# What time do fantasy football lineups lock?

*ESPN League Manager leagues have a second option that locks all roster moves at the first game of the week.*

- Type: Explainer
- Section: Fantasy
- By: Fantasy Desk
- Published: 2026-11-12T01:38:29-05:00
- Updated: 2026-11-12T01:38:29-05:00
- URL: https://factsdesk.com/fantasy/what-time-do-fantasy-football-lineups-lock/

Topics: [NFL](https://factsdesk.com/topic/nfl/)

## Key facts

- On ESPN's default setting, fantasy football lineups lock one player at a time: managers can make moves until the scheduled kickoff time of each player's game. Source: [ESPN Fan Support](https://support.espn.com/hc/en-us/articles/115003938712-Lineup-Lock-Times). Confirmed 2026-11-12T01:38:29-05:00. Cite: https://factsdesk.com/fantasy/what-time-do-fantasy-football-lineups-lock/#on-espn-s-default-setting-fantasy-football-lineups-lock-one
- ESPN League Manager leagues have a second option, Lock at First Game of the Week, which locks all roster moves at the first game of the week, even if it falls on a Thursday. Source: [ESPN Fan Support](https://support.espn.com/hc/en-us/articles/115003938712-Lineup-Lock-Times). Confirmed 2026-11-12T01:38:29-05:00. Cite: https://factsdesk.com/fantasy/what-time-do-fantasy-football-lineups-lock/#espn-league-manager-leagues-have-a-second-option-lock-at
- In Yahoo Fantasy Football, players involved in early week games are locked in place at the scheduled start time of those games. Source: [Yahoo Help](https://help.yahoo.com/kb/SLN6869.html). Confirmed 2026-11-12T01:38:29-05:00. Cite: https://factsdesk.com/fantasy/what-time-do-fantasy-football-lineups-lock/#in-yahoo-fantasy-football-players-involved-in-early-week
- On Sleeper, a newly acquired player can be started that same week only if his own game has not yet begun and the manager has an open, eligible lineup slot. Source: [Sleeper Support Center](https://support.sleeper.com/en/articles/3473234-why-was-someone-able-to-drop-their-starter-after-they-have-played). Confirmed 2026-11-12T01:38:29-05:00. Cite: https://factsdesk.com/fantasy/what-time-do-fantasy-football-lineups-lock/#on-sleeper-a-newly-acquired-player-can-be-started-that-same
- Once a player's slot is locked on ESPN, only the League Manager can make roster changes on a manager's behalf. Source: [ESPN Fan Support](https://support.espn.com/hc/en-us/articles/360000097092-Moving-Players-After-Rosters-Have-Locked). Confirmed 2026-11-12T01:38:29-05:00. Cite: https://factsdesk.com/fantasy/what-time-do-fantasy-football-lineups-lock/#once-a-player-s-slot-is-locked-on-espn-only-the-league

Fantasy football lineups do not lock at one clock time on ESPN's default setting: each player locks at the scheduled kickoff of his own NFL game, according to [ESPN's lineup lock page](https://support.espn.com/hc/en-us/articles/115003938712-Lineup-Lock-Times). The kickoff times that set those locks are in [the NFL schedule for this week](/sports/what-is-the-nfl-schedule-this-week/).

## Lock rules by platform

| Platform | When a player locks | Where it is stated |
| --- | --- | --- |
| ESPN, default | The scheduled kickoff time of each player's game | [Lineup Lock Times](https://support.espn.com/hc/en-us/articles/115003938712-Lineup-Lock-Times) |
| ESPN, League Manager option | The first game of the week, for all roster moves | [Lineup Lock Times](https://support.espn.com/hc/en-us/articles/115003938712-Lineup-Lock-Times) |
| Yahoo | The scheduled start time, for players in early week games | [Yahoo Help](https://help.yahoo.com/kb/SLN6869.html) |

## ESPN

ESPN [defines](https://support.espn.com/hc/en-us/articles/115003938712-Lineup-Lock-Times) the lineup lock time as the point when team lineups lock each week, and says it applies to moving players between active slots, or between active slots and bench slots. League Manager leagues have two options:

- **Lock Individually at Scheduled Gametime.** ESPN calls this the default setting and says it is used by the majority of leagues. Managers can make moves until the scheduled kickoff time of each player's game.
- **Lock at First Game of the Week.** ESPN's page says: "All roster moves will lock at the first game of the week, even if the first game falls on a Thursday."

