It is a difficult problem. Even in the original league, there are only about 10 players that have stayed active through 4 seasons. I've refilled the owners is Chiefs1 and Raiders1 multiple times and we still have teams with inactive owners. Taking over a team that has an absentee owner may require several seasons to turn around -- that may not be everyone's cup of tea. I think something like the active league is the best solution. Start with players who know that they want to stick to the game. A new league allows them to build the team from scratch so they have more commitment to the team.

I don't have any great solutions.