Adel's Bye Week Blues Mailbag
by adelfish | 6 years ago | 0 Comments
Red Zone Bye Weeks Blues Mailbag
Apparently I have been inspired, and I’m not sure by who. It certainly wasn’t anyone in this league, but for some reason I’ve found a desire to write again about the Red Zone. Back in Madden 15/16, I know I loved writing long articles and power rankings about the league that you guys would enjoy, and lately I’ve found that spark again. From the draft grades, to the Baltimore Ravens article, I enjoy spitting thoughts onto my keyboard about the league – without further ado, let’s get to the mailbag.
**These are actual submissions from actual people**
Q – ‘Who is the overall best Red Zone vote winning Offensive Rookie of the Year for this cycle?’
- Patrick Allen
There are actually two; Miles Rachal (QB – Raiders) from Season 40, and Dalvin Cook (RB – Vikings) from Season 36. One of these two is still with his team, and the other was actually traded to that team to join him. Amazingly enough, despite winning Offensive Rookie of the Year, Rookie of the Year, AND MVP – Rachal never came close to replicating that 33 TD, 9 INT rookie season he had with Oakland. Even more interesting is how the Oakland front office has been perceived by the Red Zone, consistently finishing in the bottom 3-4 for Worst General Manager. Head scratching moves like trading away stud running back Kenyon Bell….only to trade assets to get him back, stunted that team’s bright future they had with Rachal. Who knows if Rachal will just be a footnote in RZ history, that guy you look back at in twenty seasons and go, ‘Oh yeah! That guy!’
Q – ‘Who, from the bottom sixteen users this cycle will have a way better record/improvement next cycle with their new team and division?’
- Stiff Rod
The Tampa Bay Buccaneeers with Beat Oven! No? Nobody? Okay, I’ll answer seriously. I like Jim and Eikim in the AFC East to improve their record, simply the fact that Corn and Turtles are in their division can inflate their 7-9 record to a 9-7 or 10-6 record, and that they are getting two teams that could be competitive in an extremely weak AFC for a long time. Jim inherits the last few years of Tom Brady’s career, while Eikim gets the young Sam Darnold, and a Jets team that is more talented than people think. Expect to see a lot of Patriots and Jets wild card hosted 4 seed games next year.
Q – ‘What are league officials thoughts on the XP issue, and will turning off XP in Week 17 to avoid awards XP cheesing be considered?
- MJ > LBJ Guy
My sources (me) inside the league decision making front office are telling me that, yes, the problem has been looked at, and we have found ways to look for solutions. Here is my main gripe with changing something so drastic to the formula of the game – it creates more work for the league, and eliminates a payoff for success. At the end of the day, we cannot create the features and awards inside the game, we can only go so far to alter the game to make it fit the way we want to play. EA has shown time and time again they are a company that cares about perfecting their micro-transactions system in MUT, and recycling features in CFM to appease us. The progression system in CFM is extremely lazy, and tacked on. To get back to the topic asked by MJ > LBJ Guy, it will not be considered in Madden 18, simply because a change so drastic being made this late is something we can’t do, it effects everyone on a pretty grand scale, and to change how we’ve received XP for one season when the cycle is over seems counterintuitive to me. Hopefully, we receive a way to change this next year, but it will be address further when M19 details arrive.
Q – ‘How hard it is to decipher if someone is stat padding, or if a player is just really good?
- Big Dick Dan
It’s not hard at all – my favorite thing in this league is watching someone who blatantly changed their depth chart to benefit a rookie, and they act as though they won’t be noticed. When a receiver wins Rookie of the Year, and suddenly finds himself slipping down the depth chart because the new hot rookie in town is bursting onto the scene, I always find that funny. Hopefully, like I said above, this issue goes away at some point to prevent people from being tempted.
Q – ‘Do you anticipate any major rule changes for next Madden?’
- Horny Henry
Major is subjective – the rules we truly updated this year were the banning of custom playbooks, updating the 4th down rule to be up to coach’s choice to go for it at any point of a game, and removing the ‘A’ button from being used to catch the football. In my opinion, I didn’t believe any of those rules were major or monumental. I can say a rule change that has been fiddled with is contract structure, and the use of the practice squad. Stay tuned.
Q – ‘What is a feature you think must be in franchise that isn’t?’
- Fatty Patty
Tough question, because so much is missing. They have a solid foundation of being able to support 32 users existing in an online league together, they have that figured out. But some of the things I always shake my head might be nit-picking or miniscule…
- Awards and Statistical History
- Team History for players on their player card
- Commentary reflecting on the changes of the league
- Hiring/Firing Coordinators
- More In-Depth Goals system, more objectives, more attainable goals, etc.
