Post by Philly Jedi on Jan 12, 2011 19:37:28 GMT -5
Someone was had an issue with an opponent that kept blitzing them on almost every down. Here is what I suggested to help them against a blitzing defensive coordinator.
In the real NFL, if a quarterback has an issue reading the incomming blitz, he will have a short career, see lots of blitzes everytime he lines up under center, and get lots of sacks. And he should expect to see lots of blitzes in his future. Every defensive coordinator who faces said QB will give him plenty of blitzes. So I wouldn't say it was your opponents fault for continually blitzing, but your ineffectiveness in reading the defensive call and punishing him for making his call obvious. (especially if you know he's blitzing.)
A "blitz" is when you send anyone to rush the quarterback/running back in addition to the defensive line. (DT, DE, or NT) In the 4-3, blitzers are usually linebackers or defensive backs, in addition to the 4 defensive rushers. In the 3-4, there are only 3 defensive linemen, so usually 1 of the 4 remaining linebackers are sent on a blitz, to give you at least a 4 man rush. The reason the 3-4 gets lots of sacks, is the 4th pass rusher confuses the 5 man blocking schemes, because the offensive line assigns a blocker to someone who doesn't rush, and the other side of the offensive line has an overload (rushers vs. blockers) and a blitzer comes free to sack/hit the quarterback.
How to stop the aggressive blitzer? The defense only has 11 players on the field just like you do. On offense you are restricted to 5 players that MUST BLOCK. Outside of that, you can choose who blocks, or runs a pass route.
Well, as a quarterback/offensive coordinator, your job is to make a pre-snap read. This "pre-snap read" is you counting your blockers, versus how many people he (your opponent) is sending to sack your quarterback. You should not continue with a play where you have only 5 men blocking, and he is rushing 7. Unless you have a star on the offense, you will be spending a lot of time picking up your quarterback after he has been hit/sacked. Based on where your blockers are, and his linebackers/defensive line you should make an educated guess as to how many extra blitzers (guys more than the defensive line) he is sending.
After this "pre-snap" read, you need to look at your passing play called, and think, "If he sends all but 1 of his linebackers to sack me who should I throw to first? Who is my safest pass?" This safe pass is called your hot read. Most plays have an intended player/route the play is trying to get open, indicated by the route being colored red. Your quarterback's drop back usually is engineered to stop when this primary route "should" be open. If you have a long route, you quarterback usually will do a 5-7 step drop, and when your passer stops, the play is looking for you to pass to the primary receiver. What most people don't realize, is that the blocking schemes are set up to block for this type of route and dropback as well. So if you shorten it, don't expect the blocking to be spectacular, or if you drop back to long, or roll out early, expect protection issues.
You must then do what is called a "post snap" read. Literally a quarter-second after you snap the ball, you (as a quarterback) must look at the second level of defense to see if your pre-snap read (of an incomming blitz) was correct. If it was, you should have your hot read as your first read/choice, and you should be able to complete the pass, gain yardage, and potentially score/gain big yards. The way you verify this is to watch the linebackers (or safeties if they have moved up to the linebacker level) to see if they run directly towards the line of scrimmage immediatley after the snap. If they blitz more than one linebacker, sometimes one of your receivers will be wide open/uncovered!
Granted, this is not an easy task, and what I'm talking about here is upper level Madden play. If you go into practice call a play, and set the defense to call random defenses you'll see how easy it to make a "post snap hot read" after you've practiced it outside a "ranked" game. In order to have success with the passing game and pass how you want to, you must convince you opponent you can pass how he wants you to. What am I talking about? If your opponent is blitzing, he (usually) doesn't want you to have much time to throw the ball or make a decision/read. (in theory) If you show him you can complete passes against the blitz, they will (I promise you) stop blitzing. Or they will lose quickly. Your opponent is really trying to dictate defensively. Your passing success will make them keep more men in coverage, which should play into your "normal" passing game.
There are many reasons people blitz. Sometimes it's as easy as: I think it's easier to get sacks by sending lots of tacklers at the QB. Or: My cornerbacks suck, so I don't want them covering you for a long time. Or: My defensive line stinks, and I need to engineer a pass rush. Why do they blitz in the NFL? Down and distance versus your package and scheme. (Huh?) It's really simple. If a NFL team is on offense, and it is 3rd and 13, they just might see a blitz, to force the offense to pass earlier than intended, and complete the pass before the first down. The blitzing defense also wants the tackler to be sure, so there is a 4th and 3 or more, which should equal a punt.
