Rules

A. League Commissioner

The Churchman Fantasy Football League (“CFFL” or “the League”) shall be governed and administered by the League Commissioner. The League was founded by Jonathan Sherrard, who shall serve as the League Commissioner and exercise the authority and responsibilities assigned to that office under this Constitution.

B. Duties and Authority of the League Commissioner

1. During each League season, the League Commissioner shall be responsible for the efficient and orderly administration of the day-to-day operations of the Churchman Fantasy Football League.

2. The League Commissioner shall have the authority and responsibility to interpret, administer, and enforce the provisions of this Constitution and to determine the appropriate course of action in matters affecting League operations.

3. In exercising such authority, the League Commissioner shall act in accordance with the provisions of the CFFL Constitution, applicable League rules and policies, and the rules, regulations, and technical requirements established by ESPN Fantasy Football, where applicable.

A. Number and Ownership of Franchises

1. The Churchman Fantasy Football League shall consist of twelve (12) franchises for each League season, with neither more nor fewer franchises permitted except by formal amendment to this Constitution.

2. Each Franchise Owner may own, co-own, and/or manage only one (1) franchise during any given League season. A franchise may include no more than one (1) designated Co-Owner in addition to the primary Franchise Owner.

3. No individual may hold an ownership, co-ownership, or managerial interest in more than one franchise during the same League season.

B. Returning Franchise Owners and Vacancies

1. Franchise Owners from the immediately preceding League season shall have the right of first retention of their respective franchises for the following season, provided that such owner remains in good standing and has not been suspended, removed, or otherwise prohibited from participation by the League Commissioner pursuant to this Constitution.

2. When a franchise becomes vacant, the selection and approval of a new Franchise Owner shall rest within the sole and final discretion of the League Commissioner.

3. Current League members are encouraged to recommend prospective Franchise Owners for consideration. Such recommendations shall be welcomed and given appropriate consideration; however, no recommendation shall create an entitlement to League membership or otherwise limit the Commissioner’s authority to approve or deny a prospective owner.

A. League Fees

1. The League Entry Fee shall be established annually by the League Commissioner prior to the reactivation of the League for the upcoming season. The amount of the Entry Fee shall be determined at the sole discretion of the Commissioner unless otherwise provided by this Constitution.

2. All League Entry Fees shall be due no later than fourteen (14) days prior to the annual Fantasy Draft. A Franchise Owner who is unable to satisfy the Entry Fee by the established deadline may, at the discretion of the Commissioner, receive a final notice and temporary extension. In all cases, the Entry Fee must be paid in full prior to the commencement of the Fantasy Draft in order for the Franchise Owner to secure participation in the League for that season.

3. Failure to pay all required League fees prior to the Fantasy Draft shall constitute grounds for suspension or forfeiture of League membership for that season. Upon such failure, the Commissioner shall have the authority to declare the franchise vacant and appoint or approve a replacement Franchise Owner.

B. Rosters

1. Each franchise shall be permitted a predetermined number of active roster, bench, injured reserve, or other applicable roster positions as established by the League Commissioner prior to the beginning of each season.

2. The official roster composition and positional requirements shall be published on the League Settings Page and shall govern all franchises for the applicable League season.

C. Scoring

1. The League’s official scoring system shall be established by the League Commissioner prior to the annual Fantasy Draft and shall be fully itemized on the League Settings Page.

2. Once Week 1 of the regular season has commenced, the scoring system shall be considered final and shall not be amended, modified, altered, or otherwise changed for the remainder of that League season.

3. Any scoring correction made directly by ESPN Fantasy Football as a result of an official statistical correction shall not be considered a prohibited modification of the League’s scoring system.

D. Divisions

1. The Churchman Fantasy Football League shall consist of two (2) divisions of six (6) franchises each, designated as follows:

a. Soul Winner South
b. Kingdom Builder North

2. Division assignments shall be determined through a random selection process prior to the annual reactivation of the ESPN Fantasy Football League.

