MADDEN NFL 07 PRIMA OFFICIAL GAME GUIDE

FANTASY FOOTBALL SECTION!

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 PRIMA OFFICIAL GAME GUIDE

Note: All control commands are performed with the Xbox Controller.

One of the biggest complaints over the past years has been that the running game is not very exciting. This year EA
SPORTS decided to do something about that by introducing “Run to Daylight.” You now have total control of every
aspect of the running game. Instead of just controlling the ball carrier, you now can take control of the fullback, tight
end, or offensive linemen. You can open and create holes for the ball carrier to run through.

While in control of the blocker, you have all sorts of blocking moves at your disposal. If you want to cut block a de-
fender down, no problem, it’s in the game. After you finish knocking defenders to the turf, you can switch to the ball
carrier and perform innovative rushing moves that have never been seen in a video football game before.

All-new jukes, cutbacks, and the distinct running styles of your favorite backs will help you pound the opposition
into the ground. In this section, we cover all the new Run to Daylight features so you are up to speed once you start
playing.

How many times have you seen the
CPU-controlled fullback miss his block
and leave you dead in the backfield?
You would have made the block, right?
You now have the option to take control
of any blocker to spring the running back
loose with “Lead Blocking Control.”
Before actually getting on the field, first
decide which Blocking Control options
you want to use. To get to the Blocking
Control options, pause the game, then go
to Settings and choose Game Play. Next
pick Blocking Control.
There you find four options. Each setting
has a different effect on how the game
plays. Each setting can be toggled on/off.
We have listed these four settings, plus a
brief description of how they affect your
game.
• Auto Switch Back (off by default). When
this setting is turned on and you are in
control of the blocker, you automatically
switch to the ball carrier if a successful
block is thrown. If the setting is turned
off, you can control the lead blocker for
as long as you like, but you must hit the
switch player button to take control of the
ball carrier.
• Blocking Slowdown (off by default).
With this turned on, the game slows down Blocking Control Settings
momentarily when the user-controlled
lead blocker engages a defender and
Here are the Blocking Control settings we
triggers a block. With this turned off, the
personally prefer:
game speed does not change even if you
connect on a crushing block.
• Auto Switch Back — off
• Switch Slowdown (on by default). With
• Blocking Slowdown — off
this turned on, the game slows down
• Switch Slowdown — off
momentarily when you switch from the
• Blocking View — normal
lead blocker back to the ball carrier. With
this turned off you instantly switch to the
ball carrier with no slowdown at all.
We like these settings the best because
they don’t interfere with the gameplay
• Blocking View (Zoomed In is on by
much. If Blocking View is zoomed in, it’s
default). With this setting on Zoom In, the
harder to keep an eye on the ball carrier.
game camera is zoomed in closer to the
Sometimes we didn’t see where the ball
lead blocker (closer to a first-person view).
carrier was going, because he was off
With it set to Normal, the game camera
the screen.
is in the default camera view when lead
blocking.

8
Once on the field, you have the option to
choose any player on the field to block
with outside of the quarterback and run-
ning back. Tap the cycle blockers button
on your controller to switch players. You
can also hold the button down and move
the Left Thumbstick or D-pad up/down or
left/right to move through players. In the
screen shot we selected the left guard.
In the second screen shot, we decide to
cycle through until we select the fullback.
• If you want to take control of the
ball carrier and pretend you are
going to block with him before the
snap, you can. As soon as the ball is
snapped, you switch from blocker to
ball carrier automatically.
• If you decide to call a pass play,
you can still take control of a player
to block with before the snap. This
is a good way to bluff your opponent
into thinking run. As soon as the ball
is snapped, you are automatically
switched to the quarterback.
• Taking control of pulling offensive
linemen seems to be more beneficial
than taking control of the offensive
PRIMAGAMES.COM
After the ball is snapped, we control
the fullback and look to make the key
block to spring the ball carrier. The free
safety is closing in on our ball carrier,
so we decide he needs to be blocked.
We throw a block on the free safety and
he is knocked to the ground.
Lead Blocking Control Tips
linemen who do not pull. When we
take control of offensive linemen who
don’t pull, we normally end up block-
ing the defender lined up across
from us. We might as well just let the
CPU-controlled offensive linemen do
that and instead take control of the
fullback to lead him through the hole
unless you want to Turn Block Left
or Right.
• Don’t get yourself out of position to
get the block. If you feel like you are
losing control of the blocker, switch
to the ball carrier and let the CPU
take control of the blocker.
• On the other hand, if you see the
CPU-controlled ball carrier not going
At this point we can either switch to the
ball carrier or we can continue to stay
in control of the blocker by pressing
nothing. We choose to stay in control of
the blocker and throw another block on
a linebacker. This allows the CPU-con-
trolled ball carrier to find daylight outside.
through the correct hole, switch off
the blocker quickly and take control
of the ball carrier to get him to go
through the open hole.
• You cannot switch back and forth
between the blocker and ball carrier
more than once. Once you switch to
the ball carrier, all run blocking con-
trols are turned off and run controls
are turned on.
• Use the sprint button to get the
blocker out in front quicker. This
works best with a pulling offensive
linemen or fullback who is lead
blocking to the outside.
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 PRIMA OFFICIAL GAME GUIDE

