I don't follow football, and I don't play football games. I remember being MUCH better at Blitz back in the day. Apparently I need to relearn the game. Tips thread?

Have you seen the quick look? Jeff had some helpful tips.

Yeah, I would say take notice of whatever Jeff says about Blitz, what with once being the best player in the world an all.

Personally, I like my 'passing icons' on, and keeping my offence fairly simple, i.e boosting away as soon as I hike the ball to avoid the blitz, jump-pass as soon as I see anyone remotely open. I go for most fourth downs because I can't punt for shit, and avoid field goals if I can for much the same reason.

On defence, I think the big thing is trying to hit the other teams receivers, and if possible letting the computer do all of the rushing of the quarterback, because chances are they'll be keeping an eye on you more than your computer controlled team mates. Diving at the QB as soon as they hike the ball sometimes works well, but use sparingly.

Avoid jukes and spins, because they take too long (in my opinion) and don't break enough tackles.

Jump pass! Jump pass!

@biggiedubs said:

Yeah, I would say take notice of whatever Jeff says about Blitz, what with once being the best player in the world an all.

Personally, I like my 'passing icons' on, and keeping my offence fairly simple, i.e boosting away as soon as I hike the ball to avoid the blitz, jump-pass as soon as I see anyone remotely open. I go for most fourth downs because I can't punt for shit, and avoid field goals if I can for much the same reason.

On defence, I think the big thing is trying to hit the other teams receivers, and if possible letting the computer do all of the rushing of the quarterback, because chances are they'll be keeping an eye on you more than your computer controlled team mates. Diving at the QB as soon as they hike the ball sometimes works well, but use sparingly.

Avoid jukes and spins, because they take too long (in my opinion) and don't break enough tackles.

Jump pass! Jump pass!

Actually, jump passing is a bad decision if you're not under pressure. Your pass goes slower giving the defense more time to take out the receiver. Just standing turbo passes are almost impossible to stop at times.

@Pitta: Assuming that you're playing a human opponent who has some idea of what they're doing...

On offense, try to get icon passing down. If you just do normal blink passing, they will destroy your WRs before they ever touch the ball. Yes, you might need a stupid cheat code to do this, but it'll be worth it if you really want to win and/or you're playing a tryhard online. If they like to blitz, use a shotgun formation play like Da Bomb to give your QB time to throw it while they pull a defender away to try and sack you. If you want to break tackles, throw a stiff arm just as they are within reach of your ball-carrier, but only do it if you feel confident in your timing. Also, juking sometimes helps (flick the left stick away from the defender's projected diving route).

On defense, knock their receivers out ASAP. Never do a suicide blitz or field goal block or punt return, as most of the time they will go for it on fourth down, and even if they do kick it the odds of you blocking it are really fucking low anyways (I've personally seen it happen just once in any Blitz title). Also, pray that you get an interception or fumble, because the game is mostly geared towards the offense. If you do decide to blitz with one or two men, leave it up to your CPU, as they'll be too concerned with watching for a receiver that you aren't planning to body that they might unconsciously miss you. Granted, this won't always work, but it'll catch them off guard on occasion.

Awesome response so far! I turned on icon passing after my first game because it felt better anyway, so that's good to know.

I have also started letting the CPU handle blitzes as they seem better than myself and the opponent tends to look at me, not them. I have noticed that diving tackles tend to go in a real awkward direction half the time as a pass is thrown. I also have hit and miss experience taking control of my team member that is next to the receiver of a pass in motion. Is there a trick to that?

A couple other things of note - are things like a failed extra point and Onside Kicks random? Are there any advanced, undocumented moves like stripping the ball, etc? Thanks!

(Posting from an iDevice or cell phone blows... all formatting is lost)

• Failed Extra Points rarely happen but yes this is a roll of the dice
• An onside kick can be performed by holding down both the triggers while selecting your play after a touchdown.
• All are documented in controller screen
• Some notables on Def: Push is Turbo + X, Dive is Turbo + B, Jump (for Interceptions) is just B
• Some notables on Off: Jump is A, Juke is LB or RB
• There is no way to strip the ball

Stuff I've learned so far in my short time with it is below. I'm Wormious from last night's TNT.

