Do you read defenses?

[KSUowls]

How many people actually try to read defense while on offense?

I don't mean do you just not pay any attention at all to the defensive formation. I mean do you actually look at the safeties to identify Cover 3, are the corners playing with inside leverage, do you always put a guy in motion to identify man?

I admit that for a very long time, across all football games, I didn't bother. The games were always easy enough even if I didn't. I obviously would change runs up to the strong/weak side if the defensive front was off balance, and sometimes I might call a hot route if the defenders were clearly playing off. I would even have a general idea of who might be open based on a quick look at everything. I never really sat there and tried to dissect the coverage pre-snap though. I started doing that recently both in modern games as well as older ones, and it added a level of enjoyment to the game. Often times I would go to the replay after each play in order to see if I called it right or not which created its own little mini game. I also became even more explosive on offense (not sure if that's a good thing actually).

So, I'm just curious. Am I the odd one for having never really bothered with this, or do a lot of you guys rely more on reacting what happens post snap like I historically have?

[pietasterp]

Re: Do you read defenses?

I have tried on/off over the years, but I found that it didn't make much of a difference for me, and there are too many variations for me to remember and too many subtleties for me to pick up (maybe I'm just dense). I've watched all the videos etc, and honestly, I still can't really tell when it's a Cover 1 vs 3, 2 vs 4, etc etc etc. And even if I guessed right, I rarely have the correct audibles set up to 'beat' whatever coverage I see. I would like to play this way, but I just haven't found I'm able to correctly assess often enough for it to be worth my time/effort.

As of now, most of my defense reading boils down to calling a passing play I like, counting how many guys are in the box, and if favorable I check to a run, versus if it looks like I'm getting 1x1 man coverage, I'll stick with the throw.

That's pretty much all I do at this point.

[DonkeyJote]

Re: Do you read defenses?

I have tried on/off over the years, but I found that it didn't make much of a difference for me, and there are too many variations for me to remember and too many subtleties for me to pick up (maybe I'm just dense). I've watched all the videos etc, and honestly, I still can't really tell when it's a Cover 1 vs 3, 2 vs 4, etc etc etc. And even if I guessed right, I rarely have the correct audibles set up to 'beat' whatever coverage I see. I would like to play this way, but I just haven't found I'm able to correctly assess often enough for it to be worth my time/effort.

As of now, most of my defense reading boils down to calling a passing play I like, counting how many guys are in the box, and if favorable I check to a run, versus if it looks like I'm getting 1x1 man coverage, I'll stick with the throw.

That's pretty much all I do at this point.

I don't as much as I did in previous Madden games, because the information is a lot less useful with the ability to disguise coverage. Before that was added, it was really easy to see exactly what the coverage was, so I definitely looked at the alignments more.

Now, I'm not trying to predict coverage. I look for if there is one high safety or two (or zero). I look for my read key on an RPO; who is the player whose first step I'm looking at post snap. I identify guys I think might be blitzing. And if they're unblocked either fix that or make sure I have a hot read off them. On run plays, I check the blocking to make sure that everyone who needs to be blocked is, and if there is someone unaccounted for that would blow up the play, I audible into something else. And on a pass play I'm deciding on a red progression. So on a Gun Trio, it might be A (the drag), to Y (the slant), to B (the 4 route).

But I'm not getting caught into the habit of thinking that "those corners are lined up like Cover 2, so it's probably Cover 2". Because it could be Cover 2, but it also might be man, or Cover 4, or Cover 3, or Match Coverage. So I stopped doing that.

Post snap on a pass, I'm looking for any hot blitzes, peaking the safeties to see if the middle is open or closed, and then going into my progression.

I think players sometimes (because it's what the internet people and real QBs do) try too hard to identify the coverage. And the truth is, that's a detriment to most players. Your reaction times are almost certainly slower than those of elite athletes and high level sports gamers. And you likely don't spend nearly as much time practicing reading coverages and knowing exactly what beats every coverage in every single play. So you're slower processing that information too. So I try to limit it to the information I need, and then really just go "no", "no", "yes" on a progression looking for an open receiver.

EDIT: I also don't manually motion receivers just because the CPU doesn't. So feels like cheese to me. I'd love if they added in something next year as the offensive equivalent to coverage shells where you can come out with players lined up differently, and there's built on motion to get them set in their proper places, specifically to read man vs zone.

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[Hooe]

Re: Do you read defenses?

Not only am I reading coverage shells to check in and out of the right plays at the line of scrimmage, but also, since defenses can now lie about their coverage call pre-snap by manipulating the coverage shell, I'm working on learning the nuances of how different fronts align relative to the coverage called behind them.

I am nowhere close to getting it down yet, but I have seen enough to learn that with certain defensive formations, you can narrow down the possible coverages by looking closely at the alignments of defensive linemen and linebackers. You have to really be paying attention because the clues are really subtle; sometimes a linebacker is aligned over guard's shoulder instead of heads-up, sometimes a backside defensive end tightens up to the tackle, and so on. I assume that the reason these small alignment changes happen is to ensure the integrity of the front's run fit.

Importantly, the alignment of the players in the front will not change with a modified coverage shell; they will stick with the alignment provided by the original play call. Additionally, when an audible is called, the defenders in the front will shift to the correct alignments for that call. A user can manipulate the front with DL and LB shifts to mask the call, but so far I've not seen the CPU use those commands.

Some defensive formations do not tip their hand based on the front; 3-3-5 Tite, for example, does not as far as I can tell. So far I'm noticing that's it's mostly even fronts (fronts with four down linemen; Nickel Over, Nickel 33 Over, etc.) which will give you additional clues.

[canes21]

Re: Do you read defenses?

I do. I always try to identify what shell they are in and then at the snap I just about always watch the safeties to see what they tell me, then based off their first steps along with the pre-snap read I made I know the progressions I am going through on my drop back.

I don't do motion to identify the defense, though. Since the CPU doesn't really bother with stuff like that I don't either.

[Ghost Of The Year]

Re: Do you read defenses?

No. I make defenses read me.

#SmugSOB

[Collegefbfan]

Re: Do you read defenses?

Not in the sense that a lot of you elite video game players do. Heck, I wish I could. With coverage shell disguises, I feel like I would be wrong about 90% of the time. Now, what do I do that I consider "reading defenses"? I try to see how many deep safeties there are and how far they are apart. Are the cornerbacks playing up tight with what seems to be a single high safety? If I am running an HB Stretch or HB Base, is my offensive line at an advantage? Are there linebackers on the outside of the offensive line if I am running a stretch play? If I see any of these things giving me trouble, I will audible.

[Sweed]

Re: Do you read defenses?

I check the shell and d front alignment. I try to figure out where the open spots are going to be before a pass play. I'll audible to some hot routes if my current play feels like it's going into the teeth of the D. At the snap I try to see where the D is flowing, which should tell me if the shell was just a disguise. If my read pre-snap is right I should have at least one receiver in a position to win. If the shell was a disguise the flow can still tell me where the ball needs to go. Then it comes down to if I can identify it quickly enough to make the right decision.

Running plays I read the strength of the front and audible or not depending on what I see.
I like RPO's and use them frequently. I'd imagine a quarter to a third of my pass plays come from RPO's.

Like the OP I also watch quite a few replays to see if I was correct. I may not be great at it, but I think I do alright. It certainly adds another layer of fun to the game.