A new game called the Immaculate Gridiron has been released online for NFL fans to play on a daily basis. Immaculate Gridiron consists of a 3-by-3 grid that contains categories above each grid and the user is given exactly nine guesses to fill each grid with the corresponding category. Hence, it is called "immaculate" as the player has no room for error in order to successfully complete the game.
Every day, a new grid is revealed where, across the top and the side, new teams or categories are revealed. The player has to enter a player's name which satisfies both the corresponding categories on the top and the side. For example, if the category on top says " Detroit Lions" and the corresponding category across says " Most seasons, one team", the correct answer for the player to enter would be "Jason Hanson."
Drawn into tic-tac-toe, one had to guess which player played for the two teams corresponding to the cell or the square. The Immaculate Gridiron basically tests a person's knowledge of the game's history and its teams and players. It’s for the true fans and the best way to find out who knows the game better among your friends.
Here's the format and rules of the trivia game in the National Football League.
1) After reviewing the row and column, select a football player that meets that cell's criteria.
2) For the athlete to be considered valid for a team, he should have played for that team at the NFL level in at least one game.
3) The players can be active or inactive.
4) The grid is a 3*3 for a total of nine guesses.
5) The athlete cannot be repeated more than once.
6) If the cell coincides with a team and an award, the athlete must have won the award while signed to the team.
7) If the cell coincides with a team and a season stat, the player must have set that record while on the team.
Test your NFL player knowledge with NFL Immaculate Gridiron. Similar to the popular game immaculate grid, you must guess players who meet the two criteria that intersect on the grid. A new puzzle is created every day at 5:00 AM EST.
Method 1: Stating the Obvious
This is likely the way most people approach the game because it’s the most straight-forward interpretation of the challenge: Just complete the grid based on your existing knowledge.
This method will often take only a few minutes, with players simply choosing the most obvious names that come to mind to fill each square:
Most passing touchdowns, career? Easy: Tom Brady. … All-time Receiving Leader for the Chiefs? Travis Kelce. Simple. … An All-Star for the Bengals? Joe Burrow. Boom.
This method is great for people who don’t care about rarity score and are just looking for the quick satisfaction of completing the grid. The finished job is glorious enough.
Method 2: The Open-Book Test
This is where the definition of “guess” can be stretched. The obvious meaning associated with trivia games — choosing an answer based on the knowledge already in your brain, or maybe based on a hunch, but without certainty or assistance — doesn’t apply here.
Instead, it’s a more liberal interpretation of the word. Specifically: Looking at a list of qualifying players and choosing the one you think will earn the lowest or highest rarity score. It’s still a guess, it’s just a different kind of guess.
It’s kind of like an open-book test in school. While it’s a guaranteed way to fill out the grid successfully, there are no promises that you’ll get the rarity score you want. But there’s still guesswork and an element of mystery to it, so you can take this approach with a clean conscience if a low or high score is your goal.
Method 3: Confirmation Elation
This is related to Method 2 in that it provides a safeguard against wrong guesses, but it’s still mostly about your own knowledge.
It’s just as simple as it sounds: You pick a player you think matches the criteria, then check the relevant Sports Reference site to make sure your hunch is correct.
As with Method 2, the goal here is usually about a low rarity score. But there’s still a chance a lot of other people will have picked the same guy, so it may not lead to a low score. It’s also a fine way to just fill a final square or two, regardless of your score goals.
Method 4: Picking and Choosing
This is the most complicated method, but it can also lead to satisfying conclusions. It’s complicated because it requires more than one browser, or perhaps more than one device — one as your “official” entry and another (or even two or three) as your digital “scratch paper.”
The premise: If you have multiple players in mind for certain squares, try each of them and see which one a) is correct; or b) generates the best score for you. It’s still a guessing game, but think of it as practice for the real game — like BP or warm-up pitches.
Though it takes a little longer, this method can help assure your preferred rarity score on your “official” grid (the one you post on social media).
Method 5: Free Solo
This is the thrill-seeker’s way to play, and it’s very popular among sports sickos. High risk, high reward. Like scaling a mountain without ropes.
Basically, it’s this: Try to think of the most random, forgotten player who matches the criteria, gamble that your brain remembers correctly, lock in the pick and, hopefully, bask in that sweet 0.002 percentage ranking.
It helps a lot if you’ve watched an unhealthy number of sports for a few decades and/or have collected trading cards for most of your life. It’s just you and your flawed human brain, remembering some guys together, and hoping you both still have your fastball.
Like climbing a real mountain, it can take hours. And like going free solo, there is no safety net. This is an adrenaline rush when you succeed, but it’s a crushing ego blow when you end up with a blank square, mocking you.
I’ve played the grid using each method. My preference is Free Solo, as it’s the one that brings the greatest satisfaction when complete. But I’d estimate that at least 50 percent of my grids are a combination of the Free Solo and Confirmation Elation methods.
Granted, one could argue that any assistance takes away the seat-of-your-pants nature and thrill of a trivia-based game. Some might even call it cheating. But such labels don’t really apply to The Grid.
“What really is cheating anyway?” Darowski said. “… One person’s method might mean another person’s method is ‘cheating,’ but in reality, they’re just not playing the game the same way.”
You can play Immaculate Gridiron on these websites: immaculategrid.com or dynasty-daddy.com
The takeaway: Go ahead and have your Grid-y fun, however you define it.
