Slide Protection: Can you trust it?

[jfsolo]

It's been working really well for me in NCAA, but then I have also altered the sliders to affect the whole dynamic. With pass rushing on 75 and pass blocking on 60, when I make the right read on the direction of the blitz my linemen always slide over and get a hat on a defender, if the numbers are even, someone has use one of the moves to get free. No one ever come through untouched.

Default settings may be another story, but with slider tweaks, I have total confidence in Slide Protection.

[N51_rob]

Quote: Originally Posted by LBzrule

Clint described it in an interview. I think people are reading this wrong. I'm not saying slide protection is new. I'm saying the 4 man with the back side tackle in big on big is new.

Yeah, this is new. I know that in Madden 12 if you slid the protection say to the right side your LT would leave the end unblocked as the whole line would shift and the end would have a free run at your QB, unless you changed a RB/FB to block to that side, or you moved the pocket and got rid of the ball quickly.

[chi_hawks]

i thought line sliding was in the last few years games?

anyway, until the line interaction is completely redone, with a physics based engine, its a crapshoot.

[poster]

I haven't and don't plan on playing NCAA, but I hope they worked on improving it for Madden. That was awful, and just as bad was the HB morphing over without even knowing the DT was there and the DT getting suctioned into the block.

Good article and video, LBzrule.

[LBzrule]

Quote: Originally Posted by chi_hawks

i thought line sliding was in the last few years games? anyway, until the line interaction is completely redone, with a physics based engine, its a crapshoot.

Hopefully this will be the last time I'll need to clarify. I'm not saying slide protection is new, I'm saying 4 man slide with the back side tackle in big on big protection is new.

[LBzrule]

I think the worse thing the video shows is that the Center and LG do not slide to the side I told them to slide. Doesn't make sense and without a developer (programmer or producer) explaining things we are left thinking that things work a certain way.

[at23steelers]

Quote: Originally Posted by LBzrule

Clint described it in an interview. I think people are reading this wrong. I'm not saying slide protection is new. I'm saying the 4 man with the back side tackle in big on big is new.

Please become a game changer, you're definitely a top 3 poster on this board!!

[Senator Palmer]

Quote: Originally Posted by Feldman011teen

I believe slide protection has been on this game since 2005? I read nothing prior to release of them enhancing this feature. In fact this site criticizes the line play. I use it all the time. Its better than not using it. Lots of time counters won't work b/c the line play a.i. sucks.

Slide protection has been in Madden since 05-06 - can't remember what year exactly - but it didn't make it into next gen until Madden 09, and when it did it sucked because as another poster broke down if you slide your line left, then the backside end on the right would come completely free. What's been "enhanced" is that the backside tackle now stays home and picks up the blocker.



To answer the OP: I haven't played NCAA beyond the demo, so I haven't picked up on the problems that LBz broke down, but I really liked the way it was done from what I saw for the very reason that I could trust the backside defender would be picked up.



@LBz, I've got a few questions after watching the vid.

1. Was "slide right" the correct call against that play and front? When I say right call, I mean in Madden terms. Was slight left/right designed to combat 4-3 stack OLB Fire Man, or would "pinch" slide protection have been the better call here? I know that's usually my call whenever I see a blitz coming in any of the A or B gaps. I'll only slide right or left when there is an overload or pressure from the C gap? Could that be the reason the blockers were "confused"?

Also, in real life terms, when would a "pinch" protection call be used? I know usually when the A gaps are threatened, anywhere else?

2. Front Observation:

Quote:

When we look at the Madden screens and video, just like the diagram here, the Left Guard is not covered although there is a one technique shade (this may play into keys to look for how to slide your line that I might cover in a later article) that might throw off the blocking. I’m not certain. With a slide-right call, the linemen should be looking to the defender to their right and checking gap responsibility right. The left tackle is big on big so he should take the RE.

I was wondering if you could touch on some of the "keys" to look for that you've uncovered playing around with it, because looking at the video on your first play, you shifted the line away from the 3 tech. For me, from what I've observed over the past few years, I've gotten in the habit of never sliding my line away from the 3 tech. It just always felt like I was leaving the backside open to a free rusher (usually the 9 tech). Would the outcome of the play on the vid have been different if you slid left to the 3 tech?

I know that in real life, protections are usually changed by keying the linebackers. When I play Madden, I've always done it by keying the defensive line. If I had the game I could answer this one myself, but in so many words, is there a way to get this tool to function reliably by using a Madden-based formula instead of a real life one, because from what I've seen, the offensive/defensive lines are still tied together, so basing protections off of real life movements may be a useless at this point?

[LBzrule]

Senator, that's probably the big problem. I tried to use what I thought would be used in real life. I did try sliding to the left and the DT still came in untouched. I should have put that up too. That's the reason why I wrote the article because no matter which side I slide to the DT came in untouched so it was like well what am I supposed to do here, just go base? That's the thing I do not like. I sorta stumped. I like sliding to create a "zone style" protection and if I need to move it is easy for me to make an adjustment and set my QB up behind the sliding Guard and if I need to take off I will. Makes it much easier to do that. But it seems like slide protection is not meant as an option for base protection.

I'm not for sure. I diagrammed what I would do against every 4-3 front, Nickel Normal and Dime Normal and had great success out of Pro and Singleback Slot blocking seven man pass rushes. I'm not ready to publish that just yet because I want to go ahead and do 3-4 as well. I think it's going to be different because the 3-4 has a NT in 0 tech.

[footballfan41]

It's always been broken, if u look at the play before u pick and see where ur line is moving n blocking, you will see that the linemen slides anyways, it's flat butt broke, don't work at all....it's like when u move a te to the other side of the line, he don't block it's like he was not told the play....just comes down to the maker of the game....EA...ops I'm sorry they will patch it I forget they fix everything wt a patch....you pay $60 and play it tell them what's broke n they send out a patch, till some is happy and EA can claim they got the best football at Xmas and it sells like hot cakes....