Proposals on the table & help I need from you
Two things live here: the rule changes I formally proposed before the 2026 draft, and the gaps in our history that only your memories can fill. Both are grounded in the data on this site — check my math and come argue.
Proposals made before the 2026 draft
1. Re-seed the divisions every year
One division has taken 3 of the 4 playoff seats in 12 of our 14 seasons. The current split hasn't changed since 2022 and has sent three of the same four teams to the playoffs four years running — while the other division fights over one seat. Proposal: re-draw divisions annually by snaking the prior year's points-for (1-4-5-8 vs 2-3-6-7), or keep the division names for flavor and just seed the playoffs straight top-4.
2. Draft order by reverse points-for
Random draw has actually been fair — but it does nothing for parity, and reverse standings invites tanking. Reverse points-for helps whoever genuinely struggled and can't be gamed: you can't sandbag your score all season without losing real games while you do it. (For drama, the same thing works as a weighted lottery.)
3. One clean keeper-pricing rule
The rounds-1–3 keeper era locked the same stars on the same rosters for years and made "keep or don't" a gameable choice. Formalizing where 2025 was already headed: a keeper costs the round he was drafted, minus one, escalating one more round each extra year kept, with a two-year maximum; undrafted or waiver pickups cost a round-8 pick. A keeper simply replaces your pick in that round — everyone drafts in every other round, no special slots, no loopholes. (What the league actually adopted for 2026: the round he was last drafted, plus two — later is cheaper. See Keepers.)
Why these three: the Luck Ledger shows schedule and structure — not skill — driving a ±6-win spread between managers, and the division split is the part of that we can actually change.
Help complete the record
The servers gave us everything from 2012 on, but some history only exists in your heads and your inboxes. If you know any of this, reply in the chat:
🕰️ The lost seasons, 2010–2011
My old email account had more in it than I expected: the
complete 2010 draft board, the original league ID
(819176), confirmation that we were called 13HFP from the start, and a 2011 trade
proposal. Yours might have the rest. If you get a chance, search your old accounts for
anything from espnnewsletters@espnmail.com or
espnfantasy@fantasygames.go.com dated 2010–2011 and forward it to me. The
weekly "E-mail Report" recaps are the ones worth digging for — they
contain full box scores, so enough of them would give us the standings and the champions
for those years.
Two other open questions:
- Who was Team Suck It? Everyone else from 2010 is now identified (see the 2010 page), but that one is a guess — I think it was Rob, who hasn't played with us in years. Anyone remember for sure?
- Did we play in 2009? My "team created" email is from August 2010, which suggests 2010 was year one — but my memory says the house league might predate my account. Anyone have 2009 evidence?
🔁 Keeper history
- Was 2020 really our first keeper year? (The data says rounds 1–3 became keeper slots that season.)
- What was the exact 2025 keeper-cost rule we adopted?
- Any keeper exceptions, forfeits, or side deals I should record?
🤝 The 2021 pick swaps
The draft record shows Chris and Cody repeatedly picking in each other's slots in 2021 (rounds 4, 5, 6, 9, 10, 13), plus Cody picking in Bill's round-19 slot. What was the deal (or deals)? Nobody's in trouble; the ledger just wants to know.
📜 ESPN-era trades (2012–2021)
ESPN purged all our old transactions, so I reconstructed likely trades from players switching lineups mid-season. There are 69 candidates — skim your years and confirm, correct, or add what actually changed hands (especially any deals that included future draft picks, which left no trace at all):
