League News Archives: Autumn 2017 to Summer 2021

UFFL News and Notes

Article Posted Wednesday, Aug. 11, 2021 at 8:00 a.m. Eastern

- The Ultimate Fantasy Football League is back for its 20th season! The live draft is tentatively scheduled to be held Tuesday, Aug. 24 at 8:30 p.m. Eastern in the Fleaflicker draft room, which will open 30 minutes prior to the beginning of the event. Teams will have up to 90 seconds to make their selections. For owners who will be unable to attend the draft, they will have the option of pre-ranking unprotected players ahead of time, once all teams have submitted their list of franchise players.

- The annual Ultimate Fantasy Football League owners' questionnaire has been distributed to owners via e-mail. If you competed in the UFFL last season but did not receive a copy of the questionnaire, please contact the commissioner in order to receive a link to the survey.

The following owners have already completed the questionnaire and have confirmed that they will be returning for the 2021 season: Mark Bender (Shelburn OrangeHats), Calvin Brown (bbashers), Jared Byrd (Pulverizers), Tony DelSignore (Brown Sugar), Craig Hoffman (Deltaman), Dallas Honeycutt (Morristown Maulers), Glenn MacKenzie (True-North), Jesse McGuigan (Las Vegas Bucks), Mozelle Meyers (Sportsgal) and Angie Williams (The Steel Curtain).

The following owners have not yet responded to the questionnaire, leaving their status uncertain for now: Jim Douglas (CheeseWhiz), Stephanie George (Steph Infections), George Potter (Renegades) and Joseph Randall (Fight'n Nut-Tooths).

- The UFFL-sponsored NFL pickem and survival football contests on Yahoo! Fantasy Sports will remain open for the rest of the preseason. Registration information can be found on the league's Fleaflicker message board.

SUMMER 2018

Preparing for the 2018 UFFL draft

Article Posted Monday, Aug. 13, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. Eastern; Updated Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2018 at 7:00 p.m. Eastern

For the fifth time in the last six seasons, a list of the top 10 choices available at each position has been compiled prior to the UFFL Draft as a service to league owners. The average Fleaflicker draft position is listed in parentheses. This list is subject to change as the rankings fluctuate and may also need to be updated if UFFL owners make adjustments to their franchise player lists.

Note: This list does not reflect last-minute adjustments to the free agency pool made when The Steel Curtain changed their keeper list Tuesday, Aug. 14.

QUARTERBACKS
Russell Wilson (Seattle Seahawks, 50); Cam Newton (Carolina Panthers, 57); Matthew Stafford (Detroit Lions, 90); Philip Rivers (Los Angeles Chargers, 104); Jared Goff (Los Angeles Rams, 121); Patrick Mahomes (Kansas City Chiefs, 122); Marcus Mariota (Tennessee Titans, 123); Dak Prescott (Dallas Cowboys, 139); Derek Carr (Oakland Raiders, 158); Blake Bortles (Jacksonville Jaguars, 159).

RUNNING BACKS
Saquon Barkley (New York Giants, 8); Melvin Gordon (Los Angeles Chargers, 11); Jerick McKinnon (San Francisco 49ers, 23); Joe Mixon (Cincinnati Bengals, 25); Alex Collins (Baltimore Ravens, 33); Jay Ajayi (Philadelphia Eagles, 38); Kenyan Drake (Miami Dolphins, 41); Derrick Henry (Tennessee Titans, 43); Lamar Miller (Houston Texans, 45); Mark Ingram (New Orleans Saints, 50).

WIDE RECEIVERS
Julio Jones (Atlanta Falcons, 12); Michael Thomas (New Orleans Saints, 14); A.J. Green (Cincinnati Bengals, 17); Adam Thielen (Minnesota Vikings, 28); Tyreek Hill (Kansas City Chiefs, 31); Amari Cooper (Oakland Raiders, 34); Larry Fitzgerald (Arizona Cardinals, 35); Demaryius Thomas (Denver Broncos, 39); Marvin Jones (Detroit Lions, 46); Golden Tate (Detroit Lions, 47).

TIGHT ENDS
Zach Ertz (Philadelphia Eagles, 36); Greg Olsen (Carolina Panthers, 61); Evan Engram (New York Giants, 68); Delanie Walker (Tennessee Titans, 79); Kyle Rudolph (Minnesota Vikings, 82); Trey Burton (Chicago Bears, 102); George Kittle (San Francisco 49ers, 124); Jack Doyle (Indianapolis Colts, 126); David Njoku (Cleveland Browns, 128); O.J. Howard (Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 144).

