Well. It’s like anything. When ppl find something that works it gets passed around to those in the know and eventually it gets brought out to the general populace. Punt block is the most recent I recall. I used to keep up with the forums and tried to stay educated. That got old after awhile and now after I get 7 blocked kicks against or a WR that goes for 200 yds I sometimes go back and try to figure it out.

I guess I just wish it would be based on talent vs talent. We all know in reality what plays should give you an advantage based on player talent. If I know a team throws to the RB 18 times a game I should be able to defend it. Anyway, I guess I’m just tired.

I completely agree with this post. The more data I've looked at for 4.5, the more I'm convinced that player attributes don't mean anything for defense at all.

And on offense the two attributes that seem to really matter are Courage for WRs and Route Running (but only for RBs). B&R Avoid is nice, but WRs don't stutter step anymore, so they don't need RR at all.

Everything else is SP vs SP just like it used to be with no threat of long passes because those are nerfed.

Beta is currently worse. Coverage got tightened which means that 60% of passes are knocked down because knock downs only account for player proximity and don't factor in anything else. Punish is only used for after the WR catches the ball.

I disagree. The Route Running and B&R attributes are huge for the WR position. Its half of the reason why those B&B routes for the #2WR...., and others, work so well. It is also why some of the low ranking WRs that have high Route Running, B&R Defense, Acc, and Speed find success. These are the ones that can have Catching ability in the 50s and 60s, but you look over at the Pass Reception Courage, and it is in the 80s and 90s. PRC takes effect when your receiver burns and zips past the defender wide open....the courage to catch the ball when you are wide open. The B&R defense for the WR fights against the Punish Receiver and Bump & Run coverage of the defender. It is my opinion that the Punish Receiver attribute helps the defender's Bump & Run coverage at the line as soon as the football is snapped. Every defender I have that has Punish Receiver in the 80s and 90s usually have at least over 50 and higher in Bump and Run coverage....usually higher. Now if the Route Running is low, you will see that the QB doesn't throw to that receiver as often. If the RR and B&RD is high on a WR, combined with reasonable Acc and Speed, they get open a whole lot more. This is all part of scouting your opponent.

I like bump cause it ensures the timing of reads patterns as drawn out. That part is pretty random as bump is assigned based on how fast and how high the bump ratings are on that play .

Speed and acceleration are great and I agree high Route will draw more targets , but I think it's more about the reads by the qb. Certain plays just end up with alot of the same targets no matter how tight the coverage is ......or how good the qb or wr is.

Courage is great cause of how tight man coverage is. I have a guy with ....
Max Speed 89
Acceleration 79
Strength 66
Intelligence 100
Pass Catching 84
B&R Avoidance 100
Route-Running 64
Pass Rec Courage 94

At wr2 he gets plenty of targets , catchovers, big gains and TDs with 64 route. But it's probably mostly on a dozen different passes . With play overuse penalties, what ratings is his 64 really facing most of the time.

I had a 6'4 231 pound wr who played fb te and the slot. My hopes were that his 94 route would draw targets but I knew his 35 bump and run would get him stood up often and mess with timing . Still in the slot, at 90 speed even when he lost the bump roll the qb would still target him, but he either draw a PI call or get a catch over for 8-9 yards. Risky strategy , but really effective at times with the right plays . 4.6 is not really like this as bump seem to have been lowered a bit.

Why would pass courage take effect when your WR is wide open? Shouldn’t the courage be to catch a ball in tight coverage?

I would think that your Catching Ability is for when your receiver is covered. This means that the defender's coverage ability would be facing off against the WR's catching ability. Pass Catch Courage makes more sense when they are wide open. Perhaps a lower Pass Catch Courage would make the receiver drop more passes. Everyone knows about those butterflies that ripple around one's stomach when the ball is thrown in the air... and the receiver is wide open. Of course my guess could be wrong, but why then have catching ability, and pass catch courage be basically for the same thing?

I think its the other way around. Courage is for a contested ball, but whatevs.....ha ha.

Only the coders can really tell us............we are just guessing from observation. We get nerfed a lot yes.........but maybe the pass catch courage plays a factor in dropped passes..........Think about it logically. When I was on the field playing..............courage counted a lot.........life is what you think about..........so when the ball is in the air.........and you think about please dont drop it a lot..........guess what happens in the roll? Now if you flip it on a consistent basis...and that ball is a fish....that an eagle swoops down and grasps.............clutching the talons around it with vigor......attacking that ball with your fingers............you get it if you played football.

I am not the only one on MFN that played a lot of this game......so please dont twist it.........you might get what I am saying. Your catch courage..............quick feet courage...........your whole persona is what you feel on the field. Some people hated WR Chad Johnson mainly because of his mouth.............but that is why I love him because he has exported what it feels when you think like that on the field when you are playing the game. The universe gives back your every thought. It is the same process in daily life as I describe for football so marinate your mind on that. Anyway, too much time thinking you might drop it...... too much time thinking this and that. Part of life is knowing when you are starting to fabricate your own reality.

So this is why I believe.............that Pass Catch Courage............has something to do with the amount of drops a receiver might have.

This isn't accurate. There is a statistically significant primary receiver for every passing play that has nothing to do with the player's attributes. For instance, on the FL Hitch, you can put your worst WR at WR2 and he'll get more targets than your WR at WR1 or your TE. On the Singleback Normal Quick slant, almost every pass goes to the WR3. For long passes, like the Waggle Post or SE Post, the pass is going to the RB or FB 90% of the time despite the pass being called long.

I can understand that. So you are saying that on some plays......the QB will not accurately cycle through the #1, #2, ,3 or more WRs.....even if he has 100 on look off receivers. I wonder if the QB's first look is always the #1 WR.......or does the title of the play make a difference. For example: A play that has the name slot post in it... does that mean the QB's first look on that play will be the #3WR?