Looking for a challenge?

[jesrockz]

OC and DC Playcalling

When I read about people challenging themselves, all I really see is people moving sliders and then making house rules. The one thing I don't see when they post sliders and house rules is letting the OC and DC call all of their plays all the time. Wouldn't this create more of a challenge? Here's two more ideas that I have but I haven't tried yet.


Your favorite College Team

Why not pick your favorite College Team's players only? And I don't mean when it's convenient for you. I mean YOU HAVE TO. Fill your team with players from your favorite college......you MUST draft ONLY players from that college. Have too many draft picks and not enough players from your college team? Too bad, trade your draft picks then. A player comes up for a new contract.....what college is he from? Not yours? Then you can't re-sign him. A stud free agent hits the market, but he's 35 years old and he wants too much money.....but he's from your college so you HAVE to outbid everyone and put him on your team. You get the idea. Wouldn't this create more of a challenge?


Team KKK

Am I racist? Nope, I'm white. And we all know that white guys aren't racist. However, I do think racism is funny. And I also think that black guys are better at football. So, you want a challenge? You're not allowed to have any black guys on your team. There. That's a challenge. Have fun with that one. Good luck finding your stud RB, WR, and CB with that rule in place.




Anyone else have any creative challenges?

[bblack1207]

Re: Looking for a challenge?

In Response:
I See Dead People, And I'm Coo-Coo For CoCoa Pops.

[jesrockz]

Re: Looking for a challenge?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aaVKfaq67do

[Wheeler Dealer]

Re: Looking for a challenge?

In 2011, the first time I played this game, I read a post from someone that was going to let the GM handle all the GM duties, including the draft.

thro-headz has the GM handling most of the GM tasks. He also doesn't allow his assistants to buy special skills.

algoody421 calls unlearned plays when ahead.

While those sound interesting, the things I enjoy most are calling the plays and building the roster (GM stuff).

I'm starting to believe that the root of the imbalance is the coaching. I'm considering firing all my assistants. I don't know whether I should let the GM hire the replacements or if I should just pass on everyone. I read somewhere that if you do that you get the last guy back. (Not sure if that is the last guy you were offered or the last guy that was on your staff.)

Then, if it worked, I could build the best team and call the best plays and maybe I would still lose sometimes.

As it is, beyond my house rules and sliders, I have to change teams every three or four years.

[jesrockz]

Re: Looking for a challenge?

Another idea I was thinking about was this:

As soon as you're convinced that your coaching staff and roster is badass, then quit with the intention of taking over one of the teams in your division. I know it might not work as soon as you quit, because one of the teams you want might not be available. You might have to play a quick season with a bad team and not make the playoffs....but the next season you could try to take over a bad team in the same division as the beast you just built. At least that way you're having to face them twice a year and battling them for the division crown.

Has anyone tried that?

[Wheeler Dealer]

Re: Looking for a challenge?

I've moved four times now (2 careers) because my team was too good. I've never moved into the same division with my old team.

The first two times I tried to find the worst team that was not in my division.

The third time I moved to the team where the other three teams had the most wins.

This time I had made up my mind to go to the Cowboys from the Redskins (the Giants and Eagles also made the playoffs) but they weren't hiring. Looked like a perfect storm!

Sigh, I ended up with the Packers.

Here's a new challenge I tried out last night. I opened a bottle of wine and started a game about 1:30 AM. I got too sleepy and paused the game until morning. Today I found myself with 6 minutes to play down 31-24 with very little idea of what had been working so far in this game!

I lost!

[algoody421]

Re: Looking for a challenge?

NO, LETTING YOUR DC AND OC PICK EVERY PLAY MEANS THEY WILL ONLY PICK MASTERED PLAYS. Because of that, you will win 95% of the time, only losing against teams that are truly better than you and not often then either. The only time an oc or dc will REALLY call any unlearned plays is in preseason and its really only the first preseason. They do sometimes in the reg season but its very rare.

Once he has called the plays he likes in the BASE PLAYBOOK(the one you start your career with or the one you chose to build your playbook from), THOSE WILL BE THE ONLY PLAYS THEY CALL. Your oc and dc will NEVER PICK A PLAY YOU CREATE OR STEAL UNLESS YOU HAVE CALLED THEM YOURSELF IN THOSE SITUATIONS.

