Constitution

Updated 02/07/2011

Welcome to the USWFL! The purpose of this league Constitution is to spell out as many details as possible regarding league rules and guidelines. It is a lengthy document intended to cover most any situation which could arise. If you have any questions about the rules or if you feel there is anything missing from or contradictory in this document please don’t hesitate to let me know.

All Constitution rules are limited to official Strat PC game rules and restrictions. If a rule is in contrary to the official Strat rule the Strat rules supersede the constitution. In these cases the constitution will be adjusted.

League officers (so far)
Commissioner: Nick Milford
Unofficial Canadian team monitor: Paul Power 
TRC: Nick Milford, Ken Kunz, Tony Fucco, Paul Power 
Overusage monitor: Charlie Lake
League Historian: Nick Milford (HELP needed) 
League Admin: Nick Milford
League webmaster: Nick Milford
League secratary: Nick Milford
Rules Czar: Nick Milford (looking for help)

LEAGUE SUMMARY

• We plan on being a long-term league which will be around for many years (unlike the USFL and WFL) so draft for the future!
• The USWFL will be made up of 20 managers/GMs to run individual franchises in accordance with the rules of the league. No GM will own more than one franchise at a time. A manager may play a game that another otherwise can not (to ensure a timely finish) as long as the comissioner is aware.
• Each season if there are openings new coaches will take over existing teams or if no openings are available a consideration for expansion and an expansion vote will be taken.
• Poor sportsmanship (swearing, berating, constant complaining about bad luck or dice rolls, etc.) will not be tolerated. Constant complaint will result in disciplinary actions.

What is expected of each league member : play 4 games within a specified 4-week timeframe, understand and follow the rules of the league (enough so that violations do not occur) especially in-game rules, send game results and receive confirmation of receipt, communicate with the Commissioner any unusual issues which arise, check e-mail every couple of days (or e-mail the Commissioner when you can’t do this) near league deadlines (unless you have already sent in your results for that quarter and the Commissioner has acknowledged receipt of each) and whenever reporting a trade, and remain courteous during games and in all league communications. Each league member will be expected to communicate with the commissioner any issues which arise such as being away from e-mail for more than a few days (on vacation) or scheduling problems. Each league member must, of course, own the current version of the Strat-O-Matic game with the current season installed and internet access or at least have fairly regular access to a PC with the current version of the Strat-O-Matic game and internet access.

What each league member can expect from the league : game files will be processed and web page standings will be updated almost every day with web page stats updated likely every few days as results warrant, fair review process of all trades, fair resolution to any disputes which may arise, full draft lists before each draft, full roster lists, game result deadlines which will be adhered to with exceptions only under unusual circumstances, and communication of all league issues. If issue, concerns and/or rule change requests, we will have a league vote that I will keep updated. If any issue arrises that is not covered in the current constitution that needs immediatate attention arises, the commisshioner will make a ruling that is in the best interest of the entire league. (I will add to this list as I think of more.)

• Each league member will have 4 weeks to complete a particular block of 4 scheduled games and these 4 games may be played in any order; the regular season will last 16 weeks approximately concurrent with the NFL season; while it is possible that a 4-week deadline may be extended a couple of days in extraordinary circumstances league member should make sure to play their games in time and with 4 weeks of time and no requirement that the 4 games be played in any particular order that should leave plenty of leeway
• Games must be fully completed; deciding not to complete a game is not acceptable. If an emergency situation causes a game to prematurely end, it must be completed ASAP. If this happens please notify the commissioner immediately.
• If you and your opponent agree to a day and time then if you are not able to make it as soon as you find out that you can’t make it send an e-mail to your opponent and the Commissioner indicating this; no-showing on agreed-upon day and time is to be avoided. If you agree to a time but there is a chance that you won’t be able to make it let your opponent know.
• Commissioner will keep full stats and update the league web page at least every few days

LEAGUE RULES

Here are the game options we will use.

The following Strat-O-Matic game options will be used:

• League issues such as rules or administrative changes will always be discussed in the league’s message board giving coaches an opportunity to provide opinions and suggestions which will often result in a vote. No issue that has less then 80 % voting participation will be considered. All issues will need to have 51 % or more to pass.
• If there are any objections to any of the rules used, a vote will be used to determine if the rule will remain.

