as much as I was worried about the humiliation of not even competing for the championship in my own league. Thanks to some huge games by Calvin Johnson, I barely snuck into the playoffs ... before promptly getting eliminated in the first round, when my team naturally posted their lowest score of the season (by a huge margin). Of course, this was the only week my squad didn't break the 100-point barrier ... and to think that in most seasons, this team probably would have posted 10 or 11 victories!

Then again, I may be downright lucky compared to the Cheeko Chiefs, who are 0-6 over the last two seasons in games decided by five points or less. Four of those contests came during the 2012 season, with two games being decided by less than one fantasy point.

This is what makes fantasy football compelling and frustrating at the same time - its unpredictability. How many times has the team with the league's best regular-season record fallen short of expectations just because several players had off weeks at an inopportune time? How often has a team snuck into the playoffs by the skin of their teeth and gone further than anyone could have imagined?

While perusing through some recent UFFL statistics, I stumbled across several interesting and bizarre historical facts ...

- This year was the first one since 2002 where no UFFL team won at least 10 regular-season games. Back then, the regular season consisted of 14 games instead of 13. The current setup of 13 regular-season games and three weeks of postseason contests was instituted the following year.

For the record, two teams lost 10 regular-season games in 2012 - the Cheeko Chiefs and the Shelburn OrangeHats. The only UFFL season where no team lost more than nine games was 2006.

- The Cheeko Chiefs lost eight consecutive games to end the season (and nine of their last 10), with their final victory coming during the week of Oct. 9-15. They had started the season 2-2.

- For the first time in five years, bbashers head coach Calvin Brown did not end the regular season with an 11-2 record; instead, he finished 9-4, which was still good enough for a three-way tie for the UFFL's best record.

- N2deep head coach George Thomas won eight consecutive games before losing in UFFL Bowl XI to The Steel Curtain.

- Steph Infections head coach Stephanie George has not won a UFFL postseason game since 2008, going 0-4 in four games since then.

- The North Star Sledgehammers of 10,000 Lakes head coach Jay Klinkhammer is the league's all-time leader in postseason victories and winning percentage and is tied for the most championships in UFFL history with three (2004, 2007 and 2008). However, he is only 16-23 during the regular season since 2010 and has an overall away record of 20-21 since 2008 (including playoff games).

For more interesting and unusual stats, visit the league records page, which will be updated next summer to reflect developments during the 2012 season.

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
August 2012
Once again, I have found myself participating in an offline fantasy football draft with other staff members at KFFL.com, one of the best sources for fantasy football information (among other sports) anywhere on the internet. While the draft's primary purpose is to help owners view different strategies for putting together their teams, it will also be the basis for a real 12-team head-to-head PPR (points per reception) league. In other words, it's like a mock draft except for the fact that the league actually does exist.

This is my third consecutive year in the league and I am hoping to improve on my 6-20-0 overall record. I am satisfied with how my team has turned out ... but I said the same thing in previous years and fell out of contention early on.

Click here to find out more background information about the league, which will be hosted at MyFantasyLeague.com. Click here to view the scoring rules and here to see team rosters.

KFFL's Fantasy Football Analysis Draft
Round 1
Round 2
Round 3
Round 4
Round 5
Round 6
Round 7
Round 8
Round 9
Round 10
Round 11
Round 12
Round 13
Round 14
Round 15
Round 16

EDIT: Unfortunately, I had to disable these links because of website security concerns (there was a malware problem associated with the KFFL links that were featured in this edition of the commissioner's note. If the problem is resolved, I hope to restore these links to this site. For the time being, you can e-mail me at jared259@alumni.upenn.edu if you want direct links to the original pages.

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
October 2011
Recently, I purchased a software program called PrintMaster (version 2.0) at an office supply store. Aside from giving me the ability to create items such as cards, calendars, letterheads and newsletters on my home computer, it also allows me to design fantasy sports logos. After quickly creating logos for my Fantasy Baseball Challenge league on Fleaflicker (as well as my team, The Balco Asteroids), I decided to tweak several UFFL logos and helmets using PrintMaster. Some, all or none of these ideas may be used in the future and as time goes on, more designs may be created.