Being able to take control of the blocker is good and all, but what about being able to throw different types of
blocks? There are several ways to throw blocks in Madden NFL 07 while in control of the blocker.

Type of Block Description

• Impact Block The blocker delivers a devastating

Move the Right Thumbstick up block that normally lays the defender
out on the turf.

• Cut Block The blocker goes for the knees to

Move the Right Thumbstick down chop the defender down.

• Turn Block Left

Press the White button on Xbox Turns the blocker left.

• Turn Block Right

Press the Black button on Xbox Turns the blocker right.

Holds the defender or pulls him

• Hold down to the ground. Be careful not
to overuse this button or you’ll get
Pull the Left Trigger
flagged for a penalty.

10
The Truck Stick was introduced in
Madden NFL 06. This allowed the
user-controlled ball carrier to run
over defenders by moving the Right
Thumbstick up. For big, powerful
running backs such as Jamal Lewis, this
was great because it enabled him to
knock over smaller defenders. However,
for smaller running backs such as
Warrick Dunn, the Truck Stick was not
that much of a factor. They didn’t have
the strength or break tackle ratings to
effectively use it.
Example A: Chiefs’ running back
Larry Johnson is about to be tackled
at the line of scrimmage by the
Bengals’ defender. By moving the Right
Thumbstick up, Johnson lowers his
shoulders and knocks the defender out
of the way. Instead of being tackled for
no gain, Johnson picks up another 4
yards before being brought down. EA
SPORTS wanted to make the game
fun when picking up even a few yards.
Thanks to the Highlight Stick, they have
succeeded.
Example B: Steelers’ running
back Willie Parker is lightning fast
and is great at making tacklers miss
in the open the field. In the screen
shot, the Broncos’ defender is closing
in on Parker. Last year, he would have
been tackled for a loss, but thanks to the
Highlight Stick, he can use his elusiveness
to turn a loss into positive yardage.

EA SPORTS has decided to make the

 
stick work for both types of backs.
Instead of the Truck Stick, it’s now called
the Highlight Stick.

If the running back is a big bruising type,

he runs the defenders over as in Madden
NFL 06. If the running back is smaller, he
looks to work around the defender.

There are 20 different animations for

the big running backs and 20 different  
animations for smaller running backs.
Chances are you will see several
different types of Highlight Stick
animations when playing Madden NFL
07. This helps to keep the running game
looking fresh.

What follows are two examples of how the

Highlight Stick can be effective depending
on what type of running back is used:

 

TIP!

Some backs, such as Shaun Alex-

ander and LaDainian Tomlinson can
perform both big and small running
 
animations. These types of backs
are most effective because they
can do all the moves to avoid being
brought down.

11
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 PRIMA OFFICIAL GAME GUIDE
Another new
weapon that was
added to Madden NFL 07
is the ability for the user to break
tackles. By rapidly pressing the
sprint button while the ball carrier
is being tackled, you can get free of
the defender and get more yardage.
Obviously a ball carrier with a high
break tackle rating has a better chance
of busting loose than a ball carrier with
a lesser rating. Eight different types of
random animation can occur while the
ball carrier is trying to get out of the
defender’s grasp.
 
