Madden 15 Draft Class Analysis

[rws591]

It seems like it actually the the position and side change that really dinged him. Having tweaked around with a bit, a move from LT>LG>RG did little to players skills aside from awareness. I've been soley drafting tackles for a while now and I guess this was the first time that I made positional and side switch.

Yes, there are guards with A strength, but they're more rare and I've only ever found one A/C strength/speed guard. Most of those guards are Fs in the mobility sector.

[TheDominator273]

Quote: Originally Posted by rws591

It seems like it actually the the position and side change that really dinged him. Having tweaked around with a bit, a move from LT>LG>RG did little to players skills aside from awareness. I've been soley drafting tackles for a while now and I guess this was the first time that I made positional and side switch. Yes, there are guards with A strength, but they're more rare and I've only ever found one A/C strength/speed guard. Most of those guards are Fs in the mobility sector.

That's possible, like I said I don't scout speed for o line. I scout strength, agility, acceleration and blocking. Most of the a strength guys are at least a c acceleration but the ones I look for are ones that have b acceleration and an a or two in the blocking attributes.

Nice to know that staying on the same side can help negate some of the ratings hits, there are definitely undersized tackles that I've played at guard and just never officially moved their position.

[rws591]

Quote: Originally Posted by lbj273

That's possible, like I said I don't scout speed for o line. I scout strength, agility, acceleration and blocking. Most of the a strength guys are at least a c acceleration but the ones I look for are ones that have b acceleration and an a or two in the blocking attributes.

Just so you know, acceleration always comes with C speed guys. It's not like WR or CBs were it's not necessarily tied.

[zippysavage05]

Let me start off by saying that everyone is correct in what they've said about how to draft, how ratings typically are, and how stats are compared. That's all because EA did a pretty good job of randomizing the ratings to the point of needing true scouting skills, and honestly, a lot of luck. I've probably done about 100+ drafts to this point - I love taking bad franchises and building them into long term contenders or taking decent ones that are always on the cusp and making them contenders. I noticed that you really have to focus on what your team does in scheme, rather than just looking for players that are good. Change your schemes around to fit the style of offense and defense that you like (Power Run/West Coast/Option/Vertical/Pistol) and player types (Pocket passers/Scat backs/speed rushers/Playmakers/Prototype) before you start scouting. Save up your scouting points until Week 8 of the season since things change in the draft and there's no point in scouting with little points when you really need to do some research. Take your time and look - if you spend 30 seconds scouting, expect 30 second type players. Do a lot of digging and look for what you desire (height, speed, strength, coverage, etc).


In all of the drafts I've noticed that some positions can be a total flop for that year and another position could be a dud the following year. Try to stick to what positions you need and scout the whole position rather than bouncing to several positions. If the position you need is one of the bad positions that year then you should either look at another position that could use a replacement or backup for the near future, or trade down in the draft for multiple picks or a higher round pick for the following year. Be sure you look at ALL of the players in that position before you call it a bad draft year for that position!

For example, I needed to get a TE (as well as WR, SS, MLB, ROLB) because mine left for FA or Retired. I looked through what felt like way too many people - projected from 1st round all the way down to Undrafted. I started with the first TE that matched my offense style (Vertical - Pistol) even though he was projected to go Undrafted. First thing that caught my attention was that he was 6'7", so if he has OK stats I'd be thrilled to draft him late in the draft. Turns out he has 88 speed and acceleration, 85 catching, etc etc. Jackpot besides the fact that he can't run routes and has a 65 run and impact block. Since he fit my scheme, had better than expected stats (and all other TEs - yes still look after you find a good one, you never know if the computer has a wild hair and drafts them earlier than expected), and I knew I only had to develop his route running and run blocking; I decided to draft him with my 4th round pick. I'm sure you're wondering, "he was projected to go undrafted, why use a 4th round pick when you could have taken him 6th or 7th?". Draft them for how you value them and not how the computer projects them to be drafted. I'm not saying I'd use a 1st rounder on this guy even though I know his stats show he's that caliber - use an educated guess to determine when you should take them but rule of thumb is be slightly earlier than projected, at minimum.

