Let me get the disclaimer out of the way, this is for Ryan. I dont claim to be the best at running the ball, but I have experience some success and thought that I should share my technique with all you other ballers out there. Keep in mind that its impossible to mimic someone else moves to the T. My hope is to give you some things to consider and work on that will improve your running and overall Madden 2K experience.
PERSONNNEL: The most important ingredient for a successful running attack is personnel. Im not saying that it is impossible to run with a weak offensive front, its just harder. Let us point out the obvious and say that a good offensive line is one of the most important pieces to the running attack. Therewith that said lets get specific.
OFFENSIVE STYLE: The type of offense used will determine what kind of acquisitions you need to make and also what personnel on your current roster should be cut. In a West Coast Offense the HB needs to have great hands, speed and awareness. In a smash mouth franchise the HB should be tall, heavy, and strong. So a West Coast back would be 215lbs or less, have speed in the low to high 90s, catch like a WR and exceptional awareness for a rookie. Bruiser backs should be 220+lbs, average speed (80s to low 90s), exceptional strength and a good BTK.
Your offensive line will differ from style to style as well. With a bruiser back you have to have a good offensive line to open holes in the line. RBK is a must and PBK is secondary. You should have at least two good receivers to keep the defense honest and back them away from the line of scrimmage. The QB doesnt have to be spectacular, but should have enough arm to hit the receivers deep to keep the secondary in check. This type of offense requires a heavy, strong, and durable back who came punch it up the middle 30 or 40 times and still take more.
In a West Coast Offense its not as important to have a superb offensive line as it is to have great receivers. PBK is a must and that along with AWR should be the only stats that matter. The HB, FB, TE and WRs all have to have exception pass catching/blocking ability. The short pass now becomes your running game. A nimble back with good agility and acceleration are whats need for this style of play.
I try to merge these styles, which allows me to be unpredictable from game to game.
PLAYBOOK: Two wordsCustom Playbook. How many of us really use the slot reverse? Customizing the playbook allows you to load all the plays that suit your needs.
OFFENSIVE LINE: As you well know, most lines arent stacked with talent. Each line possesses a mixture of talent and dead weight. The way I define between the two is rather simple. Any player over five years in the pros and an OVR of 69 or less is dead weight. Everyone else is negotiable. No, my whole line is not 80 +, in fact, my whole right side is comprised of promising rookies and free agents with 1 or two years, highest OVR is 73. I believe run blocking and pass blocking are more important than OVR anyway. Think about it; what is the job of the line? To protect the QB and open running lanes. So would a lineman with an OVR of 70, PBK of 82 and a RBK of 85 be a good addition or would a player with an OVR of 85, PBK of 79 and PBK of 80 be better? Look at the big picture instead of focusing on one or two stats. When choosing running plays, try to stick with ones that involve your best lineman. The better the block, the less likely it is the defense will pull off the block to make the play. As I said before, its not impossible to run behind weak lineman, its just harder. You will of have to spread the run around so the defense wont focus on one part of the offense to stop you.
SCOUTING: This is the 2nd most important ingredient. Running the ball at Zack Thomas is not going to get any yards. Studying the opposing team before the game helps you plan out your attack. Look at the speed and OVR of the LBs; Are they too slow to keep up with you outside, mentally or physically? What about the defensive line? Wheres the weak link and where does he lineup? Is one of your star offensive linemen taking on a scrub this week? Look at everything and dont let a low OVR fool you. He may have an OVR of 74, but he may be a rookie on the way to the Hall of Fame. Be smart about who you pick on. PASSING: The 3rd most important ingredient. It is imperative that you pass the ball. Passing forces LBs to drop into zones or blitz to slow down the passing game which in-turn, opens the running lanes. Try throwing 3 or 4 passes and then a run out of the same formation. I especially like plays that have the same man in motion.
UP THE GUT: Its tougher to break long ones this way, but you can still get 4 to 10 if youve set up the defense with the passing game. You should try to reserve this type of running for Zone coverage. Its not impossible against Man, but in zone the MLB will drop about five yards before he comes back in to try and stop the run. Once youve cleared the line of scrimmage juke away from the center. This pulls you away from the MLB and buys you a little more time to make something big happen. If it doesnt, be happy with the 4 or 5 you got.
Sometimes those holes arent where their suppose to be so make sure youre paying attention, holes will open and close quickly and its up to you to hit them when theyre open. If all else fails, bounce to the outside and pray for a block or two. Also, sub in your FB for some running plays so the defense isnt geared on just stopping the HB.
TURNING THE CORNER: Its usually best to run with a blocker or two. What I like to do is run straight at the tackle and then juke outside. This will make the defense commit to the inside run while you bounce it outside. Works best out of strong and weak Is. When following a lead block outside make sure you dont outrun him. You may have to slow down a bit in order to set up the first block before you can burst to the outside. When I finally do turn that corner, I like to face the CBs and Safeties as they come in, makes it easier to juke then out of their cleats. Any pursuing LBs should be easily stiff-armed or spun away from. I can usually avoid the first and second tackle attempts, but after that theres usually a swarm of defensive players.
