Fantasy Football Playoff FAQ

Who qualifies for the playoffs?
Four teams will qualify for the playoffs. To qualify, a team must have A) won their division or B) be one of two of the best remaining teams (by overall record) to not win their division. The two non-division winning teams can come from the same division.

Seeds will be determined as such:
First Seed: Division winner with the best record.
Second Seed: Other division winner.
Third Seed: Best remaining overall record to not win their division.
Fourth Seed: Second best remaining overall record to not win their division.

Tiebreakers are as follows:
The first tiebreaker will be head-to-head match-up records between the teams in question followed by total overall regular season points. The final tiebreaker will be a one-game playoff on Madden 2008 (XBOX 360 version).

Rules for the Madden 2008 (XBOX 360 version) game are as follows:
A winner of a best-of-three coin flip will be allowed to choose which team he plays with and will be the “home” team (the coin shall be a standard United States quarter; an agreed upon coin between the two tied league members can replace a quarter if said quarter is not available). The loser of the coin flip will choose a team second and will be allowed to declare the gameplay settings as it relates to quarter length, difficulty setting and weather setting. All other gameplay settings will be on DEFAULT.

If there are multiple teams who are tied for the final spot, a round-robin Madden 2008 (XBOX 360 version) playoff will be conducted. Gameplay setting will remain the same as the ones stated above. If there is a tie for the best record, a one-game Madden 2008 (XBOX 360 version) playoff will be conducted. Gameplay settings will be the same as the ones stated above.

Division records will not be used as a tiebreaker because not all teams played everyone in their division. For example, Pollard’s Bonecrushers did not play the Kansas City Inoculators this season (I hope to change this for next season).

If the playoffs were to start today (Saturday, December 1) the seeds would look as such:

Seed One: Money Hungry Centaurs
Seed Two: Team Winckler
Seed Three: Better at FF than FB I hope…
Seed Four: Pollard’s Bonecrushers

How does the postseason draft work?
The draft will take place at a time most convenient for the persons involved. If a time cannot be agreed upon, the second seeded player will select a date and time. All other playoff contenders will have to adjust to that time. If a playoff contender(s) cannot make the draft, a non-playoff member (or non-member if no member can fill in) will draft for said playoff contender(s).

The draft will be live, just as the one at the beginning of the season. Participating in the draft via AIM or on the phone is acceptable.

The roster as it relates to starting spots and bench spots will remain the same as the regular season. The total roster size will be sixteen (16) players.

Each playoff team is allowed to keep up to six (6) players on their current roster to carry over into the postseason. Keeping a player will not cause a team to lose a high round draft pick in the Playoff Draft. If a team so chose to keep four players, for example, the said team will draft in the first twelve (12) rounds and then his draft will be complete. His spot in the drafting order will be skipped over once said team exit’s the draft.

Note: The Playoff Draft will not affect keepers for the next year’s regular season. If a non-playoff team has a player drafted in the Playoff Draft, the non-playoff team still owns the said player’s rights for the 2008 season should the non-playoff team decide to keep said player. In other words, playoff rosters are solely for the playoffs.

The draft order will have a “fixed” first round and then begin a “snake” draft in the second round.

Example:
Round One
Pick 1) Seed One
Pick 2) Seed Two
Pick 3) Seed Three
Pick 4) Seed Four

Round Two
Pick 1) Seed One
Pick 2) Seed Two
Pick 3) Seed Three
Pick 4) Seed Four

Round Three
Pick 1) Seed Four
Pick 2) Seed Three
Pick 3) Seed Two
Pick 4) Seed One

Round Four
Pick 1) Seed One
Pick 2) Seed Two
Pick 3) Seed Three
Pick 4) Seed Four

Round Five
Pick 1) Seed Four
Pick 2) Seed Three
Pick 3) Seed Two
Pick 4) Seed One

Round Six…

…

Round Sixteen
Pick 1) Seed One
Pick 2) Seed Two
Pick 3) Seed Three
Pick 4) Seed Four

Note: This decision was made in order to reward the team with the best records (sort of how the NFL reward the top two teams in each conference with a first round bye). This decision is up for debate should there be a significant outcry for change.

