My Commish Rules

You're the Commish. Make your own rules.

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Trades

Trade Deadline

A Rule About Trades

Maybe a trade deadline seems too aggressive for your league. Hey, we’re all just here to have fun, right? Until Jeff, 3-10, postseason dreams dashed and life crumbling around him, hands over the top-scoring wide receiver he had stashed all year for a six pack of Natty Light. Not to knock an incredibly great-tasting, affordable, and ubiquitous (sponsorships available) beer, but Jeff is clearly giving up. A fire-sale is about to happen, it’s the first week of playoffs and now all of a sudden your light-hearted work league has turned into a contentious warzone. It’s time to lay down the law with a Trade Deadline.

 

How It Works

Trade deadlines exist for a reason and just because this is not the real NFL what happens in fantasy football has real-life implications. If you do not believe so, check out our Last Place Rules over in Wagers. There is a little wiggle room of when you decide to implement that deadline, but without it, prepare for chaos to break loose and major team adjustments to happen at any point in the season.

 

Pick a point in the season where playoffs aren’t yet determined, so you do not have teams who are no longer part of the competition shipping players for peanuts. This is especially important in Dynasty or Keeper Leagues where owners may be playing the long game and giving up on a current season. Even fair deals can benefit playoff teams and shift the league dynamic and are easily avoided by way of a Trade Deadline.  

 

Nuts and Bolts

  • Determine a cutoff date for trades within your league based off playoff dates and owner preferences.
  • Within league settings on the site’s webpage, set the trade deadline date.
  • We recommend implementing a trade deadline around Week 8, or so.

Change Ups

If you don’t want to implement a hard cutoff as far as trades go, you could put a premium on trades later in the season by charging FAAB dollars (if used in your league) or even by charging real money that can be used for things such as Wagers or Payouts. This could decrease any late-season trades and give your league a little more freedom for other fun incentives.

 

Download the rule summary now!
Download the FREE "Trades" Rule Summary to share with your leaguemates now!

Related Rules

Trade Summit

There is a reason the Fantasy Draft is one of the most exciting aspects of each fantasy football league. It is the meeting of the minds where all you leaguemates […]

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Commish Trade Veto

Remember that time your parents let you dress however you wanted and you went to school wearing a cape and your sister’s pants and roller skates and I’m beginning to think […]

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Trade Deadline

Maybe a trade deadline seems too aggressive for your league. Hey, we’re all just here to have fun, right? Until Jeff, 3-10, postseason dreams dashed and life crumbling around him, […]

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You're the Commish.
Make your own rules.

Commish Trade Veto

A Rule About Trades

Remember that time your parents let you dress however you wanted and you went to school wearing a cape and your sister’s pants and roller skates and I’m beginning to think maybe this is not actually something anyone else did…but the point of this story is that sometimes people cannot be left to their own devices. Sometimes, choice is just a little too much responsibility for people. And if you are contemplating this rule then the knuckleheads you interact with on a day-to-day fantasy basis are clearly falling into this category. Welcome to the Commish Trade Veto, where the Commish holds all of the power.

 

How It Works

Research* shows that people in general tend to not favor any fantasy football trades that they are not directly involved in. We believe this is because it’s easy to look at a trade from the outside and point to one side, or the other, getting a better deal. And so as any other jealous owner would do, you criticize the idiot getting the worse value and think well this is not an even trade, I think I’ll veto it. BUT WHY DOES YOUR VOTE MATTER?! Remember the last wedding you went to where somebody stood up to oppose the marriage and then everybody thought “oh, good point” and they stopped it? I don’t either. Because that guy’s opinion does not matter. And neither should anyone’s but the two people trading or the two people being wed.

 

As Commish, this puts a lot of power in your hands but truly all you need to analyze is if there is collusion involved in this trade. This obviously requires you to make some tough calls, but we are not telling you to shut off communication with the league. If something seems questionable – consult! Talk to both owners involved in the trade and make sure that the agreement was fair. Assess whether one team is trying to throw the year or if anything else seems fishy. But do not leave that determination up to a league full of bitter owners who could not get a deal done. The Commish alone should decide and vote on whether a trade is upheld or denied.

 

*Absolutely no research analyzed

 

Nuts and Bolts

  • Explain to your league the reason for this decision and reassure them that their voices will be heard even if their votes will not be registered (feel free to quote heavily from this post).
  • In your league settings, set the trade settings to votes required in order to veto and make sure that only the Commish has veto power.
  • Outline at the beginning of the season what kinds of trades will be vetoed (obvious collusion, unbalanced trades, rapid tradebacks, etc) in order to achieve transparency and build trust within the league. No trade veto should come as a shock to your leaguemates.

Change Ups

You would not be a true dictator if you allowed any Change Ups to this rule. BUT, agreements can be reached within a league as to what kinds of trades are acceptable. For example, in dynasty leagues, maybe a trade will seem more one sided for the current year, but help an owner down the road. OR for funnsies, anoint a “Deputy Commish” who can rebut a Commish’s first decision to uphold or veto a trade. If the Deputy declares the Commish’s decision hogwash, it can be taken to a league vote. This is also a good way to handle any trades involving the Commish, by leaving it up to the Deputy.


Download the rule summary now!
Download the FREE "Trades" Rule Summary to share with your leaguemates now!

Related Rules

You're the Commish.
Make your own rules.

Trade Summit

A Rule About Trades

There is a reason the Fantasy Draft is one of the most exciting aspects of each fantasy football league. It is the meeting of the minds where all you leaguemates gather either in person or at least online in order to show how much (or how little) they know. So why not bring everyone together again for a beat-the-deadline trade summit hosted by funds accumulated through season transactions! Beers, brats, and bad trades galore!

 

How It Works

The fundamental principle of this rule is that each add/drop transaction throughout your league’s season will cost the owner a real dollar amount. Depending on the frugality of your league, this can range anywhere from $.50 to $2 to $5 for you big spenders. Owners will send the commissioner whatever the agreed upon dollar amount is per transaction leading up to the Trade Summit. It’s best to set this date sometime near the trade deadline in your league in order to amplify the urgency of trades being made. All of this money that has been collected up until this point is then put towards food and drink for the Trade Summit, for all to enjoy. From there, sit back and watch the madness ensue.

 

Of course, this rule works best when all owners are able to gather round in the same place and enjoy the goods purchased by league transactions, so it may work best in leagues where the owners all live near each other or can easily travel. Setting a countdown to the trade deadline at the end of the night is an easy way to increase intensity and drama that will likely unfold throughout the summit.

 

Nuts and Bolts

  • Establish a dollar amount per transaction for the league and set up an easy way for owners to pay. Perhaps setting up a deadline each week before game time on Sunday for owners to have paid up for their weekly adds.
  • Set a date and location for the Trade Summit to take place, preferably near the trade deadline date and at a time when every owner can participate.
  • Use the accumulated funds to purchase food and drink for all owners to indulge and be sure to build up the importance of this final trade summit to get everyone excited and active in the live wheeling and dealing of players.

Change Ups

Offering food and drink and corralling everyone in a room together should be enough to instigate some trade talks, but if your league is tentative on trading there are some ways to incentivize deals. Offer door prizes for various things at the summit such as “first trade” or “largest deal.” This is a great way to get more people involved and add to the excitement. Head on over to our Trade Deadline Rule to learn more about setting an appropriate deadline that will coincide with your Trade Summit.

 

Download the rule summary now!
Download the FREE "Trades" Rule Summary to share with your leaguemates now!

Related Rules

You're the Commish.
Make your own rules.