3. Once established, all divisional assignments shall remain in effect for a period of five (5) consecutive League seasons. At the conclusion of each five-season cycle, the League shall undergo an automatic divisional realignment, at which time all franchises shall again be assigned to divisions through the League’s established random selection process.

4. Once Week 1 of the regular season has commenced, no Franchise Owner or franchise may be reassigned, transferred, or moved from one division to another for the remainder of that season, except where necessary to correct an administrative or technical error occurring before the start of Week 1.

View the official ESPN league settings

A. Draft Process

1. The annual Churchman Fantasy Football League Draft shall be conducted using a traditional snake draft format, whereby the order of selection reverses at the conclusion of each round.

2. The official Draft Order shall be determined randomly approximately one (1) hour prior to the scheduled start of the Draft through the randomization system provided by ESPN Fantasy Football. Once established, the Draft Order shall be final.

3. Each Franchise Owner shall have the right to participate in the Draft live or to utilize ESPN’s automated drafting system (“Auto Draft”) to make selections on the Franchise Owner’s behalf.

4. Draft positions, draft order placements, and draft slots shall not be traded, transferred, sold, assigned, or otherwise exchanged between Franchise Owners.

5. During the Draft, each Franchise shall be required to comply with the minimum and maximum roster requirements, positional limits, and other roster restrictions established in the official League Settings.

6. Upon the conclusion of each League season, all players shall be released from their respective franchises and returned to the player pool for selection in the following season’s Draft.

7. The Churchman Fantasy Football League shall operate as a non-keeper league. No Franchise Owner shall retain exclusive rights to any player from one season to the next unless this Constitution is formally amended to establish a keeper or similar player-retention system.

A. Free Agents and Player Acquisitions

1. Free-agent acquisitions, including the addition and release of players, may commence immediately following the completion of the annual Draft, subject to the applicable rules and procedures established in the League Settings.

2. Unless otherwise expressly provided in the League Settings, there shall be no season-long limit on the number of free-agent acquisitions, additions, or drops that a Franchise Owner may complete during the regular season or League Playoffs.

3. All player acquisitions shall remain subject to applicable ESPN roster requirements, waiver procedures, player-lock rules, and other League Settings in effect for the applicable season.

B. Waiver Priority

1. Waiver priority shall be reset at the conclusion of each applicable scoring week.

2. The waiver order shall be determined according to the inverse order of the League Standings, such that franchises positioned lower in the standings shall receive priority over franchises positioned higher in the standings, subject to the applicable ESPN waiver settings.

A. Trading Period

1. Trading shall not commence until the conclusion of Week 1 of the regular season.

2. Following the opening of the trading period, Franchise Owners may enter into any number of permissible trades until the official Trade Deadline established in the League Settings.

3. No trade may be initiated or accepted after the expiration of the official Trade Deadline. A transaction properly accepted before the deadline may complete the League’s established review process after the deadline where permitted by ESPN and this Constitution.

B. Trade Approval, League Vote, and Commissioner Authority

1. Every trade accepted through the ESPN Fantasy Football system shall be subject to review and a vote of the League membership before the transaction becomes final.

2. During the established trade-review period, eligible Franchise Owners shall have the opportunity to vote to either approve or veto the proposed transaction. The result of the League vote shall be determined by a majority of the eligible votes properly cast during the review period.

3. Franchise Owners who are parties to the trade shall not be eligible to vote upon their own transaction. Their participation in negotiating and accepting the trade shall constitute their consent to the transaction and shall not constitute a League approval vote.

4. The League vote shall serve as the primary expression of the membership’s determination regarding whether a trade should be approved or vetoed. However, except as otherwise expressly provided herein, the League Commissioner shall retain final authority over every trade.

5. Following consideration of the League vote and the circumstances surrounding the transaction, the Commissioner may uphold or overturn the result of the League vote. Accordingly, the Commissioner may:

a. uphold a League vote approving a trade;
b. overturn a League vote approving a trade and veto the transaction;
c. uphold a League vote vetoing a trade; or
d. overturn a League vote vetoing a trade and approve the transaction.

