2026 Rules Updates

Here we go yall, that time of year again. Time to look at what rules to change, add, remove, whatever for 2026. I'd really love for yall to send some stuff in the group chat about your thoughts, but to get your cogs turning here's my initial lean for next year.

• Gut Check: I feel like it's ran its course. I personally enjoyed it, but it felt like rematches happened way too often, and it would be better to ensure equal exposure to other teams
• Trade Deadling: Maybe we extend it one week? Possibly was just a product of a tight-ish race for 4th this year, but not a lot of desire to trade (besides TK), may spur more if we let it out a little longer
• Power Couples: That's just the season game, and I like changing that every year, so it won't return. But I'd love some other ideas for a season-long game (an archive of them can be found on the Challenges page
• Platform/Format Changes: Fuck ESPN and all, but I know its the classic platform. Garrett also expressed the desire to add Juan and Patrick, but I will beat the drum against it HARD without roster reform (reducing our enormous benches)

Food for thought!

3... 2... 1...

Three weeks left, and the playoff race is starting to look pretty clear. Collin has already been in, and TK is officially out. That's the only guarantees, but the rest of the field isn't too tight. Garrett, Ryan, and Nathan all could face elimination this weekend, and Jake and Tmo have little room for error left, down 3 points with a max of 6 points left to get over the final 3 weeks. Austin is effectively a lock, it would take Jake going 6-0 and him going 0-6 to keep him out at this point (he'd win a tiebreaker vs Tmo). Really it comes down to if Mike and John Luke can fight back the tide and get to the postseason. So look, I may not make the playoffs this year, but I'll be damned if I take any blame for it. What can I blame?... Ah, INJURIES.

Ow

Injuries man, that's why I'm not doing good. Gotta be. Can't be actions I'm taking. So (thanks to some encouragement from Garrett, his second great contribution to the league on the year mind you) I decided to take a look at how the injury bug has hindered me and well... I failed. ESPN is fucking stupid and will only ever show a player's current injury status, not what it was during a game. This platform is garbage. BUT, I did find some historic records. So while I'll just blindly accept that my lack of success is the universe correcting itself for bestowing upon me more charisma and wit than a mortal man should be able to handle, I can look definitively at what happened in past seasons.

Owner	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024	TOTAL
Mike	35	8	17	21	12	9	102
Austin	19	9	17	19	13	20	97
Garrett	19	11	15	16	12	17	90
Collin	18	26	15	14	7	7	87
Jake	14	13	14	14	17	12	84
Tyler	14	18	19	12	7	8	78
John Luke	15	5	10	8	11	19	68
Ryan	15	10	6	7	12	10	60
TK	9	13	11	8	8	9	58
Nathan	8	9	4	17	10	6	54

Wow ok I'll be real I did NOT see these results coming. I only went back to 2019 so everyone compared had the same number of seasons. These numbers are times where you had a player rostered (not including the IR spot) that had an official designation of "Out", "Questionable", or "Doubtful" and put up 0 points for the week. Somehow, it almost seems like the inverse of what you'd expect. Mike, Austin, Collin, and Garrett, a group that's won 2 of the last 3 championships and likely another one this year, have had the most injuries over the past 6 years. Though, the reigning champ Nathan has the least, almost half of Mikes. Different strategies in the Merritt genes I guess.

But then, look there, in the middle, there lies our hero, professionally and optimally managing his injury load year in and year out. What does this mean? Someone so diligent yet no trophies? The answer is clear. To win championships you have to be on one end of the spectrum, no moderates allowed. Horseshoe theory, if you will. Let me make my proclomation now, I hereby declare that I will have the most injuries any one season has ever seen next year, book it! That record belongs to Mike in 2019, by the way. Mike also has the 3rd-most (21 in 2012) and the 4th-most (20 in 2018), and he's got four championships, so yeah there's some merritt to that method (get it???)

Recaps

Alright whatever lets get this over with.