Will there be playoff free agency?
No, there will NOT be playoff free agency. What one drafts is what one gets.

What about trades?
No, trades are also NOT allowed during the playoffs. Once again, what one drafts is what one gets.

How will rosters be set?
Each playoff team will have their own thread on the league page. The first post will show the team’s roster. The team owner is then responsible for posting their starting lineup before a stated deadline. Changes can be made up to that deadline. The lineups will then be recorded by the League Manger and then e-mailed to every member of the league.

Deadlines for setting rosters for this season’s playoffs are as follows:
First Round: Friday, January 4 at 11:59 PM
Second Round: Friday, January 11 at 11:59 PM
Third Round: Saturday, January 19 at 11:59 PM
Fourth Round: Saturday, February 2 at 11:59 PM

What is the scoring system?
Points will be awarded just the same as during the regular season. Updated scoring totals can be found at the league page and will also be e-mailed to all league members prior to the beginning of the next round.

The stats and play-by-play from NFL.com will be used as the official source when calculating points.

Who will be calculating the points?
The League Manager will calculate the points. However, errors made by the League Manager can be challenged by any league member, whether they are in the playoffs or not. It is suggested that all playoff teams calculate their own points during the playoffs to be sure no errors are made by the League Manager.

Will it be head-to-head match-ups still?
No, it will NOT be head-to-head match-ups. Instead, it will be total points accumulated throughout the entire playoffs. The team with the most total points will win the playoff.

What if there is a tie at the end of the playoffs?
If there is a tie between two (2) teams, a one (1) game playoff of Madden 2008 (XBOX 360 version) will be played using the two Super Bowl teams. The playoff team with the highest seed from the fantasy playoffs will choose which team he wants. The lower seed from the fantasy playoffs will be stuck with the other team.

If there is a tie between three (3) teams, a Madden 2008 (XBOX 360 version) tournament will be conducted. The top seed from the fantasy playoffs will choose between the two Super Bowl teams or one of the two defeated Conference Championship teams. The next highest seed from the fantasy playoffs will have the second choice, followed by the lowest seed from the fantasy playoffs. A round-robin tournament will be played ( round-robin is where all three teams will play each other once). The team with the best record wins. If there is a tie for first, those two teams will play in a one game playoff of Madden 2008 (XBOX 360 version).

If there is a tie between four teams, a Madden 2008 (XBOX 360 version) tournament will be set up. The one (1) seed from the fantasy playoffs will play the four (4) seed from the fantasy playoffs, followed by the two (2) seed from the fantasy playoffs playing the three (3) seed from the fantasy playoffs. The two winners will then face each other for the championship. The AFC/NFC Championship game teams will be used in the tournament. The top seed from the fantasy playoffs will have first pick, followed by the second seed from the fantasy playoffs , the third seed from the fantasy playoffs and, finally, the fourth seed from the fantasy playoffs.

If there is a tie in an individual Madden 2008 (XBOX 360 version) playoff game, another game using the same two teams will be played. This will continue until a player wins a game.

The highest seed in the fantasy playoffs will be the home team in the Madden 2008 (XBOX 360 version) playoffs.

The individual games will be set on All-Madden. There will be 5 minute quarters. All other game settings will be set to DEFAULT. The most recent roster update from XBOX Live will be used for the games. Customized user playbooks will NOT be allowed.

There must be at least three (3) league members present at the time the Madden 2008 (XBOX 360 version) games are played. The three present members may consist of the two contending playoff teams and one witness.

The games will be played by the players earliest convenience. The playoff game CANNOT be played on XBOX Live.

The result of the games will be reported to the League Manager where he will then post it on the League Page and blog. E-mail notifications will also be sent.

Any questions, suggestions, complaints or deeply held grievances? Please comment on this blog post or on the League Page post “Playoff Blog Reaction”.