With “Run to Daylight” being the big new
gameplay feature in Madden NFL 07, we
thought we would take a look at the game’s
top-five HB/FB combinations. We came up
with the list by looking at yardage totals
and player ratings.
When ranking the fullbacks, we did not
base them on overall rating. Instead we
looked at run blocking and awareness.
These two key attributes determine how
good a fullback is at blocking.
The top five HB/FB combinations are as
follow:
12
Before you get too excited about this
feature, keep in mind that the user-con-
trolled defender has a similar ability.
By rapidly tapping down on the tackle
button, the defender can bring down
the ball carrier in a hurry.
Ratings also come into play. For ex-
ample, if the ball carrier’s break tackle
rating is higher than the defender’s
tackle rating, then the ball carrier has a
better chance to break the tackle even
if both users are button pressing at the
same speed. Conversely, if the tackle
rating of the defender is higher than the
1. San Diego
Chargers
HB: LaDainian Tomlinson
FB: Lorenzo Neal
Over the last three seasons Tomlinson
and Neal have been the best HB/FB
combination in the league. During that
three-year span, Neal has opened
holes for Tomlinson to the tune of 4,315
yards and 48 touchdowns. Neal is
unquestionably the best blocking full-
back in the game and Tomlinson is one
break tackle rating of the ball carrier, he
has a better chance to make the tackle
even if both users are pressing at the
same rate.
In the screen shots, we are in control of
Bengals’ running back Rudi Johnson.
The Browns defender is closing in. As
we are about to be tackled, we start
rapidly tapping the sprint button. We
break the tackle and continue down the
field.

of the top three running backs. When
you put them together in the same
backfield, defenses have a hard time
defending the Charger rushing attack.
2. Seattle
Seahawks
HB: Shaun Alexander
FB: Mack Strong
You could argue that the backfield
combination of halfback Shaun Alexan-
der and fullback Mack Strong is a bet-
ter tandem than Tomlinson and Neal.
That argument has plenty of evidence
to back it up. Over the last seven
seasons, Alexander has rushed for
more than 7,817 yards and 89 touch-
downs. Strong does an excellent job at
delivering bone-crushing blocks to give
Alexander daylight to pick up yardage.

4. Cincinnati 5. Buffalo
Bengals Bills
HB: Rudi Johnson HB: Willis McGahee
FB: Jeremi Johnson FB: Daimon Shelton

The Bills offense as a whole has not

3. New York
Giants
HB: Tiki Barber
FB: Jim Finn
Tiki Barber has been terrorizing de-
fenses since he came into the league
in 1997. However, over the last three
seasons his totals have taken a dra-
matic rise because of underrated full-
back Jim Finn. He does not get many
touches, nor is talked about as being
one of the best blocking fullbacks in
the game. With that said, Finn paved
the way for Barber’s career-high 1,860
yards and 5.2 yard average.
This next HB/FB combination does
not get talked about much, but when
you look at the stats, you can see why
we rank them number four on our list.
Fullback Jeremi Johnson does his
work unnoticed. If you look at Rudi
Johnson’s rushing numbers over the
last three seasons, his rushing average
and rushing totals have gone up yearly.
One of the key reasons for that is that
Jeremi Johnson has been opening
plenty of holes for Rudi Johnson to rush
through.
been that productive lately, but the
rushing game is not to blame. Halfback
Willis McGahee and fullback Daimon
Shelton have been a strong combina-
tion over the last two seasons. McGa-
hee has rushed for 2,375 yards and
18 touchdowns. A large part of that
yardage and touchdown total has been
because Shelton has been leading Mc-
Gahee through 8- and 9-man fronts.

Offensive Trick Plays • Part 1

In Super Bowl XL Pittsburgh ran a wide receiver reverse to former speedy Steelers receiver Antwaan Randle El, but he had
no intention of running the ball. Instead Randle El pulled up and threw a 43-yard touchdown strike to Hines Ward, who was
left wide open deep down the field. This trick play gave the Steelers a 21-10 and the momentum they needed to eventually
win the Super Bowl. In Madden NFL 07,, there are several different types of trick plays that you can call to keep the defense
on its toes. Just don’t get too carried away, after all they are not designed to be base plays. Here we take a look at three
of our favorite trick plays in the game. You will find all three of them in the Pittsburgh Steelers playbook.

I Form-Twin WR Flea Flicker

One of the oldest trick plays in the book is the Flea Flicker. the quarterback. If the safeties bite, thinking run, one or two
The quarterback hands off the ball the halfback. He then receivers deep should be open for a big play. We look for
acts as if he is going to run a HB Dive. Just as he gets to the Hines Ward running a wheel route deep down the left
the line of scrimmage, the halfback tosses the ball back to sideline. Ward makes the catch for a 25 yard pick up.