Classic 2010 Helmet
Current 2011 Helmet
Proposed 2012 Helmet
CheeseWhiz
Prior to the 2011 season, five of the UFFL's 14 teams had plain helmets. A decision was made to give each franchise a logo, and so the initials "CW" were placed on the CheeseWhiz for the current season. The 2012 version of the helmet features a logo that is closer in style to that of the Green Bay Packers, the favorite team of owner Jim Douglas, with the letters "CW" interlocked inside a green oval.

Sisyphean Endeavors
The "lightning bolt" helmet dates back to the 2004 season, when former owner Jason Wedgwood changed his team nickname from "Mythical Mean Machine" to "AyCarumba." Despite multiple ownership and team name changes over the last seven years, the helmet has remained the same because it was difficult to come up with a color scheme/symbol/logo that went with whatever moniker the franchise had at the time.

The proposed 2012 helmet features a picture of Sisyphus (the Greek mythological figure who was sentenced to pushing a boulder up a hill for eternity, only to watch it fall to the bottom every time he reached the peak), as well as the full name of the team.
TH Best Bets
The helmet used for the first two seasons of the franchise's existence was virtually identical to that of the Cleveland Browns, which happens to be owner Mark Bender's favorite NFL team. The initials "BB" were added for the 2011 season, in a font similar to that used by MLB's Toronto Blue Jays for most of their existence. A new version has been proposed for the 2012 season, with the "BB" initials appearing in a different font inside a diamond.
The North Star Sledgehammers of 10,000 Lakes
Prior to 2011, Jay Klinkhammer's squad had a plain purple helmet (because he was a Vikings fan living in Minnesota and his team nickname changed so frequently that any helmet logo would have become quickly outdated).

During the summer of 2011, he announced that he would retain the nickname "The North Star Sledgehammers of 10,000 Lakes" (an obvious reference to the "Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim") as long as he lived in Minnesota. He wanted a nickname that prominently featured the word "hammer," and a helmet was created with a picture of a hammer (although not a sledgehammer) displayed above the word "Sledgehammers." Due to the background of the hammer image, the helmet color was changed to white.

In the 2012 proposed helmet, the color purple returns. A blue eight-sided star (used to represent the North Star and Minnesota's 10,000 lakes) has been added, along with the words "North Star Sledgehammers."

The Steel Curtain
After using a plain black helmet for the 2010 season, the initials "SC" were added to the helmet for 2011. Thanks to PrintMaster, I was able to design a logo similar to the Pittsburgh Steelers logo for the 2012 proposed helmet.

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
August 2011
For the second consecutive season, I am participating in an offline fantasy football draft with other staff members at KFFL.com, one of the best sources for fantasy football information (among other sports) anywhere on the internet. Normally, this draft takes place in July instead of August, but it was pushed back because of the lockout. While the draft's primary purpose is to help owners view different strategies for putting together their teams, it will also be the basis for a real 12-team head-to-head PPR (points per reception) league. In other words, it's like a mock draft except for the fact that the league actually does exist.

Last season, I finished with the worst record in the league (3-10-0), so I rethought my drafting strategy. Even though the draft is still ongoing, I feel more confident about my roster this season and think I am better prepared to deal with injuries if one of my top players is sidelined for an extended period of time.

Click here to find out more background information about the league, which will be hosted at MyFantasyLeague.com. Click here to view the scoring rules and here to see team rosters.

KFFL's Fantasy Football Analysis Draft
Round 1
Round 2
Round 3
Round 4
Round 5
Round 6
Round 7
Round 8
Round 9
Round 10
Round 11
Round 12
Round 13
Round 14
Round 15
Round 16

EDIT: Unfortunately, I had to disable these links because of website security concerns (there was a malware problem associated with the KFFL links that were featured in this edition of the commissioner's note. If the problem is resolved, I hope to restore these links to this site. For the time being, you can e-mail me at jared259@alumni.upenn.edu if you want direct links to the original pages.

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
December 2010
The ninth season of the Ultimate Fantasy Football League is finally in the books. Congratulations to Andrew So and The Catch for winning their first-ever UFFL championship, and thanks to everyone involved for making this one of the most exciting fantasy football seasons yet. Here's hoping that next season can be just as enjoyable - assuming, of course, that labor peace is reached between the owners and players during the offseason.

