The Portland Porcupines appeared to be an early favorite after the Snow Monkey-hosted draft in early July, with a lineup boasting Drew Bledsoe, Antonio Freeman and Jamal Anderson. The Spitfires had a backfield of Mark Brunell and Fred Taylor, along with a solid receiving corp of Marvin Harrison and Keyshawn Johnson, and appeared to be the favorite in the Bismarck. Other experts felt that the Snow Monkeys, with a returning nucleus of Peyton Manning, Terrell Davis and Jimmy Smith, would also compete.

Nothing in life is certain, however, and even less is certain in the NBFFL. Many clubs were devasted by injuries, and pre-season favorites were included. The Porcupines lost Anderson and the Snow Monkeys lost Davis. Fred Taylor suffered from chronic hamstring problems. The Sirius Stars lost Barry Sanders to retirement, the Victoria Pride lost Garrison Hearst to avascular necrosis of the ankle, and the Virginia Velociraptors' entire pre-draft roster (Steve Young and Wayne Chrebet) was hit. Then there was Berkeley. During the first week of the season, the Beatniks saw Vinny Testaverde, Ricky Williams and Herman Moore all go down, and as a consequence, they mustered only 10 points in their first game against the Victoria Pride. It was bad all over.

After four weeks, Hell and Sitka - the teams on a mission - found themselves alone in first place with 3-1 records. On the other side of the logjam were San Antonio and Great Falls at 1-3. These last two teams were on a mission as well: to avoid the embarrassment of 1997!

New stars emerged in the aftermath of the injury epidemic, and the lion's share went to Sitka and Berkeley. Kurt Warner and Edgerrin James replaced Brunell and Taylor in the Spitfire backfield. Marcus Robinson, Germane Crowell and Albert Connell flipped the Beatnik receiver corp upside-down, but didn't nearly compare with the full-scale revolution that Stephen Davis brought to the running game. Rich Gannon was a steal for Berkeley at mid-season, sending the yet-to-be-injured Charlie Batch and Yancey Thigpen to Victoria in return.

The Victoria Pride pulled Sitka and Hell back into the fold, posting consecutive victories against the lead clubs in Weeks 5 and 6. After the Pride had done their damage, five teams were tied at 4-2 for the league's best record.

Sitka reasserted themselves with a five-game winning tear, leaving Victoria, Ontonagon and Sirius to sort out second-place amongst themselves. The end of the Spitfire streak turned out to be a galvanizing moment for the hapless Snow Monkeys. Jimmy Smith had an obnoxious plus-200 yard game that pulled out another high-scoring San Antonio/Sitka contest in the Snow Monkeys' favor. Having fallen to 3-7, the Snow Monkeys were struggling to grasp a playoff position, and the Bouldersnatchers accomodated them. Forced to rely on Elvis Grbac after an injury to Troy Aikman, the 'Snatchers dropped four of their last five. Eventually, Ontonagon was 4-9 and finished with the worst record in the league. Victoria and Sirius stayed close at 7-6 on a collision course with each other in the playoffs.

Hell fell out of first place in Week 8, but didn't leave anyone any time to get used to it. The Napoleon Division was completely within one game of each other after Week 9, but Hell and Berkeley began to pull away with two straight wins. Virginia and Great Falls, on the other hand, both lost three straight. The division crown came down to the last week. Amani Toomer and Marshall Faulk never gave the Beatniks a chance, contributing heavily to the Angels' 294.2 to 100.2 win and their third striaght Napoleon Division Championship. Great Falls escaped the infamous MSU Bowl and earned the privilege of meeting Hell in the first round.

Berkeley was the only higher-seeded team to lose in the opening round of the playoffs, allowing the Porcupines to advance to their third consecutive Napoleon Division Final. Victoria and Eddie George crushed Sirius, Sitka won yet another high-octane match with San Antonio, and Hell gave Great Falls a rude welcome to the playoffs with a 200-point pummeling.

The first all-Hutchinson Napoleon Final was tight, but Hell's Steve McNair put the Angels in their first Super Bowl. Sitka had an easier time with Victoria, employing a familiar combination of Warner and James to not only advance to the Super Bowl, but also establish themselves as clear favorites.

As in another league, the underdog won Super Bowl III. Easily, this Super Bowl was the league's highest-scoring and indeed, was one of the highest-scoring games in league history. Sitka did its part, putting up its typical 289.0 points. Then there was Hell. Steve McNair and Marshall Faulk combined for over 300 points. All the rest of the Angels had to do was cancel out. The Angels became the first Napoleon Division Super Bowl winner by a final score of 335.3 to 289.0.

Hell's Angels
8-5, Super Bowl III Champions
Notable Players: Steve McNair, Marshall Faulk, Amani Toomer, Randy Moss, Giants D, Randall Cunningham

Berkeley Beatniks
7-6, Lead Plate
Notable Players: Rich Gannon, Stephen Davis, Ricky Williams, Germane Crowell, Albert Connell, Marcus Robinson, Dolphins D, Brian Griese

Portland Porcupines
6-7, Brown Bowl
Notable Players: Drew Bledsoe, Ed McCaffrey, Kevin Johnson, Raiders D, Chiefs D, Tyrone Wheatley, Charlie Garner

Great Falls Gummi Bears
6-7, Case of Mello Yello
Notable Players: Tim Couch, Doug Flutie, Ricky Watters, Tim Brown, Cris Carter, Isaac Bruce, Jaguars D, Jerome Bettis

Virginia Velociraptors
5-8, 4-year MSU Scholarship
Notable Players: Brad Johnson, Curtis Martin, Curtis Enis, Terry Glenn, O.J. McDuffie, Wayne Chrebet, Colts D

BISMARCK DIVISION

Sitka Spitfires
9-4, Golden Goblet
Notable Players: Kurt Warner, Mark Brunell, Edgerrin James, Fred Taylor, Marvin Harrison, Keyshawn Johnson, Titans D, Cowboys D

Victoria Pride
7-6, Gray Cup
Notable Players: Brett Favre, Eddie George, Eric Moulds, Raghib Ismail, Chargers D, Rams D

Sirius Stars
7-6, Rusty Fork
Notable Players: Steve Beuerlein, Jon Kitna, Emmitt Smith, Muhsin Muhammad, Johnnie Morton, Jets D, Colts ST

San Antonio Snow Monkeys
6-7, Mildew Mug
Notable Players: Peyton Manning, Jeff George, Terrell Davis, Corey Dillon, Jimmy Smith, Michael Westbrook, Joey Galloway, Ravens D, Jaguars ST

Ontonagon Bouldersnatchers
4-9, Imelda Marcos Shoe
Notable Players: Troy Aikman, Elvis Grbac, Dorsey Levens, Derrick Alexander, Frank Sanders, Buccaneers D, Seahawks D