The Sanderson Gazette - 2020-08-14 - Keep Calm and Trust Your Commissioner

The Plan

More detail can be found in last week's Gazette, but the general plan for 2020 is that we try to have a normal Blingaleague season, but be prepared to change some rules on the fly (for just 2020) and potentially even completely nullify the season.

The Draft

Time and Place

We are going to do the draft on Monday, September 7, at 6:00 PM Central Time. The draft will take place online in the Draft Board Google Sheet, as usual.

Order

  1. Rob
  2. Dave
  3. Ed
  4. Scott
  5. Richie
  6. Rabbit
  7. Kevin
  8. Pat
  9. Pulley
  10. Babel
  11. Mike R.
  12. Derrek
  13. Matt
  14. Schertz

Keepers

Keepers will be due one week before the draft, on Monday, August 31, at 6:00 PM Central Time. Please send them to the commissioner by that date; you will not be receiving an email with your list as a trial to see if this is a viable way to do keepers moving forward. (Though you will be receiving reminders to send in your keepers prior to the deadline.)

Triggers to Nullify the Season

I don't want to put ourselves in too narrow a situation, so I am going to allow for two ways to cancel the season.

Member Proposal

At any time, any one of the fourteen Blingaleague franchises can raise a proposal to the commissioner to cancel and nullify the season. If such a proposal is made, we will put it to a simple yes/no vote. If it gets nine votes in favor of canceling, the season will be terminated and nullified. (Editor's note: Originally, this erroneously said eight votes were required.)

Commissioner Decree

At any time, the commissioner can decide to cancel and nullify the season. I can promise you all that I will not do this without damn good reason, and I would definitely give everyone in the league as much advance notice as possible so that they can persuade me otherwise if they would like. I hope I have earned enough of your trust over the years that you'll take me at my word on that.

I am not going to be completely black and white about the kind of circumstances that would lead me to unilaterally do this, but here are some examples that would make me seriously consider it.

  1. The NFL season is truncated such that the Blingaleague cannot complete at least nine regular season weeks and two playoff weeks.
  2. There are enough outbreaks to cause the NFL to reschedule to a point where there are more weeks than planned where six or more teams are not playing. (There are currently two weeks where six teams are scheduled to be on bye.)
  3. A significant number of players opt out after the season starts.

For #1, I view nine regular season weeks and two playoff weeks as the absolute bare minimum required for an official Blingaleague season. I would strongly consider canceling the season (possibly via a voting proposal) if we have to shorten it at all.

I view #2 and #3 as a somewhat foreseeable happenings, but they are just two examples in a larger category of ways COVID-19 could mess up the season.

COVID-19 Injured Reserve Slot

I have added one injured reserve (IR) roster spot. Only players who are out for COVID-19 reasons - either a positive test or an opt-out that happens after the draft - are eligible for this slot.

In the event that someone breaks this rule (by placing an ineligible player on IR), I will revert the transaction and any that followed as a result.

Potential Midseason Rule Changes

One specific concern someone raised was that COVID-19 positive tests, unlike most injuries, can happen at any time during the week. That would mean that after waivers are run, we could see more key players needing to be replaced, and it turning into a first-come-first-served situation that gives some people (like, say, those who are six hours ahead) an unfair advantage.

Regardless of how likely you all feel that specific situation is, or how big an impact it would have, the broader point is that it's quite likely we'll come across some unforeseen situations that could use some temporary rule changes. Normally, in-season rule changes should require unanimous agreement from all franchises, but once again, I'll ask that you put some trust in me to do the right thing. While I will never unilaterally change rules that affect roster management, I may put some things up for official voting or an open discussion with the intention of making a quick change to make sure we can effectively adapt.

Closing Thoughts

A big thank you to all of you for being willing to roll with this wild situation and still show enthusiasm for the Blingaleague. As always, let me know if there's anything that doesn't sit well with you, and I'll do my best to address it.

And two reminders:

  1. The draft is Monday, September 7, at 6:00 PM Central Time;
  2. Keepers are due Monday, August 31, at 6:00 PM Central Time.