While some of the details of various league rules and policies are open to future change based upon Commissioner approval and vote there are a couple of league issues which will never change:

• This league will never have a salary system of any sort. The desired result of parity will be achieved through the location of rookie/free-agent draft picks (winning teams draft last in each round), through the ability of each league member to manage his own team and not give up too much in a trade, and through the trade review process in which clearly one-sided or unethical trades (especially with new league members) will not be allowed.
• This league will always play games via computer, no board game play will be allowed.

Entering the league and team name changing: All GMs entering into the league for the first time will have to choose a name from one of the existing and unused USFL or WFL team names. Each team will be allowed to change team names once during the life of that franchise. All new GMs entering into the league will get a free name change upon entering the league.

GAME PLAY

OVERUSAGE (league will supply tools for you to keep track of attempts!)

RBs, HBs and FBs will be limited to 120% of NFL attempts. QBs will be limited by QB end run limit option that will be turned on. QBs will be limited to 120% NFL passing attempts. Receiving will be limited to 150% on all NFL recptions. RB will be limited to 200% receptions.

If a player overuses a player the following penalties will occur

*1 to 25 extra attempts “unintentional” (player is suspended for 4 games the next season, after review)

*26-50 extra attempts “not paying attention” (player is suspended for 8 games the next year and/or the team will lose a 6th round draft pick the following year, after review)

*51-100 extra attempts (player will go into the draft as a free agent and/or the team will lose a 2nd round draft pick after review)

*Over 100 extra attempts (player will go into the draft as a free agent ( no review) and the team will lose a 1 st and 6th round picks as well as the coach may be expelled, “ after review”.) This is extreme and I hope we never have to review these issues.

If a new coach takes over a team with an over usage penalty, All penalties will be lifted

NOTE about QB usage:

If a starting QB is replaced the backup must stay in the game for the remainder of the game or until injuried. Sort of like starter/reliever in baseball. The only reason for starter to return is due to injury to backup.

PLAYOFF OVERUSAGE

In playoff game RBs, HBs and FBs will be limited to 20% of NFL attempts per game. QBs will be limited to 20% of passing attempts per game, unless the QB is in due to injury. There will be no limit on receptions during the playoffs.

ROSTERS

The league will consist of 20 teams.  (as of 2010)

Each team will consist of no more than 50 players and up to 3 unrated or uncarded players on IR list at all times (up to 50+3 players are kept from one season to the next) Only players who do not have a card or rating in the current season are eligible to be placed on the IR list. No player may be on IR for more than 1 season. If a team wishes to use a non carded player as one of the 35 active pre draft players he may do so. That player will be put on a PUP list and will not count toward the MIN/MAX determinations. A total of two non carded players only can be utilized in this manner. Coaches will draft their teams from all available NFL players.

Who May Play at Each Position

Left Defensive End = * LE, DE
Left Defensive Tackle =* LDT , NT , DT
Nose Tackle = NT, LDT, RDT, DT
Right Defensive Tackle = * RDT , NT , DT
Right Defensive End = * RE, DE
Left Outside Linebacker = * ** LLB, LOLB, OLB, LB
Left Inside Linebacker = * LILB, MLB **, ILB, LB
Middle Linebacker = MLB, LILB, RILB, ILB, LB
Right Inside Linebacker = * ** RILB, MLB **, ILB, LB
Right Outside Linebacker = * RLB, ROLB, OLB, LB
Linebacker (4-1-6) = LLB, LOLB, LILB, MLB, RILB, RLB, ROLB, OLB, ILB, LB
Left Cornerback = * LCB, CB, DB
Strong Safety = * SS, DB FS may not be positioned at SS.
Right Cornerback = * RCB, CB, DB
Free Safety = * FS, DB SS may not be positioned at FS.
1st Defensive Back = *** LCB, RCB, SS, FS, CB, S, DB
2nd Defensive Back = *** LCB, RCB, SS, FS, CB, S, DB

