Every league plays by it's own rules, right? Not anymore -- in the PFFL, everyone plays by the exact same rules so that you have an apples-to-apples comparison across every league in the PFFL. This is a game-changer: now when you tell your friends that you can kick their ass in Fantasy Football, you can actually prove it whether you're in the same league or not. When you read our news and analysis it's actually applicable to your scoring system. And there's no limit to how many leagues the PFFL can support, so the long-term goal is to standardize how Fantasy Football is played the world over by getting as many people as possible playing under the same rules.

So how do we do it? Our rules are designed to be simple, traditional, fun, fair and competitive. We strive to take the randomness out of the game where possible to make sure the best players succeed and move up the PFFL ladder to have a shot at becoming true Professionals.

League Size: 12 Teams (3 divisions of 4 teams)
Scoring Type: Head-to-head
Roster Size: 14
Starting Lineup: 1QB, 2RB, 2WR, 1TE, 1 Flex, 1K

Point System:

Passing Yards: 1 point per 25 yards
Passing TD: 4 points
Passing 2-pt conversion: 2 points
Passing INT: -1 point

Rushing/Receiving Yards: 1 point per 10 yards
Scoring TD (Rushing, receiving, return, recovery): 6 points
Scoring 2-pt conversion: 2 points
Fumble Lost: -1 point

FG: 3 points
PAT: 1 point

The PFFL's "Tier Structure" is the innovation that sets us apart and makes us unique -- there's nothing like this out there. And the best news? If you join in Tier-3, there will be ONE team that moves straight to Tier-1 after this year! Here is how it will work for 2012:

If you are in Tier-1: The top three teams in 2012 will remain in Tier-1, and everyone else will move down to Tier-2. Last place will move down two tiers to Tier-3.

If you are in Tier-2: 4 Leagues -- first and second place from each league will move up to Tier-1 in 2012. 3rd and 4th place will stay in Tier-2. 5th-12th place will move down to Tier-3.

If you are in Tier-3: 16 leagues -- first and second place from each league will move up to Tier-2 and the highest ranked team of that group will move ALL the way to Tier-1! All other teams will not be forced to move down and will retain their Tier-3 status for 2013.

Since we're moving off of Yahoo and onto our own application this year, we've got some cool new features coming for 2012 and will be announcing those soon. In the meantime, here are the basic transaction rules:

Trades: All trades must be 1:1 or 2:2 etc.
Trade Review: All trades will be reviewed by the Commissioner and either approved or rejected. Collusion of any kind will not be tolerated and may result in expulsion from The PFFL.
Trade Deadline: Since the Commish will review all trades there will be NO trade deadline for 2012!
Trade Cost: There is no admin cost to make a trade.

Free Agency System: Free Agent Auction Budget
Budget: $200 (this is not real money)
Transaction Limit: None
Waivers: All un-owned players go on "waivers" as soon as that player's game starts that week and remain on waivers until Wednesday at 6:00pm ET. If you would like to pick up a player during waivers, you must make a bid from your Free Agent Auction budget -- top bid gets the player.
Free Agency: Any player that clears waivers is a free agent and may be picked up at no cost.
Transaction Cost: There is no cost to pick up and drop players

We play a 14 week regular season with a two-week playoff. Leagues will be organized into three divisions of four teams each. You will play each team in your division twice (6 games) and each team in the other divisions once (8 games) during the regular season.

The three division winners (record) will advance to the playoffs along with one Wild Card (decided by League Power Ranking). There will also be Playoff Brackets for the 5th-8th place teams and the 9th-12th place team to determine final seeding. Each bracket will play a two-week single-elimination playoff. The top-seeded team will have an opportunity to choose their opponent for the first round, and if they don't make a choice they will automatically play the lowest-seeded team. There will be a consolation game between 3rd and 4th place for the 3rd place prize. If any ties occur during a playoff match, the higher-seeded team will win.

In addition, EVERYONE that doesn't make their league's playoffs will be entered into a Consolation Contest for Week 15 and 16 where whoever scores the most total points will win prizes! Top 10 teams in the Consolation Bracket will win a prize.

The PFFL uses an Auction-style draft. If you've never done an auction before, they are a ton of fun, and are much more strategic as well -- they say, "you can have any player you want, you just can't have every player you want." No more getting stuck with the 12th pick and watching all the best players come off the board...you get who you want.

