I'm gonna try to give these posts the reply they deserve and give my thoughts on everything too. Most of it is just gonna be agreeing with or appreciating what you said but ah well
djp73 wrote: ↑14 Jan 2019, 11:22
OFFENSIVE PERSONNEL
By now we have all been playing these games for some time and probably have an idea what type of players we like to have at each position. Here are some tips for getting players to fit what you want to do. Again, this is primarily for NCAA but works in general.
The number one suggestion I have for getting players or choosing which of the players we already have is to forget about overall ratings. Not entirely obviously but just setting your lineups based entirely on overall ratings is foolish.
This little thing on overalls is so true. For the human player, the formula to calculate overall is NOT a representation of how good the player will be for you. A good rule of thumb
djp73 wrote: ↑14 Jan 2019, 11:22
QB
You're likely controlling the QB most of the time. What do you like? Rocket arm? Mobile? Find a player that suits your play style. A huge part of a quarterback's overall rating in these games is their awareness rating. But you're controlling him right? Don't let an overall that is inflated because of a high awareness rating sway you. Example: if you prefer a mobile QB and you have a pair of QBs where your higher OVR guy is 70 speed with like 90 AWR and a second guy with 85 Speed and 70 AWR and the passing ratings are fairly close then you are going to be better with the speed guy. If you like to throw the deep ball then you need to take those ratings into account as well. F
ind the guy that fits what you want to do most. If you're using a lower rated school you'll have to make compromises here most times. Don't be afraid to use more than one guy if you have a mix of skillsets on your roster.
It's so important to find the right fit at QB, this cannot be understated. Good points on using multiple players to utilize their mix of skillsets. One point to elaborate on, at a lower school it might be better to scheme around the guys you have, at least at first. While this is tricky to do, I've had much better success playing around the players I have rather than forcing a pocket passer to run my preferred spread run system.
djp73 wrote: ↑14 Jan 2019, 11:22
RB
Most teams use more than one RB now. If you're lucky enough to have a "bell cow" type back that can bruise between the tackles, get around the edge on a sweep and catch passes well then use him as much as you can. I would suggest testing out your backups when the situation presents itself so you'll at least be somewhat prepared in the event of an injury. If you don't have a go to guy use formation subs to get the guys with different skill sets in the right packages. You don't want a 180 pound speed guy in on the goal line and you don't want a guy with 80 speed and 50 catching in the shotgun. Mix guys in, you may be surprised how a lower rated guy performs on the field. In Madden the preseason games are a great way to test guys out. Give them reps with the first team and see what you get.
Good points here vis a vis formation subs. I love doing a backfield-by-committee approach but I've never been one to play to situation but rather fatigue. Makes so much more sense to do both - helps with play calling variety, keeps your backs fresh and puts them only in positive situations for them and helps maximize talent. Seems like a win-win-win to me.
djp73 wrote: ↑14 Jan 2019, 11:22
FB
Not a lot of teams use a full back regularly. I like to. A perfect fullback would be a great lead blocker in the running game and also a solid receiver out of the backfield. You're probably not going to get both out of one player so pick what's most important or plan to use two. Short tight ends usually can be moved to fullback and be effective as a receiver, sometimes as a blocker as well. Occasionally I'll move a guard if he's buried on the depth chart and has reasonable speed if I'm looking for a player that's primarily a lead blocker. You'd think a bigger HB could make the move but they typically don't have the blocking skills you'd want if that's what you're after and probably not the receiving skills you would want for that either. There are exceptions. FB is one of the positions where I find overall ratings to be the least useful.