• When you are out of Turbo let go of the button so you can start regenerating it again.
• Learn to read the plays that are being called. Knowing a Blitz is coming will help you realize you need to get rid of the ball quick or lateral it into the backfield. Know where the receivers are going so you can take them out quickly.
• Calling audibles off the line of scrimmage is a good way to keep the human-controlled defensive-man in check
• Flip plays (x on the play selection screen), both offense and defense from time to time.
• If all receivers are on one side of the field watch the other for a QB Run
• Only in dire situations should you perform special moves with no Turbo.
• When running with the QB try not to perform specials, they don't have the same traits as your running back.
• On that note don't be afraid to run with the QB if you see an open field in front of you (10-20 yards).
• Special move are fine to perform with the right players and right amount of turbo. Timing is important. DO NOT USE THEM TOO LATE. Getting hit during mid spin, or with only one hand on the ball is asking for trouble.
• I cannot recommend icon passing enough. That passing to the wrong passer that was happening to Jeff happened to me too many times. So I changed it. You can still jump pass, the defense still sees your highlighted receiver and it helps you locate your receivers that much quicker.
• Don't be afraid to go for it on 4th and long but also don't be afraid to punt it away if you have bad field position. Same goes for field goals. If I'm in my opponents play area I rarely don't go for it. This means you have to get good at the fast slider. I always aim to hit it when it hits red and it usually ends on the center. You results may vary

That's all I got for now. I don't consider myself an expert player but from the things I've done, read and seen these seem to help as long as I'm remembering them. Look me up on XBL if you want to play.

Killer list of tips - I'll see how the weekend goes :-)

I've been doing blink passing and it hasn't been an issue but it sounds like icon passing offers everything that blink does.

It helps to psyche people out. Criss-Cross is good at this, you show one way the whole time then immediately flip over to the other receiver.

I've developed a few "quick hitters" that I can use almost every time, they aren't worth much but they set up some other plays. For example Hurricane (I thin it's called) to the receiver on the right will net you 7-10 yards everytime if you are quick enough. Then since its the same formation I run Sub Zero when they cue off of Hurricane. Lateral to the receiver on the right, he bombs it down field.

On defense you ABSOLUTELY have to shove a receiver at the line.

Special teams is important. Don't underestimate the value of getting 30-40 yards per return consistently.

Jump passing should be used as a last resort. If you have the time, never jump pass. Turbo regular passes are much much much much much much quicker.

Extra points do fail on occasion (it's happened to me twice!) but I don't know the formula for how they succeed or fail. All I can say is that they rarely happen.
 
As for onside kicks, you hold both triggers and push some buttons (can't remember which) while picking your play during the PAT, and you will automatically do an onside kick, but like a real game do not do it unless you have no choice. I've seen the CPU pull off one successfully, but that was it.

Ugh, some rough games today. Definitely not a game you can play while distracted, one failed jam at the line or not picking up a fumble can ruin everything.

@Pitta: Assuming that you're playing a human opponent who has some idea of what they're doing...

On offense, try to get icon passing down. If you just do normal blink passing, they will destroy your WRs before they ever touch the ball. Yes, you might need a stupid cheat code to do this, but it'll be worth it if you really want to win and/or you're playing a tryhard online. If they like to blitz, use a shotgun formation play like Da Bomb to give your QB time to throw it while they pull a defender away to try and sack you. If you want to break tackles, throw a stiff arm just as they are within reach of your ball-carrier, but only do it if you feel confident in your timing. Also, juking sometimes helps (flick the left stick away from the defender's projected diving route).

On defense, knock their receivers out ASAP. Never do a suicide blitz or field goal block or punt return, as most of the time they will go for it on fourth down, and even if they do kick it the odds of you blocking it are really fucking low anyways (I've personally seen it happen just once in any Blitz title). Also, pray that you get an interception or fumble, because the game is mostly geared towards the offense. If you do decide to blitz with one or two men, leave it up to your CPU, as they'll be too concerned with watching for a receiver that you aren't planning to body that they might unconsciously miss you. Granted, this won't always work, but it'll catch them off guard on occasion.

