Defense help

[jared52]

I have played multiple games on AA and I have lost every single one. I am playing with an 85OVR team and I have lost to teams in the mid to low 70s as they rack up 60+ points (8 min quarters, no clock speed up). Their QBs are over 70% completions (NMSU was 95%).

What could I possibly be doing wrong that the CPU can throw for 95% completion with NMSU?

[RyanLeaf16]

Re: Defense help

I have played multiple games on AA and I have lost every single one. I am playing with an 85OVR team and I have lost to teams in the mid to low 70s as they rack up 60+ points (8 min quarters, no clock speed up). Their QBs are over 70% completions (NMSU was 95%).

What could I possibly be doing wrong that the CPU can throw for 95% completion with NMSU?

It would be hard to know without knowing who you're playing as. What the conditions are that you're letting up so many completions. Are you calling the right coverages in the right situations or are you just calling random coverages? Are you utilizing the coverage shells in the game? Lots of variables. Give as much info as you can.

It could be that you aren't calling the right kind of defense. You aren't playing to your personnel's strengths. You're just not as good as you thought...could be a number of reasons.

[Funkycorm]

Re: Defense help

Also, what kind of pressure are you getting on their quarterback? Even low overall quarterbacks are going to be accurate if they get all day to throw.

[jared52]

Re: Defense help

It would be hard to know without knowing who you're playing as. What the conditions are that you're letting up so many completions. Are you calling the right coverages in the right situations or are you just calling random coverages? Are you utilizing the coverage shells in the game? Lots of variables. Give as much info as you can.

It could be that you aren't calling the right kind of defense. You aren't playing to your personnel's strengths. You're just not as good as you thought...could be a number of reasons.

Playing with Auburn, but like I said I'm usually a bit better OVR (don't remember the OFF vs DEF ratings). I choose from the coach suggestions based on down and distance. I play cover 4s and 6s with some 2s at times. I blitz about half the time on third down and about 1/4 the time on second down.

Also, what kind of pressure are you getting on their quarterback? Even low overall quarterbacks are going to be accurate if they get all day to throw.

I get there some? It's a lot of quick throws that I get beat on, the QB doesn't have all day to throw for sure. I am going to try to pay more attention to personal on the playcall screen and try to match up a little better. I just know my guys aren't good in man at all, even vs. weak teams.

[tg9er]

Re: Defense help

I noticed when I moved down to controlling an edge rusher the rest of my teammates started participating. When I was controlling a DB or LB I was getting gashed in the run game and rarely seeing an incompletion. Once I “put my hand in the dirt” my DBs starting making some plays in coverage and run support became much, much better.

[jared52]

Re: Defense help

I have stopped using any of the suggestions and started being more intentional about matching personnel and that has helped a bit. Probably a no brainer for anyone playing AA or Heisman, but I thought I would just get by on the base defenses and I was very wrong about that.

[RyanLeaf16]

Re: Defense help

Playing with Auburn, but like I said I'm usually a bit better OVR (don't remember the OFF vs DEF ratings). I choose from the coach suggestions based on down and distance. I play cover 4s and 6s with some 2s at times. I blitz about half the time on third down and about 1/4 the time on second down.



I get there some? It's a lot of quick throws that I get beat on, the QB doesn't have all day to throw for sure. I am going to try to pay more attention to personal on the playcall screen and try to match up a little better. I just know my guys aren't good in man at all, even vs. weak teams.

Well if you're using a lot of cover 4 and cover 6 that is probably why they are peppering you with lots of completions. You're playing one of the safest deep coverages in football in the C4. C6 would also be used to counter some deep passes. One side of your field is gonna be C4 with the CB & S getting deep like a C4 and the C2 on the other side of the field with the CB playing flat with the Safety over top leaving an opening between the two if the CB doesn't drop enough. I'd say you're playing coverages not to get beat deep a lot - which is fine to play if you think it's a situation where they may go deep. but if you play it most of the time where the situation may not even call for it, they're gonna dot you up underneath and the ACE in the game is gonna pick up on that coverage.

I would try to play more C1 on the earlier downs - if you have the S for it, but if you have the personnel then it takes away the deep ball, the short throws underneath, helps against the run too. If you have personnel for Man, I would suggest using that at times as well. But don't just go mostly C4, C2 & C6 cause the AI is gonna dot you up all day.

[Therebelyell626]

Re: Defense help

I don’t like the way the PS5 controller is designed. Every time I got mash the interception button I accidentally pause the game lol

[Ky3217]

Re: Defense help

Definitely could use some defensive help. Just had Toledo’s QB go 26/26 on me while playing as NIU

[Ghost Of The Year]

Re: Defense help

In Madden I take the suggestion route but I'm not sure thats going to work for me in CFB. Practicing kicking in practice mode paid huge dividends but I'm not positive its going to be that simple with defense. I guess I might take the best defense is a good offense route for awhile, see if thats feasible.

[SolidSquid]

Re: Defense help

Remember the cpu is learning this year, so if you call the same 3 defenses all game they will abuse you.

Much like boxing you have to have a punch and counter punch for the offense. I’ll go through the 1st half playing my normal defense (obviously I’ll make adjustments early if if isn’t working), then come out in the 2nd half and start throwing in my counters.