QB = QB
HB = HB
FB =FB or BB (if run block rating is 4+)
RB= HB or FB
BB = BB (a TE only may not be positioned at BB, unless rated for BB)
FL = FL, WR (1st or 2nd best rated WR by receptions)
SE = SE, WR (1st or 2nd best rated WR by receptions)
TE = TE or 2nd TE,
3rd Wide Receiver **** FL, SE, WR (3 rd best rated WR)
4th Wide Receiver **** FL, SE, WR (4 th best rated WR)
Tight End TE
2nd Tight End TE
Left Tackle * OLT, OT
Left Guard * OLG, OG
Center OC
Right Guard * ORG, OG
Right Tackle * ORT, OT

* = also see Players Switching Positions below

** = teams which choose to use the 3-4 defensive cards may not use at LILB or RILB a player rated on the roster only at MLB unless announcing before the season a swap from MLB to LILB or RILB (or if there is an injury at LILB or RILB then any MLB may fill in at the vacated position); in other words, 3-4 teams simply announce before the season where their MLB(s) will be positioned LILB or RILB, the Commissioner will request this information when the 3-4 card is chosen

*** = Any player that starts in the secondary in his team's base 3-4 or 4-3 defense may NOT play 1st defensive back or 2nd defensive back.

**** = Any player that starts as a Flanker or Split End “ CAN NOT” play 3 rd or 4 th Wide Receiver.

For the table above: 1) the first column Game Positions refers to a position listed by Strat-O-Matic within the game while 2) the second column refers to the position listed on the league’s roster sheet.

For example, if a team uses a 1RB 2TE 2WR formation who may play “RB”? Look on the table for Running Back and it lists that any player rated on the league’s roster sheet at HB, FB, or RB may play Running Back. As another example, if a team uses a 3-2-6 formation who may play “2 nd DB”? Look on the table for 2 nd Defensive Back and it lists that any player rated on the league’s roster sheet at LCB, RCB, SS, FS, CB, S, or DB may play 2 nd Defensive Back. As a third example, who may play RE? Look on the table for Right End and it lists that any player rated on the league’s roster sheet at RE or DE may play Right End (also see Players Switching Positions below for cases when a LE may play Right End).

Note that the table above does not apply to special teams formations.

Players Switching Positions

Players are not allowed to play “out of position” with the following comments and exceptions (these are clarifications of the who may play table above:

At any time without making any announcements a coach may play any CB or S at any extra DB position;

• A player who is not rated at BB, FB, or RB may not play BB;
• A player who is not rated at FB, RB, or BB may not play FB;
• A player who is not rated at HB or RB may not play HB;
• A player who is not rated at HB, FB, RB, or BB may not play RB;
• Immediately before the season begins each coach may designate certain players to switch positions for the entire season. These switches will be designated on the league roster and players who are switched in this manner are treated as if they are at their new position for the entire season. These switches may not be made during the game except by announcing the specific switch before the season begins.

• Any player may make the following switch – SS to FS, FS to SS, FL to SE, SE to FL, LT to RT, RT to LT, LG to RG, RG to LG, LE to RE, RE to LE, LDT to RDT, RDT to LDT, RLB to LLB, LLB to RLB, LILB to RILB, RILB to LILB, LCB to RCB, or RCB to LCB – as long as another player on the team is not switched the other way;
• If there is an injury then any of the swaps listed in #1 and #2 above may be made for a player in order to fill the position; as an example, if a player positioned at RCB is injured then a LCB may be used at RCB for the duration of the injury, no announcement needs to be made, and the player swapped may be different on each play;
• When using any formation with 1 WR (FL or SE) then any player rated at FL, SE, or WR may be positioned at FL or SE without having to make any sort of prior announcement;
• If the offense is in a formation which uses only 0 or 1 WR (Full House or 3RB 2TE) then the defense may swap its LCB and RCB without making any sort of prior announcement; for example, if the offense is in a Full House formation then the defense may play a LCB at RCB and/or a RCB at LCB

For example, if player Smith is rated at RLB his coach may designate before the season that Smith will switch to LLB for the entire season and playoffs and Smith will then not be allowed to play at RLB unless due to an injury. However, if switching Smith from RLB to LLB a coach may not also switch another player from LLB to RLB.

For clarification, during a game a coach may not move a player rated only at LG to RG, a player rated only at SE to FL, or a player rated only at SS to FS (or other such swaps). However, a coach may announce to the Commissioner before the season begins that a particular player rated only at LG will move to RG and in that case this player may play RG throughout the season and playoffs (but then he may not play LG at all except due to injury).

