Option Pitch Questions

[Noble Evildoer]

I have a couple of questions regarding the option pitch in this game.

1. Is there a rating that governs how well a QB pitches the ball? I've screwed around with the game some and played around with having a RB in the QB spot for option plays. However, the RB would almost always make awful pitches.

2. Does anybody else feel the pitch is seemingly random? I find that there are times when I hit the pitch button with nobody near me and the QB won't pitch it and then gets tackled. And then in other cases they will make pitches while getting hit that would make Steve Nash jealous.

[BaylorBearBryant]

Pitch success might be linked to QB accuracy or some other attribute. Not sure though.

[WipeOut464]

Re: Option Pitch Questions

I have a couple of questions regarding the option pitch in this game.

1. Is there a rating that governs how well a QB pitches the ball? I've screwed around with the game some and played around with having a RB in the QB spot for option plays. However, the RB would almost always make awful pitches.

2. Does anybody else feel the pitch is seemingly random? I find that there are times when I hit the pitch button with nobody near me and the QB won't pitch it and then gets tackled. And then in other cases they will make pitches while getting hit that would make Steve Nash jealous.

That happens to me constantly. It gets me stabby just thinking about it.

[GOIRISH65]

Re: Option Pitch Questions

It’s horrible. I’m trying to run triple and power options. Seems like holding the pitch button and pitching super early works. But makes it hard to really read the option. Drives me nuts. I keep recruiting option kings and it doesn’t seem to make a difference although it’s supposed to allow for more accurate quick pitches.

[spike83]

Re: Option Pitch Questions

I no longer enjoy running the option now; I really believe something changed soon after launch as I had no issues until recently...

[PPerfect_CJ]

Re: Option Pitch Questions

Option pitch is virtually an automatic turnover for me, right now. I think something in that last patch made it wonky. When I see it pop up on the suggested play calls screen, I say to myself, "yeah, the cpu just wants the ball."

[jello1717]

Option Pitch Questions

As a spread option guy, I run tons of pitches (prolly 10+ per game). I run triple options (both from dual back or with a motioning WR), speed options, shovel options, load options, slot options, etc. They’re definitely responsible for a lot of my big runs.

Luckily I don’t have the turnover issues you guys are (are these spread option pitches or under center pitches that cause issues?). I do know the bad pitches you’re talking about and agree they’re too frequent, but it doesn’t happen often enough for me to not run pitches. My QB has had 5 bad pitches thru 9 games this season (luckily my HB has fallen on all but 1 of them for “only” a 10 yard loss). With 10+ pitches per game that’s about 5% of pitches for me. Certainly too high, but manageable.

I’ve found that option king helps a ton and I prolly wouldn’t play a QB without it (but I’m a spread option guy, so duh). (in fact, I just checked my roster and all 4 QBs, including my true FR that’s RSing have at least bronze option king) I’m not sure how much it helps with the terrible pitches that sail past the pitch guy, but they absolutely help with the accuracy of quick pitches and prevent a lot of the ones that are behind the pitch guy, forcing him to pirouette and kill his forward momentum.

[pietasterp]

Re: Option Pitch Questions

I'm with the OP and the first several posters on here. I find the options un-useable at this point, and it's definitely different from when the game was first released. I'd say I have a bad pitch at least once or twice per game at this point, which makes the play sort of un-useable if you know there's a 20% chance of a fumble every time you run it.

I have also seen where I clearly (audibly!) hit the pitch button and my QB just doesn't pitch it for whatever reason, and then gets tackled. In my experience, the option pitch game is not functioning properly.

It's really hard for me to believe that they haven't gotten this right in all the years they've been making football games. I understand not making the pitch an auto-bail out button, and you shouldn't be able to make wacky line-drive pitches while in the middle of being tackled, but for any other situations, the pitch should be relatively on-point. Teams simply wouldn't run it if it weren't. Also, option QB's will often take it to the edge, and wait until they are basically just starting to get tackled before pitching it, since this is basically the design of the play (wait until the defender commits to tackling you, then pitch). It's not cheesy, it's how the play is designed to be run in real-life.

I think one of the issues is that the game doesn't have a variety of pitch outcomes; there's basically just the line-drive or softer pitch either directly to the HB or way off target. In reality, most pitches are generally toward to HB, but if the QB gets nailed or mis-times it or just doesn't do a good job on the pitch, the pitch can go a little off-target or a little behind the HB (causing him to have to adjust and slow down), or anything in between. In other words, there should be a variety of pitch/catch animations just like there are for forward passes - with different RAC animations based on how good the pitch was.

As it is, there are essentially only 2 outcomes: perfect pitch or fumble.

[canes21]

Re: Option Pitch Questions

Option pitch is virtually an automatic turnover for me, right now. I think something in that last patch made it wonky. When I see it pop up on the suggested play calls screen, I say to myself, "yeah, the cpu just wants the ball."

I feature the speed option in my offense in my current dynasty quite a bit and in the last 15 games I have 2 fumbles when pitching it, both when I tried to pitch late and got hit while doing so.

Any time I've pitched it on time before I was hit, it's been a successful pitch. Are you having issues with bad pitches on plays you're not getting touched or is it only when you're getting hit? If it is the latter, you may be trying to pitch it too late.

[pietasterp]

Re: Option Pitch Questions

I can't speak for the OP but I get bad pitches on pitches when there's no defender within arm's length of me. Even with an 'Option King' QB.

[DLev4552]

Re: Option Pitch Questions

I feature the speed option in my offense in my current dynasty quite a bit and in the last 15 games I have 2 fumbles when pitching it, both when I tried to pitch late and got hit while doing so.

