There are three primary issues I've noticed in the passing game that desperately need to be addressed before any more tinkering to 'get the numbers right.'
1) QB Decision Making
One of the most frustrating things with MFN is watching QBs constantly chuck it into double coverage. This play is a great illustration of my point:
https://private75.myfootballnow.com/gamecenter/view/1399#261089The QB starts off directed towards his right. What seems to be the primary focus of his attention is a WR completely uncovered. As in, ZERO coverage. As in, no one anywhere remotely close to him. As in, likely 6 points, or at least a monster gain. His other target to that side is in single coverage deep. He apparently decides he doesn't like EITHER of these great options and swings to the other side of the field. This actually isn't terrible, because he has the TE who's beat his man by several yards wide open.
The result of the play? He ends up throwing it into double coverage for an INT. Literally the WORST possible option to throw to on that play and that's the one he chooses. And it wasn't a matter of him just locking onto a target. This was the throw he chose to make after deciding he didn't like any of his others. For the record, this is a 100 intelligence QB, so awful decision making shouldn't really be a 'feature' as opposed to a bug.
This happens constantly in the game where the QB will overlook open or single coverage players to throw into double coverage.
2) Targeting Blockers
The QB constantly dumps off to HBs and TEs who are actively blocking. Frequently the QB's FIRST option will even be a HB with a blocking assignment. The result, naturally, is the QB staring down a blocker for over half the play before deciding he's in too tight of coverage with the blitzing LB (or worse, he actually throws it to him anyway for a guaranteed INT or negative yardage).
3) Psychic DBs
People (myself included) complain a lot about how often passes get thrown (and way too often completed) into triple, quadruple, occasionally even quintuple coverage. The other part of that equation is WHY is there EVER anything more than double coverage on a given play. Other than a handful of rare instances involving overlapping zone coverages with a man assignment thrown in, this should really never be happening. The reason it does is because the second the QB releases the throw, all the DBs seem to immediately sense it and converge on the pass at lightning speed. Unless a DB is in deep zone with his face to the play they should generally not react to a throw the second it happens.
If we can get fixes/improvements for these three things then we can revisit the passing game, because it should dramatically improve the functionality of QBs and the passing game.