In the BB formations only, the league will allow any RB to play the lone HB or FB.

ROSTER REQUIREMENTS 

Each owned team must have as the season begins and all throughout the season at least the following roster positions filled by players eligible to play the position with a card or rating. A player who has switched positions (see Players Switching Positions) counts as the position he switched to and not the original position; for example, if a coach switches a player from RLB to LLB then that player counts only as a LLB and not a RLB. A player may fill only one roster requirements even if he plays multiple positions. (Unless one of those positions are Kick Returner, Punt Returner, kicker or punter) If he plays one of these positions he must be counted as a returner as well as his other position. If he is a kicker or punter he does not have to count as a kicker or punter if you do not want to use him as one of those.

MINIMUM / MAXIMUM at each position

Offense

• At least 21 players overall
• 2 QB’s / 3 QB’s
• 2 HB’s / 4 HB’s
• 2 FB’s or 1 FB & 1 BB / 3 FB’s or 2 FB’s & 1 BB
• 4 total RB’s (including HB’s and FB’s) / 6 total RB’s
• 4 total WR’s (including FL’s and SE’s) / 6 total WR’s
• 2 TE’s / 3 total TE’s
• 2 C’s / 3 C’s
• 3 OG (including OLG’s and ORG’s) / 5 OG’s
• 3 OT’s (including OLT’s and ORT’s) / 5 OT’s
• 8 total OL’s (including C’s, OG’s, and OT’s) / 11 total OL

Defense

• At least 19 players overall
• 3 DT’s for 4-3 defenses (including LDT’s, RDT’s, and NT’s) / 6 DT’s
• 2 DT’s for 3-4 defenses (including LDT’s, RDT’s, and NT’s) / 5 DT’s
• 3 DE’s (including LDE’s and RDE’s) / 6 DE’s
• 6 total DL’s for 4-3 defenses (including DT’s, NT and DE’s) / 9 total DL for 4-3 defense
• 5 total DL’s for 3-4 defenses (including DT’s, NT and DE’s) / 8 total DL for 3-4 defense
• 2 MLB’s for 4-3 defenses (including MLB’s, ILB’s, LILB’s, and RILB’s) / 4 MLB’s or ILB’s
• 3 ILB’s for 3-4 defenses (including MLB’s, ILB’s, LILB’s, and RILB’s) / 5 MLB’s or ILB’s
• 3 OLB’s (including LLB’s and RLB’s) / 5 OLB’s
• 5 total LB’s for 4-3 defenses (including MLB’s and OLB’s) / 8 total LB’s for 4-3 defense
• 6 total LB’s 3-4 defenses (including MLB’s and OLB’s) / 9 total LB’s for 3-4 defense
• 3 CB’s (including LCB’s and RCB’s) / 5 CB’s
• 3 Safety’s (including SS’s and FS’s) / 5 Safety’s
• 7 total DB’s (including CB’s and S’s) / 9 total DB’s

Special Teams

• 2 PR’s or 1 LP “lone PR” / 4 PR if no LP are owned. Each LP counts as 2 PR
• 2 KR’s or 1 LK “lone KR” / 4 KR if no LK are owned. Each LK counts as 2 KR
• 1 P (no team may have more than 1 P at any time)
• 1 K (no team may have more than 1 K at any time)

If a team has not fulfilled all MIN/MAX requirements after the annual draft, the commishioner will fill in the roster with available undrafted players. These players will be used by the team for that season only and will become free agents the following year. These players will be the lowest rated players at the missing MIN/MAX positions available. If a team has fulfilled all MIN/MAX requirements and still does not have a backup replacement for a position, a 0 rated player will be added to the roster to be available for injury replacement only and will be removed from the team at the end of the season.  

During the season each team must start and maintain on its roster, at least 500 NFL QB attempts. They must also maintain 400 NFL rushing attempts. Checked after free agent draft.