However, just because the champion has been crowned doesn't mean that all fantasy sports-related opportunities will disappear until next August. Just take a look at what's in store over the next few weeks:

UFFL Pro Bowl: The third annual UFFL Pro Bowl will take place Sunday, Jan. 2, and the coaches are scheduled to be Jay Klinkhammer (Sir Michael Vick) for the Northern Division and Calvin Brown (bbashers) for the Southern Division. These coaches were selected because they scored the most fantasy points for their respective divisions during the regular season. However, Klinkhammer has not logged in to Fleaflicker for more than a month, so if he is unavailable to coach, someone else from the Northern Division will be appointed to run the team. Pro Bowl ballots have already been distributed to the coaches, and starting lineups need to be submitted to the commissioner by Friday, Dec. 31 at 6 p.m. Eastern.

Unfortunately, live scoring is not available for the Pro Bowl, so the scores will have to be manually calculated by the commissioner, with final results being made available early next week.

League questionnaire: The annual UFFL questionnaire will be distributed to all owners via e-mail on Friday, Dec. 31. I have decided to send it out sooner rather than later because owners tend to respond quicker during the football season.

Pickem contest: For the first time ever, this ongoing contest (sponsored by Yahoo! Sports) will extend into the postseason. As of this writing, Jim Douglas (CheeseWhiz) is currently in first place, with 1,271 points.

Postseason football: This year, I have decided to use the postseason football contest from NFL.com, as opposed to the one from the Sporting News website which had been used for the last four seasons. If any of you are interested in playing, here's the registration link (and if prompted, the password is "singletary"). Thanks to assistant commissioner Mozelle Meyers for already registering; the deadline for joining is Saturday, Jan. 8, before kickoff of the first NFL postseason game.

Fantasy hockey: There is currently one opening in my Fleaflicker fantasy hockey league, as a result of an owner resigning last week. If any of you are interested in filling the vacancy, here is the link to register. Because it was changed from a private league to a public league several months ago, no password is required.

Fantasy baseball: I have one opening in the Fantasy Baseball Challenge league on Fleaflicker (and will consider adding expansion teams if there is enough interest). If you did not play last year but want to participate in 2011, send me an e-mail so I can give you an invitation. Click here for the league website.

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
July 2010
For a two-week stretch during the month of July, I participated in an offline fantasy football draft with other staff members at KFFL.com, one of the best sources for fantasy football information (among other sports) anywhere on the internet. While the draft's primary purpose was to help owners view different strategies for putting together their teams, it will also be the basis for a real 12-team head-to-head PPR (points per reception) league. In other words, it's like a mock draft except for the fact that the league actually does exist.

Click here to find out more background information about the league, which will be hosted at MyFantasyLeague.com. Click here to view the scoring rules and here to see team rosters.

KFFL's Fantasy Football Analysis Draft
Round 1
Round 2
Round 3
Round 4
Round 5
Round 6
Round 7
Round 8
Round 9
Round 10
Round 11
Round 12
Round 13
Round 14
Round 15
Round 16

EDIT: Unfortunately, I had to disable these links because of website security concerns (there was a malware problem associated with the KFFL links that were featured in this edition of the commissioner's note. If the problem is resolved, I hope to restore these links to this site. For the time being, you can e-mail me at jared259@alumni.upenn.edu if you want direct links to the original pages.

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
February 2010
Since the formation of the Ultimate Fantasy Football League in 2002, I have constantly been on the lookout for ways to spice up the end of the NFL season from a fantasy standpoint. In 2006, the annual UFFL: Postseason Edition contest, hosted on the Sporting News website, was created. In 2008, the league held its first annual Pro Bowl to make the last week of the NFL regular season more exciting to watch. And now, I am considering hosting a postseason fantasy football contest on the NFL.com website, effective with the end of the 2010-2011 season. This year, I participated as an individual contestant to see whether it was worthy of consideration for next season, and I have come to the conclusion that it wouldn't be a bad idea.

Unlike the UFFL: Postseason Edition contest, contestants in the NFL.com postseason contest are not restricted by a salary cap and can make an unlimited number of transactions. Lineups include one quarterback, two running backs, two wide receivers, a tight end, a placekicker and a defensive team/special teams unit. For every player in your lineup that is on the winning end of a game, you can carry them over to the following week, where they will earn a bonus points modifier to their score. For instance, an NFL player whose team won their first-round game (Wild Card Round) will play for 2x his fantasy points in their second-round game (Divisional Round). If his team makes it to the third round (Conference Championships), he could earn 3x his points. Should he advance to the Super Bowl, he will play for 4x his points.