PLACEKICKERS
Stephen Gostkowski (New England Patriots, 222); Justin Tucker (Baltimore Ravens, 224); Greg Zuerlein (Los Angeles Rams, 244); Matt Bryant (Atlanta Falcons, 259); Wil Lutz (New Orleans Saints, 274); Jake Elliott (Philadelphia Eagles, 281); Matt Prater (Detroit Lions, 286); Dan Bailey (Dallas Cowboys, 296); Chris Boswell (Pittsburgh Steelers, 300); Harrison Butker (Kansas City Chiefs, 318).

PUNTERS
The average draft position for punters is not available because this is the first year they have been included in the Fleaflicker database for draft purposes. The numbers listed for each punter refers to the percentage of leagues where they are currently owned.

Lachlan Edwards (New York Jets, 62%); Sam Koch (Baltimore Ravens, 57%); Marquette King (Denver Broncos, 54%); Shane Lechler (Houston Texans, 52%); Johnny Hekker (Los Angeles Rams, 52%); Jon Ryan (Seattle Seahawks, 40%); Chris Jones (Dallas Cowboys, 38%); Kevin Huber (Cincinnati Bengals, 37%); Michael Dickson (Seattle Seahawks, 35%); Tress Way (Washington Redskins, 31%).

TEAM DEFENSE/SPECIAL TEAMS
Jacksonville Jaguars (154); Minnesota Vikings (165); Philadelphia Eagles (190); Los Angeles Rams (202); Los Angeles Chargers (204); Houston Texans (213); Denver Broncos (215); Baltimore Ravens (218); New Orleans Saints (256); Seattle Seahawks (260).

INDIVIDUAL DEFENSIVE PLAYERS
Luke Kuechly (Carolina Panthers, 69); Bobby Wagner (Seattle Seahawks, 70); C.J. Mosley (Baltimore Ravens, 71); Telvin Smith (Jacksonville Jaguars, 77); Kwon Alexander (Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 93); Landon Collins (New York Giants, 96); Deion Jones (Atlanta Falcons, 100); Joey Bosa (Los Angeles Chargers, 109); Sean Lee (Dallas Cowboys, 129); Reshad Jones (Miami Dolphins, 130).

Helpful hints and reminders for the 2018 UFFL draft

Article Posted Monday, Aug. 13, 2018 at 9:00 a.m. Eastern

Here are a few reminders for Ultimate Fantasy Football League owners regarding the 2018 draft:

1. The live draft will begin at 8:30 p.m. Eastern on Tuesday, Aug. 14 on the Fleaflicker website, although the draft room will open 30 minutes ahead of time (8:00 p.m.). Regardless of whether you're using a desktop computer, laptop computer, smartphone or tablet, make sure to test out the software ahead of time so that your device is compatible with the draft room.

2. To view the draft order, click on the Draft tab of the UFFL Fleaflicker website. Teams will have up to 90 seconds to make their picks but are strongly encouraged to keep things moving if they know who they want to select. The entire process should be completed in 60 to 90 minutes and most teams will be picking for 17 rounds, thanks to the addition of punters to UFFL starting lineups.

3. To see which players are unprotected (and therefore eligible to be drafted), click on the Players tab of the UFFL Fleaflicker website. If you know that you're going to be unavailable for all or part of the draft, it's a good idea to pre-rank players ... but we hope to see all of you on Tuesday.

4. For an updated list of franchise players, click on the Franchise Players button on the left side of the UFFL home page. Remember, owners can make changes to their franchise player lists until 5:00 p.m. Eastern on Tuesday.

5. Any trades completed between now and Tuesday's draft need to be sent directly to the commissioner after all owners involved have agreed to any proposed deal. The reason for this is to give the commissioner an opportunity to manually adjust rosters on Fleaflicker. On draft night, any proposed deals need to be announced in the live Fleaflicker draft room, with adjustments to all teams involved in trading being made after the draft.

6. Finally, if you think you're going to forget about the draft (as several owners have over the last few seasons), you may request to have the commissioner send out a reminder via text message approximately one hour before things get underway.

2018 UFFL questionnaires distributed

Article Posted Friday, July 13, 2018 at 5:00 p.m. Eastern; Updated Sunday, Aug. 5, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. Eastern

The annual UFFL owners' questionnaire was distributed to everyone who participated in the league last season Friday, July 13, via e-mail. So far, bbashers owner Calvin Brown, CheeseWhiz owner Jim Douglas, Deltaman owner Craig Hoffman, Fight'n Nut-Tooths owner Joseph Randall, Football Gal owner Mozelle Meyers, Morristown Maulers owner Dallas Honeycutt, Paternoster Gang owner Grace Cloud, Pulverizers owner Jared Byrd, Saved by the Bell owner Zach Greubel, Shelburn OrangeHats owner Mark Bender, Steph Infections owner Stephanie George and The Steel Curtain owner Angie Williams have officially announced that they will be back for the 2018 season. Returning owners were asked to submit their responses as soon as possible so that necessary changes and adjustments can be made for the upcoming campaign, with draft day approximately one month away.