Defensive/Penalty Cards

• Before any season begins each team MUST choose whether a 3-4 or 4-3 defensive card will be used. If a 4-3 card is chosen then a 3-4 formation may not be used. If a 3-4 formation is used then a 4-3 may not be used. All other formations may be used. (see below for changes in ratings);
• TEAM THAT NORMALLY PLAYS 4-3 SWITCHING TO A 3 MAN LINE: Use whichever tackle you prefer as the nose tackle.
• If the reading “defensive RT”, “defensive LT” or “defensive tackle” is called for refer to the rating of the player who occupies the nose tackle position, however subtract one from his defensive rating.
• see official strat rules for more information
• TEAM THAT NORMALLY PLAYS 3-4 SWITCHING TO A 4 MAN LINE: Move the nose tackle to one of the tackle positions and insert another tackle at the other position.
• If the reading “defensive NT” comes up on a dice roll of 5 refer to the rating of the player who occupies the right tackle position, however subtract one from his defensive rating.
• see official strat rules for more information

The league will adopt the use of multiple defense cards provided in version 4 and later of the SOM Computer Football Game .

 There are two sets of defense cards; run and pass. Each set is divided into five card types: Excellent, Good, Average, Poor, and Very Poor. Teams "qualify" for a particular type of card based on the combined numeric defense rating of certain players.

Deciding which Run Card set type to use, is based on the ratings of defensive lineman and linebackers. Pass Card set types, are based on the ratings of defensive backs and linebackers. If a team is forced to start a ZERO rated player at any position he will count as "3 player rating" when determining the combined rating total.

At the start of the season each team must declare their intention to use either a 3-4 or 4-3 defense (See Declarations). This declaration determines which players will be used all season for defense card type qualification. The following formulas are used to determine the run and pass ratings for a team:

4-3 Run Defense = Total the ratings of the four defensive linemen and add ½ the combined total of the three linebackers.

4-3 Pass Defense = Total the ratings of the four defensive backs and add ½ the combined total of the three linebackers.

3-4 Run Defense = Total the ratings of the three defensive linemen and add ¾ the combined total of the two inside linebackers and ½ the combined total of the two outside linebackers.

3-4 Pass Defense = Total the ratings of the four defensive backs and add ¼ the combined total of the two inside linebackers and ½ the combined total of the two outside linebackers.

Each of the different card types has a different value or threshold to achieve : (values starting 2011)

Excellent is a combined rating value of 30 or better. (30->33)
Good is a combined rating value of 27 or better but less than 30. (27->29)
Average is a combined rating value of 23 or better but less than 27. (23->26)
Poor is a combined rating value of 19 or better but less than 23. (19->22)
Very Poor is a combined rating value of less than 19. (16->19)

These values are the same for run and pass card thresholds.

 There is no rounding; all decimal values are truncated. If you have a 20.75 run rating, that’s a 20, not a 21.

Teams which choose to use the 3-4 defensive cards must announce prior to the season for any player(s) rated only at MLB whether that MLB will be eligible to play at LILB or RILB (but not both). These MLB’s will still be able to play MLB but this prevents a 3-4 team from swapping MLB’s left/right in a 3-4 formation during the season.

*Each season the Commissioner will designate a current season NFL team’s penalty card to be used by all teams in the league. This penalty card will be the penalty card of the current season with the least chance for a penalty.

  *Each team will get the same QB/receiver fumble card, The card will be one that is rated "2" as this is the closest to the NFL average.*

Special Teams Players

Kickers and punters will be treated the same as all other players with the following exceptions. Each owned team must have one and only one Strat-O-Matic carded kicker and one and only one Strat-O-Matic carded punter. A team may draft a kicker/ punter during the draft but must immediately release his current kicker/ punter as to not go over the maximum of 1 kicker/ punter per team. Kickers/ punters cut in this manner will be immediately added into the rookie/free-agent pool and available to be drafted.

A team is allowed to keep a kicker/ punter as an IR player, but if the kicker/punter gets carded the next season that team must release either the IR’d kicker/ punter of the existing kicker/ punter so they do not go over 1 maximum carder kicker/ punter.

If a player is rated at more than one position, which includes kicker and/or punter and if his coach chooses to never use him at kicker/ punter for the entire season, that player will not count at that position for roster limit purposes.

A kicker’s card includes the team’s kicking card where he is listed by Strat-O-Matic as the kicker and will also include that team’s kickoff card and kick return coverage card. A punter’s card includes the team’s punting card where he is listed by Strat-O-Matic as the punter and will also include that team’s punt return coverage card.

