Board 8 > Sign-ups for B8's best project

(+) Yeah! (+)

Board 8 National Football League League (B8NFLL) just wrapped up its 15th season where the Minnesota Vikings defeated the Miami Dolphinsin the Super Bowl. That means its time for new blood or old blood returning to be able to get in on the action for Season 16. Signups will last until early-to-mid November, so there's no rush.

What is this?
B8NFLL is a simulation league using Madden 06s franchise mode where users build rosters while managing the salary cap to have fun and/or accomplish something over the course of multiple seasons (no hard figure, but the game can't exceed around 30 seasons)

What do we do in a season?
Here is an oversimplified breakdown of what we do each season:
1. Offseason
- Ownership changes <---- We are here
- Player retirements
- Restricted free agents
- Unrestricted free agents
- NFL Draft + signing draft picks
- Free agency
2. Preseason
3. Regular Season
4. Postseason

The beginning of the offseason is the only time that I can change ownership of teams, and I personally think that it makes most sense to end the season with the playoffs, so this is where we begin. The majority of your work in this league will be in the offseason. The pre, regular, and postseason are basically seeing the fruits of your labor and making any adjustments that you see fit. You can ask questions now if you have any about the offseason events, but I go over them in full detail when the time comes.

This is the kind of project where you can be as active or inactive as you want. I of course like to see it when people put in a lot of effort, but I totally understand that people have different lives and schedules that might affect the amount of time they are able to put into this. We've had a wide variety of successful levels for those active and inactive. We've even had users who literally did nothing all season who went on to win Super Bowls or make it far into the playoffs. If you are interested in joining this but are hesitant based on your availability, let me assuage some possible concerns. I end up doing like 95% of the work on this project, and I give users plenty of time to do their tasks. A large number of offseason segments I give users at least a week to complete. Should you idle during any of those segments, I have very forgiving rules in place. Your team will not be screwed over if you ever forget to do something.
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In the OP of every topic we have, there are four links you will see. They are as follows:

1. Hub Spreadsheet
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/10gIP0JkVqOaoUc4aQX_NyDM8dB31FOPm_dUx6DVTWPk/edit?usp=sharing

This is where you will find all pertinent information on the current state of the league. In it you will find several sheets, most of which should be self-explanatory if you understand the NFL. You might want to look at to get familiar with it and if your choice of team depends on its roster and not fandom. If your choice of team does depend on the roster it unfortunately is not fully accurate.

Due to the amount of time it would take to update each time players' ratings change, ratings for all teams are reflected based on what they were entering the preseason unless a player was signed or traded after it. Also, the team financial sheet which gives you contract info and ages for all your players are only shown for user teams based on how much time and effort it takes to work on it. Do not hesitate to ask me any questions regarding any teams you might be interested in taking over.

2. Word Doc
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1RVeEIyjqIiEkS0VYvbsI02dWMDXyOgdVQAgThNJyIfc/edit?usp=sharing

This was re-worked, but it still a very wordy 14-ish pages worth of info that should be helpful to understand how B8NFLL works within Madden 06. I wouldn't say it is essential and it doesn't cover everything, but I think it covers most of the important stuff and might answer many of the questions you have.

3. Wiki Page
http://board8.wikia.com/wiki/Board_8_National_Football_League_League

This is starting to get ridiculously long and may prompt me to move it elsewhere as I can't seem to make new articles on the B8 Wiki, but the basic history (such as who was in charge of what team each season, final regular season records, playoff results, award winners, and end-of-season stat leaders) of every season of B8NFLL is on record here.

4. Previous Topic
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/boards/8-gamefaqs-contests/79550310

That topic covers the entirety of the regular and postseason, so you can check it out at your convenience to see how everything during that span is presented. We are also part of the B8 Discord and can be found in the B8NFLL sub-channel under Sports.
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Here are the 32 teams in the league by division. I have made notes for any team that has relocated since this started. A team in bold is one that is occupied by a user who will be coming back in season 16. A team in italics is one that is currently occupied by a user who has yet to inform me of their plans for season 16. A team that is neither bolded nor italicized is open (you can also tell because there's no username to the right of them) for the taking. If an italicized team is the one you want the most, you can sign up for X open team with the stipulation that you would like to change to Y team if their incumbent user does not return.