6. The Commissioner’s final authority shall be exercised in the interest of enforcing this Constitution and preserving the fairness, integrity, and competitive legitimacy of the League. Factors that may warrant Commissioner intervention include, but are not limited to, suspected collusion, improper coordination between Franchise Owners, manipulation or abuse of the voting process, violations of League rules, administrative or procedural errors, or conduct otherwise detrimental to the League.

7. The Commissioner shall not veto a trade solely because the Commissioner or other Franchise Owners believe that one franchise received greater player value than another. Franchise Owners are entitled to make independent decisions concerning the management and competitive interests of their respective franchises, provided that such decisions are made in good faith and do not constitute collusion or otherwise violate this Constitution.

8. Except where the Commissioner is disqualified pursuant to subsection B.9 below, the Commissioner’s ruling following the League vote shall constitute the final and binding decision of the League regarding the transaction.

9. Commissioner Conflict-of-Interest Safeguard. If the League Commissioner is a participating party to the trade under review, the Commissioner shall be disqualified from voting upon, approving, vetoing, overturning, or otherwise exercising final authority over that transaction. In such circumstances, all parties to the trade shall be excluded from voting, and the decision of the majority of the remaining eligible Franchise Owners shall be final and binding.

10. If the League subsequently establishes the office of Assistant Commissioner or another designated neutral League officer through this Constitution, such officer may exercise review authority over a Commissioner-involved trade only to the extent expressly authorized by this Constitution.

C. Trade Review Period and Voting Procedure

1. All accepted trades shall be subject to a review period of one (1) day, or twenty-four (24) hours, beginning when all participating Franchise Owners have formally accepted the transaction through the ESPN Fantasy Football system.

2. Eligible Franchise Owners may cast their vote to approve or veto the transaction during the established review period through the ESPN Trade Review system or another voting procedure expressly authorized by the League Commissioner.

3. Only votes actually and properly cast during the established review period shall be counted in determining the majority. A Franchise Owner who fails to vote within the applicable review period shall be deemed to have abstained, and such abstention shall not constitute either an approval or veto vote.

4. A majority shall be determined based upon the number of eligible votes actually cast, rather than the total number of League franchises, unless another voting threshold is expressly established elsewhere in this Constitution.

5. A trade may be processed prior to the expiration of the full twenty-four-hour review period only if:

a. all eligible Franchise Owners have cast their votes;
b. the outcome of the League vote has been conclusively determined; and
c. the League Commissioner has issued the Commissioner’s final ruling on the transaction.

6. When the Commissioner is a party to the transaction, subsection B.9 shall govern, and the trade may be processed once the applicable majority vote has become final.

D. Validity of Trades

1. A proposed trade shall not be recognized as an official League transaction until it has been formally submitted and accepted by all participating parties through the ESPN Fantasy Football system.

2. Verbal agreements, text messages, private messages, handshake agreements, preliminary negotiations, promises, or other “pre-agreed” arrangements shall not, by themselves, constitute an official or enforceable League trade.

3. Until a proposed transaction has been formally submitted and accepted through ESPN, any participating Franchise Owner shall retain the right to withdraw from the proposed transaction without penalty.

4. Formal acceptance of a trade through ESPN shall signify the participating Franchise Owners’ agreement to the transaction but shall not constitute final League approval. Every accepted trade shall remain subject to the League voting and Commissioner-review procedures established under this Article.

5. Once a trade has been formally accepted through ESPN and submitted for League review, no participating Franchise Owner may unilaterally cancel, withdraw, modify, or rescind the transaction while the review process is pending.

6. A trade shall become final and binding only after completion of the applicable League vote and the Commissioner’s final ruling, or, in the case of a trade involving the Commissioner, upon completion of the final majority vote required under subsection B.9.

A. Regular-Season Schedule

1. Prior to the annual Draft, the League Commissioner shall establish and publish the official regular-season schedule. The schedule may be generated through the use of ChatGPT, scheduling software, or other scheduling tools approved by the Commissioner.