All 69 reconstructed trade candidates
| ID | Season | ~Wk | What the lineups show |
|---|---|---|---|
| TR-2012-01 | 2012 | 4 | Bill sends DeAngelo Williams ⇄ Chris sends Kevin Smith |
| TR-2012-02 | 2012 | 4 | Cody sends Michael Bush ⇄ Bill sends Tom Brady |
| TR-2012-03 | 2012 | 7 | Clark sends Brandon Marshall ⇄ Bill sends Jordy Nelson |
| TR-2012-04 | 2012 | 8 | Bill sends Falcons D/ST ⇄ Drew sends Mike Williams |
| TR-2012-05 | 2012 | 8 | Cody sends Michael Vick ⇄ Clark sends Steelers D/ST |
| TR-2012-06 | 2012 | 15 | Cody sends Bengals D/ST ⇄ Bill sends Patriots D/ST |
| TR-2013-07 | 2013 | 6 | Bill sends Broncos D/ST ⇄ Matt sends Larry Fitzgerald |
| TR-2013-08 | 2013 | 7 | Bill sends Bilal Powell ⇄ Chris sends Calvin Johnson |
| TR-2013-09 | 2013 | 7 | Chris sends Eddie Lacy ⇄ Bill sends Philip Rivers |
| TR-2013-10 | 2013 | 8 | Chris sends Dez Bryant ⇄ Matt sends Robbie Gould |
| TR-2013-11 | 2013 | 9 | Chris sends Drew Brees ⇄ Bill sends Larry Fitzgerald |
| TR-2013-12 | 2013 | 10 | Cody sends Chris Johnson ⇄ Matt sends Wes Welker |
| TR-2014-13 | 2014 | 7 | Matt sends DeSean Jackson ⇄ Cody sends Le'Veon Bell |
| TR-2015-14 | 2015 | 7 | Neil sends DeMarco Murray ⇄ Drew sends Larry Fitzgerald |
| TR-2015-15 | 2015 | 11 | Bill sends Calvin Johnson ⇄ Matt sends Dez Bryant |
| TR-2015-16 | 2015 | 11 | Bill sends Stefon Diggs ⇄ Matt sends Tom Brady |
| TR-2015-17 | 2015 | 13 | Bill sends C.J. Anderson ⇄ Matt sends DeAngelo Williams |
| TR-2015-18 | 2015 | 15 | Matt sends Karlos Williams ⇄ Cody sends Zach Ertz |
| TR-2016-19 | 2016 | 6 | Chris sends LeSean McCoy ⇄ Bill sends Matt Forte |
| TR-2017-20 | 2017 | 6 | Neil sends Dustin Hopkins ⇄ Chris sends Jared Cook |
| TR-2017-21 | 2017 | 6 | Drew sends Jaguars D/ST ⇄ Cody sends Jameis Winston |
| TR-2017-22 | 2017 | 8 | Bill sends Lions D/ST ⇄ Neil sends Steelers D/ST |
| TR-2017-23 | 2017 | 9 | Bill sends Adrian Peterson ⇄ Neil sends Julio Jones |
| TR-2017-24 | 2017 | 13 | Cody sends Matt Ryan ⇄ Drew sends Saints D/ST |
| TR-2018-25 | 2018 | 5 | Cody sends Amari Cooper ⇄ Chris sends Leonard Fournette |
| TR-2018-26 | 2018 | 5 | Drew sends Carson Wentz ⇄ Cody sends Christian McCaffrey |
| TR-2018-27 | 2018 | 5 | Drew sends James Conner ⇄ Cody sends Robert Woods |
| TR-2018-28 | 2018 | 6 | Drew sends Austin Ekeler ⇄ Cody sends Bears D/ST |
| TR-2018-29 | 2018 | 9 | Drew sends Aaron Jones ⇄ Cody sends Austin Ekeler |
| TR-2018-30 | 2018 | 9 | Cody sends DeSean Jackson ⇄ Drew sends Panthers D/ST |
| TR-2018-31 | 2018 | 10 | Cody sends Aaron Jones ⇄ Drew sends Dan Bailey |
| TR-2018-32 | 2018 | 10 | Bill sends Alshon Jeffery ⇄ Cody sends Corey Davis |
| TR-2018-33 | 2018 | 10 | Bill sends Duke Johnson Jr. ⇄ Rick sends Vikings D/ST |
| TR-2018-34 | 2018 | 11 | Drew sends Allen Robinson ⇄ Bill sends Austin Hooper |
| TR-2018-35 | 2018 | 11 | Chris sends Dalvin Cook ⇄ Drew sends Nick Chubb |
| TR-2018-36 | 2018 | 11 | Bill sends Harrison Butker ⇄ Cody sends Travis Kelce |
| TR-2018-37 | 2018 | 11 | Chris sends Odell Beckham Jr. ⇄ Drew sends Sony Michel |
| TR-2018-38 | 2018 | 12 | Matt sends Chris Carson ⇄ Bill sends Robbie Gould |
| TR-2018-39 | 2018 | 15 | Bill sends Chris Carson ⇄ Drew sends Doug Baldwin |
| TR-2019-40 | 2019 | 3 | Bill sends Chargers D/ST ⇄ Rick sends Jaguars D/ST |
| TR-2019-41 | 2019 | 7 | Bill sends Devin Singletary ⇄ Drew sends Josh Gordon |
| TR-2019-42 | 2019 | 9 | Bill sends Cowboys D/ST ⇄ Rick sends Steelers D/ST |
| TR-2019-43 | 2019 | 9 | Drew sends Matt Gay ⇄ Rick sends Wil Lutz |
| TR-2019-44 | 2019 | 12 | Neil sends Baker Mayfield ⇄ Bill sends Kirk Cousins |
| TR-2019-45 | 2019 | 16 | Rick sends Colts D/ST ⇄ Cody sends Jamaal Williams |
| TR-2019-46 | 2019 | 16 | Chris sends JuJu Smith-Schuster ⇄ Cody sends Vikings D/ST |
| TR-2020-47 | 2020 | 3 | Drew sends David Montgomery ⇄ Cody sends Odell Beckham Jr. |