AFC West
Denver Broncos
Kansas City Chiefs - Ranlom
Oakland Raiders - Bloodychess
Portland Express (formerly Washington Hawks and San Diego Chargers)

AFC East
Buffalo Bills - stevr
Miami Dolphins
New England Patriots (formerly Birmingham Cougars and New England Patriots) - Jukkie
New York Jets - Abacus

AFC North
Baltimore Ravens
Cincinnati Bengals
Mexico City (formerly Cleveland) Browns - VI
Pittsburgh Steelers - Shattered

AFC South
Columbus Pioneers (formerly Houston Texans)
Indianapolis Colts - mccheyne
Jacksonville Jaguars - Sultan
Tennessee Titans - Socko

NFC West
San Francisco 49ers - Scare
Seattle Seahawks
St. Louis Rams
Toronto Wildcats (formerly Arizona Cardinals) - prof

NFC East
Dallas Cowboys
New York Giants - Eddv
Philadelphia Eagles (formerly Las Vegas Pumpkins and Phildelphia Eagles) - Pennywise
Washington Redskins - Wiz

NFC North
Chicago (formerly Los Angeles, Richmond, and Chicago) Bears - Stan
Detroit Lions - Nee
Green Bay Packers - Tangicide
Minnesota Vikings

NFC South
Atlanta Falcons - MMX
Carolina Panthers - Emerald
San Juan Orcas (formerly Anaheim Lightning and New Orleans Saints) - KCF
Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Chris
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I'm going to give a little writeup to teams that are currently open

The Denver Broncos have been one of the better franchises in the league having made three Super Bowls (including a win in Season 9) and I believe just two losing records in 15 seasons. However, they hadn't won a playoff game since Season 10 until their surprise run to the AFC Championship game this past season. Normally a team built upon excellent OL play, a punishing rushing attack, and a suffocating defense, they took a step back defensively and were a pass-oriented offense. I fully expect the defense to be closer to the usual performance, but I'm not sure what to expect with the offense as former Top 10 pick HB Kenyan Drake has had a very slow start to his career, the OL is constantly banged up, and normally starting QB Andrew Luck will return from injury. With a lot of high-rated players at some expensive positions, you might have some work to do in regards to the fitting your team under the league's salary cap.

The Portland Express are coming off of one of their finest defensive seasons, but the offense ultimately let them down as a one-and-done team in the playoffs. The main reason for that is star HB DeMarco Murray's season cut short to injury and nobody stepping up in his place. Another is the expected regression to the mean of QB Jacoby Brissett after a sensational rookie season. The team should still remain in a good financial situation, so what this team needs is probably just more depth and maybe a better strategy on offense.

The Miami Dolphins have been a consistently great team through this league's existence. They have more Super Bowl wins than any franchise, and after making it to the title game this season, they have tied for the most Super Bowl appearances in our history. While the team has normally taken a veteran starter/young bench approach for many seasons, recent and looming retirements will likely result in the defense being one of the younger starters groups in the league. They perennially field an elite defense, especially against the pass, and I don't expect that to change. Prominent members of the offense have lost chunks of games due to injury in recent seasons, and they were without their top HB, WR, and OL for their Super Bowl loss to the Vikings. As a Super Bowl-caliber team though, you wouldn't be asked to do much in terms of roster building. The hardest task might be fiting all the players under the salary cap.

The Baltimore Ravens are coming off of a bizarre season where I believe they finished 1st on offense and 2nd on defense but bad luck and a terrible turnover situation had them with a losing record entering Week 15 before they ended up with a 9-7 record, winning the AFC North in the process. Every AFC North team I think had a worse record in Season 15 than in Season 14, so they may have one of the easier paths to a postseason trip next season. The defense and OL are elite, and star HB Doug Martin was named co-MVP after becoming the fourth HB to rush for 2000 yards in B8NFLL history. They had been in a tight financial situation the past several seasons, but they also had some "poison pill" contracts they had on their books that are now expiring, so they should be in a much more manageable situation next season.

The Cincinnati Bengals have the most work to do on this list. Former #1 overall pick HB Derrick Henry is progressing nicely, and there are many great pieces on defense, including OLB Matthew Judon, MLB Kiko Alonso, and SS Chris Browning. However, the team needs a lot of work elsewhere, especially on offense where the OL continuously underperforms, the QBs were a disaster, and the lack of true receiving threat. They should have plenty of money to spend, and they own all of their draft picks they can use in the draft or restricted free agency or as trade chips.

The Columbus Pioneers had been in back-to-back Super Bowls before taking a nose dive last season. The defense was still great, but their offense let them down in a big way. Normally one of the best QBs in the league, Russell Wilson is coming off his least efficient season, so I would expect him to bounce back to some degree. The real issues are at HB where incumbent Markus Manson had less than 900 yards in 16 starts and OL which just didn't generate blocks for anyone. Manson is likely to retire, so next season's starter is probably not on the roster. The OL had two new starters last season, but both of their contracts expire, and one might retire, so there could be addition by subtraction. The AFC South isn't the most daunting division, so a few tweaks and good fortune might be all that the team needs.

The Seattle Seahawks had one of the worst records across Seasons 13 and 14, but they went hard after players in the all offseason events. They didn't reach the postseason, but they did go 8-8 and improved on both sides of the ball. Injuries continue to be a concern, but the team is on the right track (assuming HB Aaron Jones improves upon his rookie season) and just needs more depth and maybe a couple of new starters.

