Roster Regulations
The BPFL operates within the principle that during the season, the set amount of total players occupying roster slots in the league at one time will be set at 336 roster players. That total will include 296 active players, and 40 players assigned to "Reserve" slots (three per team - for more info on the Reserve slot, see explanation here).
After each year's draft, each team will have drafted a roster of 37 active players (plus 5 Reserve) broken down in any way they see fit. A typical 42-man roster may look like the following:
Quarterbacks
- 5
Running Backs - 6
Wide Receivers - 6
Tight Ends - 3
Kickers (not punters) - 2
Defensive Linemen - 5
Linebackers - 5
Defensive Backs - 5
Reserve Slots - 5
Total Slots - 42
This is only a suggested outline that would use an even distribution theory for all positions. If a team owner decides that the best strategy is to have a lopsided roster (e.g. 10 Quarterbacks and only 3 receivers), than that is his prerogative. How an owner decides to use each of his roster slots is completely open and without restriction.
That said, here’s a reminder: As stated later in this section, the BPFL does not use a season long accumulative points system to determine team scoring – the system we use involves a schedule in which BPFL teams go head to head in weekly matchups using specified starting lineups for scoring. One must make sure their roster is balanced enough to hand in a solid 13 man starting lineup for each week of the BPFL season.
(For specifics on the 13 Man Starting Lineup, see Section 3 - Game Play and Scoring).
Another
thing to note is that the 336 man rule does not mean that each
of the BPFL’s 8 rosters will always be made up of exactly 37+5
players. Since the league allows for odd-player trades (see Section 7 - Trades), it is certain
that each team’s roster total will fluctuate up and down
depending on those deals.
Each BPFL will draft a roster of 42 players at the BPFL Entry Draft. After the completion of the BPFL Supplemental Draft (which is an optional one-round draft before the season starts - rules found here), each team will designate 5 of their 42 roster players to Reserve slots on their roster prior to the lineup deadline for week 1 games. This will leave each BPFL GM with an active roster of 37 players, and a reserve roster of 5 players, for a total of 42 players per team to start the season.
While a player occupies a Reserve slot, they are considered inactive and can't be used game play lineups and can't be traded. There is no positional restrictions on who can be assigned to the reserve slots, other than two clear notations - you must be able to maintain an active positional roster that allows you to properly submit your lineup each week, and kickers are not eligible to be assigned to a Reserve slot at any point in the season.
During the season, starting in week 1 and running until the trade/coach deadline in conjunction with the lineup submission in week 14, each team will have the option to activate each of their reserve players to their active roster, and place an active roster player in their place on Reserve. To be eligible to play in that week's game, a player will have to be activated by the initial lineup deadline on Thursday, much like with trades and coaching changes. A GM can use these activations at any point in that time period with no limit at any one time - he can use one or all activations in the same week if he chooses. While a player who was activated from the Reserve slot to the active roster at one point in the season is eligible to be reassigned there, once an active roster player is assigned to a Reserve slot they must stay there for the season.
All players occupying Reserve slots will be returned to the active roster upon completion of the season, after the BPFL Pro Bowl game in week 18. At that point they become like any other player and can be traded.
Of
note, until 2017 BPFL rosters were designated one Reserve Slot
(called an IR slot) and activation of that player was
restricted. The change to the more flexible 3 Reserve Slot
became effective before the 2018 BPFL Season. A further
extension to 5 Reserve Slots was added in 2020.
Releasing a Player
Although player releases are made at the end of each season with the annual drop lists, BPFL owners can release a player from their roster at any time should they want to. This may be warranted in situations where an owner simply wants nothing to do with the player, and decides to release him during the season. If a player is released mid-season, he is not replaced, and his roster spot is lost until the entry draft that offseason.
Beginning
in 2008, when a player is released outside of the normal drop
period before the entry draft, that player will pass though
waivers and be eligible for selection by the other 7 BPFL
teams. The selection order will be based on the current
standings in the league (worst to best), with the "points for"
totals being the tiebreaker (lower total wins tiebreak).
If no team selects the released player, he will be returned into
the free agent pool for the following season's draft.
Determining BPFL Player
Positions
As
there are versatile players in the NFL who’s positions may
differ from down to down (i.e. WR/TE, or LB/DE), it should be
noted that a player’s official position in the BPFL will be
determined by the listing on his respective ESPN.com team's
depth chart page. This is new beginning with the 2025 BPFL
Draft.
In the
rare case where a player is listed on both offensive and
defensive depth charts on the team's ESPN depth chart page, the
position in which the player is listed as a starter will be his
position in the BPFL. If in subsequent years, if a depth
chart review shows the player starting on both offensive and
defensive depth charts, his BPFL position will revert back to
the position he was the previous year. If he is no longer
listed as a depth chart starter at his previous year's position,
and he is listed as a starter on the other side of the ball, his
position will change accordingly. If the player is new to
the league, and he is listed as a starter on both offensive and
defensive depth charts, the BPFL GMs will vote and decide on his
position before he is drafted.
An
annual review of these sites to determine positions on all
players will be done twice - before the annual waiver draft for
players already on BPFL rosters, and during the draft for any
new players who are selected into the league. If the
ESPN.com depth chart page is not available or there is some
unforeseen notation on the depth page that falls outside of the
norm, the league will take a vote with the GMs not affected by
the ruling to determine the affected player (s) position(s).
Eligibility
To be eligible for a
BPFL roster, a player must have been already drafted by an NFL
team, or must at least be officially out of college (at least
one year removed, with college eligibility forfeited).
< Section 1 -
Alignment
Section
3 - Game Play and Scoring System >