Zone Coverage Adjustments

[cammy3399]

Anyone know how to play a zone that can actually stop the CPU? If so what adjustments do you make? I can get the cpu to only gain 1-3 yards all the time, but id like to force more incompletions using zone like i can with man to man. I'm clemson using charter's sliders and I just got nickeled and dimed all game by Wake Forests ****ty QB with his accuracy rating lowered by 30!!!! Please help.

[divinemind]

Re: Zone Coverage Adjustments

To get incompletions, I think you need hard hitting LBs and DBs. The idea is that if the QB finds that small hole in the zones, the defense swarms the receiver and pops him to jar the ball loose. If you don't have hard hitters, it's hard to not get eaten up while playing zone. Zone blitzing can force the QB to rush throws but thats all on how good your front 7 is.

I'll assume you know what each color zone is meant to cover so you just match that with what the CPU is eating you up with. Cover 2 = short middle, purple zones = corner/deep out routes, etc.

Everything hinges on your teams skill set though. Except the slot receivers and TEs, I don't think they can be covered man-to-man on this game.

Be cool.

[Pielet]

Re: Zone Coverage Adjustments

Goto youtube and start watching nykia's videos. He plays almost exclusively zone and users a FS or MLB. He seems to do fine.

[wutangfourever]

Re: Zone Coverage Adjustments

I'll usually drop a blitzing lb as extra coverage as a spy or in the flat and only rush 3. I prefer to sacrifice a pash rusher to give me extra coverage in a potential open area on the field to buy the beast d line that I recruited time to make a play or cause an errant throw

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[cbc72]

Re: Zone Coverage Adjustments

I'll usually drop a blitzing lb as extra coverage as a spy or in the flat and only rush 3. I prefer to sacrifice a pash rusher to give me extra coverage in a potential open area on the field to buy the beast d line that I recruited time to make a play or cause an errant throw

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I'll second that strategy.

I have gotten more sacks by rushing 3 and dropping a D-lineman or LB that is supposed to be rushing into zone, than by keeping all 4 rushing.

[NCAAFootballFreak]

Re: Zone Coverage Adjustments

Playing as UNT, I've had some mixed results on pass coverage based on which teams I'm facing. What I've discovered is that I just need to keep mixing things up against my opponents and that tends to work well.

I've had teams that just completely dice my defense up when I go to zone so I stay in man and things seem to tighten up. But then the next week, I'll start in man-to-man and get torched until I switch to zone.

My last game was against Southern Miss. And with them, it didn't matter what I threw at them defensively, they were lighting me up. Man-to-man blitz? Nope. Zone blitz? Nope. Straight cover 2? Nope. Cover 2 man? Nope.

But then, I did something I hadn't tried yet and completely shut them out in the 2nd half . . . I started "showing" blitz and stacking the box, regardless of whether I was blitzing or not. Man coverage, zone coverage -- didn't matter. I stacked the box every time. This took Bridgford completely out of his game. He'd completed like 10 of his first 11 passes but finished the game 15/27. After falling down 14-0, my D tightened up, my offense started clicking and I rolled to a 41-21 win.

All of this to say, I've never had one exact method work with every team I play. I've had to pretty much spend about the first quarter and a half "feeling things out" to get a grasp of what works. It's the same for me offensively as well.

Some days, my "bruiser" back is the one that can chew up yardage. Other days, it's my "balanced" back or my "speed" back. And then some days, I can't get a dang thing going on the ground so I pass all over them and it works. I like that, though. It's just like real life!

-- Stephen