13
PRIMAGAMES.COM
 PRIMA OFFICIAL GAME GUIDE

Several new moves and animations have been added this year to improve the running game. With
all of these new moves and animations, this year’s Madden NFL Football running game is the strongest
the series has ever seen. By throwing in the new Highlight Stick, formations, plays, and packages that can
be used, you shouldn’t find it too hard to establish a solid rushing attack in ‘07.

Before we get to some of the different types of run plays that are in the game, we need to get you up to speed on the new
and old game controls. Jukes, stiff arms, Sprint, cover up, and dive buttons are important controls to learn if you want your
rushing attack to succeed.

Cover Up Juke Move

   

If your ball carrier is having a problem coughing up the ball

whenever he is hit, learn to use the cover up button. Chances  
are if the ball carrier covers up the ball, it will not be stripped
or knocked out of his hands. Another advantage of using
the cover up button is he lowers his shoulders and often
knocks defenders over. It’s not as effective as the Highlight
Stick when it comes to breaking tackles, but it’s safer to use
because the ball carrier tends to keep the rock off the turf.

Dive In Madden NFL 05, it seemed like every top player was us-
ing the juke move to dominate the opposition online and in
the Madden Challenge. In Madden NFL 06, the juke move
was not nearly as effective because it was toned down. In
Madden NFL 07, the juke move is back with a vengeance
because of the sheer number of animations that can be
pulled off. For example by pressing left and right quickly on
the Right Thumbstick, the ball carrier performs a devastating
Double Move that leaves defenders grasping at air.

An old school Madden NFL Football running move is the dive.
Whenever you need to pick up that extra yard for a first down
or to get across the goal line, the dive button is the one to
use. Use when the quarterback is about to be tackled, too.
Tap the dive button, and instead of taking a vicious hit from
the defender, the quarterback slides to the ground. Or do this
if the receiver has the ball and you don’t want him to get hurt.
The back juke is back in Madden NFL 07. This juke move
was not used as much as some of the other jukes, but if you
do it at the right time, defenders will miss-time their tackle.
This especially holds true when a player is in control of the
defender and hits the hit stick or tackle button.
Another juke animation move we have seen is the ability to
slash through the open holes inside. In previous versions of
Madden NFL Football, using the juke move inside tackles
did not always provide positive results. Often the ball carrier
would get stuck behind offensive linemen and could not
pick up yardage. Thanks to the ability to slash through the
line of scrimmage by pressing softly left or right on the Right
Thumbstick, you now can slash the ball carrier between of-
fensive linemen to pick up positive yardage with ease.

14
 Sprint
 
The Sprint button is by far the
most-used rushing control.  ning moves in Madden NFL Football to pick up yardage. By
Whether you are running
outside to escape defenders
or running the ball inside to get
through the hole quickly, you
can bet that Sprint is being
used. The key to using the
Sprint button is knowing the
proper time to use it. For example, if you are running some
type of counter play to the outside, don’t use the Sprint but-
ton too early or you risk overlapping your pulling guard.
If you do, it defeats the whole purpose of the guard pulling
outside to be your lead blocker. Another factor to consider
when using the Sprint button is maneuverability. Whenever
the Sprint is held down, you lose some ability to move your
ball carrier. It may not seem significant, but when you are
trying to make a quick cut, that lack of maneuverability can
mean the difference between picking up a few yards or tak-
ing the rock to the house for a score.
One last consideration is fatigue. The more the Sprint button
is used, the quicker the ball carrier gets tired. If you have a
running back with a high stamina rating, this may not be a
big deal. But if your running back has a low stamina rating
and his backup is not very good, it can have a negative ef-
fect on the running games.
TIP!
Overusing the Sprint button applies to all
positions. It’s just more prevalent with the
running backs, because they tend to get the
ball the most.
PRIMAGAMES.COM
Spin Move
 
The spin move has always been one of the most efficient run-
learning when to use it, you can turn what looks to be a short
gain into something that makes the evening sports newscast.
This year you can perform two different types of spin moves.
Tap down on the spin button for a quick spin move. The ball
carrier spins quickly around and often put the defender(s)
out of position to make the tackle. The drawback of using
the quick spin is if the defender is not fooled, he can make
the tackle. The power spin (press and hold the spin button)
takes the ball carrier longer to spin around, but he has a bet-
ter chance of breaking the tackle even if the defender is in
position to make the tackle. Learn when to use each type of
spin move and you will be racking up yardage with the best
of them.
Stiff Arm
 
