Your Chance To Participate In A New Football Phenomenon (Sandbox Simulations)

[Rain Man]

I apologize if the mods think this is soliciting, and I guess it is, but at the same time it's beta testing a new product developed by long-time planeteers, and it's free.

cdcox and I have been developing a new football game for the thoughtful fan, where players build franchises and compete against each other. A description is below.

If you're interested, we're offering the game for free in Year 1 to Chiefsplanet members, with the goal of both giving the system a dry run and also hooking you like Phillip Morris. You can go to www.sandboxsimulations.com to sign up, and use the access code 6Lanier3.

Here's the overview:

Build and manage a full 53-player roster over multiple seasons, as an offseason activity to give you year-round football

Select your personnel to match your offensive and defensive scheme. Every position matters – even your blocking tight end.

Realistic and accurate simulations of league games based on head-to-head matchups against other teams in your league.


This is essentially a new concept in fantasy football that attempts to simulate as closely as possible the management of a real NFL franchise over a multi-year period. Unlike regular fantasy football, every position on the offense and defense contributes to your success or failure. On special teams, the punter, kicker, and kick returners matter.

In Sandbox Football you will build a team – an entire 53-man football team – via an initial draft, and will maintain it year after year in annual rookie drafts, trading periods, and free agency. You compete against teams in your league. In the first year of the game, before the start of the NFL season, you will build your roster by drafting veterans and rookies through separate drafts, and through trades with other teams in the league. Your roster is frozen at the beginning of the NFL season. During the real regular NFL season, you can focus on your traditional fantasy games and perhaps keep on eye on your Sandbox roster as our statistical models build the data on player performances. At the end of the regular NFL season, the Sandbox season begins. There will be 16 games in the season. In real time, the season will run about 8 weeks (2 alternate reality games per week).

Game outcomes will be simulated based on the performance of individual players during the just-completed NFL regular season. The simulations, developed by a PhD statistical expert, estimate how individual players will perform in the context of your alternate reality team competing head-to-head against other teams in the league and with the specific team that you have built. The simulations will consider the offensive and defensive schemes that you select. So you can build your roster to support a power running game or a high-flying passing attack. You can run a 3-4 or 4-3 base defense. You can run nickel formations or four-wide receiver sets. You can rotate your DL to keep them fresh.

The game is more about building a team than playing video games. So this isn't Madden, but you will have the ability to tweak your game plan to take the best advantage of your roster and the weaknesses of your opponent. Injuries are a factor in the game. If a player is unavailable during weeks 3 through 6 in the NFL, he is also unavailable during the same weeks in the alternate reality season. So roster depth matters. The game simulations are based on the most advanced statistics and the latest research regarding what matters in winning an NFL game. But, the outcomes of the games have a random component, just like real NFL games.

The calendar for the alternate reality league year will look something like this:
• Jan to Mid March: Alternate Reality regular season and playoffs.
• Mid-March to the beginning of NFL season: Roster building through trades, veteran draft (first year), free agent drafts (2nd year and beyond), and rookie draft.
• Beginning of NFL season to end of regular NFL season: Alternate reality league is dormant, but the NFL players are generating their performance stats for the up-coming AR league.
• Rinse and repeat.

Copyright Sandbox Simulations, all rights reserved.

We're still finalizing the cost structure, but this won't be an expensive game to play at all. It might range from a few bucks a year to $50 per year, depending on a few factors.

Year 1 will require a couple of days of drafting with rather high intensity, but we've got it set up where you can put your draft list together and do customized and automated drafting if you like.

So...go! Now! Time to get ready for the draft!

[Rain Man]

In League 2, Fort Collins and Seattle must be playing a Thursday game, because they have no score reported for Week 4.

[cdcox]

Originally Posted by Rain Man

In League 2, Fort Collins and Seattle must be playing a Thursday game, because they have no score reported for Week 4.

Tsunami delay.

[Rain Man]

This is a minor point and I don't really care, but on a punt return perhaps the cap on the return yardage should be the distance to the end zone. Joshua Cribbs scored, then did a Lambeau Leap, and then ran up and give high fives on the upper deck.

Lexington
3rd Q 8:24 Mike Nugent kicks 70 yards. No return. Touchback
3rd Q 8:16 1st and 10 Lexington 20 Mark Sanchez (pressured) passes incomplete to Mark Clayton.
3rd Q 8:09 2nd and 10 Lexington 20 Mark Sanchez passes, batted at the line of scrimage incomplete.
3rd Q 8:02 3rd and 10 Lexington 20 Mark Sanchez sacked by Will Smith for a loss of -6 yards.
3rd Q 7:37 4th and 16 Lexington 14 Jason Baker punts 43 yards, returned for 94 yards by Joshua Cribbs Touchdown, conversion
Columbia 28, Lexington 0

[cdcox]

Originally Posted by Rain Man

This is a minor point and I don't really care, but on a punt return perhaps the cap on the return yardage should be the distance to the end zone. Joshua Cribbs scored, then did a Lambeau Leap, and then ran up and give high fives on the upper deck.

