DE declines in ratings after I hire him. Why?

[GMO]

I saw a good DE in free agency so I bid on him and got him. I forget the exact numbers but it was something like 48/57. He got a good bonus and salary for a 2-year contract.

I didn't pay much attention to him afterwards but at or near the beginning of the exhibition season I took a look his numbers again and they're now 30/35.

Why the change?

Did he suddenly decline?

Did my scout steer my wrong (he's average in DL)?

Or is there some other option?

Did my scout get a kickback from the player for his inaccrate estimate of talent?

I'll have to cut this guy and waste the bonus money for 2 years.

[WelshWizard]

I could be wrong on this GMO, but when you are seeing a player that is not on your team you are seeing an overall consensus of this guy. However when he reaches your team you are seeing your scouts assessment of the guy. Quite a difference in ratings though, i am still learning this game myself but i do think it is to do with your scout, maybe the fact that he is average at scouting DL means he is not seeing everything in him and could go up again when playing him??? Just a thought, what was the scouts rating on a DL on the other team??

[GMO]

Just a thought, what was the scouts rating on a DL on the other team??

Sorry but I'm not sure what you mean by that last sentence.
There are many DLs on other teams.

[Ben E Lou]

I saw a good DE in free agency so I bid on him and got him. I forget the exact numbers but it was something like 48/57. He got a good bonus and salary for a 2-year contract.

I didn't pay much attention to him afterwards but at or near the beginning of the exhibition season I took a look his numbers again and they're now 30/35.

Why the change?

Did he suddenly decline?

Did my scout steer my wrong (he's average in DL)?

Or is there some other option?

Did my scout get a kickback from the player for his inaccrate estimate of talent?

I'll have to cut this guy and waste the bonus money for 2 years.Scouts re-assess their views of players after training camp. You see ratings change at that point. The 22 points of future potential you lost is near the high end of what you can expect, but not unheard-of. I've seen a change of nearly 30 points at that stage.

[lynchjm24]

They age during training camp.

[WelshWizard]

Sorry but I'm not sure what you mean by that last sentence.
There are many DLs on other teams.

What i mean GMO is the scout on this Defensive Linemans past team, it would be interesting to know what his scouting of Defensive Lineman was.

[Raiders Army]

I believe there also might be a change when you sign the guy as well. I've seen guys that look pretty good and they change slightly once they're signed for better and for worse.

[joyosects]

That sounds about normal for a DE somewhere in the 9+ years experience range. It always seems like defensive lineman particularly have a big drop somewhere between years 10-12.

As a broader question

Is it just me, or are offensive linemen and secondary positions talent decreases generally more gradual than the others? It seems with most of the other positions, all of a sudden one season they are good, and the next they just come back. The aforementioned positions just seem to lose 5ish points per season over time.

[Narcizo]

Well that seems likely as I think offensive linesmen and safeties generally last longer. Quarterbacks also tend to decline slowly in the game, without taking a one-year catastrophic hit. (Presuming they started for most of the previous year).

[M GO BLUE!!!]

Is his name Alonzo Spellman?