On to the ratings! Don't worry about OVR rating, that will come with development of the player and your scheme. If you always pick a player outside of your scheme or player type then expect the OVR to be low but the player to still be decent. Although, a player that fits your scheme will do much better and so will your team as a whole. I've read other posts that mention "what about strength", "what about release vs press", and so on. These do factor in and matter a lot! If you have a CB that has great coverage but lacks strength, you should expect a strong WR to bully him out of the way on Slants and Deep routes that require a little pushing at the line - that also includes release and route running and press for CB. Basically you mentally have to blend those stats together to determine the matchup. If you watch closely when the WRs take off against pressing CB you can see that sometimes the WR will push the CB back 5 yards, they release their arms from pushing each other, but the WR never actually gets separation. This is where Strength and Release came into play - the WR had enough strength to push him back and force him to let go because of game rules, but he never released from the CB to take off around him, and that allowed the CB to stay with him the whole way. If the receiver had a high release rating and strength (like Calvin Johnson) then expect him to get around and create separation. If that were to be a streak route when this happened then speed would factor in as they carry further down the field. Strength is a factor of OL or DL when trying to push at the line. 3rd and goal or 4th and 1 and you decide to punch the ball up the middle, does your line have enough strength to push them backwards? "Does impact blocking and run blocking have anything to do with it too?" Yes! They need to have good impact to initiate the block (or else the defense blows by them and tackles you) and good run block to know how and where to push the defense (this rating also determines how a player knows when to release their current block and move further up the field to the next block - Are you starting to see flashbacks of when the DL blew through the OL to sack your QB or blast the HB?! Now you know what stats they need.


Ratings to key in on when scouting (general, not scheme specific):

QB: Throw Power, Thr Acc, Thr Acc Short, Thr Acc Med, Thr Acc Deep. If the QB has any of the accuracy lower than a B then they MUST have A Throw Power. If they have B throw power then they need to have Bs for all accuracy skills and some scrambling speed (probably mobile or west coast anyways)

RB: BC Vision, Acceleration, Carrying, Elusiveness or Trucking. You want Acceleration to be an A most of the time. The one exception would be if the Trucking or Elusiveness was A and the other was B or better, meaning they have great skills to shed tackles even though they're not super fast. Those would be great in a power run, zone run, one cut type schemes.

FB: Acceleration, Run Block, Catching. This is a dying position, sadly. If you use the FB then find one that's quick and can block or catch, depending on how you use them. Personally I like to find a backup RB that I can put in FB and develop their blocking skills because they'll usually be faster than any FB out there and have the same or better ratings than a FB can offer. B's in Speed, Acceleration, and C's in Catching, Carrying, Impact Blocking and Run Block would be a great FB (if you're drafting one I mean). I've seen 1 FB get drafted (3rd round) to a computer team that ended up being the Rushing TD leader and 11th in Rushing yards - slim changes of finding this gem, but hey, you never know.

TE: This may seem weird for a video game, but I absolutely love drafting/looking for height at this position. 6'5" & taller is preferred (Avg. NFL TE height is 6'3"). Also factor the players weight into consideration when look at ratings. Look for lean and athletic types here, with B's for speed and acceleration with at least C catching. If they meet those check marks then look at their jumping (B), route running (C or better), CIT (C or better) and spec. catch (B). That should get you a TE that's ready to make big catches and big plays afterwards. Get your Gronk on.

WR: Here's the most controversial position in the game... Here's why. Some like to run the ball and go 1 WR or 2 WR sets, while others like 3 WR & 1 TE or 4 WR sets. Depending on what sets and routes you like to run could change what you look for. If you're looking to spread the field on the outsides and find easy passes across or over the middle then you should go for Speed WRs and Route running receivers for 4 WR sets and with a pass catching TE on your team, then 3 WR & 1 TE sets.

Speed receivers must have A in speed and acceleration, B in spectacular catch, C release or better but preferably B, route running doesn't matter as much since they're doing streaks and posts most of the time, and go for those with A jumping but B would be ok too.

Route runners should have B route running, B CIT, A acceleration and B or better speed, and to find the difference between a good receiver and your next best thing is by then looking at their skills. Can they juke, spin or be very elusive? If they hit the first set of check marks then look at those. Don't worry about their jumping or spectacular catch.

For those that want to run the ball more then you should have 1 Speed or Red Zone Threat Receiver for the left, 1 Red Zone Threat or Possession Receiver to the right. If you run 2 WR & 2 TE sets then those receiver types will really open up your options on Slants, Curls, Play Actions, and eventually a sneaky deep route to the Speed/Red Zone receiver.

Red Zone Threats should be tall - about 6'4" or taller is a good height here. You want A acceleration, B speed or better, A jumping, B or better CIT, C route running, and if you can find an A spectacular catch you better do everything in your power to get him. I read a blog that said Spectacular Catch is the most important attribute for any receiver. I never really paid attention to it before because I thought it was only flashy one handed catches and diving catches, but from what I see it really helps them in jump balls against the CB and they do pull off some unexpected catches around the defense. You should go for at least a B or better for this height.

Possession receivers are great for doing drags, zigs, 5 yard ins or out, curls and slants. Find one that has A acceleration and speed, B CIT, C route running, B catching, and then go for offensive skills like juke and spin. Make sure they have C or better carrying since they're mainly there for 5 yard catches and will most likely get hit by a safety or LB. These receivers generally should be average to shorter height. There also great for reverse plays where the WR takes it outside or inside the Tackle.