This year's survey is short compared to previous years, with a question asking if the number of injured reserve slots should be increased listed as the only potential rule change being voted on for now. Of course, other owners are welcome to submit ideas for rule changes to be discussed or voted on by the league.

If you were part of the league in 2017 but did not receive a questionnaire, please e-mail the commissioner at the address on the left side of the screen.

Punters coming to the UFFL

Article Posted Friday, July 13, 2018 at 4:00 p.m. Eastern

During the offseason, Fleaflicker made it possible for fantasy football commissioners to add punters to their leagues - a feature that very few websites have offered as an option. As a result, punters will become part of the UFFL beginning with the 2018 season.

Here's what the proposed scoring guidelines will look like: 0.5 points for every punt attempt, 1 point for every punt inside the 20-yard line, -0.5 points for every touchback and -1 point for every blocked punt.

In addition to these categories, punters will be eligible to receive fantasy points for passing, rushing, receiving, placekicking and defensive plays (such as tackles). Rosters will be expanded by one spot, so that each team will have 13 starters (one quarterback, two running backs, three wide receivers, one tight end, one flex player, one placekicker, one punter, one defensive team/special teams unit and two individual defensive players), seven bench players and two spots for players on injured reserve.

If this idea proves to be successful, it can be retained for future seasons, with the possibility that the point values for some or all of the categories could be increased. If it turns out to be a colossal failure, the idea could be scrapped.

UFFL News and Notes: June Edition

Article Posted Saturday, June 23, 2018 at 12:00 a.m. Eastern

Glenn MacKenzie, who has been a member of the Fantasy Baseball Challenge league since the 2017 season, has joined the Ultimate Fantasy Football League. He will take over the N2deep franchise, previously run by George Thomas since it entered the UFFL as an expansion team for the 2009 season.

MacKenzie is a veteran Fleaflicker fantasy football owner, having compiled an overall record of 520-350-0 (.598) since the 2010 campaign, with a 55-45-0 (.550) postseason record and 11 championship trophies. He has renamed the franchise True-North.

UFFL News Ticker: The annual league questionnaire will likely be distributed to owners early next month, although there don't appear to be any pressing issues to discuss at this point. Owners who have ideas for rule changes should send an e-mail to the commissioner as soon as possible, in order to ensure that these ideas appear on the questionnaire ... Registration for the 2018 survival football and NFL pickem games on Yahoo! Fantasy Sports is not expected to begin until late July or early August; when these contests are open, all league members will be contacted.

WINTER 2017

UFFL News and Notes: February Edition

Article Posted Sunday, Feb. 20, 2018 at 10:00 p.m. Eastern

The Southern Division defeated the Northern Division in the tenth annual UFFL Pro Bowl, 151.13 to 138.84, bringing their all-time record in the contest to 8-2-0. The winners were led by Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson, who went 18-for-29 with 221 passing yards and two touchdowns. Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Keenan Allen led all scorers in a losing effort for the Northerners, with nine catches, 133 receiving yards, a receiving touchdown and a fumble recovery touchdown en route to earning UFFL Horse Trailer honors. Pulverizers owner and league commissioner Jared Byrd coached the Southern Division, while Football Gal owner and assistant commissioner Mozelle Meyers led the Northern Division.

UFFL News Ticker: Deltaman owner Craig Hoffman was the winner of the UFFL Postseason Challenge contest on NFL.com. To view the complete final standings from the competition, click here ... Saved by the Bell owner Zach Greubel was the winner of the UFFL Pickem Challenge on Yahoo! Sports, with 161 correct picks out of 267 combined NFL regular-season and postseason games (60% accuracy). The final standings from this game can be viewed here.

Saved by the Bell screeches to UFFL Bowl victory

Article Posted Thursday, Dec. 28, 2017 at 10:00 p.m. Eastern

On Feb. 14, 2017, Zach Greubel and Steve Ungrey both registered to compete in the Ultimate Fantasy Football League, a 14-team keeper format filled with knowledgeable owners from all across the United States which was on the verge of entering its sixteenth year of existence. Little did they know that less than eleven months later, they would meet on the cyber gridiron to determine the champion of UFFL Bowl XVI.

