Well, it is a strategy game. You build your team. You do need to spend some $$ (initially) though to make a good team. Once you have a decent team, then you play to get more $$ to make your team even better. Unlike Madden NFL, there is no direct interaction during the game...you're the owner of the team. You see what your team is weak at, and that is how you strengthen it. You can do this by getting better players AND/OR using the skill cards to offset your team's weakness. The gameplay itself is rather decent with the artificial intelligence.
But, yeah, to fully enjoy the game, you do have to spend your own cash to build a team at the beginning. Once that is done, you can let your team win the Bowl Games and collect money from there. Basically, you need to spend money initially...and if you have a good team, then your team will make money in the bowls so that you continually try to make your team better without spending anymore cash.
If you like Madden NFL type games, then this is not for you. However, if you're into game strategy and/or building a team, then this game is much better than Madden. (Madden on iPhones suck to no end IMHO.)