The League Manager may change the setting up until one hour prior to the draft, according to the same page.

A separate [ESPN page on locked players](https://support.espn.com/hc/en-us/articles/360000097092-Moving-Players-After-Rosters-Have-Locked) says player slots lock individually as each NFL game kicks off. It gives the practical consequence: a manager who left an injured player in an active slot cannot swap him out for that week once his game has started. After a slot locks, only the League Manager can make roster changes on the manager's behalf. The injury designations are explained in [what questionable, doubtful and out mean in the NFL](/fantasy/what-do-questionable-doubtful-and-out-mean-in-the-nfl/).

## Yahoo

Yahoo's [help page on early week games](https://help.yahoo.com/kb/SLN6869.html) says players involved in those games "will be locked in place at the scheduled start time." Yahoo says this affects moves between active and bench positions, and that lineup decisions need to be made before that deadline.

The same page lists what follows for the rest of the week:

- A manager who adds a player who was involved in an early week game cannot move that player into the starting lineup until the following week.
- Players who are in an active roster spot for an early week game cannot be dropped until the following week.
- Players who are in a bench roster spot for an early week game can be dropped at any time, subject to the league's weekly waiver rules and roster move deadlines.
- A player acquired by trade who has already played for the week is locked on the bench until the following week.

The waiver side of those rules is covered in [when fantasy football waivers clear](/fantasy/when-do-fantasy-football-waivers-clear/) and [how waivers work in fantasy football](/fantasy/how-do-waivers-work-in-fantasy-football/).

## Sleeper

Sleeper's help pages describe the lock through two cases. In a [page on dropped starters](https://support.sleeper.com/en/articles/3473234-why-was-someone-able-to-drop-their-starter-after-they-have-played), dated September 21, 2026, Sleeper gives an example of a player whose game kicks off at 1:00 p.m. Eastern on a Sunday and who is by then locked into the starting lineup. It says a newly acquired player can be started that same week only if his own game has not yet begun and the manager has an open, eligible slot.

In its [page on Player AutoSubs](https://support.sleeper.com/en/articles/9731991-how-does-player-autosubs-work), dated September 15, 2026, Sleeper answers the question "When do players lock?" for that feature: "As soon as one player in the AutoSub pairing kicks off, both players lock." An AutoSub is a bench player a manager assigns to move into the lineup automatically if a starter is inactive.

## Sources

1. [Lineup Lock Times](https://support.espn.com/hc/en-us/articles/115003938712-Lineup-Lock-Times), ESPN Fan Support, 2020-08-18 (primary source)
2. [Moving Players After Rosters Have Locked](https://support.espn.com/hc/en-us/articles/360000097092-Moving-Players-After-Rosters-Have-Locked), ESPN Fan Support, 2026-04-15 (primary source)
3. [How early week games affect your Fantasy Football league](https://help.yahoo.com/kb/SLN6869.html), Yahoo Help (primary source)
4. [Why was someone able to drop their starter after they have played?](https://support.sleeper.com/en/articles/3473234-why-was-someone-able-to-drop-their-starter-after-they-have-played), Sleeper Support Center, 2026-09-21 (primary source)
5. [How does Player AutoSubs work?](https://support.sleeper.com/en/articles/9731991-how-does-player-autosubs-work), Sleeper Support Center, 2026-09-15 (primary source)