Either way, go into practice, set the defense to random, and start reading those blitzes. I'm sure your Madden game will improve, the more your practice!
In the real NFL, if a quarterback has an issue reading the incomming blitz, he will have a short career, see lots of blitzes everytime he lines up under center, and get lots of sacks. And he should expect to see lots of blitzes in his future. Every defensive coordinator who faces said QB will give him plenty of blitzes. So I wouldn't say it was your opponents fault for continually blitzing, but your ineffectiveness in reading the defensive call and punishing him for making his call obvious. (especially if you know he's blitzing.)
A "blitz" is when you send anyone to rush the quarterback/running back in addition to the defensive line. (DT, DE, or NT) In the 4-3, blitzers are usually linebackers or defensive backs, in addition to the 4 defensive rushers. In the 3-4, there are only 3 defensive linemen, so usually 1 of the 4 remaining linebackers are sent on a blitz, to give you at least a 4 man rush. The reason the 3-4 gets lots of sacks, is the 4th pass rusher confuses the 5 man blocking schemes, because the offensive line assigns a blocker to someone who doesn't rush, and the other side of the offensive line has an overload (rushers vs. blockers) and a blitzer comes free to sack/hit the quarterback.
How to stop the aggressive blitzer? The defense only has 11 players on the field just like you do. On offense you are restricted to 5 players that MUST BLOCK. Outside of that, you can choose who blocks, or runs a pass route.
Well, as a quarterback/offensive coordinator, your job is to make a pre-snap read. This "pre-snap read" is you counting your blockers, versus how many people he (your opponent) is sending to sack your quarterback. You should not continue with a play where you have only 5 men blocking, and he is rushing 7. Unless you have a star on the offense, you will be spending a lot of time picking up your quarterback after he has been hit/sacked. Based on where your blockers are, and his linebackers/defensive line you should make an educated guess as to how many extra blitzers (guys more than the defensive line) he is sending.
After this "pre-snap" read, you need to look at your passing play called, and think, "If he sends all but 1 of his linebackers to sack me who should I throw to first? Who is my safest pass?" This safe pass is called your hot read. Most plays have an intended player/route the play is trying to get open, indicated by the route being colored red. Your quarterback's drop back usually is engineered to stop when this primary route "should" be open. If you have a long route, you quarterback usually will do a 5-7 step drop, and when your passer stops, the play is looking for you to pass to the primary receiver. What most people don't realize, is that the blocking schemes are set up to block for this type of route and dropback as well. So if you shorten it, don't expect the blocking to be spectacular, or if you drop back to long, or roll out early, expect protection issues.
You must then do what is called a "post snap" read. Literally a quarter-second after you snap the ball, you (as a quarterback) must look at the second level of defense to see if your pre-snap read (of an incomming blitz) was correct. If it was, you should have your hot read as your first read/choice, and you should be able to complete the pass, gain yardage, and potentially score/gain big yards. The way you verify this is to watch the linebackers (or safeties if they have moved up to the linebacker level) to see if they run directly towards the line of scrimmage immediatley after the snap. If they blitz more than one linebacker, sometimes one of your receivers will be wide open/uncovered!
Granted, this is not an easy task, and what I'm talking about here is upper level Madden play. If you go into practice call a play, and set the defense to call random defenses you'll see how easy it to make a "post snap hot read" after you've practiced it outside a "ranked" game. In order to have success with the passing game and pass how you want to, you must convince you opponent you can pass how he wants you to. What am I talking about? If your opponent is blitzing, he (usually) doesn't want you to have much time to throw the ball or make a decision/read. (in theory) If you show him you can complete passes against the blitz, they will (I promise you) stop blitzing. Or they will lose quickly. Your opponent is really trying to dictate defensively. Your passing success will make them keep more men in coverage, which should play into your "normal" passing game.
There are many reasons people blitz. Sometimes it's as easy as: I think it's easier to get sacks by sending lots of tacklers at the QB. Or: My cornerbacks suck, so I don't want them covering you for a long time. Or: My defensive line stinks, and I need to engineer a pass rush. Why do they blitz in the NFL? Down and distance versus your package and scheme. (Huh?) It's really simple. If a NFL team is on offense, and it is 3rd and 13, they just might see a blitz, to force the offense to pass earlier than intended, and complete the pass before the first down. The blitzing defense also wants the tackler to be sure, so there is a 4th and 3 or more, which should equal a punt.
Either way, go into practice, set the defense to random, and start reading those blitzes. I'm sure your Madden game will improve, the more your practice!
