Where are you looking on the field when you are playing QB?

[takki]

What has always hurt me playing Madden is my godawful QB play. I throw non-stop interceptions and get sacked constantly, despite not being a player who scrambles outside the box like everyone does.

I have no idea what to do against man coverage or on a play where none of my players are wide open and I can't scramble (because I'm using a non-mobile QB and can't get out of the pocket to throw it away. People online have used man coverage non-stop or press blitzed me and I can't do anything. I'll eventually throw an interception at some point during the drive. I can't look at my o-line and down the field at the same time so I get sacked everytime someone sends pressure at me that I didn't predict beforehand.

I have a question to the Madden veterans on here. When you are passing, where are your eyes looking on the screen? Do you just look at the entire field as a whole every play (this is what I do but my eyes only can focus on the center of the field at the expense of not seeing what is happening with the o-line or outside recievers)? Do you check down (look at tight ends, then slots, or whatever)? Do you ever look at your o-line to see if you are being blitzed? Do you focus on the main receiver of the play (the receiver with the red route) and checkdown if they are covered?

[therealsmallville]

I just go through my progressions. Primary receiver and on down the line, and I glance back & forth between them and the pass rush.

Have you tried the skills trainer? I don't know if it will help you specifically on where to look, but it will help you read zones & man coverage. Hope this helps, happy gaming!


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[dayornite]

I watch the safeties first. Usually gives me an idea of the coverage then I go through my reads and glance at the rush.

[ggsimmonds]

Each pass I generally follow the same process:

1. Walking to the line I check the position of safeties, then outside corners. This alerts me to the over the top coverage and whether the middle is open (MOFO) or closed (MOFC). It also helps to know if corners are pressing.

2. Then I look at the underneath defenders and the front. Sometimes this step along with 1 will tell me if it is zone or man, more often I need more. This is more of a quick glance to look for flags (e.g. showing blitz)

3. I use the coach stick to check my matchups. If a corner is pressing my Z receiver I check the release figure, check route running, etc.

4. Pull back with coach's cam to get a good view of everything. This is the important step, and it takes practice. You are trying to decipher what defense they are in, trying to figure out everyone's assignments. Note: I haven't played 18 but this is when I would ID the Mike.

4b. Often times I can locate that one defender that spills the entire defense. You know what he is doing, you probably know what everyone else is doing. This is huge and takes a lot of time to learn. A good example is the weakside underneath defender. You want to find him and see what he is doing.

5. Do any hot routes or adjustments. In time you will learn how to use hot routes beyond cheese. Lets say you call z-spot and read zone. I'd consider putting the X receiver on a comeback route. You still got your playside zone buster, but if you are wrong you got a man beater on the backside, and due to the timing (comeback is a slow developing route), you don't have to rush. By the time your playside reads are finished, the comeback is there.

6. More of a ritual than anything else, but just before I snap the ball I take one last look at coach cam, and as I do I sit upright. THen when I release coach cam I lean forward again, the same way a QB does in shotgun. Like I said, ritual lol

After the snap,

1. Read the middle of the field, the two safeties and the LBs. This is hard for some people, but I find it is the best thing. Make sure the safeties are doing what you thought they would, e.g. if they came out in 2 deep alignment but after the snap go into a robber you have to catch that! The LBs very often give you a strong tell of what defense they are in. In general if they turn their hips to you it is man, if they stay faced up it is zone.

2. Read your key defender from 4b. This could be someone you think tells you the defense (weakside LB in a single high safety look, if he breaks for the flats its a good indicator you are looking at cover 3). Or it could be the typical hot read, where you check a guy that could be blitzing.

One and two should be enough to tell you everything you need to know.

I try not to read my receivers. Watching and waiting for your guys to get open is not a good approach. Know the play you called and where everybody is going, read where everybody is going. Look for open spots on the field, not open receivers.

Just before throwing I "peek" at my WRs, and sometimes right after the snap I peek to see if they get jammed or off the line. Other than that my eyes aren't typically on my guys.