The stiff arm has been in the
Madden NFL Football series 
for long time. For all of you
old school veterans who have
played it before the juke and
spin move were added to the
game, you know the stiff arm
was used the most outside of
the Sprint. Ball carriers with
high break tackle ratings benefit the most from a well-timed
stiff arm. If it’s performed correctly, the ball carrier puts his
non-football-carrying hand out and shoves the would-be
tackler to the turf. To throw a stiff arm, press left or right on
the stiff arm buttons.
15
 PRIMA OFFICIAL GAME GUIDE

One of the biggest improvements that EA SPORTS wanted to achieve in Madden NFL 07 was the ability to the run ball inside
with success. With all the new running enhancements that have been added, they have achieved that goal.

Being able pound the rock inside is a must for success in Madden NFL 07. You may not have much success with it in the earlier
stages of the game, but if you stick with it, by the end of the game the defense will wear down. You will start to notice your running
back picking up more chunks of yardage. Nothing is more satisfying in football than knowing you have the defense back on its heels
because it has no way of stopping the pound inside.

In this section, we take a look some of our favorite inside plays from the Chargers’ playbook.

I-Form-Normal HB Blast Strong-Normal Split Belly

Outside of the HB Slam, the HB Blast is probably the second-
most-used running play from the I-Form-Normal in the game.
The play is designed for the halfback to follow the fullback
through the hole between the left guard and left tackle. We
like to take control of the fullback before the snap and lead
the halfback through. If any defender gets in our way, we
plow him over. In the first screen, we control the fullback,
while the CPU controls the halfback. In the second screen
shot, we make a key block on the middle linebacker, which
springs the halfback through the line of scrimmage for a big
gain.
This play works best against player controlled defenders who
like to cheat when we are in control of the fullback before
and after the snap. We use the fullback as a decoy to fool
the user controlled defender. If you look at the play diagram,
you’ll notice the fullback blocks to the outside on the left side
of the offensive line. A player may think we are running some
type of counter play and follow us out. The Titans won in
Indianapolis, 19-16. He takes himself right out of position to
make the tackle on the ball carrier because the play design
has the halfback running the ball between the center and
right guard.
Split Backs-3WR FB Blast

Singleback-Flex Base HB Dive

The Singleback-Flex Base is a pretty cool formation to call
plays from. It is very flexible with its personnel sets and mo-
tion. A good inside run play from the Singleback-Flex Base
is the HB Dive. This play has the halfback looking to run
between the center and right guard without a lead blocker.
However, if we want to have a lead blocker for the halfback,
we can motion the fullback to the right. He now lines up in the
backfield to be the lead blocker. Once the ball is snapped,
we look to follow the fullback through the hole. We use the
highlight stick to slide through the line of scrimmage and
find open daylight to pick up positive yardage.
There are a fair number of run plays where the fullback gets
the handoff instead of the halfback. Almost all of these plays
have the fullback running inside for tough yardage. A fullback
running play we like from the Chargers’ playbook is the Split
Backs-3WR FB Blast. This play forces the defense to take a
defender out of the box to cover the slot receiver. If the de-
fense comes out in some type of 4-3 defense, the left outside
linebacker will have to move to cover the slot. With him out
of the box, there is one less defender we have to deal with.
Another benefit of having the left outside linebacker out of
the box is that the design of the play has the fullback running
between the right guard and right tackle. That’s where the left
outside linebacker would line up if there wasn’t a receiver in
the slot. Once the ball is snapped, look to bust through the
hole. If you can get past the defensive linemen, there will be
plenty of room to run the fullback for a nice chunk of yardage.

16
Having a fast running back who can get to the outer perimeter quickly is the key ingredient to having a successful outside run-
ning attack. It also requires some stick skill and knowledge on how to set up blocks with your blockers. If you don’t have speed,
stick, and knowledge, it becomes a serious challenge to establish an outside running game on the higher difficulty levels. In this
section we give you some tips and plays that will hopefully improve your perimeter run game.