2. Because the League’s scheduling format is specifically designed to prioritize divisional competition and support the League’s divisional playoff qualification structure, the automatic schedule generated by ESPN Fantasy Football may not adequately conform to the requirements of the Churchman Fantasy Football League. Accordingly, the Commissioner shall have the authority and responsibility to manually create, modify, or enter the official schedule within ESPN as necessary to conform to the League’s established scheduling requirements.

3. During the fourteen-week regular season, each franchise shall:

a. compete against each of the other five (5) franchises within its division twice, accounting for ten (10) divisional matchups; and

b. compete against four (4) franchises from the opposing division once, with such non-divisional opponents determined through a random or otherwise impartial scheduling process.

4. The official schedule established pursuant to this Article shall govern the League season and shall not be altered after the commencement of Week 1 except where necessary to correct an administrative, scheduling, or technical error.

B. Starting Lineups and Roster Management

1. Each Franchise Owner shall be responsible for establishing and maintaining a valid starting lineup for each scoring week.

2. Any lineup adjustment involving an individual player or roster position must be completed before the scheduled commencement of that player’s applicable NFL game, subject to the lineup-locking rules established by ESPN Fantasy Football.

3. Once a player’s scheduled game has commenced and the applicable roster position has been locked by ESPN, the Franchise Owner shall have no right to substitute, replace, remove, or otherwise alter that player’s lineup status except where permitted by ESPN or authorized by the Commissioner to correct a verified technical or administrative error.

4. Failure to place an eligible player into a starting roster position before the applicable lineup deadline may result in that position remaining vacant for the applicable scoring period and receiving zero (0) points.

5. A Franchise Owner may, at the Owner’s discretion, intentionally leave an otherwise eligible starting roster position vacant. However, any intentional act or pattern of conduct that reasonably appears designed to manipulate League standings, playoff qualification, draft positioning, competitive outcomes, or the success or failure of another franchise may be subject to League and Commissioner review for potential collusion, competitive manipulation, or conduct detrimental to the integrity of the League.

6. A Franchise Owner shall not be penalized merely because a lineup decision proves unsuccessful. Review under this provision shall concern the intent and circumstances surrounding the decision rather than the competitive wisdom of the decision itself.

C. Conclusion of the Regular Season

1. The CFFL regular season shall conclude upon the completion of Week 14.

2. Following the conclusion of Week 14, final regular-season standings shall be determined and the Commissioner shall establish the official playoff field in accordance with Article VIII of this Constitution.

A. Playoff Format

1. The Churchman Fantasy Football League Playoffs shall consist of three (3) consecutive one-week rounds, as follows:

a. First Round — Week 15
b. Second Round — Week 16
c. League Championship — Week 17

2. Each playoff matchup shall be determined according to the same scoring system and applicable scoring rules governing head-to-head matchups during the regular season, unless otherwise expressly provided in this Constitution or the official League Settings.

3. The franchise earning the greater number of fantasy points during the applicable playoff matchup shall advance or be declared the winner of that matchup, subject to any applicable ESPN statistical corrections and League tiebreaking procedures.

B. Championship Playoff Qualification

1. The Championship Playoffs shall consist of six (6) franchises, with three (3) qualifying franchises from each division.

2. From each division, playoff qualification shall be awarded as follows:

a. the franchise finishing with the best overall regular-season record within the division shall be recognized as the Division Champion and shall qualify for the Championship Playoffs;

b. the franchise finishing with the second-best overall regular-season record within the division shall qualify for the Championship Playoffs; and

c. the franchise finishing with the third-best overall regular-season record within the division shall qualify for the Championship Playoffs.

3. Playoff qualification shall therefore be determined within each division independently. A fourth-place franchise in one division shall not replace a second- or third-place qualifying franchise from the opposing division solely because the fourth-place franchise possesses a superior overall League record.

C. Manual Adjustment of ESPN Playoff Bracket

1. The League acknowledges that the ESPN Fantasy Football system may automatically populate its Championship Bracket according to overall League standings rather than the CFFL’s required divisional qualification structure.

