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

(+) Yeah! (+)

Board 8 National Football League League (B8NFLL) just wrapped up its 17th season where the San Juan Orcas defeated the Oakland Raiders in the Super Bowl. That means it's time for new blood or old blood returning to be able to get in on the action for Season 18. Signups will last until at least late February, 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, and you even have the option of letting me temporarily take over your team and act on your behalf. Your team will not be screwed over if you ever forget to do something.

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/80200825

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.

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 18. A team in italics is one that is currently occupied by a user who has yet to inform me of their plans for season 18. 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.

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

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

Baltimore Ravens - BlueCrystal
Cincinnati Bengals
Mexico City Browns (formerly Cleveland Browns) - VI
Pittsburgh Steelers - s***tered

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

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

Dallas Cowboys
Philadelphia Eagles (formerly Philadelphia Eagles and Las Vegas Pumpkins) - Pennywise
New York Giants - Eddv
Washington Commanders

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

Atlanta Falcons - MMX
Carolina Panthers - Emerald
San Juan Orcas (formerly New Orleans Saints and Anaheim Lightning)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Just some short remarks regarding the fully open teams

The Denver Broncos are one of the winningest franchises in our history and have gone to the third-most Super Bowls (3), but having been defined by their defense and running game for so long, these past two years have been a bit of an identity crisis having one of the weakest running games and a merely adequate defense. The passing game and both lines a veteran heavy, so depending on retirements, there might be some needed work there. Financially, they are routinely up against the (user) cap.

The Miami Dolphins are the winningest franchise in our league's history and have won more Super Bowls (3) than any other team. Ever since they have been AI-run (five seasons now), they have experienced multiple one-and-dones in the playoffs and have been to a lone Super Bowl, losing it. They have routinely seen a bunch of talent leave, without doing a good enough job to restore the talent pool, and it is beginning to show with the aforementioned drop in playoff success and their season ranks dropping some. They did have the AFC's best record last season, but that is largely in part of a very weak division where every other team had a losing record. That being said, they do have plenty of stars on both sides of the ball. The big issue will be continuing to afford them all.

The Cincinnati Bengals have fielded an elite offense the past two seasons, and their OL might be coming around, but turnovers and a defense that is slow to improve have prevented them from making the playoffs, though they were in it until the very end this past season. They oddly had the second-worst financial situation last season, so depending on retirements and expired contracts, it might be a tricky situation to navigate.

The Columbus Pioneers have taken advantage of a weak division and won four of the past five division titles and have even won a Super Bowl. They are great on both sides of the ball with a good financial situation. Injuries have hit the team hard the past two seasons. That's really the main knock against them. They could be the best landing spot for someone wanting to dip their toes into this project and not have to do heavy changes.

The Seattle Seahawks hit a rough stretch for many seasons despite the talent oozing on the team. They finally got back in the postseason last season, but it was a struggle. They have a bunch of high-priced players, so it is tough to say where they will stand financially. They could be okay though. Ultimately, the roster looks mostly set, though the running game has yet to establish itself. Adding depth and figuring out the correct in-game strategy for this team seem to be the most pressing items on the agenda.

The St. Louis Rams have had the second-most playoff appearances and won a Super Bowl in S16. They field an elite defense and typically are among the league leaders in passing. The OL has been shaky for awhile, and when it finally looked like the running game was coming around, injuries hurt what was a torrid start for that unit. This is still one of the best teams in the league though and a heavy favorite to win the division again next season after having the best record in the league ar 13-3. Financially they should be okay.

The Toronto Wildcats have one of the league's longest playoff droughts, but they have been agonizingly close for many seasons. Their defense has been the heart of the team while QB Aaron Murray and veteran WR Gonzie Massey have been arguably the best QB/WR pairing for many seasons. Unfortunately, Murray is coming off of his worst season, and the OL and running game are still not up to snuff. They had the league's worst financial situation last season somehow, so navigating the cap might be a problem.

