I have a couple more levers to pull but it's such a monumental pain in the ass to heavily modify an offensive gameplan that I really don't want to do it unless/until it's confirmed I'm playing you.

I think I've got ya. But A) Gotta get there first and B) Gotta actually be right about it.

And yes, I have Drew Lock to trade you.

I have an expiring JaMarcus Russell contract I'd trade...

Purple drank license, sponsors separate.

So are we going to be behind the NFL starting it's season by the time the playoffs are over and we work through all the offseason stuff?

Don't see why we wouldn't be. There's plenty of time yet to go and only a few more weeks of playoffs. Though the entry draft can take a little time.

FA will be that 'trickle in' format where certain FAs become available week over week in-season so we shouldn't have the free-agent free for all like we've had in seasons past.

I still don't understand the new setup. So we sign free agents during the season?

That's my understanding. And each week a new 'crop' of FAs will become available.

There's something of a random assignment of 'weeks' to each eligible FA prior to the season. So Player A may have a 'week 3' designation and Player B has a 'week 5' designation.

So after week 3 gets played, bidding will open on Player A. 2 weeks later, Player B opens for bidding.

And the question you have to ask yourself, especially early in the season, is if it's worth trying to 'win' a player and burn that cap space that you'd really prefer save for Player B in week 5. But if you don't get the guy in week 5, now what? Moreover, if you win Player A in Week 3 and he gets hurt in Week 4, you're up shit's creek. So are you bettter served to wait until the end of the season to start using your FA money when you have more production/availability data? Possibly - but with that data is going to come more aggressive bidders as well.

It's a completely new dynamic and I have no idea how to deal with it. I tried to get some guys on multi-year deals last FA period like Zach Seiler for that very reason - I just didn't want to worry about how I'd deal with his FA period. I knew I could have signed him for $1, but I figured I'd just spend for 3 and know he was on the roster for a couple more seasons while this whole bizarre FA period thing sorts itself out.

Do we still get to retain 2 of our free agents?

I believe so - I sure as hell HOPE so. I've structure my contracts around those franchise slots...

Yes, still can offer long term contracts to two vets.

The FA thing is going to make building a roster pretty damn difficult.

When can Billy and I make a trade?

Thankfully we can. I have Marcus Williams & JC Jackson I need to keep had we not been able to I think I would have tore this thing to the ground. The new Free Agency thing will be interesting but never underestimate some of these dunbasses and how they just throw money at guys. Not even hall of fame types just average players were getting stupid contracts

As soon as the season is over.

DJ. What a f game!!!

Wait...we played? Or is this challenge game?

I'll have to give it a look.

EDIT: Ah, challenge play - yeah, that's a good one.

I have one more lever to pull if I have to play you that I haven't unveiled yet and am frankly just scared to do so in a do/die situation. At the same time...I'm not sure I want you to know what it is either.

And my Benton team is just different enough from my CoMo team that I'm not sure how instructive it might be to break it out in challenge play either way...

Challenge games seem to have gotten TIGHT lately. I'm playing a ton of 1-score games all of the sudden.

Except I can't beat !@#$ing Fergus Falls right now. Got my teams back up to 2-3 in ELO there but then took them both after Fergus and got them both beat. Harumph.