As for now, let's enjoy the exciting conclusion of the 2009-10 NFL/UFFL campaign, and I hope to compete against many of you in the Fantasy Baseball Challenge.

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
November 2009
Recently, an idea was proposed on the Fleaflicker message board to transform the Ultimate Fantasy Football League from a free league into a money league. The rationale behind this suggestion was that having money invested in the UFFL would force owners to pay more attention to fantasy football and make the league even more competitive than it is now. While this is an intriguing idea in theory, I'm sure that the transition would be frustrating at best and painful at worst. Here's why:

1. The UFFL recently expanded to 14 franchises (from 12), and this was the first offseason in the league's eight-year history where every owner who participated during the previous season elected to return. What are the odds that all of the owners would return if a mandatory fee were implemented? Most owners have not revealed how they feel about the proposal, so it's difficult to tell if their silence represents apathy, opposition or even support. But let's say that most of the current owners decide they don't want to make the financial commitment to the league - who would replace them? And wouldn't the league lose some of its luster if there's a massive overhaul of owners (or if the UFFL is reduced to six or eight teams)?

2. How can we effectively keep track of league dues, when we are still trying to devise ways for owners to submit annual league questionnaires or franchise player lists in a timely manner? Furthermore, if an owner refuses to pay (or ignores all correspondence via e-mail or other means requesting payment), what should be done?

3. Is the league really "not competitive enough," as the idea of making the UFFL a money league implies? Doing a quick check of login information on Fleaflicker, every UFFL owner has visited the website at least once this week (and more than once, in many instances). Also, keep in mind that it is possible to monitor most (but not all) league developments without even being logged in. All owners have made multiple lineup changes and made numerous transactions this season, and many have been active on the message boards and in trade talks. Owner participation might have been a minor problem in 2002, but is not really an issue now.

4. Last but not least, let's not forget that not all of the UFFL owners are in the United States, so exchange rates would need to be considered. For instance, 20 Canadian dollars are not equal to 20 American dollars.

Cost is not the issue here, because twenty dollars is roughly the amount I pay to keep this website running on an annual basis. However, for the foreseeable future, this league will remain free. Of course, if any UFFL owner wants to start their own money league, they have every right to do so.

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
August 2009
As some of you already know, the Fleaflicker website has a page dedicated to "Frequently Requested Features" that fantasy football players have been looking forward to for quite some time. Many of these features have already been implemented, and others are just around the corner. Let's take a look at a few of these features that appear to be on the horizon:

Team Logos: These are expected to arrive during the 2009 NFL season. While this feature is far from necessary, it's great to have. Virtually every other fantasy football website already gives owners the options to use team logos.

Blind Bid Waivers: These are available now, but I will not consider the blind bid waiver system until the 2010 season at the earliest. Unlike the traditional waiver system, which benefits teams with an inferior record, blind bid waivers allow teams to bid for the services of a player, and the team which offers the highest dollar amount gets the player. However, in case of a tie, the team with the inferior record will get him. For instance, if Player X hits the waiver wire, and Team A bids $10 for him, but Team B bids $15, Team B would get Player X. Of course, neither team knows how much other teams have bid for Player X (or even how many other teams are in the running for him), hence the term "blind bid."

Each team would be allotted the same amount of waiver wire money at the beginning of the season, and once that money is used up, they would be unable to get players off waivers. In the example above, Team B would have $15 less after getting Player X, but Team A would not lose any money because they did not end up getting him.

Co-Owners: This feature is expected to be available sometime in 2010. There are many times during the course of a fantasy football season where an owner may not have access to a computer, but wishes they could make moves. Whether it's to set lineups, scour the waiver wire, make draft picks or trades or pre-rank players, having the ability to name a co-owner for your team can come in handy, especially when you don't want to give someone else your password.

Doubleheaders: A doubleheader is when a fantasy football team plays two games during the same week instead of one, using the same lineup for both games. At first, this idea sounded intriguing, because it would allow the UFFL to play a 16-game regular season (with three of the 13 weeks featuring doubleheaders). However, this concept places much more weight on an NFL player's performance during a doubleheader week. If your team has a player who happens to have a terrible game during a doubleheader week, it hurts your team twice as much.

So to recap, it looks like blind bid waivers, along with the addition of the co-owner feature, are strong possibilities to be added to the league in 2010, along with the increase of franchise players from two to three per team. On the other hand, the addition of doubleheaders for the UFFL appears unlikely in the near future.