I'll admit, I'm one of those that tends to use the FB slot in formations for an extra RB or TE. Good points relating to what kinds of other positional recruits make good fullbacks - the generated full recruits / draftees are very hit or miss.
djp73 wrote: ↑14 Jan 2019, 13:42
WR
WR is a position group where you need guys with different skill sets for sure. Personally I like to have a few big targets with good catching and catch in traffic ratings. Speed is a little less important for these guys. You're going to be hitting them across the middle and in the red zone where you want morew size. I like to have some flat out speed guys too, they're usually smaller. Big guys with speed are awesome, those are harder to find especially with lower tier schools. You can really mix and match here with guys in different spots in different formations. Also use your scouting of your opponent to see if you can get a favorable matchup somewhere by moving a guy around. Don't get too caught up in overall ratings here. If you've got a guy with great speed and weaker catch ratings try to get him uncontested catches. Either by sending him deep against a slow corner, bubble screens, slants against off coverage or even in the running game. Fast WRs are usually your best bet for KR/PR too. Again use guys with different skillsets in different ways. I have a guy on my roster that I almost cut because he had a low overall rating, his catch ratings aren't great and he is a Juco JR. He is the fastest player on my team! I can use him in different ways. I probably won't throw to him on third down but if I can get him a few easy touches a game and he breaks one that could be the difference between a win and a loss. The biggest thing with WRs in my opinion is versatility, don't stock up on the same type of guys because you need those different types to be effective in the passing game.
Great bit on receivers here - interesting point on getting talented players the ball despite their weaknesses. A point I'd like to add to is trying to play to your receivers' strengths and putting them in positions to make plays - for example, you probably want your big possession receiver on the outside so he'll be matching up with corners most of the time, put the shifty guys in the slot to exploit backers, etc...
djp73 wrote: ↑14 Jan 2019, 13:42
TE
Here's another spot where it's nice to have a mix of guys if you can't get one to do it all. A good receiving tight end can get you out of a lot of bad situations offensively. Speed in the 80s is great, high 70s can be alright too. Depending on how you use him. Don't send a 75 speed tight end on a fly. Use him on in routes and posts. Run blocking is important for TE in the running game obviously. If you don't have a good run blocking TE you can always formation sub an extra offensive linesman but that's going to give away your intentions to a human opponent and he won't be any good in the passing game. If you don't have a good receiving tight end a bigger receiver can be used but he won't be much good as a blocker.
Good TEs are one of the best offensive weapons in this game. Seriously. Interesting point vis-a-vis a converting receiver's inability to block - haven't thought about that when converting some of my larger receivers to TE, something to keep an eye on.
djp73 wrote: ↑14 Jan 2019, 13:42
LT
To me LT is one of the few positions on offense where there is an exact formula you want. 6'5" or taller. 300 pounds plus. Pass blocking is the most important thing here. A little speed/acceleration and agility is nice too if you're facing elite pass rushers but if you have a guy with high numbers there you may want him inside if you have another option at LT.
LG, C, RG
Here I want run blockers. You want some acceleration and agility here for pulling on run plays or getting out in front of screens. Tackles usually get a rating increase if you move them inside so that LT with decent run blocking and not so good pass blocking could make a great interior linesman. These guys you want to see the strength rating and impact blocking pretty good too. I tend to run to the right more so the LG would need the agility etc. more as he is more likely to pull.
RT
Right tackle is usually a guy who doesn't have the size or pass blocking to play left tackle for me. I still like to see good height and weight out here but less important to me than LT. If you're facing an elite pass rusher on this side he may need help. If I have an upperclassman at LT and an underclassman LT is a good fit here I love to use him at RT for a season, even if he may not have the highest overall rating.
Great breakdown of the OL. Pretty similar to the conventional wisdom for lines. I will say, scheming around who you have on your line is stealthily huge! The ability of your line to block (...or not) for a type of play is huge in determining the success of said play.
djp73 wrote: ↑14 Jan 2019, 13:42
KR/PR
Speed. If you're controlling the returner then speed is all that matters. Acceleration should be at least close to speed too. This is a great way to get a speed WR with bad hands or a fast DB that can't tackle some extra touches.
K
I like a good balance of power and accuracy here. Just know what you have. A bad kicker can absolutely cost you games.
Good summary of special teams here, though I am wondering: wouldn't agility be key on returns? You're gonna change directions a fair bit as a returner. Regardless, it's a great position to put the raw and talented skill position players. And knowing the range of your kicker (and punter too, I might add) is key to knowing what plays to call - need to know when you're in field goal range vs when you are not.
