Someone explain this potential thing to me

[Rhone]

Gameplanning to pad a player's stats doesn't magically make the player bigger, faster, stronger, and smarter in real life and it shouldn't in Madden either.

The biggest problem with Potential ratings are that it took so damned long for EA to bother implementing them. After over a decade of training people to play Madden franchise more like an RPG than a football game, players are confused and bewildered that this aspect of the game has become more realistic.

[truffleshuffle]

Quote: Originally Posted by Patscanes

Alright you make fair enough points. I see them. But in my situation how does Benny only go up 1 point? Maybe it's not broken but is surely needs to be tweaked. I'm not asking the game to make Benny a 99 but only a 1 point overall increase seems unfair.

I agree I had the same kind of problem in my dynasty with the jets and LT. I rushed him for over 1000 yards and 25 Tds. He actualy lost a point even though he was the second highest rusher that season. When I got to the next season after everyting even his player role took a hit from being a team leader on the field to being fumble prone and injury prone even though he only had 1 fumble and was injured for only a quarter during one game with bruzied ribs. I don;t see how the cpu determans some of the raitings.

[Boling4Humor]

What about the players who don't really ever touch the football though. I had Orton over Tebow in an old franchise and when the next season came Tebow increased 7 points overall. He never even touched the football that season.

I can understand if he was behind a future hall of fame QB. Sort of like the Brett Favre & Aaron Rodgers scenario, but this is Orton we're talking about. It's not the coaching staff either so lets not go there.

[Rhone]

Quote: Originally Posted by Boling4Humor

What about the players who don't really ever touch the football though. I had Orton over Tebow in an old franchise and when the next season came Tebow increased 7 points overall. He never even touched the football that season. I can understand if he was behind a future hall of fame QB. Sort of like the Brett Favre & Aaron Rodgers scenario, but this is Orton we're talking about. It's not the coaching staff either so lets not go there.

1+1 doesn't equal 2, so let's not go there!

Look, most of a real NFL player's improvement happens during training camp and practice, and yes it happens by being taught and drilled by coaches. Many NFL starters spent 1-3 years on a practice squad and/or backing up a starter before they were ready to step in as a starter. Most of their improvement happened before they ever played a snap of regular season NFL football.

[Boling4Humor]

Quote: Originally Posted by Rhone

1+1 doesn't equal 2, so let's not go there! Look, most of a real NFL player's improvement happens during training camp and practice, and yes it happens by being taught and drilled by coaches. Many NFL starters spent 1-3 years on a practice squad and/or backing up a starter before they were ready to step in as a starter. Most of their improvement happened before they ever played a snap of regular season NFL football.

So you're telling me that in M12 Tebow was amazing through drills, coaching, and training camp? Where's the proof? It's more of an assumption than it is a fact in M12. I wish you were right because IRL this is the case. But in M12 that is def not the reason for these guys progressing. Right now I do feel that the progession is broke in certain aspects. I honestly do hope you or anyone else can change my mind on this because this is one of the few gripes I have with this game.

[Rhone]

Quote: Originally Posted by Boling4Humor

So you're telling me that in M12 Tebow was amazing through drills, coaching, and training camp? Where's the proof? It's more of an assumption than it is a fact in M12. I wish you were right because IRL this is the case. But in M12 that is def not the reason for these guys progressing. Right now I do feel that the progession is broke in certain aspects. I honestly do hope you or anyone else can change my mind on this because this is one of the few gripes I have with this game.

If you wish I'm right then I'm not sure what you're complaining about. I don't have the game in front of me right now so I don't know off-hand what his potential and ratings were, but I'm guessing his potential (probably an A or a high B?) is much higher than his starting ratings (I'm guessing lower than 80 OVR?). That means he has a lot of room to grow; therefore the game gives him a noticeable bump between seasons, based on the assumption that he is working hard to improve in training camp and practice.

Now, if there are other examples that don't seem to be working the same way--young guys with low OVR and high potential who aren't improving--then that would be something I'd be concerned about. I'm still in my first season and my memories of M11 aren't perfectly clear, so I'm not sure if this is happening.

But I'm certainly not bothered that a guy with low potential isn't going to get much better no matter what you do with him in games. It was just plain stupid in previous Maddens that you could, for example, take any rookie QB (with decent THP) and WR (with decent SPD) and turn them into Joe Montana and Jerry Rice with a couple years of padding their stats.

[Boling4Humor]

Quote: Originally Posted by Rhone

If you wish I'm right then I'm not sure what you're complaining about. I don't have the game in front of me right now so I don't know off-hand what his potential and ratings were, but I'm guessing his potential (probably an A or a high B?) is much higher than his starting ratings (I'm guessing lower than 80 OVR?). That means he has a lot of room to grow; therefore the game gives him a noticeable bump between seasons, based on the assumption that he is working hard to improve in training camp and practice. Now, if there are other examples that don't seem to be working the same way--young guys with low OVR and high potential who aren't improving--then that would be something I'd be concerned about. I'm still in my first season and my memories of M11 aren't perfectly clear, so I'm not sure if this is happening. But I'm certainly not bothered that a guy with low potential isn't going to get much better no matter what you do with him in games. It was just plain stupid in previous Maddens that you could, for example, take any rookie QB (with decent THP) and WR (with decent SPD) and turn them into Joe Montana and Jerry Rice with a couple years of padding their stats.

But this is where its broke. You shouldn't give a huge boost in ratings like that. There's so many flops who probably had an A pot in previous Madden games (and at some point in the future, this game) who increase when there technically was no reason for them to have such a big bump.

I don't think progression is completely broke, but in this aspect it is. But this is all subjective so I guess to each his own.

[raggBAGG]

Here's what I don't like about potential:

I play as the Pats and have had my CB depth as:

McCourty (A pot low 80s)
Bodden (B pot 80)
Arrington (C pot low 70s)
Butler (B pot low 70s?)
Dowling (A pot low 70s)

I had Dowling sitting because I (for really no reason) let rookies sit when I have seasoned vets ahead of them. Bodden went on to win the Defensive back of the year award with 10 picks. McCourty had 1, Dowling never saw the field. And overall, Butler and Arrington outplayed McCourty as far as coverage (McCourty got burned a lot).

The following season comes around and McCourty progresses to a 90, Dowling jumps like 9 points to a 80 and every one else stayed the same. So now I feel forced to bump Dowling up on the depth chart, even though the guys ahead of him played fantastic. Currently a 2nd year player in my franchise who never saw the field is the same rating as another guy on my team who just won the Dback of the year award.

I don't really care because I don't play the game through ratings. I cut high rated guys and play low rated guys based on how I feel controlling them or how they are doing as a computer. I'm just saying I can see where the OP is coming from and how ridiculous it can seem.

Oh and "sitting and watching" progression? Mallet (A pot) sat behind Brady and didnt get a single bump. I'm guessing someone here is now going to tell me Malletts work ethic stopped his progression now, right?