Friday, October 19, 2007

The Constitution of the Tuesday & Co. Football League
We of the Tuesday & Co. Football League, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish dominance, insure domestic upheaval, provide for the common sense, promote the general pimpdom, and secure the blessings of a Championship to ourselves and our posterior, do ordain and affirm this Constitution for the Tuesday & Co. Football League.

Article I: Establishment of the League


Section 1: There shall be a fantasy football league established for perpetuation of the fraternity desiderated by the men of Tuesday & Co.

Section 2: The name of the league shall be the, “Tuesday & Co. Football League,” or “TCFL.”

Section 3: There shall be no more or less than 10 league members. Ten shall be the number of the counting and the number of the counting shall be ten. Unto twelve do not proceed, neither unto nine unless proceeding on to ten. Three is right out. 

Section 4: There shall be two conferences, equally dividing the league in half, thus dividing the people in twain. The Conferences shall be named Mason and Dixon, befitting the legacy and heritage of the league.

The Mason Conference will be made up of the following, sovereign Sons of The South:

Mr. M. Alan Gable, D'yer Mak'er
Dr. Rooney Beauregard Tuesday, Governor
Mr. Noah Dontarrious Beck, The Mayor
Senator Khris K. Downey
Lee Frederick Nelson Rice, Head of Security 

The Dixon Conference will be made up of the following, sovereign Northern Tribes:

Master Junior T. Skelton, Who Shall Pick The Cotton
Mr. Robert Tiberias Bates, Uncle Bobby B
Dr. Jeffrey D. Proctor, Director of Intelligence
Travis K. Gable, Chief of Staff
Richie C. Kimberly II, Grndr Account Manager

If there is a vacancy in league ownership, the Executive Power shall activate the Eleventh Member as owner of the untenanted franchise. The Eleventh Member is nominated by the active membership composite for simple majority approval. The Eleventh member shall be known as “Mamie” and is a non-voting member unless activated as an owner.

Section 5: The TCFL regular season shall be conducted weeks 1-13 of the NFL regular season. The TCFL post-season will run NFL weeks 15-17, with the Mason-Dixon Game (Pro Bowl) on week 14.

Every franchise will play each division rival two times, for a total of eight division games and five cross-conference games, totaling 13 regular season games. The winners of the regular season division championships will have earned a bye in week 14 of the season.

Section 6: All legislative Powers herein granted shall be given to the sovereign members to make necessary decisions regarding league business. This body of membership has been chosen amongst the worthy members of the Tuesday & Co. family.

In order to meet the standards of league business, every sovereign member has the right to petition for control of the floor at the annual convention.

If a vote pertains to daily league business, a simple majority will be taken for approval, unless the Commissioner sets a higher, reasonable voting requirement.

Any proposed changes to the constitution will require a three-fourth majority vote, with no member abstaining on matters of the constitution.

In the event of a tie during voting procedure of non-constitutional nature, the commissioner shall break the tie.

If an off-season Convention proves necessary to meet the requirements of league business, the date and location of the convention shall be determined by the Executive Committee. The Commissioner shall preside over the proceedings. Attendance at a Convention is strongly recommended, but not mandatory.

Section 7: The TCFL shall be a “dynasty league.” The league members will be mandated to keep sixteen (16) players on their roster at all times, including the off-season.

Section 8: There shall be a live draft, which will be conducted on Labor Day Weekend annually. The location of this draft will be determined by members of the Executive Committee.

Section 9: The in-season rosters for each team will have at least 2 Quarterbacks, 4 Running Backs, 4 Wide Receivers, 2 Tight Ends, and 1 Flex starter. When all 20 positions are filled by eligible players, it is deemed a “legal roster.”

Every league member must have a legal roster before playing a game. 

Section 10: There shall be a waiver system established to drop or add free agent players to the general waiver pool.

There shall be a rank order for owners to contend for players in the waiver pool.
The waiver order shall begin the season reflexive to that of the natural draft order of the league members.

Section 11: The scoring for the TCFL shall be as follows:

Quarterbacks- 1 point per every 20 passing yards, 3 point per passing touchdown, 2 points per two-point conversion. Bonuses shall be awarded to a quarterback at 300 yards (5 points), 400 yards (an additional 5 points, for a total of 10), 500 yards (10 additional points for a total of 20). A quarterback may also incur points via rushing or receiving stats in the manner prescribed in the categories below.

Running Backs/Wide Receivers/Tight Ends- 1 point per every 10 receiving/rushing yards. 6 points per rushing/receiving touchdown. 2 points per two-point conversion. Bonuses shall be awarded to a RB/WR/TE/QB at 100 yards (5 points), 150 yards (an additional 5 points, for a total of 10), and 200 yards (an additional 10 points, for a total of 20). Any passing stats incurred by a player shall be awarded in the manner described above.

Kickers- 1 point per extra point, 3 points per field goal 0-49 yards, 5 points per field goal 50+ yards. Any another stat incurred by the player shall be awarded in the above manner.

Flex - same as RBs, WRs, and TEs.