Budget: $200 (not real money)
Max Bid: $187
Players Drafted: 14 (required)
Nomination Order: First-come, first served -- go join a league now!
Duration: Just over 2 hours

Once the bidding begins, the clock will start ticking down from 30 seconds and anyone can bid on the player as long as they still have the budget available to make the bid. Within the last 10 seconds, any new bid will result in the clock being re-set to 10 seconds to give other players time to make another bid, and whoever has the highest bid when the clock finally expires will be awarded that player.

2012 Terms and Conditions

Game of Skill: The Professional Fantasy Football League (PFFL) is a game of skill that offers cash awards to participants, at guaranteed levels. PFFL contestants take part in an activity, the outcome of which is clearly based on the contestant’s skills and abilities, including skills in such areas as (1) the prediction of the future performance of athletes over a significantly extended time period and not just a single game or a single performance; (2) the skill in drafting such athletes; (3) the skill and ability in creating a balanced fantasy team from such individual athletes; and (4) the skills and strategies surrounding the appropriate understanding and use of the rules governing league competition in the PFFL.

For entry fee and prize information, see the PFFL home page.

The Professional Fantasy Football League (PFFL) is brought to you by The Professional Fantasy Sports League (PFSL).

2. SIGN-UP/REGISTRATION
Participants must complete a simple registration form on the PFFL website via the sign-up link. Payment must be received for sign-up to be official. Acceptable forms of payment are credit card or PayPal.

3. REGISTRATION CONFIRMATION
All participants will receive an immediate registration confirmation email after their registration has been electronically submitted.

4. RULES AND GAMEPLAY STRUCTURE: All of the rules for the PFFL can be found on the PFFL website. Some of the rules (such as the schedule, draft times, etc.) will not be determined until the 2012 NFL Schedule has been announced.