[solmon]

Quote: Originally Posted by ggsimmonds

Each pass I generally follow the same process: 1. Walking to the line I check the position of safeties, then outside corners. This alerts me to the over the top coverage and whether the middle is open (MOFO) or closed (MOFC). It also helps to know if corners are pressing. 2. Then I look at the underneath defenders and the front. Sometimes this step along with 1 will tell me if it is zone or man, more often I need more. This is more of a quick glance to look for flags (e.g. showing blitz) 3. I use the coach stick to check my matchups. If a corner is pressing my Z receiver I check the release figure, check route running, etc. 4. Pull back with coach's cam to get a good view of everything. This is the important step, and it takes practice. You are trying to decipher what defense they are in, trying to figure out everyone's assignments. Note: I haven't played 18 but this is when I would ID the Mike. 4b. Often times I can locate that one defender that spills the entire defense. You know what he is doing, you probably know what everyone else is doing. This is huge and takes a lot of time to learn. A good example is the weakside underneath defender. You want to find him and see what he is doing. 5. Do any hot routes or adjustments. In time you will learn how to use hot routes beyond cheese. Lets say you call z-spot and read zone. I'd consider putting the X receiver on a comeback route. You still got your playside zone buster, but if you are wrong you got a man beater on the backside, and due to the timing (comeback is a slow developing route), you don't have to rush. By the time your playside reads are finished, the comeback is there. 6. More of a ritual than anything else, but just before I snap the ball I take one last look at coach cam, and as I do I sit upright. THen when I release coach cam I lean forward again, the same way a QB does in shotgun. Like I said, ritual lol After the snap, 1. Read the middle of the field, the two safeties and the LBs. This is hard for some people, but I find it is the best thing. Make sure the safeties are doing what you thought they would, e.g. if they came out in 2 deep alignment but after the snap go into a robber you have to catch that! The LBs very often give you a strong tell of what defense they are in. In general if they turn their hips to you it is man, if they stay faced up it is zone. 2. Read your key defender from 4b. This could be someone you think tells you the defense (weakside LB in a single high safety look, if he breaks for the flats its a good indicator you are looking at cover 3). Or it could be the typical hot read, where you check a guy that could be blitzing. One and two should be enough to tell you everything you need to know. I try not to read my receivers. Watching and waiting for your guys to get open is not a good approach. Know the play you called and where everybody is going, read where everybody is going. Look for open spots on the field, not open receivers. Just before throwing I "peek" at my WRs, and sometimes right after the snap I peek to see if they get jammed or off the line. Other than that my eyes aren't typically on my guys.

This was awesome!! Thanks.

[ggsimmonds]

Quote: Originally Posted by solmon

This was awesome!! Thanks.

No problem.

Something in the OP I missed and I really need to emphasize here,

"Do you ever look at your o-line to see if you are being blitzed?"

No, just no.
Never look at your oline to see if you are being blitzed.

I'd advise never looking at your line period. Read the defense, presnap and after the snap. You will take some coverage sacks, it happens. If you take too many then the solution is to get rid of the ball quicker, not line watch.

ID'ing the mike makes it even more meaningless to line watch.

[Sheba2011]

I do a few things:

1. Before the snap I read the defense to see what kind of coverage they are in.
2. I look at the coach cam to see if my routes will exploit any weakness in the coverage I see.
3. In my head I adjust the primary receiver based on the coverage.
4. After the snap I scroll through my progressions to see who is open.

I would highly recommend the skills trainer. If you don't know how to read coverages it can be a big help with what to call and who to throw to. It will also help you to become better at watching the actual game of football.

[cheddabob7502]

Quote: Originally Posted by ggsimmonds

No problem. Something in the OP I missed and I really need to emphasize here, "Do you ever look at your o-line to see if you are being blitzed?" No, just no. Never look at your oline to see if you are being blitzed. I'd advise never looking at your line period. Read the defense, presnap and after the snap. You will take some coverage sacks, it happens. If you take too many then the solution is to get rid of the ball quicker, not line watch. ID'ing the mike makes it even more meaningless to line watch.

He is correct. Plus just knowing your routes/playbook always helps. So far the AI vs CPU in 18 has been pretty good at mixing up their coverages and its pretty refreshing to be punished for making a wrong read.

I usually like to read the Db's and trained my eyes to look at the safeties after the ball is hiked. Getting familiar of how Defense coverages work and practicing against good defenses with a horrible offense will always benefit you bc you have to learn to anticipate what their plays/blitzes are.

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