Neither newcomer was a stranger to fantasy football, having played and covered the game for many years, although it was the first time either of them had competed on Fleaflicker. Ungrey took over the franchise formerly owned by Tony DelSignore and kept the Renegade team nickname, while Greubel assumed control of the franchise previously known as The Catch, owned by Andrew So, and renamed it Saved by the Bell. Both clubs were helped by a solid base of keeper players - Renegade kept Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown, Arizona Cardinals running back David Johnson and Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, while Saved by the Bell held on to Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le'Veon Bell, Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Allen Robinson. And while several of these players suffered key injuries or turned in disappointing statistical performances down the stretch, both squads were able to overcome these setbacks.

Both teams had solid performances during the regular season, with Renegade finishing 8-5-0 and earning the No. 5 seed in the championship bracket. Saved by the Bell entered the postseason with an identical record and carried the No. 6 seed into the playoffs. However, with the exception of Greubel's victory in the semifinal round versus the Pulverizers, every other playoff game involving these two teams was decided by fewer than 10 points. UFFL Bowl XVI was no different, with Saved by the Bell edging out Renegade, 114.95 to 105.98.

New England Patriots running back Dion Lewis led all players with 32.82 fantasy points for the winners, racking up 129 yards on the ground, five catches for 24 receiving yards and two combined touchdowns (one rushing and one receiving). The Minnesota Vikings defense led Renegade with 16.32 fantasy points, with two interceptions and one sack. Atlanta Falcons running back Tevin Coleman (13.20 fantasy points) had the best performance among individual players for Renegade, with 52 all-purpose yards and a touchdown.

"I was really surprised to be in it in the first place!," Ungrey wrote in a congratulatory message to Greubel on the Fleaflicker message board following the game.

This championship game marked the first time since 2002 that both clubs in the UFFL Bowl were controlled by first-year owners; of course, it would have been impossible not to have this happen back then, since it was the league's inaugural campaign. For the Saved by the Bell franchise, it was their second-ever league title; they were victorious in 2010, during their incarnation as The Catch.

AUTUMN 2017

UFFL News and Notes: December Edition

Article Posted Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2017 at 9:00 p.m. Eastern

- The tenth-annual UFFL Pro Bowl will take place Sunday, Dec. 31, during Week 17 of the NFL regular se1ason. The head coaches are scheduled to be Zach Greubel (Saved by the Bell) for the Northern Division and Dallas Honeycutt (Morristown Maulers) for the Southern Division. The coaches for both sides were chosen because they scored the most fantasy points for their respective divisions during the regular season.

Ballots will be distributed via e-mail to both coaches by Wednesday, Dec. 27, and they will have until Saturday, Dec. 30 at 5:00 p.m. Eastern to submit their starting lineups. Replacement coaches may be selected if lineups are not received by this time, although lineups can be adjusted as many times as necessary up until game time.

Pro Bowl starting lineups will be posted on the UFFL website. Live scoring will not be available for this particular contest, but the final outcome should be determined by Monday, Jan. 1. At that point, the box score will be published on the website.

- Participants are now being recruited for the annual postseason contest on NFL.com, which begins Saturday, Jan. 6 and runs through Sunday, Feb. 4. If you are interested in competing, send an e-mail to commissioner Jared Byrd at jared259@alumni.upenn.edu or visit the UFFL-sponsored fantasy leagues link on the home page (and if prompted, the group name is "UFFL" and the password is "playoffs"). Contestants will be able to set their lineups after the NFL regular season ends.

- Pulverizers owner/league commissioner Jared Byrd won the UFFL Survival Football contest on Yahoo! Fantasy Sports in Week 14 by being the last contestant standing out of the six original participants. Football Gal owner Mozelle Meyers is currently leading the UFFL Pickem Challenge contest, which will continue through Super Bowl LII.

- The Ultimate Fantasy Football League will be renewed for the 2018 season on the Fleaflicker website Tuesday, Feb. 13. At that point, owners will be allowed to resume making trades, the preliminary schedule will be unveiled and the live draft date will be announced.

- Ideas for UFFL rule changes should be e-mailed to the commissioner for inclusion on the annual owners' questionnaire, which is likely to be distributed in the summer of 2018.

In Memoriam: George Thomas

Article Posted Wednesday, Dec. 6, 2017 at 9:00 p.m. Eastern

It is with our deepest sympathy that we must announce that George Thomas, who had been a member of the Ultimate Fantasy Football League as the owner of the N2deep franchise since the 2009 season, passed away recently following a lengthy illness. He had been a friend to many of us for several years before joining the league and was a devoted father. Our thoughts and prayers are with him and his family at this time.