Full House-Normal Wide HB Sweep Singleback-Normal Slot HB Slant 18

Many of the top players at the Madden Challenge found this
outside run play a solid bet to call when needing to pick up
yardage in clutch situations. The center crack blocks to the
right and looks to seal off the middle linebacker. The right
guard pulls to right side of the field and paves the way for our
halfback. We sometimes take control of the right guard before
the snap to make sure we get to any defender who comes in
the area of the CPU-controlled halfback. Once we make the
block, we switch to the halfback. With the receivers all acting
The Full House-Normal Wide HB Sweep is a highly effective as if they are running pass routes deep down the field, we
run play to call to get the halfback outside. What makes this normally find only one defender left to deal with. That’s when
outside run play so successful is the blocks thrown by the the highlight stick comes in handy.
right guard and fullback. Another key block is the receiver
lined up outside on the right. He must be able to hold the
cornerback across from him for the play to have any success.
In the first screen shot, notice the receiver outside makes
the block on the left cornerback. The right guard is pulling
outside and looking to block the defender who first gets into
his area. In the second screen shot, the right guard makes a
I-Form-Twin TE FB FK HB Toss
block on a linebacker. This allows us to bust our halfback into
the open field for big pickup on the ground.

Misdirection and Draw Plays

During the 2006 season, misdirection plays saw a huge im-
provement in how the run blocking sets up. It seemed like ev-
ery other play was some type of misdirection run play online.
In previous years that just wasn’t the case. Because offensive
linemen did not block correctly, these types of run plays were
a non-factor in most players’ offensive playbooks. In Madden
NFL 07, the blocking is better than ever, making misdirection
run plays a great choice when running the ball.
This play could have been in the outside run section, but
The run blocking on draws and delays has been improved we decided to stick it in the misdirection section instead.
over the last two seasons. The offensive line will sell the pass This play has been successful the last couple of seasons,
to the defense and defenders will abandon their run pursuit especially against man coverage. Often the defenders
to come after the quarterback. Just as the defenders close in will bite on the fake to the fullback, freeing the halfback
on the quarterback, he hands the ball off to a running back to take a toss from the quarterback going to the oppo-
that squirts up the middle for a nice gain. In this section, we site direction. With the defenders going in the wrong
take a look at a few of our favorite misdirection and draw direction, there is plenty of room for the halfback to
plays. find running room.

17
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 PRIMA OFFICIAL GAME GUIDE
Offensive Trick Plays • Part 2
I Form-Twin WR Reverse Pass
This play has the same concept as the one the Steel-
ers ran in Super Bowl XL. This play has Steelers receiv-
ers Hines Ward and Cedrick Wilson lined up on the left
side. Ward is running a deep crossing route. Wilson is
the receiver who will be throwing the ball. Once the ball
is snapped, the quarterback hands the ball off to the
halfback, and then he pitches the ball to Wilson running
the reverse. If the safeties think run, they will come up to
pursue Wilson. This is when its time to look for Ward deep
down the field for a big play. Ward makes the catch and
goes in for six points.
Singleback-Trips Bunch WR Reverse
This is a pretty effective trick play provided that the re-
ceiver running the reverse has the speed to get outside
and the play is called against the right defense. The quar-
terback tosses the ball to the running back going to the
right side. Hines Ward then takes the handoff as the run-
ning back looks to run to the left side. The quarterback
and the split end will be out in front to block for Ward.
18
Weak I-Normal Toss Weak
Running to the outside on the weak side often works bet-
ter than running to the outside on the strong side because
the defense tends to cheat to the side of the tight end. The
Weak I-Normal Toss Weak is one of the weak side run plays
we found that does a great job of picking up yardage on the
ground. When running this play, we like to take control of the
fullback and block the right outside linebacker or free safety.
If the right outside linebacker is blocked, we then look to
block the free safety. This springs the halfback into the open
field where we take control of him and go in for the score.
Singleback-Big Twin TE Counter Weak
This counter play works best against man coverage because
two tight ends line up opposite the play call. The defense
usually cheats its defenders toward the two tight ends, leav-
ing the backside running lanes wide open for the taking. We
like to take control of the pulling right guard before the snap.
Once the ball is snapped, we use the Sprint button to get him
quickly out in front of the running back. The receiver lined
up on the left draws his man deep down the field, leaving
only the free safety for us to deal with. We can pancake the
smaller defender, and the running back has plenty of open
field real estate ahead of him.
Shotgun-4WR HB Mid Draw
This is a good draw play to run in third down passing situa-
tions when the defense is thinking the offense is about to air it
out. The quarterback drops back in the gun as if he is going
to pass, but as the defense closes in on the quarterback,
he hands off to the halfback. Don’t hit the Sprint right away.
Instead allow the blocking to develop and then look for the
best hole to run through. Once the halfback gets to the line of
scrimmage, hit the gas. Expect 4-6 yards if you call it against
the right defense.
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