Each team must start 1 QB, 2 RB, 2 WR, 1 TE, a FX.

In the event of a tie during the course of a game, the winner shall be determined by the bench player with the highest individual point total of all bench players for either team.

If the tie remains unbroken, the winner shall be the team who has the player with the second highest individual point total of all bench players for either team, and so on until the tie is broken.

Article II: The Commissioner, and His Powers

Section 1: All executive powers herein granted shall be given to the Commissioner. He shall hold his office for life, or upon his request is removed from the post of Commissioner, unless voted out in a manner prescribed by this document.

Should a new Commissioner prove necessary, he shall be elected during the off-season from the populous of the league that is qualified by serving a term in the league of no less than three years. The commissioner shall be elected by a three-fourths majority. In the event this is not possible after three votes, a simple majority will be necessary. The majority vote needs to be held twenty-four hours after the initial voting. No member may abstain from a vote on this subject.

A Commissioner can be removed by a unanimous league vote, of the membership. A league owner may also be removed in the same manner.

In case of removal of the Commissioner from office, or of his death, resignation, or inability to discharge the powers of the said office during the season, the same shall devolve on the Executive Committee Chairman (see Article III, section 4 for exception). In such a time the Executive Committee Chairman shall give up his office to become Acting Commissioner of the TCFL. The Commissioner shall pre-determine the next in line for Executive Committee Chairmanship, and an alternate Executive Committee member shall become active. A new alternate shall be appointed at such a time.

Section 2: The primary responsibility of the Commissioner’s Office is to maintain the integrity and competition of the league. He may use his Executive Powers to preserve and maintain this integrity, including the deprivation of waiver or draft picks to any party who is negligent in disrupting the league's interests. Fines may also be invoked by the Commissioner to punish the same detrimental actions.

The Commissioner of the league shall have the powers to conduct the live draft, institute and enforce league directives, preside over mandated conventions, maintain and control the waiver system, process trades or recommend trade reviews, make any roster changes requested of him by a league member for that member’s team, and enforce the judgment calls of his office, which may be reviewed by the Executive Committee upon appeal by a league member.

The Commissioner shall also have the power to conduct the post-season playoff and bowl games; establish offices pertinent to league business, and establish and distribute mid and post season honors.

Section 3: If the Commissioner acts contrary to his oath to maintain fair play standards within the league, acts dishonestly about a transaction or pending transaction, especially abusing Commissionatorial Powers provided him by this document, he shall be subject to punishment from the Executive Committee. Only removal of the Commissioner is a league wide decision, for which guidelines have been provided.

Section 4: The Commissioner has the right of "prima fascia" to be invoked only once during the course of a season. This right is a special exception, where the Commissioner’s decision cannot be reviewed by the Executive Committee. The ruling may be challenged post-season. If the Commissioner’s ruling was a violation of fair play ethics, he is then subject to punishment from the Executive Committee.

Punishment by the Executive Committee may be censure or temporary suspension, pending a league wide vote on his removal, or fines limited under $500. 

 
Article III: The Executive Committee and Other Orifices

Section 1: There shall be established an Executive Committee (XC). This Committee shall be made up of three long-standing league members. The composition of the XC is the commissioner, plus one representative elected from each conference.

Responsibilities of the XC include trade review (as recommended by the Commissioner), rule clarification, hearing a league member’s appeal of a Commissionatorial decision, draft and convention location selection, and preparing a budget to be maintained by the Commissioner and Treasurer.

Section 2: There shall be also a Chairman of the Executive Committee (XCC). It is his duty to preside over the proceedings of the subsequent committee members in any actions, reviews, trade oversight, or sanctions a league member or the Commissioner brings before the Committee. The Chairman is appointed by the commissioner for a one year term. Any member may serve as many years (consecutively or interrupted) as pleases the Commissioner.

In all reviews and responsibilities, the Executive Committee Chairman will preside over the proceedings to insure an orderly and prompt decision from the committee. The number of appeals shall not be limited during the course of a season. All findings and rulings of the Executive Committee shall be final. Any decision may be reviewed by the ownership in the off-season.

Once a verdict is handed down from the Executive Committee, it is the job of the Executive Committee Chairman to write the binding majority opinion. He may choose to have another committee member write a dissenting opinion if opposition to the majority opinion exists.

The Executive Committee has the right of refusal. This is the option of the Chairman not to hear a case or dispute if he deems the case lacks merit. The colloquial name for this judgment shall be the "P.A.B. Rule," which would surely suit any complaint for which the Chairman employed this codicil.

If any dispute involves a member of the Executive Committee, he shall abstain from the vote; at such a time the alternate XC member shall act in lieu of the abstaining XC member. If the dispute involves the alternate and a sitting member of the XC or two XC members, the Commissioner shall be active for the vote.

During a period of Executive Committee Oversight, the XCC also has the right to review a trade involving the Commissioner. This may be done at the Chairman’s discretion, without limitation on the number of reviews during the course of a season.