The St. Louis Rams have been one of the most successful franchises yet they have never made a Super Bowl. Even as injuries kept mounting at HB and OL this season, they remained a two-way elite team that unfortunately had to get in as a wild card and lost a close game in the opening round. The team is getting up there in years, but that isn't to say that their window is closing, just that their best opportunities to make and win a Super Bowl are probably in the next season or two. The financial situation should be fine, but I wouldn't be surprised if you have to say goodbye to a starter or two because of money.

The Dallas Cowboys have been on a run since Season 7, winning the division every year starting that season and making seven of the nine Super Bowls. The defense has remained elite, and there's no reason to expect otherwise this next season. The offense does have issues. QB Cam Newton is coming off his best season as he carried the offense. The HBs were atrocious. They kept getting injured, but no matter who stepped into a starting role, they were underwhelming most of the time. The team looks solid just about everywhere, but HB is clearly the weak link and needs to be addressed. I'm unsure how the financials will look for them. They had a much better financial situation last season than in previous ones, but it was still one of the worst ones in the league.

The Minnesota Vikings are responsible for both of the Cowboys' playoff eliminations during their unprecedented run as the Vikings have won two of the past three Super Bowls. Consistently one of the older teams in the league, expect multiple starter retirements, including likely two members of the secondary. There are players in place to replace them, and this is usually one of the better teams in the league, so they should be able to compete to retain their title next season. My only area of concern is the passing attack should WR Cameron Colvin retire like I expect him to.
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Always nice to see this topic come up. The heart you put into this is pretty cool

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I've been part of the project for 10 seasons now which is about 5-6 years real time. I actually showed interest about 12 seasons ago and regret that I waited to sign up. It really is the best project I've ever participated in on B8.

You don't have to know Madden or even NFL very well to participate as KCF will help you out. Newcomers are usually stepping into pretty good teams to start with so there's a decent chance you're going to be competitive at the very least even if you're quite hands off. There's protections in place to make sure even if you aren't knowledgeable, nobody can get you to make unfair trades with them (although everybody is nice enough that they wouldn't try anyway).

The amount of work required on your end can basically be as much or as little as you want. KCF will fill in the required gaps.

We have a channel on the discord where live sims take place and we all chat and everybody is super nice. We all want the user controlled teams to win rather than the AI.

The worst part of the project is actually the time right now (i.e. the true offseason) because there's a 4+ week break in the action and we are all jonesing for our next hit!

Also someone take the Ravens. You're basically guaranteed to win the AFC North where the rest of us struggled last season and have been unable to top the Ravens since like 5 or 6 seasons ago.

If I'm going to lose the division I at least want it to be to another user controlled team

bump
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I just know the first sign-up is around the corner
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I'd tell people to sign up. A really cool project, I know absolutely nothing about Madden and Football and still had a fun time. Looking forward to see how I eventually ruin the Jets entirely.

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bumping for the late-night or international crowd
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bumpers
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every fucking year i click this thing thinking it's something interesting or a tournament of the best projects on b8. every year.

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Good news for you, it is something interesting!
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i didn't mean to be mean i meant like, something i hadn't seen before <_<

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I suppose that I should come up with a hard deadline soon
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I'm making Friday, November 12th the deadline to sign-up
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I'm in

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Current Status

AFC West
Denver Broncos
Kansas City Chiefs - Ranlom
Oakland Raiders - Bloodychess
Portland Express (formerly Washington Hawks and San Diego Chargers)

AFC East
Buffalo Bills - stevr
Miami Dolphins
New England Patriots (formerly Birmingham Cougars and New England Patriots) - Jukkie
New York Jets - Abacus

AFC North
Baltimore Ravens
Cincinnati Bengals
Mexico City (formerly Cleveland) Browns - VI
Pittsburgh Steelers - Shattered

AFC South
Columbus Pioneers (formerly Houston Texans)
Indianapolis Colts - mccheyne
Jacksonville Jaguars - Sultan
Tennessee Titans - Socko

NFC West
San Francisco 49ers - Scare
Seattle Seahawks
St. Louis Rams
Toronto Wildcats (formerly Arizona Cardinals) - prof

NFC East
Dallas Cowboys
New York Giants - Eddv
Philadelphia Eagles (formerly Las Vegas Pumpkins and Phildelphia Eagles) - Pennywise
Washington - Wiz

NFC North
Chicago (formerly Los Angeles, Richmond, and Chicago) Bears - Stan
Detroit Lions - Nee
Green Bay Packers - Tangicide
Minnesota Vikings

NFC South
Atlanta Falcons - MMX
Carolina Panthers - Emerald
San Juan Orcas (formerly Anaheim Lightning and New Orleans Saints) - KCF
Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Chris
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Only a couple more days to sign up!

Less than 48 hours to sign up!
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Today is the final day to sign up! You're missing out!

Y'all really should!

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Just a few hours left for anyone, and I'm sure there are a lot of you, still deciding to join up!
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we have a new topic
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/boards/8-gamefaqs-contests/79758366
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