Madden 22 Franchise - Lions GM

[Wyld Stallyns]

22 hours ago, OkeyDoke21 said:

Is Bush really mocked number 1, with a 2-3 rnd projection, or is that just a typo?

Supposedly the AI logic is keeping track of what players teams are focusing on (you get 3). It’s likely in this case plenty of teams were probably suggested by their GM to check this guy out and and the logic said this guy is on the top of the board of multiple teams. Must be a top 5 player or in this case #1 based on team needs. 

[Danger]

8 hours ago, MKnight82 said:

#3 - QB Don Stearn - Drafted 5 by my Eagles - 78 OVR - Star Dev

🤔

[MKnight82]

20 minutes ago, Danger said:

🤔

Ya not sure why that’s in there.  I’m going to go throw up now.

[OkeyDoke21]

Nice draft.  Especially early on.  That FB is really nice, too.  

What was your strategy?  Did you pay attention to the stories?  How'd you handle your "Favorites"/Big Board?  I think I need to put a little greater emphasis on my BB, to help weed out some of the stuff that made me feel overwhelmed during the draft, going in and out of every card.  

[MKnight82]

16 minutes ago, OkeyDoke21 said:

What was your strategy?

If you read through the draft post it kind of goes through how I came about putting together a draft board. But its so many players so you have to narrow the list down somehow. I started off by completely eliminating all prospects 23 & 24 years old.  Then I literally clicked on every single draft prospect and looked at their combine results, focusing most on 40 time and bench, plus whatever information I had on their attributes. It took forever but seems to have paid off.  Also I'll note it looks like they significantly increased the number of prospects that are Star dev, so that helps. 

19 minutes ago, OkeyDoke21 said:

How'd you handle your "Favorites"/Big Board?

So I put everyone on the big board in order of what the cpu had listed for them, but then prioritized which ones to take within that range based on who I thought was the best prospect in that particular range. 

20 minutes ago, OkeyDoke21 said:

Did you pay attention to the stories?

Supposedly they fixed this but I had zero draft stories through the whole season. The only thing I had was that one meeting with the GM who told me to look at Bush. 

21 minutes ago, OkeyDoke21 said:

I think I need to put a little greater emphasis on my BB, to help weed out some of the stuff that made me feel overwhelmed during the draft, going in and out of every card.  

I still had to go in and out of every card, but putting them into the BB allowed the actual draft to be less overwhelming. So extensive prep paid off. 

[MKnight82]

Also I'll note I get really picky about the size of the players being correct for their position. Not sure if that helped or not. 

Edited October 14, 2021 by MKnight82

[MKnight82]

@OkeyDoke21 just another quick thing, I have minimum combine requirements for different positions that if players don't meet I immediately dismiss them from consideration. In general:

QB - High Throw Power is #1. Speed/scrambling is a secondary consideration. Mid Accuracy and Deep accuracy are top attribute concerns.

HB - I find that power backs sim better (I'm simming this entire league) so I look for guys with 25+ bench reps and hopefully sub 4.50 40 time. I will bend on the 40 time in later rounds but not bench. Carry is #1 attribute, if its low they are worthless. 

WR - All about the 40 time, shuttle and cone. 40 has to be sub 4.50, and hopefully top 10 results in shuttle and cone.  I will sometimes consider up to 4.55 40 if they are really tall. Release and Catch are top attributes.  Route running will usually level quickly. 

TE - Looking for guys who can both block and catch, so bench reps is key here. TEs are never super strong so looking for 20+ bench reps. Speed is secondary consideration but really don't want anyone with over 4.80. Catch in traffic is probably top attribute concern. 

OL - All about bench reps. Must have a minimum 30 reps. Attributes in Pass Block, Run Block and Impact Block are more important than rest of the combine numbers. So looking for strong and smart. 

DE - Looking for athletic freaks with size. Height is really important for knocking down passes, so really don't like anyone shorter than 6'3". Bench is important, anyone under 25 reps is eliminated. Ideally no one under 4.80 40, and top 10 shuttle time. Any DEs over 290 lbs can be considered for conversion to DT, so then that shifts to needing minimum 30 reps. Finesse Move and Power move are most important attributes. 

DT - Bench is #1 concern, followed by shuttle. Ideally 35 reps and top 10 in shuttle. 40 time is a bonus but not as important. Ideally over 300 lbs, if under they'd have to be super fast. Finesse Move and Power move are most important attributes. 

LB - Looking for length and size, ideally 6'4" 240+ lbs. Want a 40 time below 4.60, and bench reps above 25 (so they can engage blockers). Tackle, Pursuit and Hit Power are probably top attributes for general linebackers (I'm running a 4-3). High zone coverage in a linebacker is rare and valuable. If you're running a 3-4 you'd be more into Finesse moves and power moves. 

CB - All about the 40 times. Anyone higher than 4.50 is eliminated. Ideally top 10 shuttle and cone. Bench is pretty irrelevant. MC, ZC and Press are top attributes. 

S - Same as CB but a little more lenient. Probably a 4.60 cutoff, and more concentration on ZC with MC being irrelevant. Tackle rating is also important. Also I always look to see if there are late round Safety prospects 220+ lbs that might make a good conversion to linebacker. 

 

Also I'll note that in Rounds 1-2 I pretty much want the guys I take to check all of these boxes. In the later rounds I'm more willing to overlook if they are undersized or really raw attribute wise if they are a great athlete. 

Edited October 14, 2021 by MKnight82

[MikeT14]

17 hours ago, MKnight82 said:

LOLB L Vander Esch - WFT - 5 years, $86.8 mil

I'm gonna puke

[MKnight82]

Just now, MikeT14 said:

I'm gonna puke

That's a lot but with him and Reid that defense is stacked.  Plus they landed the top QB in the draft. 

[Flatlyner]

Are you saying that you put EVERY player on your BB and then just eliminated them as you looked at their ratings/combine?  I saw Bengal suggest that, but thought that was an unnecessary step honestly.  Why not just go position by position and add those you are intrigued by?  I guess that puts the big board out of projected mock sorted however.

Good draft and great write up.  That had to have taken FOREVER.

[MKnight82]

1 minute ago, Flatlyner said:

Are you saying that you put EVERY player on your BB and then just eliminated them as you looked at their ratings/combine?  I saw Bengal suggest that, but thought that was an unnecessary step honestly.  Why not just go position by position and add those you are intrigued by?  I guess that puts the big board out of projected mock sorted however.

Good draft and great write up.  That had to have taken FOREVER.

No I only added players I was targeting to board.

[MKnight82]

@Flatlyner to be honest I just used my own spreadsheet and didn’t use the in game board.

[Flatlyner]

Ah yeah, that makes sense.  Though having the red dot next to the prospect does help me a bit when just scrolling through the board if I want to re examine guys.

[MKnight82]

11 minutes ago, Flatlyner said:

Ah yeah, that makes sense.  Though having the red dot next to the prospect does help me a bit when just scrolling through the board if I want to re examine guys.

I did your annoying habit of going pick by pick for the first 5 rounds. 

[Flatlyner]

My annoying habit?! LOL.  If Madden could pull their head out of their A$$ and actually post a running board so you could actually see who has been drafted, I wouldn't need to   But, I realize that won't make them $, so they are not interested.