2. Accordingly, immediately following the completion of the regular season and prior to the commencement of the Playoffs, the League Commissioner shall manually review and, where necessary, modify the ESPN Championship Bracket to ensure compliance with the playoff qualification requirements established by this Constitution.

3. Any temporary playoff bracket displayed by ESPN before the Commissioner completes the official playoff verification and adjustment process shall be considered preliminary and unofficial.

4. A franchise’s temporary appearance in, or omission from, an automatically generated ESPN playoff bracket shall not establish a right to playoff participation. The playoff field shall become official only after verification and certification by the League Commissioner in accordance with this Constitution.

D. Tiebreaking Procedures

1. In the event that two or more franchises within the same division complete the regular season with identical overall records and a tiebreaker is necessary to determine divisional placement, playoff qualification, or playoff seeding, the following criteria shall be applied sequentially in the order listed until the tie is resolved:

1. Division Record — The franchise possessing the superior win-loss record in games played against opponents within its own division shall receive the higher position.

2. Head-to-Head Record — If the tie remains unresolved, the franchise possessing the superior head-to-head record against the other tied franchise shall receive the higher position.

3. Total Points Scored — If the tie remains unresolved, the franchise having scored the greater number of total fantasy points during the regular season shall receive the higher position.

4. Non-Divisional Record — If the tie remains unresolved, the franchise possessing the superior record in games played against franchises from the opposing division shall receive the higher position.

5. Coin Toss — If all preceding criteria fail to resolve the tie, final placement shall be determined by an impartial coin toss administered or supervised by the League Commissioner.

2. Each tiebreaking criterion shall be exhausted before proceeding to the next criterion.

A. Principal League Awards

1. Following the conclusion of each League season, the Churchman Fantasy Football League shall recognize and present three (3) principal League awards, ordinarily presented during the League’s annual End-of-Year Awards Ceremony.

2. The principal League awards shall be as follows:

a. Churchman League Champion — The James E. Taylor, Sr. Memorial Trophy
Awarded to the Franchise Owner whose franchise wins the League Championship.

b. Regular-Season High Scoring Champion — The Solomon Scorer Trophy
Awarded to the franchise accumulating the greatest number of total fantasy points during the regular season.

c. Last-Place Finisher — The Backslider Trophy
Awarded to the franchise determined to have finished last through the applicable Consolation Playoff structure.

3. The League Commissioner shall be responsible for verifying and certifying all official award recipients following the conclusion of the applicable season.

4. Official statistical corrections, playoff results, and other adjustments recognized by ESPN Fantasy Football or authorized pursuant to this Constitution shall be incorporated before an award recipient is considered final.

A. Submission of Proposed Amendments

1. Any Franchise Owner in good standing may propose an amendment to this Constitution.

2. Any proposed amendment intended to take effect for an upcoming League season must be submitted prior to the annual Draft and within any additional submission deadline established by the League Commissioner.

3. Proposed amendments shall be submitted to the League Commissioner in a manner sufficient to identify the provision to be added, removed, or modified and the intended purpose of the proposed amendment.

B. In-Season Amendments

1. Any proposed constitutional amendment submitted after the commencement of the applicable League season shall ordinarily be deferred until the conclusion of that season.

2. Except where necessary to address an extraordinary circumstance, correct a material defect, or preserve the integrity and continued operation of the League, no substantive amendment adopted during an active season shall be applied retroactively or materially alter the rules governing that season.

3. Amendments considered following the conclusion of a season may be approved for implementation beginning with the following League season in accordance with the amendment procedures established by the League.

C. Naming of Amendments

1. In keeping with the traditions of the Churchman Fantasy Football League, constitutional amendments may be informally designated or named in recognition of the League member, incident, controversy, circumstance, or issue that gave rise to the need for the amendment.

2. Such designation shall be ceremonial and historical in nature and shall not affect the legal force, interpretation, or application of the amendment itself.

D. Ratification of Amendments

1. Except as otherwise expressly authorized under Section E of this Article, no proposed amendment to this Constitution shall become effective unless it is formally submitted for consideration and receives the affirmative approval of at least two-thirds (2/3) of all eligible Franchise Owners.