Returners

A “lone PR” designated on the roster LP is defined as any player rated at PR who is the only player on a Strat-O-Matic team with a PR card while a “lone KR” designated on the roster LK is defined as any player rated at KR who is the only player on a Strat-O-Matic team with a KR card. Any LP or LK may be designated on the team as the only PR or KR for that team while any PR or KR who is not a lone PR or KR may not be designated as the only PR or KR for that team

Punt/ kick returners who are designated by Strat as a #2 punt/kick returner on the card may never be used as a #1 punt/ kick returner

Punt/Kick returners who are listed as LK/LP (lone punt/kick) can be use by themselves or in conjunction with #2 returner, but must be used as the #1.

A #1 PR/ KR must be used as a #1 in conjunction with a #2, or he can be used as a #2, only if the #1 is a LK/LP returner.

You MUST have on your roster a minimum of 1 LK/ or a minimum of 2 KR.

You MUST have on your roster a minimum of 1 LP/ or a minimum of 2 PR.

Maximum limits on KO retuners: 2 LK and 0 KR/ or 1 LK and 2 KR/ or 0 LK and 4 KR.

Maximum limits on punt returners: 2 LP and 0 PR/or 1 LP and 2 PR/or 0 LP and 4 PR.

Easy way to think of it is each PR and KR = 1 player; each LP and LK = 2 players. You have to have a min for punt returns and kickoff returns of 2 players, You can not go over a maximum of 4 punt returners or kickoff returners.

TRADING  SEASON

Trading season in the USWFL will begin as soon as the official ratings are released by Strat. This is usually one month prior to the release of the newest game version.

Trading will be unlimited up to the 35 man cut down date, determined by the commishioner. After teams cut down to 35 players in preparation for the draft (usually one week prior) trading will be allowed but limited to one for one. One for one means, a player for a player and/or a draft pick for a draft pick.) In other words no player and a pick for a player. Trading will not be allowed during the draft, (unless all members are present in a predetermined chat room for a live draft!) but will be allowed just after the draft and prior to league file creation. Again this will be one for one trading only. Trades for draft picks may only include the current season’s rookie/free-agent draft year. No future draft picks will be allowed.

The trade review committee (TRC) is comprised of volunteers with anyone who has been in the league for at least one year and agrees with the basic philosophies of the TRC being eligible. TRC volunteers should be aware that they will be presented with difficult decisions and should have a philosophy consistent with the questionable trade guidelines outlined below. The purpose of the TRC is to make the trade review process as fair as possible and to make the process a group decision so that no one person is blamed for a decision which someone may disagree with.

All trades are reported by each participating party directly to the Commissioner. Any trade review process and vote will not include anyone directly participating in the deal.

1) Trades involving at least one new league member: all trades will immediately go to the TRC for a discussion (if desired) and a vote (all participants in the trade will be notified of this), the vote's result will become official no less than 3 days after the Commissioner has acknowledged receipt of the trade from all participating parties (although the resolution time is often much less than 3 days with 1 day being the average); if the vote is that the deal violates league guidelines (i.e. the deal is disallowed) then the Commissioner will summarize the TRC's general opinions in an e-mail to the trade participants (with cc to the TRC); the TRC discussion will be confidential among the TRC but the vote and majority opinion summary will be published on the web page.

Additional clarification: teams coached by new league members will be protected by the TRC more than other teams to avoid new league members from being taken advantage of either intentionally or unintentionally. The intent is not at issue here, the fairness of the trade is what counts the most; too often new coaches will enter a league, make poor choices in trades (either due to not knowing much about the league or in some cases not caring much about the league), and then quit the league leaving the league in a bad spot with a poorly managed team. The purpose of protecting teams coached by new league members is to avoid this situation.

2) Trades involving no new league members: all trades become official once the Commissioner acknowledges receipt of the trade from all participating parties; the Commissioner will immediately post the trade on the web page which the TRC will check every day and if anyone on the TRC believes that the trade violates league guidelines then they may call for an immediate vote at which time the trade is automatically put on hold and all participants in the trade will be notified that a vote will occur, the TRC would then vote within the 3 day timeframe with the same procedures as #1; if no-one on the TRC calls for a vote of the deal within 3 days then the deal will not be disallowed (unless a special circumstance occurs such as if it turns out that the deal was illegal).