For example if I’m playing a team with a qb that isn’t great and they are eating me up in the intermediate pass game, I’ll call a lot of cover 2 in the first half, then the 2nd half I’ll call cover 2 with a different shell to make the qb think he’s going to have that 8-10 yard slant but my hook curl is there waiting for it.

This year you can’t just run the same defense the whole time, and you will have to pick your poison. Something will always beat you just have to choose what you’re willing to live with. If a qb has bad deep accuracy I’ll challenge him to beat my defense deep consistently and focus on taking away his quick throws.

Take a look at the offense and their weapons and decide the hardest way for them beat you.

[okayokay]

Re: Defense help

3 seasons on heisman.
I've done okay by just doing what I do IRL.....
play a 40 front with quarters behind it....nearly every down.
If you're looking to stop offenses cold and get 3 & outs all the time, its not gonna happen.

Don't open the game up with big mistakes by getting frustrated.

I control one of the safeties, usually to the TE/nub side because I'm not confident in my stick skills to match #2. So all you have to do is protect the post (inside #1 if he's vertical), otherwise you're free to drop as force on the outside or run fit into A gap.

The 'glitch' (its not a glitch because teams do this IRL) is to go man pressures and take control of the defender responsible for the back or TE (if they don't use them).....bring that defender over the center presnap. You can pressure with that defender or just let the CPU take over (to man cover the back out), but you're showing +1-2 overload pressure to the Oline logic. Someone is going to come free because you're sending more than they have to block. If you blitz/dive your defender covering the back (before the QB can find him if he releases), you can get some crazy hurries/sacks.

This was true in NCAA14 and is even more realistic in pressuring QBs in NCAA25.

Fire zones aren't very effective in this game that I've found - most NCAA defenses run these with field pressures nowadays

[DallasRocks]

Re: Defense help

Can we base align?

Defense is so frustrating, I’ll make 2 solid plays and then they convert 3rd downs like no other. I user control the best d lineman and just hope I can get pressure. I can usually stop then run or at least control it. It’s the passing game that seems impossible to slow and the poor pursuit angles don’t help.

[letsgopens66]

Re: Defense help

This was excellent advice from Canes21 in his slider thread — keep it simple but mix up the shell based on what the offense is showing. No need to call a different defense every single play imo. Switch things up occasionally (send a blitz or go to man if they’re driving on you) but no need to over complicate it.

I run the defense very similar to how Lance Guidry runs it in real life with our biggest difference being that I blitz less often than he does.

Cover 4 and cover 3 are the base coverages and the base shell is cover 0. That's what I am in the majority of the game. Cover 3 and cover 4 shells are used very often as well.

Depending on what the offense is doing against me is what dictates how often I change things up. If the opposing offense is trying to stretch the field vertically, we run more cover 4 and cover 2 shells. If they are not stretching the field vertically and/or are coming out in more 12 personnel looks, then we mix in more cover 3 shells to bring that extra safety all the way into the box.

Being in cover 0, 3, and 4 looks and having the base defense be cover 4 and 3 leads to me having my safeties closer to the LOS, sometimes in the box, and at least 1 always looking to play the run first. That obviously helps my run defense out.

I do mix in cover 1 a decent amount throughout the game. Cover 2 man is often reserved only for passing situations, but I will mix it in on earlier downs, more often in games where my DL has a clear advantage over the OL and I can safely rely on the front 6 to hold their own. The Wake game was one where I had the talent advantage and could man up more often.

Given the alignment of my defense is already aggressive enough, I don't blitz as often as Guidry does in real life. I'd say I maybe blitz only around 20-25% of the time at the very most, but it may be less than that. I've not actually tracked it, but I feel that guess is pretty accurate.

Outside of the base cover 3 and 4 with the occasional cover 1, I also mix in the bracket/double team plays along with cover 2 and cover 6. Cover 2 is used more when I am getting backed up towards my own end zone or when teams are trying to stretch the field more horizontally than vertically. Wake was constantly running underneath crossing routes and going to the flats, so I mixed in more cover 2 that game to counter it. I use the split field cover 6 coverages to try and fool the QB every now and then while also still having the benefit of 1 safety watching the run action at the snap.

So, the base defense I am running with my scheme is one geared to slow the run game down, so that's obviously contributing to it. Like I said, the CPU will have some successful runs here or there. Georgia Tech had a 50 yard TD run on me and Notre Dame averaged 4+ yards on designed runs, but the vast majority of carries are being swallowed up quickly and given what many of you all are saying, I think I am starting to lean towards it more being my scheme I am running in combination + the DL's ratings that is slowing the run game down more than it is the CPU not having the capability to do so. If that is the case, awesome, it means X's and O's and ratings are doing their jobs well.

[Jagsfan24]

Re: Defense help

I am in the same boat with you, I am struggling with defense myself and it’s mostly pass defense. Being a Madden player for so long and playing on the hardest difficulty on that game, this game makes me seem like I know nothing about football.

I’m not expecting to play shutdown defense but there’s times where I feel like I call the right plays and I still get beat. My players pursuit angles suck when tackling, not to mention either my guys can’t tackle or the cpu breaks too many of them.