Garrett 94.06 - 122.86 Mike

After 3 straight wins averaging only 110 points per game, Garrett finally got his comeuppance in a 0-2 week at the hands of Mike. Mike would not, however get a Top 5 point to keep the pressure on Austin, as Jaxon Smith-Njigba could only carry the team so much. Garrett, I'd love to blame injuries on your loss this week like you asked me to, but if I'm being honest man you deserve more losses than you have so you don't really get any sympathy from me here. Garrett is facing elimination this week, if he doesn't win and get a Top 5 its all but over for him. Mike is in the opposite position. If he goes 2-0 and Jake fails to go 2-0, he's in. Hope you enjoyed the season Garrett, see you next year.

Tyler 105.16 - 100.78 Nathan

Tmo with the sneaky win! Everyone is getting these sneaky wins this year except me man smh. George Kittle did just enough on MNF to get Tmo over the edge, and good thing too because Nathan put up a combined 4.4 points with his RBs. Kamara got hurt, so that's excusable. Swift ran the ball 15 times and only managed 0.9 points, like what. Tmo is right there with Jake, 1 point below him but a better record despite scoring 190 less points. He's got a chance to make ground back this week as Jake goes against Collin and he plays a Garrett team on the brink. He'll need to be pretty flawless to make the playoffs though, down 4 points from #4 with only 6 possible remaining.

Jake 143.46 - 158.36 John Luke

Yall what am I supposed to do like I put up 143 and John Luke's entire team plays meh, but oh wait Jahmyr Gibbs just happens to put up FIFTY EIGHT FUCKING POINTS. For those of you keeping track at home, that's the 5th-best all time (would have been 2nd best before I found the pre-2018 player data). Fuck this game man, I seriously don't know what I'm supposed to do. This may just be the dagger for Jake's season, despite scoring relatively well he finds himself at 5-7 headed into a tough matchup against Collin, who's been almost unbeatable this year. If he can scrape by, he finishes the season with Ryan and Nathan as a hail mary. John Luke doesn't have the easiest path to coast into the posteason though, Mike and Collin are due up next before rounding out the season with Ryan.

Austin 160.52 - 159.18 Ryan

This would normally be the GOTW by a mile, 320 combined points and a 1.34 MOV for Austin in a heartbreaker for Ryan. Ryan brother... I feel you, I really do. Life isn't fair far too often for those of us that get nerfed by the divine. I will say that while 320 is a lot, in our rich league history it doesn't even crack the top 25 in points scored in one game. The record belongs to TK vs Juan in 2013 with 362. Whats fun about this game is its not like one person *cough GIBBS cough* did all the work, 6 players broke 20 points and every single player except Jordan Mason broke into the double digits, and Mason was the difference in the game. The win puts Austin ever so close to clinching his playoff spot, and is his 2nd top score on the year. Ryan, while this one hurts bad, is quietly still in the hunt, tied with Tmo at 10. Unfortunately for Ryan he'd need to outright beat Tmo, since Tmo owns the H2H tiebreaker and they don't play again this season. Ryan man again I'm sorry, I hate it happened to you against someone so gross.

TK 131.82 - 104.62 Collin

Stand up and tip your caps yall. Collin's run has come to an end. Big props to TK, he traded Josh Allen to Collin but Allen stayed loyal to TK by only putting up 6 against him. TK upsetting Collin while he was on the verge of glory is certainly a bit of a consolation prize for TK in what has been a forgettable season for him. But we also have to give Collin credit, in league history he now owns the 3rd-best win steak (10), tied for the 3rd-best Top 5 streak (9), and ties 2018 Austin for the most consecutive perfect (Win AND Top 5) weeks in a row at 9. Shoutout to Collin for askig for that anaylsis, and I've included those streaks on the Statistics page for decades to come. Collin, maybe take a lap to enjoy the success, give the guys a rest this weekend, turn your phone off and decompresses after a tough run. You have the playoffs to prepare for!

Power Couples

Jake/Tmo plays Garrett/Collin this week in what could be a massive 2-game gap closure if they can pull it off. Austin and John Luke now only sit 2 behind the lead as well, so if Collin and Garrett don't come through we could have an exciting finish after all! Nathan and Ryan are, officially, eliminated.