Examples of questionable trades:

a) A coach knowing or even suspecting that he is in his last year in the league trades away an inordinate amount of future value (young players and/or draft picks) in a trade for present value veteran players and the trade is deemed imbalanced overall from the perspective of a hypothetical coach who would be staying in the league for years;

b) A coach who becomes disenchanted with the league and no longer takes it seriously makes an imbalanced trade;

c) A coach who takes advantage of a new player by ripping him off in a trade, the ripoff may even be slight and unintentional and yet still be a deal which clearly disadvantages the team of the new player;

d) Any trade in which one team involved in the trade benefits much more than another team involved in the trade due to the second team hurting his own team intentionally or unintentionally.

e) A player that is not given a rating on pre-season documentation may not be traded until it is verified that he is getting a rating and is put on the 50 man roster and not the 3 man IR list.

The above examples are not all-inclusive; other possibilities exist. It is left to the judgment of the TRC to determine what is questionable. It is strongly desired that the situation in which a team gains success by making trades which at the time fairly clearly disadvantages other teams does not occur as the league becomes a lot less fun when teams get stronger due to unfair trades.

When a trade is reported to the Commissioner if he believes at first glance that the TRC may have a problem with the trade then he will e-mail the coach who appears to be getting the short end of an apparently clearly one-sided trade (and he will notify the other participant(s)) of his specific concerns regarding the trade and allow that coach to either offer whatever explanation he wants the TRC to consider in their vote or to decide against proceeding with the deal. As an example let’s say that coach A is new to the league and agrees to a trade with coach B but the Commissioner believes at first glance that the trade appears to be clearly one-sided in favor of coach B. The Commissioner e-mails coach A of his specific concerns regarding the trade and e-mails coach B that there is a potential issue (so that coach B will be aware that there is a slight delay in the trade resolution). Coach A may then decide against proceeding with the trade or he may explain his reasoning for the trade to the Commissioner at which time the Commissioner would forward that explanation to the TRC who would then vote.

Trades may only consist of exact and spelled-out combinations of players and/or draft choices. No money or unspecified exchanges for trade value (for example, “future considerations”) may take place; however, a future consideration may be involved in a trade if it is exactly defined (including any conditions) in the trade. Only draft choices of the next beginning (and/or currently in process) rookie/free-agent draft are eligible to be traded. Trades may not include any player rentals; for example, a trade in which coach A trades player Smith to coach B with a condition that in the future player Smith is traded back to coach A is not allowed.

PLAYOFFS

Each division will have the 1st place team getting a bye. the next 4 best records in the conference will play wild card games to see who will play the division winners. These will be determined by our tie breaker rules. Winners of thes wild card games will meet for the division winners for the division championship, hosted by the division winners. The winners of these games will meet in the conference championship game. Conference championship winners will meet for the WORLD BOWL!

TIEBREAKERS

Determining Draft position

Round 1
All teams that fail to make the playoffs are placed in order from lowest winning percentage to the highest. (For teams with identical records, see tiebreakers below.)
Playoff Teams
Next come the teams who were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs, placed in order from lowest winning percentage to the highest (based on regular-season record), followed by those eliminated in the second round, again placed in order from lowest winning percentage to highest. • After the above teams are placed, the losers of the conference championship games take the next two spots with the team with the lowest winning percentage during the regular season placed ahead of the other.
• The World Bowl loser drafts next to last.
• The World Bowl winner drafts last.
Rounds 2-15
• In subsequent rounds, teams with the same record rotate draft positions regardless of whether or not they made the playoffs. The only exception is the World Bowl teams, who always pick last.

Tiebreakers
• Strength of schedule for the previous season is the first tie-breaker for teams with the same winning percentage. The team with the lowest strength of schedule percentage wins the tiebreaker and picks ahead of all other teams with the same record.
• Divisional and conference records are the next step in the tie-breaking procedure.
• As a last resort, a coin toss is used to determine the order of selection for teams with the same winning percentage.

