This time of year is the most hectic period for a GM. You have trades, free agency, and the draft to prepare for. Sometimes there are even coaches, coordinators, or training/medical staff members to replace. The pro scouting and amateur scouting departments are working overtime to find great players throughout the league and in college that fit the vision of our current team. Interviews with prospects are carried out and negotiations begin with your own pending free agents. Many phone calls are received and made but rarely do they lead to a deal. A lot of cursing and throwing chairs are typical results of those phone calls. Input is gathered from all the scouts and GM to compile a draft board. There is a neat wrinkle we like to do to show appreciation for our scouts year long work. Each one of them gets to go up to the big board and put a star next to their favorite prospect that the consensus projects as a middle to late pick. If we're in acceptable range of the player, we will pull the trigger. It has helped find several late round gems in previous years. Coffee machines are being abused this time of year trying to fuel the 20 hour work days of the front office. (215)
I’d be lying if I said I thought this was going to be this hard. I figured I’d make an initial big board and then reorder the rankings a couple times, send out a few PMs to prospects I need more info from, etc. What I didn’t account for was this huge wave of incoming S2 prospects. I’m looking at 80+ rookies now. I’m looking when they last logged on, looking at their post histories, recording which prospects were on for league events, reading every presser and media story, checking out archetypes and charting their possible paths, making big boards, creating positional tiers, reaching out to prospects, analyzing other teams rosters to see who they might pick, conducting internal mock drafts, evaluating trade options, the list is almost never ending. But, even after doing all that, there could always be that one unturned stone or diamond in the rough we miss. We know that competing in this league is difficult, that’s why our goal is to be the hardest working front office in the league. If we put in the time, we will have better information than other teams, which will help us make the best decisions for the organization, and ultimately bring an Ultimus Trophy back to Philadelphia.
As a NSFL GM, draft day is the busiest day of the year. You are picking the future players of your franchise. If your franchise does good or bad depends on you. For me, I make sure all my notes are in place and setting up that draft board is extremely important. I'm looking at the top names of the draft and target some players. If any players drop to my hands of course I'll take them. I'm telling my staff to all make sure they have their own notes and ask them about any players they may be interested in taking in the draft. And we'll obviously discuss it before the draft and before we make our decision. I might be looking at other teams as well as I might want to trade down or up trying to get a deal out of these teams. When trade talks start I can use my board as a guide to evaluate the value I'm getting or losing. A draft can be very unpredictable and have very surprising results so having a strong board will help out lots. Overall draft day is a fun day but also could be a stressful day, not only for the players but for the entire league and its organizations.
[div align=center]
[div align=center]
"The draft is less than a week away, do you have the scouting report ready yet?"
"Sir, I need more time." "Alright, stay up late... Finish it then get some rest. I'll look it over and then we can look at strategy." <Next Day> "Here it is sir, all players ranked. I've also got a report on what the team needs." "Alright, I've looked over these reports and our team definitely has different needs then most teams. I think the best way to go forward is to draft the best value player and only reach for positional needs when we aren't sacrificing too much value. Lets do some research and figure out which players we might take best on pure value and what team they would do really well on to start setting up trades. If we can't find a suitable way to benefit from that value, then we need to pass on it and fill the needs of the team." "This sounds like a great plan." "Of course it is, I'm amazing... Now I need you to begin scouting the other teams for their needs like you did for ours." "But this is going to take time and we only have a few days left." "Well you better get started then, I heard energy drinks can be quite useful in these kinds of situations... I'll let you rest for a week once the draft is over. We won't become the best team without working harder than everyone else." Code: 249 words Wrong render but
[div align=center]
[div align=center] [div align=center] [div align=center] [div align=center][SELECT style="background-color:#FFFFFF;color;white: font-family:Verdana; font-size: 12px; width: 400px; "][br] [OPTION] || Titus Marmot | Co-GM | Orange County Otters || [OPTION] (S2) Otters Regular Season Record : 8-6 [OPTION] (S3) Otters Regular Season Record : 5-3
As an NSFL General Manager, my inside look in my war room is a wonder to behold. Mark "Ramrod" Ramrio and I are scrambling together, calling up prospects and sifting through game tape trying to find THE sixth round selection. There aren't many holes on a stout Las Vegas Legion team who primed themselves to be strong right out of the gate. However, the payoff for that was neglecting the draft for seasons to come. The only way Las Vegas looks to get anybody of substance out of the draft is if they find steals. So due diligence to the extreme levels of the term is required for this team to maintain a high level of standard they've thrust upon themselves given the trades they have made. Obviously, when it looks like in terms of players they'll be taking they won't be touching elite cornerback Dermot Lavelle, offensive linemen like Gregor "The Mountain" Clegane or Tim Pest. They won't be in a position to take Blaster Blade or Rich Gucci or even Fox North. Even Dustin Evans will be beyond the realms of being acquired for this team. They'll be sifting for the gems among the rough, the players who can separate themselves through sheer force of will themselves.