To truly add difficulty, you must call your own plays and must limit yourself to learned and unlearned plays once you have the lead. That is the only true way to add difficulty to this game, other than slider tweaks. People seem to forget that even the loading screen tells you MASTERED PLAYS GIVE HUGE BOOSTS TO THE PLAYERS ABILITIES WHO HAVE MASTERED THEM. If the oc and dc only call mastered plays, you're not adding difficulty, you're subtracting it.

Other than that, you must promote from within and anyone who is too good at their coaching position already needs to be promoted or let go and replaced. If you have a staff of all 99s, you will go undefeated at will. I typically wont keep a coach longer than 5 years and those are the ones you develop yourself who started at 1 out of 4 in everything but had the potential to fill out(started as an 11 overall and what not).

But someone like Caldwell I will only keep one year if I cant get him to oc that next offseason. I usually will sign him as my qb coach first, then the next year oc for 2 years MAX, then let him go become a hc or oc somewhere else.
If I dont want him as my oc after that first year, I let him go after 1 season. So most coaches should only last on your staff 1 3 or 5 years max to add difficulty.

You also need to limit the amount of draft picks you take in the first 3 rounds to add difficulty. If you're drafting 3 1sts 3 2nds and 3 3rds, you just stole 9 of the top 50-100 players in the draft most likely, prolly closer to top 50). If you only pick 4 total in those rounds though(getting 2 in only one of those rounds), the talent is better dispersed around the nfl.

Finally, you have to tender your rfa low enough so that teams will want them and you can take draft picks as to lose your consistency. What I mean is, the longer you have the same players at the same positions, the less time it takes to learn all the plays each season, and the better they will play every game. When you're trading people and letting people walk or get stolen as an rfa, you lose consistency on your roster and have to reteach the plays to those new rookies and free agents.

If you're looking for a challenge, only use mastered plays when you absolutely need them(3 &7+) or you need a 4th down conversion. As I told Wheeler dealer in a message, think of it this way. ALL UNLEARNED PLAYS HAVE A 25% chance of working(but can be 100% against the right defense or offense called), Learned plays have a 50 50 shot of being successful(again can be 100% called against the right defense or offense), Mastered plays have a 75% chance of working. If you only use mastered plays, you only have a 25% chance of losing on any play let alone any game in total.

[algoody421]

Re: Looking for a challenge?

Actually, One last thing. When scouting for the draft, go to schools that have superstars and individually workout ONLY THE BEST PLAYERS IN THE DRAFT. This will make it so the right people get drafted early in the draft.

IE, Im on the ozzie jones draft path. Because I scouted Kammeon walker, he was chosen as the #1 draft pick by the ravens if I remember correctly. They already had flacco and needed a #1 wr so they chose him. Oakland raiders needed a qb so hammermill drafted Joe Kain(again, someone I used the individual workout). In fact, everyone I individually worked out was drafted within the first 15 picks.

Of course if there is someone you really need/want, you dont scout them AT ALL. Not in the senior bowl, not at the combine, not at pro days and not individual workouts. But studs you never had any intention of drafting SHOULD be scouted AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. That will make it so teams make better draft choices.

[Wheeler Dealer]

Re: Looking for a challenge?

Anyone else have any creative challenges?

I guess without really thinking it through I have adopted a challenge to keep me interested.

Set a goal. Once you achieve it move to a new team.

I'm on my second career and I see a pattern forming. After I win a couple of Super bowls with my original team, I move. By that time my coaching skills are pretty good so the following pattern seems to play out in my new cities.

Year one, making the playoffs is dicey but I have 4 times now.
Year two, win one or two playoff games. I failed at least 1/3.
Year three, win the big one. 3/3 to date.
Move again.

I don't like leaving all my projects unfinished but I dislike boring games and seasons even more.

[Wheeler Dealer]

Re: Looking for a challenge?

I'm trying something new (for me). After a failed trip to the super bowl I replaced all my coaches and let the GM pick the replacements.

The most obvious impact is the trainer. Last year I rarely had injury problems, well my starting QB was injured and missed the conference championship game and Super Bowl. but in general I had few injuries through the season.

That trainer was a 99, my new trainer is a 48. In my first game I had 4 key players get hurt.