Madden 11 Fantasy Draft guide

[TheDelta]

Concerning FB, one player I can't recommend highly enough is Marcel Reece. 90 Speed, 85 Impact Block, there's no FB in the game that's even close to that unique combination. If you got a speed back as your featured rusher, you really should try and target him, a lead blocker with that kind of speed can often be the difference between a 5 yard loss and a 20 yard gain on an outside play, as well as the difference between a 15 yard gain and a 50 yard TD between the tackles.

The CPU picks him at about round 17/18 usually.

[RJ SHAKER]

thanks man lol, also do you know anything about simulating? My friends and i play fantasy draft franchise and we only play each other once a year then simulate the rest of the season unless 2 people play in the superbowl. do you know what certain postions / ratings / coaches or whatever it requires to get more wins through simulation or is it just completely random? lol

[PGaither84]

Quote: Originally Posted by TheDelta

Concerning FB, one player I can't recommend highly enough is Marcel Reece. 90 Speed, 85 Impact Block, there's no FB in the game that's even close to that unique combination. If you got a speed back as your featured rusher, you really should try and target him, a lead blocker with that kind of speed can often be the difference between a 5 yard loss and a 20 yard gain on an outside play, as well as the difference between a 15 yard gain and a 50 yard TD between the tackles. The CPU picks him at about round 17/18 usually.

A 90 speed FB IS also nice to run with out of 3wr no TE sets. Normally the FB isn't that fast, so when they do find open space, they can't take advantage of it. Mr. 90 speed here can.

Also, when drafting, don't forget the NFL draft at the end of the year! I haven't played 12 much, but in M11 the CBs that Josh Looman made were consistently unimpressive. The pass rush in Madden 11 is marginal a best, even with elite talent... so most sacks and pressure came thanks to good coverage for me instead. I understand why TheDelta suggest you go after OLBs, but on the field in Madden, all I cared about was speed/acceleration and tackle. Get to the ball carrier as quickly as possible and tackle him when you do. I just think stocking up on elite CBs, or CB who will become elite, is the way to go. However, that is just a difference in our opinions.

P.S. One other thing that I find fun is to let the computer simulate the entire draft just to reshuffle the league... and/or just draft the first few rounds to pick the stars you want to try and build your team around. I found that drafting a super team was fun, and part of FANTASY draft... but they were often just that, a super team.

[TheDelta]

Quote: Originally Posted by PGaither84

Also, when drafting, don't forget the NFL draft at the end of the year! I haven't played 12 much, but in M11 the CBs that Josh Looman made were consistently unimpressive. The pass rush in Madden 11 is marginal a best, even with elite talent... so most sacks and pressure came thanks to good coverage for me instead. I understand why TheDelta suggest you go after OLBs, but on the field in Madden, all I cared about was speed/acceleration and tackle. Get to the ball carrier as quickly as possible and tackle him when you do. I just think stocking up on elite CBs, or CB who will become elite, is the way to go. However, that is just a difference in our opinions.

Actually we're fully in agreement here, I absolutely recommand picking up an elite secondary, it's just that in my opinion, most truly elite CBs are too old to be recommended (like Champ Bailey, for example), and the one's you can pick up that will turn elite within a couple of years you can easily pick up in later rounds, when all the good OLBs will be gone.

The thing is, to be considered an elite CB, a player for me has to have at least 93, better 95 Speed, anything below that and I cannot consider him a long-term #1 or 2 CB because there will be teams that have two fast WRs and I cannot put a guy in man coverage on a receiver that's faster than him. So that seriously cuts down my options, the only of the first 3 round CBs I consider elite is Revis, he's borderline slow for my taste but his coverage skills are of course amazing. After that, the first guy I can really consider is Peterson, and he doesn't get off the board before round 6, so picking up a CB earlier than that simply doesn't make sense for me.

So yes, I value CB more highly than OLB, but the way the draft is set up, it still makes more sense in my opinion to go LB earlier.

[PGaither84]

Okay, got you... For the longest time I spend 3 or 4 of my top 10 picks on O-Line and one or two on CB. Howeve,r from what you have said about M12's fantasy draft and roster ratings, it may not be worth it to do that anymore. Sad face.

Also, playing with an elite run blocking line "ruins" Madden. If you get your blocks, you just run all over the other team... and with a fast back you can spring for many long gains and TD. Your stats can get really silly really fast. Run DMC or AP behind an elite run blocking line could force Emmit Smith to get out of the way. When you don't get blocks, these guys can bust tackles and still get their yards... when they do get blocks they can score or break that one tackle and score.

That is why, in some ways, I like the idea of using the fantasy draft as a way to shuffle the NFL. You gt rid of those preconceptions on which teams are good and which are bad and just work with what you are given and try to build your team up the best you can.

[TheDelta]

Well I absolutely concur that spending two of your top 10 picks on CBs is a good idea. In my usual fantasy drafts, I take Peterson in round 5/6 and either DRC at 7/8 or Prince Amukamara at 9/10, Prince is a bit slow but with Peterson able to cover every receiver in the game he's okay as a #2 option for me.

I'm not really big on drafting Oline high because in my experience, line ratings simply don't matter as much. I'm having HUGE seasons with crappy Olines on very tough slider sets, I really don't know how much better a 95+ lineman is at blocking compared to a 75 OVR rookie. Especially drafting guards is simply wasting value right now, most often, every guard over 80 OVR is gone by round 9/10, while there are still 90 OVR tackles and centers available, which will become even better if you put them at guard. Why should I waste a round 6 pick on an 85 OVR guard if I can get Nate Solder in round 13 or Mike Pouncey in round 15 who can play the position just as well?

[Krueger666]

Any chance we get a guide like this for Madden 12???