LT: B acceleration, D or better speed, A pass block (even if run is C), A or B strength, B impact blocking, C or better awareness. D awareness with these stats can be ok but he should get a boost ASAP from preseason and Game Prep XP.

LG & RG: B or better Acceleration and Speed - LG & RG need to be able to move when they pull on runs (IE. Traps, Sweeps) since they're the ones that have to go across the line to block incoming linebackers. A run block with C or better pass blocking is great for the RG and B Run Blocking with B pass blocking for the LG. If you can get A impact block at anytime with C or better pass & run blocking then you should try to draft them. You can easily build up the Pass and Block stats when it's early in their careers, but do put a lot of focus on them early on. Strength should also be checked for B or better. If you have a weak interior line then Defenses are going to have a field day on your QB.

Center: Acceleration, Impact blocking, Strength and Awareness are key. The Center is, well... the center of all the action. If they can't quickly turn and pick up another block then you risk your QB again, and they help move forward on blocks. They need to push with strength and seal a block, when your close with the RB, with the impact block.

RT: This one is up to you completely. I prefer to have a RT that's definitely good in Run Blocking and at least decent or better in Pass Blocking (B RB and C PB or better). They must have B or better acceleration, any with A is on my radar. My view of the O-Line is LT & LG need to be the best protected side I don't have to worry about my blind side.

LE & RE: In my opinion they should be the pass rushers that force the QB into the collapsing pocket or snag him when he tries to scramble outside. A in speed and acceleration are perfect, but anyone with A in power move or finesse move with B in speed and acceleration are good fits too. Pursuit, tackle, and block shedding should be B's by the start of the season. So drafting someone with mainly B's and a C would be fine, you can develop them so they're top pass rushing ends. This helps with your secondary and LB's later.

DT: Look for Strength, Block Shedding, Hit Power, Pursuit in these players. This will help you build a defensive line that prevents the run up the middle completely and provides the occasional pass rush help. They'll help collapse the pocket and give the Ends a chance for a sack or push the lineman right into the QB before he can pass. They should also have B acceleration, speed isn't a big deal for this position.

LOLB/MLB/ROLB: At these positions you want to have B acceleration and speed or higher to keep up with vertical offenses and players, even if it means sacrificing some skill ratings. The LB's that you blitz the most should have B finesse or Power move, B block shedding, B pursuit, and hope their hit power is strong. Coverage LB's need to have play recognition, zone coverage (don't worry about man), high tackle, and B speed and acceleration.

CB: A speed and acceleration is a MUST. If you find A man coverage then you should put them on your radar. Man to man coverage is the hardest part of football and if you can find one that covers like Revis or Sherman in man coverage, with your pass rushing line forcing the QB to hurry, you're looking at a lot of happy days. When you find one that has A man coverage then build up the Press coverage. This will make him a shut down corner immediately. CB's with B man coverage and zone coverage are good additions with good Press (for slot receivers), and only if their acceleration is A, with B or better speed. Next is to add play recognition to their skills so they can stop the outside run and jump the route for an interception.

FS: A zone coverage with B speed and acceleration would be perfect. Anything close to that would be great too. Look for B play recognition to jump routes, and catching since they'll be in position for the play. Don't worry about hit power or tackling since they'll be making plays on the pass.

SS: Look high values in pursuit, hit power, play recognition, tackling, and B zone coverage would be good. A speed and acceleration help a lot as this player goes down into the box to blitz and cover on crossing routes.

These are just some tips I gathered along the way of learning the right and wrong way of trying to draft and build players up. They're not perfect and I would love to hear the changes people would add, but they're a great step in the right direction. On average, when drafting with this guide, I've turned a team around from last place to Super Bowl contender A LOT more times than not. This guide was used for both simulation franchises and user played franchises.

Quick tips:

- Scout only the positions you need (Start with the player type that would benefit your scheme most then work your way back to all of the others)

- Scout for the stats you want the player to start with and think about how you want to build them (also if you can! Too many project players at once can cause them to all develop slowly since you can't dedicate enough practice time to all of them).

- Go for the key Skill Ratings (attributes) that were mentioned. This should give you a sold team to work with and build off of in your own scheme.

- Draft a little earlier than what's projected, you could miss out on the key player if you expect him to fall to you.

- Trade old high salary players away to get a good pick in the draft. Even if you tank the first year because you traded away your weathered players for draft picks on - at best - potential players, you'll be fine because you prepared great in the scouting and have a great shot at filling those gaps with solid players. Save your money for FA when you need to fill holes where that position in the draft wasn't good.

Good luck in all of your leagues and drafting!