How do you increase your player's stats in Madden NFL '08 PC edition?

I am playing Franchise mode. I heard that they increase just by being played in games during the season as well as from bonuses from coaches/coordinators. Does practicing plays in the practice mode help? I have some drafted rookies that desperately need stat increases.How do you increase your player's stats in Madden NFL '08 PC edition?
There are many different ways you can increase their stats.



1. Training Camp: There is a specific for different position groups. For example, running backs and wide receivers can use ground attack and catch ball to increase carrying, break tackle, agility, catching, and jumping. You can only do the drills in the preseason, so make sure you do all of them with rookies.



2. Give the players playing time. All players respond positively to playing time. One year I won the super bowl and traded all of my draft picks for players. I had the last pick of the draft. He was a 5'8 169 pound cornerback. He was fast, he could jump, and tackle, but he lacked awareness. He was rated as a 60 overall. I made him start and he ended the year with 8 interceptions and 61 tackles. He ended the year as a 76 overall.



3. Get one good player and surround him with decent players. In madden, I played with the Falcons and traded Warrick Dunn for Michael Turner. He ended the year with 1900 yards on 460 carries with 216 broken tackles. We made the playoffs, but lost to the Eagles. The following years we got better and better until almost every starter had 99 awareness. We ended up winning the superbowl 16 times in 30 years. I suggest creating a player (a running back, a wide receiver or quarterback), and make him 20 years old. 20 is the youngest possible age and will let your player be in his prime until he is 30 years old (Ten years in the NFL). Whatever you do, do not release that player. EVER!



4. The last thing you could do is use a mod. Mods allow you to change the position and stats of your player. on footballfreaks.com, they have a downloadable mod of their own version of madden 09, 10, and soon 11.



Hope this helped you!