This is the link to the other thread:
http://www.operationsports.com/vBull...dden-11-a.html
But I'm afraid not many of your questions got answered there.
If you play alone, you always control the player with the ball. If you play with others, you can control specific players. One has to always control the QB I believe.
I don't think the Wii controls are much easier to learn than the xbox controls (pressing a button is easier than pointing the remote at a receiver and the hit stick is easier to control than 4 buttons - I didn't try the arcade control schemes), but the 5vs5 mode and the mode where you can assist the main player by pointing at defenders so they stumble are probably nice for kids.