The Dallas Cowboys were the league's most dominant team from S7-S15, winning the NFC East every season and making nearly every Super Bowl from that span. Retirements and cap constraints have led to a swift downfall as they have gone 15-17 the past two seasons without making the playoffs. Financially, they have among the league's best cap situation, and their roster is overall still great. They just need their secondary to continue coming along, the OL to get settled, and something to come out of their run game. The NFC East is a very winnable division.

The Washington Commanders took a major step down after winning the division in S16 and even a playoff game. Their passing game was still great, but the running game suffered injuries, and the defense was a major let down. The defense is young enough that a wait-and-see approach could be prudent, but they should have a good enough cap situation to make some splashy choices in the offseason if desired.

The Minnesota Vikings have won two of the past five Super Bowls and continue to be one of the best teams in the league. Their offense made some major skill position changes last season and it paid off immediate dividends and the defense, especially against the run, rose to an elite level. This is a veteran team that is always in danger of losing key players every offseason, but regardless of what happens, they should remain the favorite in the NFC North.

The San Juan Orcas had long been one of the league's worst franchises, but they had new management heading into Season 15, and it has resulted in three division titles and our most recent Super Bowl champion. The defense is great with only a handful of starters over 30, and the offense rose to its best level under a flurry of changes. They are poised to lose a trio of studs to retirement, so a reload on offense is in order. The financial situation should be very good heading into the offseason proper. The division really turned things around this season where every team had a winning record late in the season, so despite being SB champions, it might not be so easy to repeat as division champs.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers hit rock bottom awhile back, but they have been steadily improving each season all the way to 8-8 last season in spite of their talent deficiencies. The defense and offense as a whole are solid, but they might have to make the tough decision to pull the plug on former #1 overall pick QB Trevor Largent and re-sign QB Ryan Lindley as the starter. Former #2 overall pick HB Alvin Kamara did not win the starting HB job last season and Knile Davis exploded to being one of the better HBs in the league. In addition to continuing to amass talent and shore up some weaknesses, deciding on what to do at QB and HB might be the top priority and maybe the toughest decisions to make this offseason.

I forgot that I changed the wiki page because I hated the old title and also made sure that the previous page would not be re-directed. Hopefully I will remember to use this link instead

https://board8.fandom.com/wiki/Board_8_National_Football_League_League_(B8NFLL)

Great, the parenthesis closing screws up the link so you can't merely click on it.

KCF0107 posted...

Pittsburgh Steelers - s***tered

well that's not very nice

(tag, people really should sign up if they like football)

Football night bump

post-football night bump

early morning bump

People should do it.

It can be very minimal effort on our part..

I do not know anything at all about football, and still enjoy it.

Bump

bump

I'll be back with carolina

bump

bump

late night bump

Nearly Super Bowl time, so maybe we can get a boost from that

Post-Super Bowl sign ups for sure

There's no flag drama in B8NFL Superbowls!

bump

Team ownership update
Denver Broncos
Kansas City Chiefs - Ranlom
Oakland Raiders - Bloodychess
Portland Express (formerly San Diego Chargers and Washington Hawks) - Maniac

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

Baltimore Ravens - BlueCrystal
Cincinnati Bengals
Mexico City Browns (formerly Cleveland Browns) - VI
Pittsburgh Steelers - s***tered

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

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

Dallas Cowboys
Philadelphia Eagles (formerly Philadelphia Eagles and Las Vegas Pumpkins) - Pennywise
New York Giants - Eddv
Washington Commanders

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

Atlanta Falcons - MMX
Carolina Panthers - Emerald
San Juan Orcas (formerly New Orleans Saints and Anaheim Lightning)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers

NFLL is a good league

TheKnightOfNee posted...

NFLL is a good league

This. Literally more successful than the XFL and USFL or whatever it's called. Y'all should sign up

I guess that I should come up with a hard deadline soon

I'm going to set the deadline at 9 PM ET on Wednesday, March 1st

Just over a day away!

Just hours away!

People really should sign up. Takes as much or as little time investment as you want whilst also being the best run project on the board

I still have some work to do, so the deadline is a soft one, but don't linger too long as I plan to move forward some time before going to bed