The league tweaked its keeper rules this year. Previously, undrafted free agent pickups could be kept for as little as a 14th round pick. That loophole got closed, bumping the minimum cost to an 8th round pick to keep anyone who wasn't originally drafted. A minor adjustment on paper, a meaningful one at the margins. Jeft Cavey won the championship, so somebody figured it out.
Jeft beat Derek Burns 128.0-112.5 in the title game as the 2-seed, his first championship and a well-earned one after years of regular season success that never quite converted. Derek Burns, who once finished last in 2012 and spent years clawing back to relevance, made his first championship appearance and came up short. Runner-up is a real result for a guy who used to be a punchline.
Derek Hilmer went 10-3, won the regular season title, scored 1,544 points, and finished 5th. Ryan Wingerson led the entire league in scoring with 1,585 points and finished 8th. Between the two of them they had the two best regular seasons in the league and combined for exactly zero trophies. The bracket has been running the same joke for years and shows no signs of stopping.
Alex Benedict joined the league this year and immediately went 7-6, finishing 7th. A respectable debut that nobody will remember, but still.
Dennis Lynn, who won this whole thing in 2014, posted just 1,093 points in 2017, the lowest total in the league by a wide margin, and finished last at 3-10. The defending champion to the basement in three years. Scott Langer, last year's champion, finished 11th at 4-9. The 2016 and 2014 champions combined for one win between last place and second-to-last. What the bracket giveth, it absolutely taketh away.
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FINAL STANDINGS
| Finish | Owner | Record | Points For | Points Against | Reg. Finish | Net Payout |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jeft Cavey | 8-5 | 1,536 | 1,564.1 | 2 | +$275 | |
| 2 | Derek Burns | 8-5 | 1,475.4 | 1,374.5 | 4 | +$100 |
| 3 | Jarod Hilmer | 8-5 | 1,528.3 | 1,461.6 | 3 | $0 |
| 4 | Andrew Vinz | 6-7 | 1,527.0 | 1,533.5 | 8 | $-50 |
| 5 | Derek Hilmer | 10-3 | 1,544.5 | 1,327.8 | 1 | $0 |
| 6 | Matthew Beyer | 7-6 | 1,396.7 | 1,418.2 | 5 | $-50 |
| 7 | Alex Benedict | 7-6 | 1,292.4 | 1,293.6 | 6 | $-50 |
| 8 | Ryan Wingerson | 6-7 | 1,585.1 | 1,444.6 | 7 | $-50 |
| 9 | Paul Loveland | 6-7 | 1,445.9 | 1,434.6 | 9 | $-50 |
| 10 | Bernard Lynn | 5-8 | 1,247.3 | 1,439.4 | 10 | $-50 |
| 11 | Scott Langer | 4-9 | 1,487.2 | 1,442.6 | 11 | $-50 |
| 12 | Dennis Lynn | 3-10 | 1,093.2 | 1,424.4 | 12 | $-50 |