Those are just a few things that I think of right off the top of my head, but the main one is the entire drafting and scouting process. I think it’s a complete wasted effort at this point by the dev team. Being able to scout 3 traits, then learning what their exact combine numbers are is a joke; there are no sleepers, busts, or unique players year to year. Why does every 5’9 receiver have to have 96+ speed? Why does every 6’3 receiver have to have 89 speed? Why does every single safety in every draft come out the same? There is no thought into the design of their rookie generation.
Q – ‘What do you think about using YouTube to improve your game?’
- Limp Larry
I think most of the time, ‘YouTubing’ is an excuse used when people lose and they can’t find another reason that isn’t ‘Man, maybe I’m not as good as I thought I was!’ Sure I think there are some exploits of the game itself you could find by digging into the deepest YouTube holes you could find, but ultimately I think it’s an excuse used.
Q – ‘Why is least fun not just an award to point out the cheesiest user?’
- Jake’s One Single Chin Hair
That award was never intended to be ‘Most Cheesy’ or ‘Unsim’, but sometimes things take on a life of their own. Astin won the award a few times, and I think his votes were correct, but the voters had the wrong idea in mind. Astin is a great user, who (in my opinion) plays the game the right way, but is extremely difficult to play. When I vote for my Least Fun to Play, I’m looking for someone who is tough to play against, always is a frustrating game, etc. But I do think the award took on a different meaning to some – it’s their way of voicing their opinion anonymously.
Q – ‘When are you going to hire Ramesu as a co-commish, Mr. Adelmann?’
- Silk’s Mistress
I’ll hire another co-commish when either JP quits, or when I get bored of this league and retire to improve my golf game.
Q – ‘Is Astin the best ever?’
- Use Me As Your Popsicle Guy
Not yet, but he is starting to enter top 3-4 all time. We talked about this on the legacy pod last year, about how sustainability in Red Zone is the most important factor. He is in the 3x Super Bowl club now, but how will this go next year with more competition? We’ve seen guys like Lefty/Live 2 Die struggle when their division improved. Now it’s time to see how Astin responds, but I do think he is close.
Q – ‘What is a podcast that hasn’t been made, that needs to be made?’
- Horndog Hank
I’ve always enjoyed Red Zone podcasts for the most part – we have great personalities here, but a lot of lazy ones as well. A podcast that came up weekly, with recurring character guests that talked about the league in depth would be my dream. Could you imagine knowing that every Friday morning, you would be getting a 1.5 hour podcast of great RZ content?
Q – ‘What are your plans for the Trade Committee next year, by which I mean making it more efficient and transparent?’
- Freckle on Adel’s Forehead Guy
We had an efficient system that was ruined by Jay stealing the website – so that is our plan, once we have it up and running by August, there will be a system in place to post your trade directly to my email, which will get forwarded to the TC chat. In terms of transparency, I’ve toyed with the idea of revealing every denied and approved trade on a public spreadsheet; I’ve already made the members public. I truly don’t see the problems people have with it, until they have a fantasy trade that doesn’t get approved.
Q – ‘Hey, it’s Limp Larry again, just wondering who you think in the NFC has the best shot at taking down Astin in the Super Bowl?’
- Limp Larry
Thanks for all the submissions Larry, I think there are 2-3 teams that have a legitimate shot. The Giants, the Vikings, and the Eagles. The reasons for this I highlighted in my ‘Beating Baltimore’ article, but these are the only three teams in the NFC that have had sustained success against Astin, and have the personnel to do so. I think the 49ers and the Redskins are the next two that could have a chance. The problem is you get once chance, this isn’t a best of 3 series, so you must play mistake free, but I also think there are advantages in that. Football is a game of luck, and all it takes is a bad day from Haskins (asking a lot) to turn the tide. I will have a more detailed answer on this come Week 12-13.
Q – ‘Long time reader, first time mailer. I have a question, is Astin cheesy?’
- Long Dong Doug
Glad to see the true fans getting mail in – my answer is no. A team with 90+ OVR players starting at every position is an inherent advantage against any opponent. Does he do anything in his game that is attempting to take advantage of poor AI, break our rules, or cheating? No. Astin is not in the group of guys that I consider to be on that fine line of stretching the RZ rules, but I do think people resort to calling him that because they hate playing his stacked roster.
Q – ‘Best memory of the bro trip?’
- Peter Peter Blumpkin Giver
Wow that’s a tough question, there were so many great moments. Meeting Mans, Eikim, Ian, and Weed for the first time and Weed screaming ‘Can somebody get me a Sprite?’ was the perfect beginning to an in-person interaction with him. The Rangers game when Aaron, who had probably said 10 words on the entire trip, screamed ‘Fuck you Adelmann’ after the Rangers scored their only goal of the night. I think my honest and true favorite moment was the train ride back from the game, when then 9-10 of us on the train were hammered drunk, and we were talking about Red Zone, the Hall of Fame, great memories from Madden. It reminded me how much this league means to me, and all of you guys, and how it brought us together for that great weekend.
Oh, and Jake sleeping on the counter.
Q – ‘How many non-playoff seasons for Astin next cycle?’
