Free agent boost

[Brian-Broncos]

I see how the draft pick boost mimics the NFL where a late-round draft pick sometimes becomes a star. But I don't understand what the FA boost is trying to accomplish. Ultimately, it seems like it's a reward system for teams that save up points. Is that the purpose? Or am I missing something? Someone please explain.

(And I'm not bringing this up as a gripe because I only have 1 point. I just want to understand the reasoning for it.)

[Matt-Jacksonville]

This is a way to simulate guys like Kurt Warner who beat the odds and go from undrafted to having a decent career in the NFL. Occasionally some of them do become superstars. If you don't know who that is watch American Underdog or read the plot summary on Wikipedia. In 2024, you have leagues like the UFL where sometimes a guy overachieves and gets signed by an NFL team. We're just trying to recreate that chance where an underdog can overachieve in training camp and make an NFL roster and possibly have a decent career.

[Charlie-49ers]

I researched Linebackers and Cornerbacks in the NFL to pick up some additional NFL names for the next draft, rather than makeup names! To my big surprise, 15 of the top 32 Linebackers in the NFL today are not in the PNFL, and 16 of the top 32 Cornerbacks in the NFL are also not in the PNFL today! I did not check their draft status for the various, but the names are not in our Free Agent pile. The assumption is that these guys come from undrafted Free Agents, or maybe some from the Canadian leagues or arena football, but they are not in the PNFL. Therefore, there should be some hot prospects in the Free Agent pile that the scouts overlooked or did not come from big-name schools. Also, I saw guys who scored relatively well with their National Combine numbers that were not drafted.

[Brian-Broncos]

This is a way to simulate guys like Kurt Warner who beat the odds and go from undrafted to having a decent career in the NFL.

There's one HUGE difference though - the Rams didn't know Warner would be a superstar.

[Brian-Broncos]

these guys come from undrafted Free Agents, or maybe some from the Canadian leagues or arena football, but they are not in the PNFL. Therefore, there should be some hot prospects in the Free Agent pile that the scouts overlooked or did not come from big-name schools.

Like you said, these guys came from lower leagues. The teams trying out these players didn't know they would become great players. For this to be synonymous the bump needs to be hidden and applied when the player gets signed - otherwise it's literally just a reward sitting there for teams with the most points.

[Steve-LA Chargers]

My main argument FOR the FA boost is so coaches who didn't have one of their rookies boosted have a shot at acquiring a boosted rookie (if they still have the points). It's rare that an undrafted rookie turns into a star in the real NFL, but it is possible.

Of course right now the point heavy teams will swoop them up. Not much we can do about that right now. But seeing multiple teams bid up a rookie DT right now more than any FA during Free Agency week is somewhat unrealistic (but ironically good because one of these point machines is about to take a dent).

[Matt-Jacksonville]

I think Rich needs to still have those guys selected, but wait a few days for people who want to sign undrafted guys a chance to sign before it's announced. I think this would help prevent the teams with a ton of points from jumping in and preventing teams who may need the player more from being locked out of that benefit. Also, the way we do this is backwards for undrafted versus the rest of the picks. The picks are not announced till we select them. The undrafted, we know before bidding begins. I say wait 72 hours and the boost could be anyone who was selected in that bidding instead of looking at the whole pool.

[Rich-League Officer]

Brian, if it were up to me, there would be no boosts at all.
I have never liked them. But, Charlie and the coaches like them.

I have offered 10 boosts and 5 busts but nobody wants to roll those dice

[Dean-Atlanta]

Neither boosts nor busts are needed IMO. Players already over and under perform without them, this is what causes many player trades.

[Neil-Raiders]

This was the first year that I was able to bid and win an 'expensive' undrafted rookie FA, but I agree with Steve and Matt that it is unfair/unrealistic for the undrafted rookies to only go to the teams that can afford them. I have a proposal that I think would be more fair, more realistic, and frankly more fun, but it would entail a little more work for Rich. My suggestion is that the drafted rookie boosts remain the same (other than the yearly variations that Charlie and Rich want to use) and are revealed after the draft. However, UNDRAFTED rookie FA boosts are not revealed until AFTER the season. The rules would be similar to transfer rolls, with the only eligible players being undrafted rookies that reside on a team's 53 man roster AND/OR practice squad from week one of the season. This would give every team an equal chance of getting a boosted undrafted rookie, it would be more realistic since it would mimic the too small, too slow, etc., unheralded rookies that do make it, and it would add an additional level of strategy to practice squad selections. Do you add the best players or do you focus on undrafted rookies? When a player gets moved to IR, which undrafted rookie do you cut to make room? Like I said, Rich would have to be willing to keep track of it, but I think it would be more fair and more fun than the current process.