| TR-2020-48 | 2020 | 4 | Drew sends Alexander Mattison ⇄ Bill sends Mason Crosby |
| TR-2020-49 | 2020 | 4 | Cody sends Cam Newton ⇄ Chris sends Russell Wilson |
| TR-2020-50 | 2020 | 5 | Cody sends Chase Edmonds ⇄ Bill sends Jonathan Taylor |
| TR-2020-51 | 2020 | 6 | Cody sends Brandin Cooks ⇄ Drew sends Randy Bullock |
| TR-2020-52 | 2020 | 6 | Cody sends Jonnu Smith ⇄ Bill sends Tyler Higbee |
| TR-2020-53 | 2020 | 7 | Cody sends Austin Hooper ⇄ Bill sends Emmanuel Sanders |
| TR-2020-54 | 2020 | 8 | Bill sends Alexander Mattison ⇄ Drew sends Brandin Cooks |
| TR-2020-55 | 2020 | 10 | Rick sends Carson Wentz ⇄ Bill sends Ryan Succop |
| TR-2020-56 | 2020 | 10 | Matt sends Chris Carson ⇄ Bill sends Robby Anderson |
| TR-2020-57 | 2020 | 11 | Bill sends Buccaneers D/ST ⇄ Cody sends Evan Engram |
| TR-2020-58 | 2020 | 11 | Matt sends Chargers D/ST ⇄ Bill sends Jason Sanders |
| TR-2020-59 | 2020 | 11 | Cody sends Christian Kirk ⇄ Rick sends Eagles D/ST |
| TR-2020-60 | 2020 | 12 | Bill sends Austin Hooper ⇄ Drew sends Washington D/ST |
| TR-2020-61 | 2020 | 12 | Drew sends Bears D/ST ⇄ Cody sends CeeDee Lamb |
| TR-2020-62 | 2020 | 12 | Chris sends Christian McCaffrey ⇄ Cody sends Devontae Booker |
| TR-2020-63 | 2020 | 12 | Chris sends Hayden Hurst ⇄ Cody sends Jimmy Graham |
| TR-2020-64 | 2020 | 14 | Cody sends Mike Gesicki ⇄ Chris sends Nyheim Hines |
| TR-2021-65 | 2021 | 9 | Cody sends Derek Carr ⇄ Chris sends Matt Prater |
| TR-2021-66 | 2021 | 13 | Cody sends Brandon Aiyuk ⇄ Bill sends Dalton Schultz |
| TR-2021-67 | 2021 | 13 | Bill sends Daniel Carlson ⇄ Drew sends Khalil Herbert |
| TR-2021-68 | 2021 | 13 | Bill sends Devin Singletary ⇄ Cody sends Rashaad Penny |
| TR-2021-69 | 2021 | 16 | Cody sends Devin Singletary ⇄ Bill sends Dolphins D/ST |
🧾 Recovered trade receipts (from the email archive)
Actual ESPN trade emails out of my old account. The accepted ones are confirmed history; the proposals show what almost happened. One of them doubles as a sanity check on the reconstruction above: the Oct 23, 2013 deal is the same trade the lineup data flagged on its own.
Sun, 09 Oct 2011 — proposed
- 1L of a Good Time (SYDE) — C Sydebotham
- Team Stipes (STIP) — Cody Stipes
- SYDE sends Darren McFadden (RB) to Stipes
- SYDE sends Bengals D/ST (D/ST) to Stipes
- STIP sends Darren Sproles (RB) to Good Time
- STIP sends Bears D/ST (D/ST) to Good Time
- STIP sends Tony Romo (QB) to Good Time
Mon, 14 Oct 2013 — proposed
- Twerkin For the Weekend (MLY) — C Sydebotham
- Gary Americans (USA) — Billy Evans
- MLY sends Eddie Lacy (RB) to USA
- MLY sends Alshon Jeffery (WR) to USA
- USA sends Bilal Powell (RB) to MLY
- USA sends Marques Colston (WR) to MLY
- USA sends Martellus Bennett (TE) to MLY
Tue, 10 Sep 2013 — proposed
- Twerkin For the Weekend (MLY) — C Sydebotham
- Indianapolis Bacon (STIP) — Cody Stipes
- MLY sends Andrew Luck (QB) to STIP
- STIP sends Eric Decker (WR) to MLY
- STIP sends Michael Vick (QB) to MLY
Tue, 15 Oct 2013 — accepted
- Twerkin For the Weekend (MLY) — C Sydebotham
- Gary Americans (USA) — Billy Evans
Tue, 17 Sep 2013 — accepted
- Rusty's RailCats (USA) — Billy Evans
Wed, 11 Sep 2013 — rejected
- Pepe Silvia's Americans (USA) — Billy Evans
- Twerkin For the Weekend (MLY) — C Sydebotham
- USA sends Marques Colston (WR) to MLY
- MLY sends EJ Manuel (QB) to USA
Wed, 23 Oct 2013 — accepted
- Twerkin For the Weekend (MLY) — C Sydebotham
Wed, 23 Oct 2013 — proposed
- Twerkin For the Weekend (MLY) — C Sydebotham
- MLY sends Dez Bryant (WR) to Cru
- MLY sends Steven Hauschka (K) to Cru
- Cru sends Maurice Jones-Drew (RB) to MLY
- Cru sends Robbie Gould (K) to MLY
⚖️ Commissioner actions, 2022
Sleeper logged 6 commissioner moves in our first season there (add Gus Edwards wk1, drop Gus Edwards wk1, add Gus Edwards wk1, drop David Njoku wk1, add Kadarius Toney wk1, add Justin Herbert wk1). Bill — what were these fixing?