Run Game Advice

[Rewmac]

Hello all. I would like to ask for some advice. I'm kind of a casual player. I enjoy rebuilding teams and taking my favorite players and team to glory. I would like to ask for some advice on run game though. I can barely get 80-90 yards a game. I did all these tutorials, but my linemen are like letting everyone loose in 0.1 second and I can barely get 2-3 yards on occasions 9-10 but those are rare. Thanks for any input.

[Shosum13]

The most important part of successfully running the ball is patience. I struggled with the run game at first with this new RPM engine. I had to work on staying off of the turbo button until I find a seam. It's easier to make quick changes of direction if you aren't holding the trigger down, allowing you to make a cut in to the hole.

[TrustTheProcess]

Also change up what run plays you use and definitely count how many players are in the box. Patience is key.

[m29a]

I was struggling too, but I learned that certain run types (mostly inside) just don't work all that well. I recommend trying to prioritize outside run plays like toss or stretch.

Also, you may notice sometimes that the pulling guards or fullbacks miss blocks fairly often even with high rated players, which can be frustrating.

[sra9888]

I do much better when i spread the D out in 3 and 4 wide sets. Like someone else said, patience and read your blocks.

[Rayzaa]

I do fairly well on inside runs and do a lot of stretch plays and some pitches. Never seem to be able to get any good runs on counters. But I'll tell ya, LBs shoot the gaps so fast sometimes it's ridiculous.

[tg88forHOF]

Also, do some reading up on how to recognize the 1-tech and 3-tech tackles. I know you said you did the tutorials for each run type, but I don't feel like they call it out as much as they should.

A lot of runs and blocking schemes depend much more on the defensive front alignment than they do on the hat count indicators....and in a lot of cases, the game knows it.

For example, inside zones are designed to run "at" the 1-tech (that is, to the A or B gap on the side of the formation with the 1-tech lined up). You can go up to the line and have the hat count be green to the 3-tech side, and red to the 1-tech side....but if you flip it to go to the 1-tech side, suddenly that side shows as green.

Trap plays are another great example. They're designed so that the trapping (pulling) guard should block the 3-tech, and making sure the play is flipped properly makes a bigger difference than the hat count.

Also make sure you're comfortable calling audibles, and audible out of a run that can't work. For example, trap plays are awful against a pinched line, or an even formation (any front where a DT is lined up directly over the C, as opposed to just outside one of the C's shoulders), and any run is going to be tough if you're running at a blitzer (inside or out). Have either a quick screen or a different, more optimal run ready as an audible, and practice getting into that audible fluidly.

A lot of things don't quite work the way they should in this game, but I've found that the DL/OL blocking interactions are pretty accurate, and make a big difference.

[stinkubus]

Quote: Originally Posted by tg88forHOF

Also, do some reading up on how to recognize the 1-tech and 3-tech tackles. I know you said you did the tutorials for each run type, but I don't feel like they call it out as much as they should. A lot of runs and blocking schemes depend much more on the defensive front alignment than they do on the hat count indicators....and in a lot of cases, the game knows it. For example, inside zones are designed to run "at" the 1-tech (that is, to the A or B gap on the side of the formation with the 1-tech lined up). You can go up to the line and have the hat count be green to the 3-tech side, and red to the 1-tech side....but if you flip it to go to the 1-tech side, suddenly that side shows as green. Trap plays are another great example. They're designed so that the trapping (pulling) guard should block the 3-tech, and making sure the play is flipped properly makes a bigger difference than the hat count. Also make sure you're comfortable calling audibles, and audible out of a run that can't work. For example, trap plays are awful against a pinched line, or an even formation (any front where a DT is lined up directly over the C, as opposed to just outside one of the C's shoulders), and any run is going to be tough if you're running at a blitzer (inside or out). Have either a quick screen or a different, more optimal run ready as an audible, and practice getting into that audible fluidly. A lot of things don't quite work the way they should in this game, but I've found that the DL/OL blocking interactions are pretty accurate, and make a big difference.

To expand on this a bit find a playbook with a formation that has the following runs: 01 Trap, Inside Zone, and Stretch (Singleback Doubles out of Miami fits the bill, I'm sure there are others). You can live without the 01 Trap, but the scheme won't be anywhere near as effective.

If you want to run out of a given set you must be ready for anything that the defense can throw at you. This means dedicating audibles to the run game. Set 01 Trap and Inside Zone as your audibles, as these will be used to combat certain fronts as described in the quoted post.

Stretch is your base run, and you can use it almost always if you have the user skill to cutback or make defenders miss in the back field.

Between the zone concepts and the trap you will be able to use cutbacks to attack any gap and you only need 3 plays to do it.