In addition, with regards to 2010, the offseason trading window is expected to go from March (when the Fleaflicker website is reactivated) until early August (approximately one week before draft day, so that owners can pre-rank players if they wish). The preliminary franchise player selection process will occur throughout the month of June, but will not become finalized until the date of the offseason trading deadline.

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
July 2009
In the time since the Ultimate Fantasy Football League has deserted Yahoo! for Fleaflicker, several things have changed for the better, as far as the experience of playing a free online fantasy football game goes. For starters, Yahoo! now gives free leagues the option of having divisional play. Commissioners no longer have to re-create the league settings from scratch, if they want to carry over customized options from one season to the next. Owners now have the option of looking back at what happened in previous years through their "league history" feature. Keeper leagues are now encouraged, rather than looked upon as abnormalities. And recently, even StatTracker (their live scoring feature) was made free, in an increasingly competitive market for the fantasy football fan who would rather play for fun than for a prize.

If all of these features had been added to Yahoo! two or three seasons ago, would the league still be hosted there? Probably. Would there have been further discussion about moving to another host? It's possible, although highly unlikely.

That being said, I'm very satisfied with the Fleaflicker experience to date. The recent offseason trade between bbashers and A-Peterson Fan Club illustrated how much better this league has become as a result of the host site being operational 365 days a year ... as opposed to waiting for Yahoo! leagues to re-open every June, and then waiting forever for all of the owners to register. As far as I know, Yahoo! still doesn't allow draft picks for future seasons to be traded. The statistical categories on Fleaflicker, along with the detailed box scores and weather reports for each game are a nice touch as well.

In the end, the move to Fleaflicker was an excellent idea, and the deliberate way in which Yahoo! improved their free fantasy football product - when compared to other fantasy football hosts - was a blessing in disguise for the UFFL.

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
July 2008
I recently received an e-mail from the site administrators at Fleaflicker, discussing in-depth their recent merger with AOL. Apparently, it was a message distributed to everyone who had registered at Fleaflicker prior to May 2008, when the merger took place. In case you didn't happen to see the message, here it is, in Microsoft Word form.

In layman's terms, anyone who did not register for the league within the last two months has to re-register, meaning this news applies to virtually everybody in the UFFL. As far as I know, everyone has an AOL/AIM account, seeing as how we attempted to hold the draft during the last two seasons on AOL Instant Messenger. Even for the owners who signed up less than two months ago, it makes sense to double-check your login name and password at Fleaflicker's website, so that come draft time things can flow smoothly.

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
April 2008
What a difference a few months can make! After it appeared that the Ultimate Fantasy Football League was going to be hosted by Yahoo! for a seventh consecutive season, it was recently decided that moving to Fleaflicker would be the most prudent move, in order to provide the best free fantasy football service possible. Here are several reasons why the change was made:

1. Divisional play - As mentioned in my most recent edition of the commissioner's note (November 2007), I supported the idea of divisional play because it gives a more legitimate feel to a fantasy sports league. Besides college basketball and football, I am hard-pressed to think of any sports leagues with 10 or more teams in a single division or conference. The divisional play feature was only available on the paid version of the Yahoo! fantasy football service, and had this feature existed on its free counterpart, the UFFL would have been split into multiple divisions long ago. After originally considering splitting the 12-team league into three divisions with four teams each, I settled upon a two-division format with six teams each. The Northern Division will consist of Andrew So (The Catch), Chad Fuller (Cheeko's Chiefs), Craig Hoffman (Deltaman), Jay Klinkhammer (A-Peterson Fan Club), Jim Douglas (CheeseWhiz) and Stephanie George (Steph Infections). The Southern Division will consist of Calvin Brown (bbashers), Craig Lechner (craigntx), Grace Cloud (Exit Strategy), Jared Byrd (Pulverizers), Mozelle Meyers (Football Gal) and Roy Bellamy (A Fake Football Team).

2. Live scoring - The concept of live scoring was only available on Yahoo! for paying customers, with the exception of a free trial period for everyone during the first few weeks of the regular season. In later weeks, fantasy football owners who chose not to pay for live scoring were either forced to wait until the following day to view up-to-date statistics or calculate the statistics by hand. Fleaflicker provides free live scoring to all participants.

