[DCEBB2001]

Quote: Originally Posted by ggsimmonds

I appreciate what you do but I do have a few concerns. 1. You say you have data to back up your claims but when asked for it you cannot release it for legal reasons. I understand that you are required to abide by the NDA but it still comes off odd. Donny Moore says the same thing. I have a few people who can attest to the data. Dr. Craig Larner, formerly of Texas A&M University is one of them. Look him up, and contact him to vouch for it. I doubt he would put his professional reputation on the line over myth...especially considering he is a scientist, first and foremost. What Donny often cites is "Youtube Scouting". He has mentioned several times about why players are rated the way they are based on what he sees and references on Youtube. Why else do you think he has Desean Jackson as the fastest player in the league. SMH. BTW, it isn't just one NDA...I had to sign SEVERAL. You don't have to take my word for it, though. You either buy it or you don't. I have often cited on this forum some of the "raw" grades for certain players regarding their attributes. You can look that up. Even that is "borderline" for me, but as long as I am not providing massive downloads, I should be within my legal limits. 2. Regarding the portion about any rookie being tops in any category I must ask, according to who? Your source? Well that is problematic for me. It is almost circular. Rating technical attributes (no matter what your methodology is) is subjective. The technical ratings are very subjective, yes. However, would you rather trust a brain surgeon when you suffer from a brain embolism or the NASCAR fan who just stayed at a Holiday Inn Express last night? Everything I do is based on source data. I will refer you to our FAQ page. 3. You also slightly shifted the goal posts a bit on this. You went from "there should NEVER be a player rated that high as a rookie in ANY of those categories." to "not been ONE rookie that entered the league as tops in any category." Has Madden ever rated a rookie as tops in a technical category? In any of the technical categories, no. Physical? Possibly, but rarely. Data going back to 1997 gives you a pretty broad spectrum of which most players (we add about 2500 of the 9000 rookies to the site every year) fit within. I can't tell you if one came in at the very top, but it wouldn't surprise me. The larger point is that the data I have posits that these rookies shouldn't even be in the top 10% for the most part, with very, very few exceptions. Instead, EA seems to defy that. I am NOT saying it is the end-all, be-all, but based on what I personally know from doing this for several years, even going back to my scouting days as NFLDS, I tend to side with the scouts. 4. This is more of a personal quirk, but I just dislike use of the word never. Just because it has not happened does not mean it will not. Based on the data I have, it has never happened. This is not the same as saying it won't, but that probability is closer to a guy like me winning the PowerBall...and I don't buy tickets. 5. Regarding PFF and its relationship with Madden, it is a tricky thing. I know you have spoken about the difference between traits and production before and I get what you are saying. But I think the primary goal when rating players in a videogame should be to come as close as possible to replicating real life results. So, and others may disagree, I think matching production should take precedence over traits. If Madden had a "YPC Outside The Tackles" rating or a "Completion % on Go Routes" rating, then sure, it would work. But even NFL front offices don't draft based on production. They draft based on traits. http://www.barrypopik.com/index.php/...tion_strategy/ Bill Belichick does the same thing. In fact, he's often given credit for saying it first. That guy can back it up. 6. Most importantly, I am not a fan of Donny Moore. Don't take this as me defending him or anything. Madden's rating philosophy is pretty bad in my view.

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