[JoshC1977]

Quote: Originally Posted by Landeye

I read somewhere that the CPU offers contracts based purely on overall, so if the best QB in the league is an 80 overall they get paid less than if they are 95 overall regardless if the stats are the same. With their being so many higher rated players in the default roster you get the crazy contracts. After doing a 20 year sim with tdawgs xp sliders the overalls are lower and in my franchise teams don't seek to have as much of an issue with cap space.

That's actually incorrect. Contracts are based more on their ranking in the league. I've done long-term sims using XP sliders all at 25%....upper-echelon QBs with OVRs in the high 60s are making exorbitant money....and it's true across the board. It's the one thing Madden does that actually makes a lot of sense....

I think that a lot of what you see later on in franchise is due more to CPU teams using a "Stars and Scrubs" approach. Very few CPU teams carry high-priced depth at any position...backups tend to be players on rookie contracts or really crummy vets. It's a pretty smart approach IMO (one the NFL has been trending towards in the last 2 decades IRL) and while it may result in lower team OVRs, their top-end talent is still usually quite competitive.