3. Easy-to-use features - While the Yahoo! website was very easy to navigate, many other fantasy football services, like ESPN and America Online, were much more cumbersome to use. Fortunately, Fleaflicker doesn't appear to suffer from that problem, even if it isn't necessarily the most aesthetically pleasing site out there. What sets them apart from the rest is how much accessibility fantasy football owners have to their league during the offseason. Drafting can occur at virtually any time of the year, franchise players for keeper leagues can be selected at one's leisure, and new rule changes can be enforced even in the middle of the spring. Executing trades is also much easier to do on Fleaflicker; unlike Yahoo!, draft picks (for this year or several years down the line) can be exchanged in Fleaflicker leagues.

4. Testimonials - Jim Douglas, owner of the CheeseWhiz, has been a Fleaflicker veteran for several years and says it's the best free fantasy football website he's ever used. The website was brought to my attention several years ago, but compatibility issues with my old computer prevented me from testing out the site or moving the UFFL away from Yahoo! sooner.

Most of the rules and guidelines from last season have remained unchanged, although roster sizes have been reduced (from 18 to 16), as a result of the elimination of defensive players. Also, the entire draft will be conducted in a live chat room hosted by Fleaflicker, and is expected to move in a more efficient manner than any other draft to date.

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
November 2007
Even though the Ultimate Fantasy Football League has had an exciting six-year period on Yahoo!, and is expected to remain there for the 2008 season, I am always looking for new ways to improve the fantasy football playing experience. In recent years, I have experimented with serving as the commissioner of leagues on ESPN and AOL, to see whether their services were superior to those offered at Yahoo! There were some things that I liked more about both websites, but there were other features that I didn't enjoy as much, and therefore I didn't feel like it was worth moving the UFFL from its current home. Allow this chart to illustrate the pros and cons of each of these three fantasy football league options:


Yahoo!
ESPN
AOL
Background
I am currently in my sixth season as the commissioner of the Ultimate Fantasy Football League.
I served as the commissioner of the XFL (Extreme Football League) during the 2005 season.
I am serving as the commissioner of an unnamed public league during the 2007 season.
Pros
1. Familiarity - All of the league's current owners know the features of Yahoo! fantasy football like the back of their hand. And obviously, we know that all of the owners have a Yahoo! account, so the annual registration process isn't too much of a hassle.

2.
Easy-to-use features - The match-up feature allows you to see how you measure up against your head-to-head opponent each week, although the projected point totals aren't usually too accurate. The smack talk feature provides an interesting diversion. Registering the league is a breeze each year because I can just carry over the previous season's rules and settings, and any necessary changes just take a matter of seconds. And last but not least, fantasy football player news is provided by KFFL.
1. Divisional play - I enjoy divisional play because it gives a more legitimate feel to a fantasy sports league. Besides college basketball and football, how many sports leagues in real life can you think of that have double-digit teams in a single division or conference?

2. Injured reserve slots - Unlike Yahoo!, where you either have to release players on injured reserve or store them on your bench, ESPN actually allows you to have multiple IR slots built in. This is strange, because Yahoo! allows leagues to have disabled list/injured list roster exemptions for baseball, basketball, and hockey.

1. Divisional play - enough said.

2. Similarity to Fanball - It uses the same interface as Fanball, which is reportedly one of the best fantasy football league options available anywhere on the internet ... although I have never actually used the original Fanball site. The only difference is that AOL is free, and their fantasy football game is not as well-known, whereas Fanball is not free.

Cons
1. Lack of live scoring - Unless you pay for StatTracker beyond the first week or two of the regular season, you have to wait until the following day to see how your team is doing ... unless you feel like checking the online box scores of every NFL game, and then attempting to do the calculations yourself.

2. Lack of divisional play - Divisional play is available as an option, but only to paid leagues, which we are not. Believe me, if it were available to free leagues, the UFFL would have split into several divisions years ago.

1. Pages take forever to load - Ironic how the website for the worldwide leader in sports mimics the actual network ... lots of bells and whistles, and not as much content as they could have. At least on my computer, the pages take more time to load than on the other two websites.

2. Lack of live scoring - Actually, I was lured here to ESPN because one of the owners thought they had live scoring - which we soon found out was false, unless this option was only available to paid leagues.

1. Difficult to navigate pages - As this message is being typed up, it is Week 11 of the football season - and I still haven't figured out a way to access my league's homepage without doing a trial-and-error process of stumbling through five to ten irrelevant pages first. In other words, the links are extremely difficult to find or misleading. If it's causing this much frustration to the commissioner, imagine how everyone else feels! That being said, once you find what you want, the rest of the site isn't that bad.

