Official Rule Amendments
This page is the public record of approved league-rule changes.
Approved amendments are listed below with the prior rule, new rule, rationale, and effective date. An amendment applies only on or after its listed effective date.
Some entries below were added on October 5, 2026. They record changes that were announced in league updates, or made in Sleeper's settings, but never logged here. Each one says where it came from.
Trading · Effective Sep 9, 2026
No trade review period
- Previous rule
- Trades are subject to a 2-day review period
- New rule
- Trades process as soon as both managers accept
- Rationale
- No rationale was posted.
From Sleeper settings Not announced. Recorded from Sleeper league settings, 2025 against 2026.
Draft · Effective Jul 25, 2026
One compensatory pick per manager
- Previous rule
- A compensatory pick for high-impact trades
- New rule
- One compensatory pick at the end of Round 3 for a qualifying trade, capped at one per manager however many trades they complete
- Rationale
- Without that cap, there would be too many comp picks to keep the draft balanced.
Announced in 2026 Season Update.
Dues · Effective Sep 4, 2025
Weekly group parlay
- Previous rule
- No weekly parlay
- New rule
- A $5 weekly group parlay, tracked separately from the prize pool
- Rationale
- Put to a vote in the 2025 Season Kickoff. Kept for 2026 by a 9 to 1 vote.
Announced in 2025 Season Kickoff and 2026 Season Update.
Scoring · Effective Sep 4, 2025
Weekly game against the league median
- Previous rule
- One head-to-head game each week
- New rule
- A head-to-head game plus a game against the league median each week. Both count in the standings.
- Rationale
- Teams that get super lucky, or incredibly unlucky week over week are slightly balanced out in final standings.
Announced in Vote announced in the 2025 Season Kickoff. Sleeper shows it on from 2025..
Draft · Effective Jul 31, 2025
Open draft, the “Rico Dowdle” Rule
- Previous rule
- Rookie-only draft
- New rule
- All players, rookies and current waivers, are eligible in the draft
- Rationale
- Every player’s on the board. If a waiver players’ stock has increased in the off season, you’ll have an opportunity to use a pick to draft them.
Announced in 2025 Season Kickoff.
Draft · Effective Jul 31, 2025
Fourth draft round
- Previous rule
- 3-round draft
- New rule
- 4-round draft
- Rationale
- I’ll be adding an extra round (due to the increase in bench capacity)
Announced in 2025 Season Kickoff, confirmed by Sleeper's draft settings (3 rounds in 2024, 4 in 2025).
Draft · Effective Jul 31, 2025
Compensatory picks for trades
- Previous rule
- No compensatory picks
- New rule
- A compensatory pick at the end of Round 3 the following year for high-impact trades
- Rationale
- Successful trade deals have been an issue. This is a small incentive to help promote more trade deals getting done.
Announced in 2025 Season Kickoff.
Roster · Effective Jul 31, 2025
Bench expansion
- Previous rule
- 5 bench slots
- New rule
- 9 bench slots
- Rationale
- I’m boosting the bench to 8 so you can stash more players. This should have an effect of facilitating more trades as the waivers will be scarce.
The 2025 Season Kickoff announced 8 bench slots. Sleeper was set to 9 for 2025 and 2026, and 9 is the rule.
Announced in 2025 Season Kickoff and Sleeper league settings.
Draft · Effective Dec 24, 2024
Draft Order
- Previous rule
- Rookie draft as a snake draft
- New rule
- Rookie draft as a regular draft
- Rationale
- The change gives rebuilding teams better draft capital by maintaining their position in each round, similar to the NFL draft format. This creates a more balanced system for league parity and long-term competitive balance.
Source: Rule Amendments database in Notion.
Roster · Effective Sep 5, 2024
Taxi squad and injured reserve expansion
- Previous rule
- 4 taxi squad slots and 1 injured reserve slot
- New rule
- 5 taxi squad slots and 2 injured reserve slots
- Rationale
- No rationale was posted.
From Sleeper settings Not announced. Recorded from Sleeper league settings, 2023 against 2024.