Man. This game is so up and down. In any given day I can get scraped hard, lost by a hair, and win with a wide margin but feel like I moved the earth to do it.

I played a bunch of games tonight and ran into 2 or 3 people who were undefeated in over 20 games. I lost 50+ to 0 to each of them. I'm not sure what play they pick on defense, but it is the same play every time and it is almost impossible to get a pass off before a sack. They moved several players right up to line every play pre-snap.

Other than those people, had a lot of run with the game and went over .500. I did have 7 people rage quit on me and only 3 or 4 stick it out to the end because the game was close.

Pro Tip: Score more points than your opponent.

Pick the Broncos and wait until the 4th quarter. We have video proof.

Has this post died?

@Grnd_Lb_Knt said:

I played a guy who would move all his Def players around before the hike. Made all the blitz plays come in way faster.

• Some notables on Def: Push is Turbo + X, Dive is Turbo + B, Jump (for Interceptions) is just B

is it B or Y? I find that most of the time I go for a pick I jump tackle out of the way and leave the receiver wide open. Any tips on that?

@papercut said:

@Grnd_Lb_Knt said:

I played a guy who would move all his Def players around before the hike. Made all the blitz plays come in way faster.

• Some notables on Def: Push is Turbo + X, Dive is Turbo + B, Jump (for Interceptions) is just B

is it B or Y? I find that most of the time I go for a pick I jump tackle out of the way and leave the receiver wide open. Any tips on that?

To try to intercept it you have to press Y without turbo. If you hold the turbo button when you press Y you will dive instead. You also have to be in a decent position to intercept it so sometimes you get a dive anyway if you're too far away or facing the wrong direction.

Gah - icon passing is for CHUMPS! CHUMPS I tells ya! Stick to Madden if you want icons! :)

I can't offer much help on offense, you just need to get a feel for what works for you. An under utilized feature I don't see many people using is using the guy you can shift around to hold back and pick up a blitz. Super helpful for the people who are very obviously blitzing (by running a dude up to the line and burning turbo pre-snap). I'm also against punting. You should always be trying to score and be of the mindest that your opponent is going to score the next possession anyway.

On defense, I keep it pretty simple. Between the 20's I'll stick to a safe cover, and will take control of the safety and line him up against the out most WR (as he's usually the deep threat). I'll try to knock him down after the ball is snapped and regardless of if I'm successful or not, will proceed to use that same safety to rush the QB. If I get them in a situation where they're 2nd/3rd/4th and longer than 30, I'll change up my defense to deep cover. If they line up in a trips formation (three receivers to one side of the field), I'll take a guy whos covering off the line to the empty side of the field and and line him up again against the outside receiver - essentially giving me an extra defender. Inside the 20's I'll switch it up to a medium zone or near zone.

Also - clock management. If you're up 3 or 7 late in the game and your opponent is moving the ball with ease, consider letting them score so you can get the ball back. I've played dozens of games where my opponent comes back from 14 points down to tie me or take the lead, only to give me the ball back with too much time on the clock.

But for real - icon passing...don't do it.

I was playing against the 49ers, and all this guy would do on defense was move his safety up to the line, and then rush the QB through the offensive / defensive lines as soon as I hiked the ball, and I couldn't do anything to stop it. I know I suck, but some plays I had about 1-2 seconds before he was on me and would sack me. I would roll back, to the left or the right, tried jumping, spinning but I couldn't do anything to stop it. Help?

@biggiedubs I'm no expert but I found that if you turbo snap, your running back will stay back and try pick up a blitz. Try putting him in motion to line him up with your opponent then roll away from that side. He may be able to knock your RB over if he's lucky but you'll at least get a little extra time.

@VariableJ: Wow, I didn't even know you could Turbo Snap. That sounds like it should work, yeah. I didn't even think about moving my RB to block him, but I will definitely try that next time someone does it. Thanks dude!

Just started playing, I'm not very good yet. I only played a few games and only against the computer, but even there on defense I find that letting the AI handle the pass rush is better than trying to blitz myself. I'll have to try icon passing cause I get a bit frustrated some games throwing to the wrong receiver :/