5. TAXATION OF PRIZE MONEY
The winning participants are responsible for all tax burdens occurring as a result of their winnings. PFSL HAS NOT PREPAID ANY TAXES ON ANY OF THE WINNINGS. THE WINNING PARTICIPANT MUST NOTIFY THE IRS OF HIS/HER WINNINGS, AND PROCEED TO PAY APPROPRIATE TAXES ON ALL MONEYS EARNED WHERE NECESSARY. CERTAIN WINNING PARTICIPANTS WILL RECEIVE AN IRS 1099 FORM.
6. OTHER IMPORTANT INFORMATION
a. The PFSL reserves the right to amend the "tier standing" of any team at the PFSL's sole discretion.
b. The PFSL reserves the right to amend the rules without notification.
c. Entry fees may be refunded up until 30 days before the first draft.
d. In the unlikely event that a tie (in any situation) has not been resolved by the given tiebreaking criteria, PFSL will have a coin toss to determine the winner (heads/tails will be randomly drawn).
e. PFSL is not responsible for human errors, typographical errors, or technical errors that occur at any time before, during, or after the PFFL season. PFSL is not responsible for technical errors, including, but not limited to computer viruses, malfunctions, or failures. PFSL is also not responsible for any Internet related problem including server failure, Internet fraud, Internet connection issues, or unauthorized tampering with the PFFL website.
f. In the event of a server failure, the last lineup that was submitted will be the official lineup for the week. PFSL RECOMMENDS THAT PARTICIPANTS MAKE ANY OF THEIR LINEUP CHANGES AS SOON AS LINEUP SUBMISSION IS AVAILABLE EACH WEEK.
g. All prizes will be credited to each winner's account no later than the day after the Super Bowl. Winners will be able to elect to use winnings as a credit towards future PFFL purchases or be reimbursed via PayPal or check.
h. All participants must be 18 years of age or older by the day of their draft, and reside in the United States of America or Canada, or be on active military service. Regretfully, participants from the following states, territories, and provinces are not permitted to play in the PFFL due to local laws: Arizona, Iowa, Louisiana, Montana, Vermont, Quebec, and Puerto Rico. If local laws stipulate an age of majority higher than 18 years of age, the participant must have reached that age of majority by their draft day to be eligible to participate.
i. Employees of The PFFL and their immediate relatives are not eligible for participation in the PFFL. Immediate relatives include parents, siblings, and children.
j. The PFSL will NOT tolerate cheating or collusion. If PFSL determines that any team/participant is cheating in any way, or practicing collusion, all involved parties will be removed from the competition, and will forfeit their entry fee and any prizes won. This includes, but is not limited to, the manipulation or attempt to manipulate the website in any way, shape, or form. ANY ATTEMPT TO DELIBERATELY DAMAGE THE WEBSITE OR TO UNDERMINE THE LEGITIMATE OPERATION OF THE COMPETITION IS A VIOLATION OF CRIMINAL AND CIVIL LAW. SHOULD SUCH AN ATTEMPT BE MADE, PFSL RESERVES THE RIGHT TO SEEK DAMAGES AND ANY OTHER REMEDIES AVAILABLE TO THE FULLEST EXTENT OF THE LAW.
k. In the event that any of the terms and conditions in the Rules and Regulations for the PFFL is found to be invalid or unenforceable by law, the remainder of the Rules and Regulations shall remain valid and enforceable.
l. By submitting their registration, participants release to The PFSL, the use of their name, state, and likeness in the event that the participant is a cash prize winner, without additional compensation, unless prohibited by law. The above will NOT sell this information to any other party. This information is for promotional, publicity, and advertising purposes only.
m. If there is a discrepancy regarding the registrant’s identity, PFSL will conclude that the registered participant is the authorized user of the submitted email address at the time of registration. This authorized user is the one assigned to this email address by another party responsible for providing email access in accordance with the attached domain name.
n. The PFSL will not permit vulgar language on message boards, and has the right to disallow team names that could be viewed as inappropriate or vulgar.
o. PFSL reserves the right to prohibit any person from participation, and to disqualify anyone from participation at any time. PFSL has sole discretion in determining fairness of play, and can refuse to award points and/or prizes when necessary to maintain the integrity of play.
p. PFSL has sole discretion regarding the scheduling of games. If the NFL cancels a game or games, PFSL will not distribute points for the players in that particular game(s). In the event that the NFL reschedules many games, PFSL will decide at that time how this will affect the PFFL season, and make changes as necessary. If the NFL season is cancelled prior to the start of the season, due to an act of God, strike, or any other reason, all entries will be held over to the following year. If the NFL season is cancelled during the season, due to an act of God, strike, or any other reason, the remainder of the PFFL season will also be cancelled, and prizes will be awarded based on the total points earned at that time. In this case, ties will be handled by the method used for the PFFL Championship Playoffs. If the NFL season is cancelled prior to the completion of Week 14, there will be no Consolation Playoff prizes awarded (It would not be possible to determine which teams would receive these prizes in a fair manner, until after Week 14); all prizes will be awarded based on points, disregarding win/loss records.
q. If a situation arises in which an NFL player or defense scores points in an undefined manner, PFSL reserves the right to award or remove points to/from a participant’s score. PFSL will make any necessary changes to the scores before the next week of NFL games begin.
r. PFSL reserves the right to halt play in the PFFL at any time in order to maintain fairness. PFSL may also halt, modify, or discontinue play in the PFFL if caused to do so by a legal or regulatory body. PFSL may disqualify any participants from a geographic area affected by a current or newly enacted legal stipulation preventing them from participation, without compensation to these participants.
s. The National Football League (NFL), or any NFL team, is in no way affiliated with PFSL or the PFFL, nor does it endorse them.
t. PFSL reserves the right to have the sole authority on all interpretations of the Rules and Regulations, as defined by PFSL. Therefore, if a situation arises in which there is unclear definition in the Rules and Regulations, the final decision is made by PFSL.
u. These Rules and Regulations are considered a binding agreement between PFSL and each of the principal registrants.
v. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, under no circumstances shall PFSL be liable for any special, consequential, or incidental damages in connection with its obligations under this agreement, and in any event, the liability of PFSL for any act of negligence or breach of this agreement shall not exceed the amount paid by the principal registrant to PFSL in connection with this agreement during the twelve (12) month period immediately preceding the date of any claim by the principal registrant against PFSL.
w. The PFFL is void where prohibited by law.
Professional Fantasy Football League, PFSL, and PFFL
are all registered trademarks of The PFSL.