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In our efforts to try to build a perfect team under the $177 million salary cap while also maintaining some semblance of realism, we've upped the difficulty level from last year's exercise.
1 Team restraints We'll need at least one player -- but no more than three -- from each of the 32 NFL teams. No stocking up on playoff rosters.
2 Finances Each player's cost is determined by his current cap number after any restructuring but without any cap acceleration for the acquisition.
3 Team composition Our team starts with 32 picks from the 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018 drafts, with one player from each round, plus an undrafted free agent. You can try choosing between Todd Gurley and Marcus Peters. (We didn't choose either.) Throw in a 2014 first-rounder playing out his fifth-year option and fill out the rest of the roster with 20 players on veteran contracts.
4 Special teams As tempting as it is to fill a team with big-play threats and situational contributors, real teams fill out the back of their rosters with players who contribute on special teams. Our team will do the same.
5 Scheme As was the case last year, we'll build an offense that fits within Josh McDaniels' system with the New England Patriots, meaning versatile receivers and running backs who can create mismatches in the passing game. On D, we'll build to suit Jim Schwartz's units, most recently with the Philadelphia Eagles, meaning pressure with our front four while dropping seven into coverage.
Our line is simultaneously athletic and vicious, especially on the interior, where Nelson was our first-round pick from this year's draft. We have former Patriots left tackle Solder in the lineup and likely replacement Brown as our swing tackle, in part because he might be the only starter left standing from the final round of the 2015 draft. We have plenty of flexibility. Scherff was a college tackle. Dawkins was a college tackle who will start at left tackle for the Bills, but he still might profile best in the long run at guard. Roullier was a college guard before becoming Washington's starting center.