Lexington
3rd Q 8:24 Mike Nugent kicks 70 yards. No return. Touchback
3rd Q 8:16 1st and 10 Lexington 20 Mark Sanchez (pressured) passes incomplete to Mark Clayton.
3rd Q 8:09 2nd and 10 Lexington 20 Mark Sanchez passes, batted at the line of scrimage incomplete.
3rd Q 8:02 3rd and 10 Lexington 20 Mark Sanchez sacked by Will Smith for a loss of -6 yards.
3rd Q 7:37 4th and 16 Lexington 14 Jason Baker punts 43 yards, returned for 94 yards by Joshua Cribbs Touchdown, conversion
Columbia 28, Lexington 0

Easy fix. I do adjust the max distance on most plays, but I missed this one.

[Rain Man]

If you like defensive battles, the Independence-Pembroke Pines game is a must-see. We had 8 or 9 three and outs, and multiple sacks and turnovers.

[Branden Albert's Huge Balls]

Week 4 stats for the 3-1 Broncos. It would seem turnovers kept me from blowing them out.

Tom Brady: 17 of 24 for 191 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT, 1 fumble

Kellen Winslow: 9 catches for 59 yards

Reggie Bush: 23 carries for 147 yards, 1 TD, 2 fumbles

Ahmad Bradshaw: 3 carries for 12 yards

Ricky Williams: 2 carries for -1 yards

Charles Johnson: 1 sack


Colt McCoy had an incredible day, going 24 for 47 for 163 yards, a stunning 3.4 YPA.

Next week I have to play a real QB instead of a scrub like the last two weeks. Should be interesting, Rain Man.

[lostcause]

Really impressed! Week 4, my gameplan went as I wanted and the AI made no apparent mistakes. Very smooth sim all around. Fantastic evolution from week 1.

[Branden Albert's Huge Balls]

Rain Man's top two RB are out this week, but both of my starting OTs are out this week.

I may have to go run heavy.

Edit - ugh, the Williams wall? Guess I'll have to trust Brady.

[Rain Man]

Originally Posted by RedTDKisses

Rain Man's top two RB are out this week, but both of my starting OTs are out this week.

I may have to go run heavy.

Edit - ugh, the Williams wall? Guess I'll have to trust Brady.

And it's a home game for us. Be ready for some crowd noise.

Bummer about our double running back injury, but we have a lot of depth there. I'm confident that Maurice Morris and Leon Washington will carry their weight.

[brorth]

Corona Lights Week 4 stats:
Stafford 27/40 373 yds 2 td / 0 int
Forte 14 carries 68 yds 7 rec 57 yds 1 td
Gronkowski 6 rec 68 1 td
Keller 9 rec 168 yds

[Old Dog]

Did I end up with Haley as a coach? There are some questionable at best clock management issues. I went for it twice on 4th down in field goal range down by 16 and then with 41 seconds left in the 4th and down by 2 kicked deep rather than attempt an onside kick.

But at least Bradshaw has four times as many fumbles as he did in all of last year, so I've got that going for me.

[AndChiefs]

Originally Posted by brorth

Corona Lights Week 4 stats:
Stafford 27/40 373 yds 2 td / 0 int
Forte 14 carries 68 yds 7 rec 57 yds 1 td
Gronkowski 6 rec 68 1 td
Keller 9 rec 168 yds

Are you compiling this yourself or is there somewhere I can see this for my guys?

[rageeumr]

After starting 0-2, the Provo Knuckledraggers have clawed back into the race with 2 straight wins, including one last night against previously undefeated division leader Ventura!

Week 4 stats:
Rapist | 26 of 28 (92.8%!!) for 282 yards | 3 TD | 1 Fum
Marshawn Lynch | 11 carries for 31 yards | 2 receptions for 23 yards
Ryan Mathews | 11 carries for 47 yards | 5 receptions for 15 yards
Owen Schmitt | 1 reception for 2 yards
Darrius Heyward-Bey | 6 Rec for 59 yards | 1 TD
Mike Thomas | 6 Rec for 31 yards | 1 TD
Sidney Rice | 4 Rec for 100 yards | 1 TD
Rob Gronkowski | 3 Rec for 52 yards
Brian Robison | 2 sacks
Jason McCourty | 1 INT
Robbie Gould | 3-3 on XP | 1-1 on FG

Rapistberger's comp % is SLIGHTLY skewed because I don't count spikes to stop the clock as attempts, but I think he only had 2 of them.

[rageeumr]

cdcox, how much variability is built into how many carries each back gets? I have my HBs set up at about a 65/35 split, and they both got 11 carries this week. It's not a huge difference, by the "letter of the law" it would have been like 14 and 8. I'm just curious.

[shorman22]

I need a new QB too. I'm Topeka tyrannicides.