training

[juggalotusx]

This is a dumb question but week to week what play or who should you train? Every time I do train they wonder what Im doing on the nfl channel. This is all very new to me if you have any tips on this or anything I should know about this game please let me know thanks.
P.S. Why cant madden be like this it would make for a almost perfect game....

[JeffHCross]

Madden's Franchise Mode has definitely started integrating a lot of the features from Head Coach, particularly into Madden 12. So I expect that many of the "favorite" features will eventually find their way into Madden.

As for Training, I find it's best to focus on Gameplans and pick the three I'm most likely to use in the course of the game. It seems like if you choose to train an individual player, more often than not they'll wonder what you're doing. I'd reserve that for mid-season additions to the team (when they're probably severely lacking on the playbook).

[SwimsWithPhins]

I base my training on what plays I want to increase playbook knowledge of and ignore the NFL Channel that seems to only approve if you choose "Gameplans."

[SwimsWithPhins]

In fact, come to think of it ... in my first franchise, there was a strong correlation between approval of my game planning and losing the game. So much so that I began to dread having my gameplan approved.

[ebongreen]

Much like SwimsWithPhins, I train what I expect to use against the opposing team - but rarely actually bother using the however-many "power-ups" I have. *sigh*

I talk about game-planning in some detail here. There are also other entries in the thread - search it on "game-planning".

[BrnwsBucksFanNC]

I go through the starters playbook knowledge and work on increasing it. I dont see any benefit from having them learn a play the starters already have mastered. I dont bother with the game plan thing since I never use it anyway. The few times I would use "boost top plays" it would end up being a bad play for me.

As far as the NFL Channel announcer goes, he doesnt know much anyway about what goes on at my practices, they are closed to the press

The comments seem too random to me. I guess it helps that when I first started playing the game I kept the sound off because I cant stand the repeating coaches comments.

[Byron Yatch]

Preseason
I only choose one offensive and one defensive rookie to train based on who has the highest LEARNING stat. If Im versing a better defensive team I train my offensive rookie more that week and vice versa for a team with a better offense.

In the regular season, week 1, I almost always work on rushing the passer, focus on run blocking and pass blocking. I do this because football is a war in the trenches and you wont get out alive if your men up front cant make it easier for the guys behind them.

After that, I choose based on 2 things. What kind of defense or offense I expect to verse. For instance the pats will get 2 defensive gameplans from me, blitzing and covering and whatever offensive option I think will give me the advantage(shotgun quick or standard pass plays).
If Im versing a great defense like the steelers, I dont want to run so I work on the pass twice, maybe the oline in general or pass blocking ifIve given up too many sacks recently. That and whatever pass setup will work best against them(usually shotgun passes as they run mainly 3-4)

Also, I choose my run gameplans based on where I think my opponent is weaker, inside or outside, or pitch if you cant do either of those, so you can get way outside of their blitzes.

The other thing I use to differentiate which gameplans I choose is what my play knowledge is at for those types of plays. Like if my best pass plays are all in the 40%'s already, Im not gonna choose improve pass plays or work with qb/wr/te or ol because its just gonna work on plays I know too well already and use too much. Instead I'll pick quick standard screen shotgun or playaction passes, based on whichever I think need to be learned the MOST.

If you notice you start getting the same 5 plays, even when you're just doing quick or standard or screen or shotgun or playaction, that means you personally need to find a type of play(standard pass, pitch runs, etc) thats working for you in a game and start picking unlearned plays in that type. You're hoping to get 5 new plays to work in that game, so when you choose that style of pass/run to learn again that next week they will practice/learn those plays.

Ie, you want to learn new standard pass plays so you choose unlearned plays that are under standard pass during a game one week, then the next week you choose to gameplan that type of play. In this case you would learn standard pass plays. In others you may want to learn more pitch plays so you pick a couple in situations they SHOULD work and then game plan them the next week to actually practice and learn them.

One last thing, your coordinators will never practice(or even call in a game) ANY play you've stolen or created IF YOU HAVE NEVER called them in a game yourself.

So say you stole or created 5 new screen plays, but never once tried them in a game. If you try to gameplan screens, you will only gameplan the ones in the original playbook you chose to start with. I know this because i have stolen and created(simple creator) screens but not run them in a game before. When I tried to do screen gameplans, it only tried to learn 2 out of the 7 screen plays I had. The 5 I added were not practiced because they were never tried in a game before.

Same goes for defense like combo coverage plays or dime man coverage plays you steal or create when you run a 46 defense(they arent in the 46 to start with). If your original playbook doesnt have any combo coverage plays(usually quarter defense), and you add some but dont ever use them in a game, you wont learn any of the plays you've added if you try to gameplan that type of play.(At least not until you pick those plays in a game)

[Rx3]

Quote: Originally Posted by Byron Yatch

One last thing, your coordinators will never practice(or even call in a game) ANY play you've stolen or created IF YOU HAVE NEVER called them in a game yourself. So say you stole or created 5 new screen plays, but never once tried them in a game. If you try to gameplan screens, you will only gameplan the ones in the original playbook you chose to start with. I know this because i have stolen and created(simple creator) screens but not run them in a game before. When I tried to do screen gameplans, it only tried to learn 2 out of the 7 screen plays I had. The 5 I added were not practiced because they were never tried in a game before. Same goes for defense like combo coverage plays or dime man coverage plays you steal or create when you run a 46 defense(they arent in the 46 to start with). If your original playbook doesnt have any combo coverage plays(usually quarter defense), and you add some but dont ever use them in a game, you wont learn any of the plays you've added if you try to gameplan that type of play.(At least not until you pick those plays in a game)

To add to this, you will need to call the plays you create/steal very frequently if you want the coordinators to call the plays on their own. I just finished season 3 of my second playthrough using the Bills. I wasn't too happy with the performance of the 3 down linemen nickel package plays, so I created a nickel and dime packaget that used 4 DL. I called the plays religously through the first two seasons, getting the players to master all of them. This past season is the first time that I have seen the plays pop up regularly in gameplan training and in gameday play calling by my coordinators.

The coordinators still prefer to call the original plays in the playbook. I plan on wiping those original plays from the playbook completely before training camp starts for season 4.