Any time I've pitched it on time before I was hit, it's been a successful pitch. Are you having issues with bad pitches on plays you're not getting touched or is it only when you're getting hit? If it is the latter, you may be trying to pitch it too late.

Put me in the camp of folks that ran spread option in season 1 of my online dynasty to now hardly ever calling the option in season 2, and even when I do, I don't pitch it and just use the HB as a decoy.

My QB has silver option king, and I gave up 3 scoop-n-score TDs off of errant pitches last season without my QB getting touched.

One of the patches definitely did something to bust it, because it wasn't an issue at launch. And neither was the ball going haywire and warping all over the place that happens sometimes now.

Like this. Didn't get touched, option king activated, pitch man had the edge, and it was a lob pitch.

[canes21]

Re: Option Pitch Questions

Put me in the camp of folks that ran spread option in season 1 of my online dynasty to now hardly ever calling the option in season 2, and even when I do, I don't pitch it and just use the HB as a decoy.

My QB has silver option king, and I gave up 3 scoop-n-score TDs off of errant pitches last season without my QB getting touched.

One of the patches definitely did something to bust it, because it wasn't an issue at launch. And neither was the ball going haywire and warping all over the place that happens sometimes now.

Like this. Didn't get touched, option king activated, pitch man had the edge, and it was a lob pitch.

I can't help but laugh at that pitch attempt. That's wonky. I haven't seen that, thankfully.

I do wonder if it is just bugged out or if there are potential mechanics at play.

For example, maybe it is built to where if you and the RB are X or more units away, there's a chance for a bad pitch to occur.

Or, if a defender gets between you and the RB like in your clip, there's a chance for the QB to pitch it inaccurately due to the traffic.

The reason I wonder that is because, like I said, I am now 15 games in after the most recent patch and have featured the speed option regularly in my offense. I've not seen a pitch like that one time, neither has my buddy in the dynasty either(we stream our games to each other) and he features it regularly as well.

However, neither one of us ever pitch it when a defender gets between us like the other user did in your clip, and, we never pitch it if the RB gets too far from our QBs. Since neither of us have seen that issue in 32 played games since the last patch, and that's the difference between how we run it vs what your clip shows, it makes me wonder there are mechanics at play that EA hasn't mentioned.

If that's the case, EA should just tell us the game is designed to have bad pitches in those instance for balancing and/or realism purposes. Instead, if it is the case, we don't know it and it's obviously leading to frustrating moments like yours where it's not evident you're doing anything wrong yet are getting a result like that.

[PowerofRed25]

Re: Option Pitch Questions

Option is really poorly implemented in game and was made worse in some of the most recent patches. I'm a huge option guy. My base custom offense that I've run for a decade or more in NCAA games is two back Pistol and Gun Spread Option but option is implemented so horribly in NCAA 25 that I've switched to more of a power/play action offense and replace the speed/read/triple option with RPOs.

The first issue is that they reversed the give/keep button action for NCAA 25. That, by itself, wouldn't be a huge deal. It is just a muscle memory thing. The bigger problem is that the reads are so inconsistent and occur so fast, that you are often never able to cleanly read anything. I understand the rationale from a football perspective because when you're reading an option as a quarterback, the default is give and the back is always assuming they're getting the ball until the QB pulls it (button press) but in practice it just doesn't work. Especially with the very obvious delay between button press and action, which is the next issue.

I don't know what it is but there is an obvious disconnect between button presses and actions in this game. It isn't just option reads and pitches but QB slides, dives, RPO decisions, etc. Sometimes I'll go to slide and it'll take five button taps before anything happens and by then your slide is a dive. Sometimes I'll press pitch two or three full strides before the read defender, but the actual pitch doesn't happen until much later and results in a bad pitch with contact. I've had read options where I've smashed the keep button before the back got to the mesh only for it to give anyway. There is no rhyme or reason to the timing and no apparent rhyme or reason to why certain players play like they do, at least not within ratings.

More specifically, within the time frame of the last two patches, I've noticed a massive uptick in wayward option pitches exactly like the video DLev4552 posted. The play was read well, the option man is in space, but the pitch just goes uncaught for a scoop and score (there is also a weird animation where when you manually control the back to try to pick the wayward pitch up, he tries to one hand it like he's palming a basketball but just whiffs, that's another issue all together). Speed option used to be a huge part of my offense because it was my primary perimeter attacking run from the Gun, but the pitches have just gone so haywire that I can't trust it and have replaced it by either Gun Toss or Pistol Stretch and I hate using Pistol Stretch because Stretch is overpowered as hell right now.

I don't know what is going on, I don't know if this is the way EA intended option to play, but there has been a significant change in option mechanics within the last two patches and there is no rhyme or reason to it. Don't even bother trying with under center options. Everything about under center option is broken.

[jello1717]

Re: Option Pitch Questions

Like this. Didn't get touched, option king activated, pitch man had the edge, and it was a lob pitch.

Oof. If that’s what you and the others in here are talking about, then I’d be wary of calling 10+ pitches per game as well. Thankfully I don’t see stuff like that. If I have a bad pitch that misses, it’s cuz I waited too late and was hit while pitching. Do you see those pitches in offline games as well, or just online (I only play offline)? Could it be a lag issue?

[SilverBullet19]

Re: Option Pitch Questions

Before the last patch pitches were pretty good. Quick pitch was sometimes a bit off target but realistically.

After the patch I avoid the pitch option plays entirely, seems they’re more often than not a TFL because the pitch doesn’t trigger or a fumble