As an NSFL GM my war room would be the most chaotic unorganized war room the likes of which had never been seen. I have a unique way of organization that looks completely unorganized to everyone else except for me. If someone were to try and figure out my draft strategy by looking at my notes, I would say good luck to them with a chuckle. My war room would be filled with people all trying to give me last minute advice, but I already know who I would want to draft. You have to find the right balance of commitment, seriousness, easygoing, and crazy. My prospects would be those who made a genuine connection with me come draft day and I would reach as far as possible to get those players. There isn't a better presence in the locker room than that of someone who really wants to be there and will enjoy themselves there. That is what I would be looking for as a GM. As for the last minute preparation I would be doing as a GM I can say that my last minute prep would be minimal I would ha e done all my work over the last couple weeks and as the day approached I would sip on some whiskey and think about how absolutely perfect my draft strategy is.
Code: 225 words
[div align=center]
[div align=center]
One can only imagine the stresses GMs have to deal with this time of year. Preparing for the draft can be a full-time job on it's own, add free agents, trades, and re-signings... one wonders if there's any time for sleep.
When someone has 80+ prospects to look out, how do you find the gems? How do you wade through the "Me first!" attitudes the prima donnas? Sure you can look at things like experience, natural ability, and talk with them until you're blue in the face, but how does someone measure dedication? After all, that's where the true gems are found, the "sleepers." The mid to late round picks that, for one reason or another, just slipped through the cracks. What's to stop to a sure fire stud from abandoning their training, getting lazy, and phoning it in? It's impossible to predict, and that's where the sleepless nights come in. When your team is called, and that clock starts counting down, you must trust your process, go with your gut and make the tough call. Who knows, one day that could be any of us powering through those sleepless nights, laboring to find the big diamond in the rough. All I know is, right now, I'm happy to be on this end and to just enjoy the show. Code: word count: 219 [OPTION]Johnny Snuggles || CB || Yellowknife Wraiths || Hall of Fame [OPTION]Height/Weight: 6'1", 205 [OPTION]Number: 21 [OPTION] Draft History: S13 #1 Overall [OPTION]=========================================== [OPTION]Trophy Case/Achievements:[OPTION] Ultimini Champs: S12 [OPTION] Defensive Rookie of the Year: S13 [OPTION] Pro Bowl: S14, S15, S16
Scouting is hard. Really hard. Not only do you have to trawl through the wealth of quantifiable statistics and determined values, but you also have to account for intangibles, and predict unknowns as best you can. Is that kid machine coming out of the national championship winning college program at linebacker, with insane tackling numbers and an uncanny ability to get to the quarterback, really your best option? That college program he was a part of? Hated rivals of the college half your defence studied at. He gets a lot of tackles, but can't drop into coverage to save his life, and you play a Tampa 2 scheme. He's outspoken, but most of your guys like to keep their heads down and get shit done. Do you still draft him? Then there's the issue of whether he'd settle in your team's city, or if he's cut out for the long haul at pro level. Ezekiel Bishop retired before he even signed his rookie deal, Khalifa Al Mahrouqi was rated highly but ultimately played just one season and barely managed that. Neither of these outcomes were really foreseeable, and these are things you still have to try and account for as a GM come draft day. But... despite the difficulty, the non-stop work, excessive caffeine consumption, and constant plot twist moments derailing even the best-laid plans and big boards... there is something inherently enjoyable about it all. Stressing out over it doesn't help anyone, so all you can do is prepare the best you can, then strap in on draft day and get ready for the ride.
(266 words) I impersonate a programmer for a living
Father of the League Wiki • Friendly Neighbourhood Angry Black Guy™ • NOT British
Originator of the Sim League Cinematic Universe (SLCU)
Super capitalists are parasites. Fite me.
Alternatively, if you agree, you can support a grassroots movement dedicated to educating and organising the working class by buying a digital newspaper subscription. Your support would be greatly appreciated.
How I Would Approach the Draft:
The first thing that is going through my head when I enter the war room on Wednesday night, is who my top prospects are and what the biggest position of need is. If I need a corner, I may not look to Dermot Lavelle(unless I'm the Wraiths) but I'm looking at some of the other guys, in the middle rounds. If I need an Offensive Lineman I'm looking to round 1. A deep draft and a perennial position of need for every team, there's a chance that half of the first round is used to populate the trenches on the offensive side. If there is a player I want, I'll try to make a trade to move a few spots up, even if it means giving up a few lower round picks and possibly losing out on someone who could turn into a great player. If I believe the prospect can help my team, while believing he will not be at my next draft spot, I'm calling one of the teams, specifically the team who I think would need the most, whether it be draft picks, players, or a situation where a player that benefits my team does not benefit theirs. When I enter the war room I'm going to look to make my team better, whether that happens by drafting the best player available every time or choosing a position of need depends on how the draft board falls come Wednesday night. (243 words)
[div align=center]
[div align=center] |
|