Definition: Strength of schedule is used as a tiebreaker in the USWFL when determining the order of selection for the USWFL Draft. Strength of schedule is determined by figuring the combined winning percentage of all of a team's regular-season opponents for a particular season.

Examples:
If two teams end with identical records, combine the records of the opponents in each of the team's wins and calculate the total winning percentage

Playoff tiebreakers
Within a Division
If two teams in the same division finish with identical records, the following tiebreakers will be used, in this order, until a champion is determined.
1. Head-to-Head
2. Division Record
3. Common Games
4. Conference Record
5. Strength of Schedule
6. Combined Ranking Among Conference Teams (points scored and points allowed)
7. Combined Ranking Among All Teams (points scored and points allowed)
8. Net Points (common games)
9. Net Points (all games)
10. Net Touchdowns (all games)

If three or more teams in the same division finish with identical records, the following tiebreakers will be used, in this order, until a champion is determined.
1. Head-to-Head
2. Division Record
3. Common Games
4. Conference Record
5. Strength of Schedule
6. Combined Ranking Among Conference Teams (points scored and points allowed
7. Combined Ranking Among All Teams (points scored and points allowed
8. Net Points (common games)
9. Net Points (all games)
10. Net Touchdowns (all games)
*If two clubs remain tied after a third is eliminated during any step, the tie breaker reverts to step 1 of the two-team format.
WILD-CARD
If two or more teams finish the season tied for one of the two Wild-Card berths, one of the following scenarios will apply. If the tied teams are from the same division, the divisional tie breaker above is used. If the tied teams are from different divisions, the following tiebreakers are used:
Two Teams
1. Head-to-Head
2. Conference Record
3. Common Games (minimum of four)
4. Strength of Victory
5. Strength of Schedule
6. Combined Ranking Among Conference Teams (points scored and points allowed)
7. Combined Ranking Among All Teams (points scored and points allowed)
8. Net Points (conference games)
9. Net Points (all games)
10. Net Touchdowns (all games)
11. Coin Toss
Three or More Teams
*If two clubs remain tied after a third is eliminated during any step, the tie breaker reverts to step 1 of the two-team format.
Start by eliminating all but the highest ranked club in each division by using the divisional tiebreaker above. After the field has been narrowed to no more than one team from each division, the following tiebreakers are used:
1. Head-to-Head
2. Conference Record
3. Common Games (minimum of four)
4. Strength of Victory
5. Strength of Schedule
6. Combined Ranking Among Conference Teams (points scored and points allowed)
7. Combined Ranking Among All Teams (points scored and points allowed)
8. Net Points (conference games)
9. Net Points (all games)
10. Net Touchdowns (all games)
11. Coin toss
* Wild-Card tie breakers are also used to determine home-field advantage.

USWFL Tiebreaking Procedures
The six postseason participants from each conference will now be seeded as follows:
1. The Division champion with the best record. (bye first round and will host divisional game.)
2. The best and second best record for non-first place teams will host Wild Card game.
3. The third and forth best records for non-first place teams will make the playoffs.
The following procedures will be used to break standings ties for postseason playoffs
NOTE: Tie games count as one-half win and one-half loss for both clubs.

  EXPANSION SEASONS

If enough interest is shown for expansion then an expansion vote will take place. If a vote of 50% or higher is attained then we will expand. I would like to expand with 4 teams Expansion will stop once the league has reached 24 teams.

LEAGUE ALIGNMENT AND DIVISION SET UP

The divisions will be set up starting in 2010 season by rivalry and/or location. Schedules will be set up so out of division games are played vs. similar finishing teams. (balanced schedule as best as possible) The Schedule will also be set up so divisional teams play each other twice and once per conference, while out of conference games will rotate between divisions every year.

WHAT NEXT?

There will be no league fee for 2011. If cost of the league becomes too much for the commissioner to sustain, (internet server costs, awards, conventions etc) a minimal league fee donation may be posted. If a league fee is instituted a financial report will be available per request for any league member..

This is a very long term league and will very likely be in existence for many years. Joining the league and once the season starts is a commitment that you are playing the full season at least, please do not join the league if you are unsure about whether you will be able to complete the current season. There will be a clear indication when the commitment begins for that season which will be just before the season begins (which is after all drafts).

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