2. New interface? - Rumor has it that the AOL/Fanball fantasy football interface will have a different look next season, after Fanball was taken over by new management.


However, after chatting with CheeseWhiz owner Jim Douglas, I am considering starting a second fantasy football league in 2008 at Fleaflicker, after hearing rave reviews about the site. If all goes well with the one-year experimental league, a permanent move by the UFFL could be made as soon as 2009. Among the features offered by Fleaflicker are divisional play, live scoring, and the ability to easily make trades involving draft picks several years down the line. Additional plans for the 2008 Fleaflicker league will be announced in the upcoming months, so if you are interested, or can give me an additional testimonial about the website, e-mail me at jared259@alumni.upenn.edu.

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
April 2007
As the Ultimate Fantasy Football League embarks on its sixth season, league owners were asked to complete a survey during the offseason, regarding which rule changes or modifications, if any, should take effect for the new year. Each of the ten owners who completed the survey agreed to rejoin the UFFL in 2007, and several issues were raised and debated:

  • Franchise players: Of the ten owners who completed the survey, five were in favor of owners selecting two franchise players, and four were in favor of owners choosing one franchise player. (The commissioner did not vote on this issue, although if an official vote was cast, the final tally would have been 6-4 in favor of keeping two players, not 5-4 or 5-5.) While the talent pool will be smaller, the drafting process will be slightly quicker - and the fact that this is a keeper league heavily factored into the decisions of the owners who voted for two franchise players.
  • Roster sizes: Rosters will continue to have 18 slots during the 2007 season. In fact, nobody argued in favor of increasing or decreasing the number of players on a team.
  • Defensive players: One owner requested that we get rid of the defensive players category, which was introduced prior to the 2004 season. In 2005, the number of required defensive players needed in a starting lineup was reduced from four to two, after several owners noted that having both defensive players and a defensive team was redundant. However, the category was not eliminated altogether, in order to give recognition to individual NFL players on the defensive side of the ball. Starting lineup requirements will remain the same for the 2007 season, including having two defensive players.
  • Scoring system: One owner requested that we get rid of the decimal points system. However, the reason why this system was put into place was to prevent ties from occuring. As a result of using this scoring method, there has never been a tie in the history of this league. Therefore, the scoring system will remain the same for the upcoming campaign.
  • Draft type: Two owners were strongly in favor of a live draft (via an instant messenging system or through a chat room), while two owners were strongly in favor of an e-mail draft (which is more time-consuming, but also more convenient for people who have busy schedules). The remaining owners appeared to be either (1) looking forward to either type of draft, or (2) apathetic. If the season were to begin today, the draft would probably be an e-mail draft, but with opportunities for owners to chat with each other on a semi-regular basis. Another option would be to do a split live/e-mail draft; in other words, the first few rounds could be done in a live chat/instant messenging session, with the later rounds being conducted through an e-mail format, or vice versa.

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
November 2006
It is with great pleasure that I am here to announce the opening of the UFFL Online Store, at CafePress.com, just in time for the unofficial beginning of the holiday shopping season. Inside the store, you will find merchandise emblazoned with the league's brand new logo - apparel, housewares, hats, bags, stickers, buttons, magnets, journals and much more. Check it out at http://www.cafepress.com/uffl today!

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner
January 2006
Yet another satisfying fantasy football season has come to a close. For me, it was particularly thrilling, as I won my first-ever league championship - but I would have considered it an exciting season regardless of the outcome. That's why I play fantasy football - for the pure excitement of the game and for bragging rights, not for money.

In July, we will begin our fifth season (can you believe it has been THAT long?), and it's shaping up to be better than ever. As time goes on, the official league website will add more and more features, some of which will not debut until next season (such as a weekly newsletter with game recaps, analysis, and predictions), and some of which will be seen right away (such as a league "hall of fame"). Former Belly's Underdogs head coach/general manager Roy Bellamy may even write an occasional football-related column for this website. Of course, other suggestions are always welcome as well.

While baseball is without question my favorite sport, nothing matches the sheer excitement of fantasy football. It has been a pleasure to be your commissioner, and I hope to serve in this capacity for many more seasons.

- Jared Byrd, UFFL Commissioner