I wanted to pass on a tip about Training Camp especially as it relates to your new rookies - a lot of you probably already are aware but in case you didn't read my blog post about it a while back, this is what I always do immediately after training camp to help influence what players I keep on my final roster. I've seen a few boomers get cut in pre-season in years past - and don't want to go steal them all without giving everyone a fair chance to know what they might have.
The key to remember is that some players are predetermined to boom, some are predetermined to bust, and while most players will be what they look like, those late picks can end up being hidden gems. Here are two on my roster that were picked in the 6th and 7th rounds and looked like nobodies:
http://mfn2.myfootballnow.com/player/2846http://mfn2.myfootballnow.com/player/3259Specifically look at the "Progress" tab and you'll see that when these players were drafted, they had very poor ratings. As they have developed, they have blasted off as great players.
Ok, so on to what I do and recommend you do as well.
After TC, I go through each rookie and look at their progress graph, to see what the future bar does. Now, just because it goes in one direction here doesn't mean it will continue to, but the odds are pretty good that you can identify their trending from their first training camp, especially if it's a significant movement. I'll make a note on the player to the effect of "big increase in first TC" or "Small increase in first TC" or "Big drop in first TC", etc. Then from year to year in the offseason, I'll take a look and see what the players are doing, and update my notes accordingly. Having that in the notes is helpful when I'm setting my depth chart, as I can quickly see my evaluation, or when I'm getting ready for the draft and making notes about what kinds of players I want to pursue in the higher rounds.
I'll also check on the draft history report and look at other team's castoffs from the later rounds and see if any of them have low future values but had significant jumps in TC for positions I need some depth or youth in. They might be a good pick up during the preseason, and are low risk signings that may end up being strong players. That's what happened with the second player I linked to above.
Hope this little bit of info helps you guys as you evaluate your rookies after the TC stage!