2. For purposes of constitutional ratification, the required two-thirds threshold shall be calculated based upon the total number of Franchise Owners eligible to vote on the proposed amendment, rather than solely upon the number of votes actually cast.

3. A Franchise Owner who fails to cast a vote, abstains from voting, or otherwise declines to participate in the ratification process shall not be counted as an affirmative vote and shall not reduce the number of affirmative votes required for ratification.

4. In a League consisting of twelve (12) eligible Franchise Owners, ratification shall therefore require no fewer than eight (8) affirmative votes.

5. Unless otherwise expressly provided by this Constitution, each eligible Franchise Owner shall be entitled to one (1) vote on any proposed amendment.

6. The League Commissioner shall be entitled to vote on proposed constitutional amendments in the same capacity as any other Franchise Owner, provided the Commissioner is otherwise eligible to vote.

7. Upon satisfaction of the required two-thirds vote, the League Commissioner shall certify the amendment as ratified and shall cause the approved language to be incorporated into the official CFFL Constitution.

8. An amendment properly ratified prior to the annual Draft may take effect for the upcoming League season on the effective date stated in the amendment or, if no effective date is specified, immediately upon certification by the League Commissioner.

9. An amendment proposed or ratified during an active League season shall be subject to the limitations governing in-season amendments established elsewhere in this Article and shall ordinarily take effect beginning with the following League season.

10. Once ratified and incorporated into this Constitution, an amendment shall carry the same force and authority as every other provision of the Constitution and shall remain in effect until subsequently amended or repealed pursuant to the procedures established herein.

E. Commissioner Amendment and Emergency Authority

1. Notwithstanding the ordinary ratification procedures established in Section D, the League Commissioner shall retain the authority to amend, modify, clarify, suspend, or supplement any provision of this Constitution when the Commissioner determines, in good faith, that such action is necessary and in the best interest of the Churchman Fantasy Football League.

2. The Commissioner may exercise this authority when reasonably necessary to:

a. preserve the fairness, integrity, competitiveness, or orderly administration of the League;

b. address an unforeseen circumstance, emergency, loophole, ambiguity, omission, or conflict within this Constitution;

c. respond to changes in ESPN Fantasy Football rules, platform functionality, scheduling, scoring, roster management, playoff administration, or other technical requirements;

d. prevent or address collusion, manipulation, abuse of League rules, or conduct detrimental to the League;

e. correct an administrative, procedural, clerical, or drafting error;

f. resolve a situation not adequately addressed by the existing Constitution; or

g. take such other action as the Commissioner reasonably determines to be necessary to protect the continued operation and best interests of the League.

3. Any amendment or constitutional modification made pursuant to this Section shall have the same force and effect as a ratified amendment upon its effective date unless the Commissioner expressly designates the modification as temporary.

4. Whenever reasonably practicable, the Commissioner shall provide notice to all Franchise Owners describing the amendment, the effective date of the change, and the reason the Commissioner determined that such action was necessary.

5. The Commissioner shall exercise this authority in good faith and for the benefit of the League as a whole, and not solely for the purpose of obtaining a personal competitive advantage for the Commissioner’s own franchise.

6. The Commissioner should avoid materially changing established competitive rules during an active season unless the Commissioner determines that immediate action is reasonably necessary to prevent substantial unfairness, address an unforeseen circumstance, enforce League integrity, or preserve the continued operation of the League.

7. Where immediate action is not required, substantive constitutional changes affecting scoring, playoff qualification, roster construction, scheduling, draft procedures, or other major competitive rules should ordinarily take effect beginning with the following League season.

8. Nothing in this Section shall prevent the Commissioner from submitting a matter to the League membership for consideration or ratification even where the Commissioner possesses independent authority to act under this Section.

9. The existence of the League’s amendment and voting procedures shall not be construed to eliminate, restrict, or diminish the Commissioner’s inherent authority to take reasonable action necessary to administer the League and protect its integrity in circumstances not expressly contemplated by this Constitution.