FA Bidding
Bids are in format of total contract value. Note that the number of years does not need to be listed until the bid is won. The resulting salary will be the final bid divided by number of years, rounded to the nearest $500k. The winning bid will be the highest total contract amount. If the bid is less than $20m then contract can be valued in multiples of $500k. If it is $20m or more then it must be in multiples of $1m.
Each player is auctioned in a separate thread at the MLFB website that may be started by anyone. There is no limit to the number of players that can be auctioned at one time or the number of bids for a player. A bid on a player is considered final when it has been open for 72 hours.
Off-season free agency (OFA)
OFA begins at a set date (see Deadlines) and will last until the first game of the season. The exact dates will be posted in the league schedule. Note that offseason free agent signings may be not be traded in the following season until June. OFA bids for a position cannot be opened until the dates below.
OFA follows standard FA bidding rules. However, if the free agent is restricted (rights are held by another team), then that team may match the final offer and sign the player to the new contract.
FA Prospects
Note that bids on players that may fall under prospect contracts work differently. The prospect contract has its own set of rules at a league minimum salary. Any amount over $0.5m is considered a signing bonus, and is on a team's books even if they release the player. Signing bonuses are guaranteed money!
Contract Limits
Except for any contract inherited in 2009, all contracts must be no longer than five years. Also, for a given salary, all contacts (extension, FA) have term limits as provided below.
<= $1m, 2 years
$1.5m - $5m, 3 years
$5.5m - $10m, 4 years
> $10m, 5 years (the overall limit)