- Ronny Lipbalm
This is slowly becoming ‘Ravens Fanline’, but I’ll bite. Let’s say next year we play 10 seasons like we did this cycle. So in the NFC, it’s safe to assume division winners will be (wait it’s not safe), but I’ll just guess based on my personal thoughts.
- Moji (Packers)
- Black Magic (Rams)
- Malik (Eagles)
So that leaves 3 spots in the playoffs. I think Astin will not win the NFC South in Season 46, it will be the Falcons or Saints. I think the Giants, Cowboys, Cardinals, and either the Saints/Falcons/Panthers are getting that last wild card spot. I think the Panthers could miss the first year. Honestly it comes down to team building, but the competition will not allow him to win 15-16 games every year. I think Astin makes the playoffs 7/10 seasons.
Q – ‘If XP is still the same next cycle, are changes going to be made regarding awards XP and stat padding?’
- Ronny Lipbalm
Addressed above already, but thanks Ronny.
Q – ‘Are you going to ban customs?’
- Nick
Brilliant.
Q – ‘How frustrating is it when a running back runs into the back of his blockers, and your defenders run right past him, and the back breaks off a long run?
- Prince Harry’s Prince Albert Extremely.
Tacklers become rag dolls during these interactions, and they don’t know how to extend their arms and make a play, they just smash their bodies together, hoping to bring down the running back.
Q – ‘Do you have a game this cycle that will stick with you for Madden’s to come?’ -
Amber
Yeah a couple – beating Metalskull in the divisional round after he won 3 straight Super Bowls was pretty awesome, I’ll remember that game for a long time. Unfortunately the game that will stick with my is RZ Bowl 40 I believe, in which my beloved Vikings held a 24-3 lead over the Baltimore Ravens, only to squander it and lose on the final play of the game. Great game, but an extremely frustrating and bitter loss that has haunted me for quite some time.
Q – ‘Why hasn’t Red Zone banned the ability to upgrade toughness and injury rating? I personally think we’d have more sim injury numbers.’
- Jim
Silk, is that you? Only kidding, but I think the injury numbers have been overall fine throughout the course of the year. I don’t think changing injury rating truly effects it, and I know I’m probably wrong, but it doesn’t seem to have a factor. Toughness on the other hand, seems to be the end-all-be-all to injuries, especially recurring ones. With issues like regression effecting how injury points are lost every week, I don’t see a future in which we limit what traits can be upgraded.
Q – ‘Do you think we need to improve the neighborhood watch, I’m referring to the incident from last February when 4 drunk guys were banging on my front and back door at 5 AM?’
- Concerned Neighbor
Yes, I think you should improve the neighborhood watch. I think you should also check yourself for sleep apnea or something, because the sound of basically hail on your doors should wake you up. Also, we apologize for jumping the fence.
Q – ‘Live2Die or Astin?’
- WeedSeed
Live2Die is the better Madden player, Astin is the better team builder. Live2Die would take nobodies and win 14-15 games with them, not to take anything away from Astin’s success, but winning 16 games with that roster doesn’t compare to Live2Die’s pure on the field talent.
Q – ‘Do you prefer a good Madden player, or a good team?’
- WeedSeed
You can probably guess from my above response, I’m taking the player. Someone who can adapt to the situations and issues every team has, and can gameplan around weaknesses. These are the users who typically find ways to win on Sundays.
Q – ‘Best division next cycle?’
- Subway
Nice name? Anyways, it’s very hard to say this early. I think on paper, the NFC South is the best. 3 users in the top 5 of win percentage, including 7 total champonships. I do think in terms of balance, the NFC East is going to be the most competitive – any of those guys could win the division any year, so I think that one will be the most fun to watch. I stick with the NFC South for the best.
Q – ‘Is the AFC next cycle the weakest conference in any RZ era?’
- Subway
Hard to say, as some of the conferences back in Seasons 1-20 were pretty abysmal as well, including this year’s AFC. Outside of Astin, Mans, Moji, Weed, and maybe Ramesu and Tiko, has anyone in the AFC come close to a real run? And has anyone even challenged Astin the past few years? The AFC next year has a division with a win percent of 29% (AFC East), guys like Eddie, JP, Corn, Turtles who have been bottom-feeders in their NFC divisions this year, and then guys like Pat, Spittah, Tiko, Aaron, Jim, who have been middle of the road guys with sporadic success, and then Roc, Weed, Sin, Metal, Tauph, who should be favorites every year. I think based on this structure, this isn’t the worst conference we’ve seen, but once Season 50-51 come around, I think this will turn into a 2-3 team race, and the rest will be forgotten.
Q – ‘What dumbass is going to try and make Johnny Manziel a franchise QB next cycle?’
- Subway
Do the Packers have a QB? They do? Well besides Moji, keep an eye on Pat to snatch him up.
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Thanks for everyone submitting questions and reading this, it was very fun. I’ll do another later this season!