Commissioner resource
NFL survivor pool rules that prevent arguments later
New to survivor pools? The goal is simple: pick a winning NFL team each week and keep your entry alive. These are the rules Survive Sunday enforces.
The basic format
An entry is one independent chance to play. It picks an NFL team to win each week. A win keeps the entry alive; a loss uses a mulligan if one is available or eliminates the entry if none remain.
No-repeat teams
Each entry can use an NFL team only once during the regular season. That makes long-term planning part of the game: using a heavy favorite now removes it from that entry’s later choices. Team history resets for the playoffs.
Pick deadlines
A saved pick remains editable until it locks. With rolling locks, each team locks at its game’s kickoff. With the fixed deadline, all remaining choices lock Sunday at 1:00 PM Eastern.
Thursday and early games
Thursday, Saturday, international, and other early games always lock at kickoff—even when the pool uses the Sunday deadline. No one can choose or change to a team after its game begins.
NFL ties and mulligans
The commissioner chooses whether an official NFL tie counts as a win or a loss. A mulligan is one allowed loss: the entry stays alive but has one fewer mulligan remaining.
Multiple entries
A commissioner can let one person own several entries. Each entry is a separate chance with its own picks, used-team history, mulligans, standings row, and elimination status.
Double-pick weeks
A double-pick week requires every alive entry to submit two different teams. Each pick is graded separately, and every losing or missing pick uses a mulligan or moves the entry closer to elimination.
Missed picks
If an entry has no pick when its deadline passes, the missing pick counts as a loss. It uses a mulligan when one remains; otherwise the entry is eliminated.
Recommended pre-season checklist
- Start week
- Pick deadline
- Tie rule
- Mulligans allowed
- Double-pick weeks
- Multiple-entry limit
- Missed picks count as losses
- Winner determination