Section 3: There shall be a league Treasurer. The job of the league Treasurer will be to keep and collect all prescribed league dues, costs, and fines. A strict accounting of league funds is mandated.

The Treasurer shall also be charged with the maintenance of league trophies and awards.

His appointment is made by the Commissioner, of whom he serves at the pleasure.

Section 4: There may be established an office of the Deputy Commissioner (DC). The DC is the next in the line of constitutional succession, and therefore may be privy to all knowledge the acting Commissioner has (passwords, future plans and goals, conversations regarding the office or league business), this to ensure a peaceful transference of power in an emergent situation.

The Deputy Commissioner may be charged with certain executive powers as delegated by the Commissioner.

The Deputy Commissioner role may only be occupied by a non-playing member, and is filled solely at the commissioner's discretion. Therefore, the same responsibilities (minus executive delegation) shall devolve upon the Executive Committee Chairman if a DC is not seated (referencing Article II, Section 1, par iv).

Section 5: One owner or league member may serve in multiple sub-executive officerships during the course of a season. The Commissioner and Executive Committee Chairman may not serve in other capacities during their tenure in those offices.

Section 6: If an officer abuses the powers of his office, the Commissioner shall have the obligation of determining a fitting punishment for the team which the officer owns, and may also levy fines to be deposited into league bank account.

Article IV: Fair Play Rules and Regulations:

Section 1: Waivers shall be processed according to the “rank order” of each franchise.

The waiver pool will shut down for pick ups at midnight on Wednesdays. These times and days are subject to change by the commissioner.

There shall be no more than two waiver pick ups per week, per team. A pick up of one player from the waiver pool shall constitute the usage of the owner’s waiver position, at which time their waiver rank shall move to the bottom of the waiver rank order, and move up accordingly in succession with other franchises subsequent waiver picks.

All Waiver requests will be transacted through the league's automated system.

Section 2: There shall be a system of trade allowed within the league between the sovereign owners.
Trades are limited to transactions within this league involving players, draft picks, or waiver picks.
A trade may not be made with any monetary or possessional gain for any league owner. Any trade in violation of this rule, or believed to be in violation, will be invalid and subject to punishment by the Commissioner.

Executive Committee Oversight (XCO) of trades shall be active for two years should the induction of a new member prove necessary. Under XCO each trade may be reviewable by recommendation of the Commissioner to the Executive Committee. If the Committee so wishes, the trade may be vetoed.
After the two year oversight period has expired, the league shall not have the authority to regulate any legal trading between the owners.

The trade deadline shall close each regular season on the Wednesday of Week 11, unless extended by the Commissioner.

The trading block shall reopen the day of the NFL Draft for the next season. Dues must be paid in full in order for a franchise to be able to trade or enter trade negotiations.

All players are eligible for trading during the off-season.

Section 3: Players are locked into “starter” or “bench” status once a player’s specific game begins.

An owner may publish a depth chart, which prioritizes which players are to be substituted if a starting player sustains an injury during the first half of regulation play of the injured player's specific game; at which time the next player on the depth chart will be eligible as a starter.

If an owner is derelict in their option to submit a depth chart, should an injury be sustained, the rule defaults to the "lowest non-zero" scoring player on the bench at that position is available for injury substitution. 

It is also necessary that the “injured” starting player not return to the ball game in the second half after his injury is sustained. Any substitution not in compliance with this rule is in violation of fair play standards, and therefore subject to disciplinary action.

Section 4: In order to allow for franchises to make proper preparations for a game, all trade proposals must be accepted, denied, or a written agreement of negotiation extension between owners must be obtained before 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday or Friday, depending upon the day of the first NFL game that week.

Section 5: Division standings will be determined in the following order:

1. Overall Record
2. Division Record
3. Head-to-Head Record
4. Total Points
5. Head-to-head, single game elimination played on the Madden video game on Playstation Game Console. 

Section 6:
To maintain Fair Play during the bowl games, it is necessary that the scoring for the Lemon Bowl contest is determined “Scramble Style” for each team. The highest scoring players at each position shall be taken to determine each team’s starters.

The scoring for the annual Mason-Dixon Pro Bowl Game shall also be determined “Scramble Style.”

Additionally, the league will reserve the right to rename the Lemon Bowl Champion in order to bring further shame to their ingloriousness and disesteem. The Lemon Bowl Champion may negotiate a plea bargain with the Commissioner regarding his team name for the next season.

Section 8: cbsfantasysports.com will be the official website of the TCFL.

Section 9: The post-season bowl games are directly associated with playoff performance. In order of rank and importance these are:

Super Bowl, Presented by The Tennessee Squire Association- Mason Conference Champion vs. Dixon Conference Champion
Pappy Van Winkle Bourbon Bowl- Mason Conference #2  vs. Dixon Conference #2
SuckItLast.com Bison Bowl- Mason Conference #3 vs. Dixon Conference #3
Jimmy Carter BowlMason Conference #4 vs. Dixon Conference #4
The Lemon Bowl- Mason Conference #5 (Crapper) vs. Dixon Conference #5 (Shatter)