Create your player

You are one football player on a team in a league that plays real games on a schedule. You do not control him play by play: you shape him, and the game engine plays him.

1. Create your player. Pick a position, an archetype (your style of play) and a body. Every rookie starts as a backup; the team with the most room at your position signs you.

2. Train every day. Your training plan (one to three ratings and an intensity) trains on its own every day, and checking in once a day, one tap on home, adds a full session on top. A short visit each day beats a long one once a week.

3. Earn your spot. Your coach puts players on the depth chart by how good they are and how much he trusts them. Home shows where you stand, such as "#4 at RB": number 1 starts, the rest wait their turn.

4. Watch your team play. A few minutes after you create your player, he starts a short preseason debut that never counts. After that, Watch shows your team's live game, or its next one when that starts within 24 hours, and otherwise its most recent finished game, play by play. Snaps you play add game experience, which counts toward your ratings as you train.

5. Look around when you want to. For your first seven days, home starts with a short first-week list that ticks itself as you go. My player has your ratings, contract and game-day instructions; the league menu has standings, stats and news. Each page has its own "How it works" panel, and every guide is on the Guides page, including a Player FAQ for the questions new players ask most.

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