JUKING: Use only to avoid defenders from the front and side.
SPIN: Used to avoid tackles from all sides.
STIFF-ARM: Doesnt work if your David going against Goliath, but it does work with better match-ups.
HURDLE: Any one fallen into your running path should be hurdled over. This includes a defender just knocked down by your HB, blocking FB, WR or offensive lineman.
LATERAL: Only good for pitching the ball to the HB. Find some passing plays where the HB or FB is running outside for a screen or flat route. Snap the ball while moving the D pad in the direction of the pitch, then lateral the ball to the FB or HB who will be outside of the containment and should be set to turn the corner. Its a quick play and the QB will get sacked if he holds onto the ball for too long so get rid of it fast. Keep in mind that the HB or FB will have to be the closest to the QB so any formation other that shotgun or singleback will not work for the lateral pass to the HB. All others except proform will work of for the FB.
SETTING IT UP: I use the Raiders Playbook and basically I like to start off running all the plays out of the singleback formation, at least the ones I find useful. My very first play is always the HB toss. This gives me a good idea on what their defense showed up for the game. Then Ill usually pass 6 or 7 times in a row using the various singleback formations, single/big, single/normal, single/4WR. Towards the end of the series, I try to hit some deep balls to back everyone off and then, BOOM!!! HB Sprint for 15.
Sometimes running out of the same formation gets you absolutely no where. During these dry spells I like to go with one formation per set of downs or one formation per play. So either the defense is seeing a new formation each down or just on every first down.
I cant stress enough how important it is to have a good TE. A TE running a deep route is usually picked up by a safety or LB in single coverage. Its not hard to determine who would win in a fight for the ball, TE 64 265lbs, safety 59 180 lbs. Hmmmmm.
Spread the defense out with 3, 4 and 5 WR sets and then run the ball.
SOME FAVORITE CUSTOM PLAYS:
OFFENSIVE:
Pinwheel: Play created by TAFKAC, good for 5 or 6 every time. Hit the slot WR on a sprint route the sideline. Posted on TAFKACs site.
SlingShot: My Lateral Play. If I feel that a blitz is coming from the corner Im trying to run I will drop and hit the open man, who is usually WR3. I do have to give credit to whom ever it was that started the whole lateral to the HB thing. This play is good for 10 or more of the HB gets past the OLB.
QB: roll right
WR1: sprint left
WR2: slant right 15
HB: wide right
WR3: fade
TE: run block right
LT: run block middle
LG: run block middle
C: run block right
RG: run block left
RT: run block middle.
Surprise: My Double screenplay. Posted on TAFKACs site.
Juggernaut: My HB Toss play. Posted on TAFKACs site.
HB Launch: Play created by someone on this board. Really good running play.
Flares: Good simple play does what it was designed forgetting short yards. However if the flat routes get flooded I like to hit the HB.
QB: drops 5
WR1: sprint left
WR2: sprint right
HB: angle left
WR3: flare out
WR4: flare out
The entire offensive line is pass blocking
DEFENSIVE:
Stun Gun: Created by TAFKAC. Designed to shutdown the deep ball.
Bastard: SS blitz I created. Posted on TAFKACs site.
Rhino: MLB blitz that I cant remember if I created it or got it from this site. Shift the line and bring the LILB between the two tackles. Then grab RCB2 and either line him up over the slot, if there is one, or blitz him in.
LILB: blitz middle
LOLB: inside front
RCB1: lock inside front
FS: deep ½ right
SS: deep ½ left
LCB: lock inside front
RE: flat zone right
DT: slant right
DT: slant left
LE: flat zone left
RCB2: lock inside front.
Pitbull: Zone/ROLB blitz. Shift the line until the LILB lines up to the right. Take the ROLB and line him up between the RE and DT. This is designed to hold the receivers long enough for the ROLB to hit the QB. However, as with any play, given enough time, the QB will find someone open so crush him fast.
LILB: flat zone right
LOLB: in front
RCB: lock inside front
FS: deep 1/3 right
SS: deep 1/3 right
LCB: lock inside front
RE: slant right
DT: slant left
DT: flat zone left
LE: curl flat right
ROLB: blitz middle.
Greyhound: CB blitz of mine. This play is a little more tricky than most. Drop the ROLB about three to four yards. Take RCB2 and line him up between the two DTs. Take the FS and cover any slot that comes into your zone. You could also shift the line and have the ROLB to the right of the DTs and then move RCB2 between the DTs.
ROLB: hook curl
SS1: flat zone left
RCB1: lock inside front
FS: deep 1/3 right
SS2: deep 1/3 middle
LCB: lock inside front
RE: stunt right
DT: slant right
DT: slant left
LE: stunt left
RCB2: blitz middle
Jimbo
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