The 49ers in Madden

[PGaither84]

I don't have Madden 12, but I may be getting it on the cheep in a few months, or will wait for a new copy of Madden 13. I have enough football games already [Madden 07 on my laptop, Madden 11, NCAA 11, 2k5 and 2k8] that I don't feel the need to drop another $60 yet.

Well, my question is about the 49ers in Madden.

In real life, the team is all about defense. Stuffing the run with the leagues best run defense. They only gave up 3 rushing TDs all year long and only one 100 yard rusher... all while Patrick Willis was out. They may have not given up any had he played all year. So, when I play Madden and I stuff the computer and force it to pass on me, it doesn't feel unrealistic.

Against the pass, they hit hard and jar the ball loose and rush the passer well. Justin Smith bull rushes as well as anyone ever has and Aldon Smith came up half a sack shy of breaking the Rookie record for sacks, and had three in the post season. However, in Madden 11, and from what I have read about Madden 12, it is difficult, if at all even possible to realistically create a pass rush against the AI. The best I have been able to do with my All-madden sliders is to give the computer 0 pass blocking [which is still stone wall!] and user control the RE. The animation in Madden 11 for the LE against the RT is pretty good, but the RE against the LT is really bad unless you user control to force certain angles and time the R-stick moves. This means you have to rely on the AI to play coverage correctly.

Well, given all of this information/opinion, how would you [can you?] play good 49er football in Madden 11/12? The success of the team in real life makes success in the video game feel FAR less unrealistic. Over the last three years [Nolan's last year and Singletary's two years] I have really felt that the team had turned a corner and was close to being elite. Their problem was Coaching. They made a lot of mental mistakes and turned the ball over a lot. This year he 49ers were one of the fewest penalized teams and tied an all time record of fewest turn overs in a season. They lost the NFC Championship game thanks to stupid turn overs.

What would you do in Madden 11/12 to improve the 49ers? how would you play? What is a realistic goal? What is unrealistic?

If the 49ers had gone all the way and won this year, that wouldn't be unrealistic. They WR position is their real weakness, more so with Josh Morgan out. In his first three years, Crabs has been a bust. he was drafted for his route running and reliable hands. He has had stone hands, and last year nearly every one of Alex's picks were bounced off of Crabtree's hands. I'm not exaggerating either. Also, the 49ers receiving core had a TOTAL of one catch for 3 yards on Sunday. The TEs and Backs were the only ones who caught passes from Smith. If the 49ers improve at WR, would it be unrealistic to see them win one or even two super bowls with that team? I don't think so. Would three be too much? maybe... more so when they haven't won one in real life yet... but could they be on the verge of a new dynasty? At least a long term rivalry with Green Bay and Aaron Rodgers [in Madden] where they battle year in and year out for a chance to go to the big dance, much like the Steelers, Colts and Pats had done over the last decade?

Thanks for reading and look forward to your opinions!

[37]

u hit the nail right on the head.....their WR core is pretty weak....Kyle Williams was not a starter in my eyes before last week's debacle so an upgrade is def necessary at that position....Also agreed, Crabtree hasn't impressed me much...As far as how i'd play with the current team, run Gore 25-30x a game and target Davis early and often with PA would be how i'd go about it.....Throw in a few reverses with Ginn, utilize Crabtree in the intermediate passing game (slants, curls, etc.)..****n to set up the pass basically.....As far as expections in Madden goes, i'm sure they'll be a 90 when the final rosters will be released so i'd expect to contend for a few years given the nucleus of the team stays intact....It's just the matter of if u think Alex Smith can take u to the promise land or not

[TNT713]

I don't use the 49ers... But I play against them and they tend to give me fits whenever my opponent plays 49er football.

Frank Gore is a BEAST. If he gets between 15-20 touches its almost impossible to keep him from getting 100+ yards. Mix that with Vernon Davis and it's hard to keep their time of possession at an acceptable level.

I agree that their WR position is the weak point, but since I use the Panthers it's a wash. Our DBs are weak andI have to be careful that Captain Munnerlyn isn't matched against Braylon Edwards on 3rd and long.

Fortunately, I most enjoy close games and the 49ers, played the 49er way, tend to keep games close. Usually, my goal is to force a 4th and 3 or more before they get to midfield and play the field position battle.

Later

[Smoke6]

After the last update, Smith is like drew brees Accurate!

Frank Gore and Kendal Hunter are the premier backs in this game and for the team, you would want to orchestrate you offense completely around them and then play to the pass with short and medium ranged passes here and there.

Defense is STOUT as can be like in Real Life!

Put Aldon in nickel and Dime Packages and thats pretty much it, my record online with them this year is way better than it ever has been previous years. People back out of games on me or they stack the box and get burned on stretched and counters to the outside because Gore and Hunter or so fast.

Vernon Davis and Delanie Walker are like Gronk and Hernandez out there and can be deadly with the right plays as most people will assume you are going for Davis when Walker is just as fast but not out of the gates fast.

Outside of greenbay and the Ravens, 49ers are the 2nd to 3rd best team to use online. Sucks for guys like me who have used them my entire football gaming life!

[TNT713]

Quote: Originally Posted by Smoke6

Sucks for guys like me who have used them my entire football gaming life!

LOL... I'm with you on that one. Been using the Panthers since Madden '97... Sometimes they're good, other times had Weinke and Peete at QB (don't laugh, it could happen to your team).

I applaud guys that stick with their team no matter what. Because of parity in the NFL, every team eventually finds it's way in the best 10 teams to use on Madden (except the Browns... lol).

Later

[Scott]

Quote: Originally Posted by TNT713

LOL... I'm with you on that one. Been using the Panthers since Madden '97... Sometimes they're good, other times had Weinke and Peete at QB (don't laugh, it could happen to your team). I applaud guys that stick with their team no matter what. Because of parity in the NFL, every team eventually finds it's way in the best 10 teams to use on Madden (except the Browns... lol). Later

I remember using Dallas when we had Quincy Carter and Tony Hambrick let's not forget Chad Hutchinson either.


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[LowerWolf]

I always play with the Niners.

After a couple of restarts, I'm 9-3 with them in my franchise. I play with the stock rosters, so they're not as good I'm sure as they are with some of the roster updates.

Defensively, I'm pretty stout against both the run and pass. Both the Eagles and Bucs torched me, but other than that, the D has been solid. Willis is all over the place. I do OK getting pressure. I have something like 28 sacks. J. Smith has some, but Lawson leads the team. Lawson also gets a lot of picks. He's up for DPOY. For realism sake, I should let him go after the season, but I may have to re-sign him.

Offensively, I struggle passing, just like RL. Davis and Crabtree are my main targets. I rarely complete anything deep, but I do OK with Smith on the short passes. I like to put Davis in the slot and have Walker at TE. Gore is a beast. When I was playing on All-Pro, I averaged something like 170 yards PPG with him, and routinely broke off at least one 50-plus yarder. I've tweaked the sliders to make it harder, but still do well with Gore and Hunter.

Ginn has a couple of KO returns for TDs. Almost - ALMOST - broke a punt for a TD.

[LowerWolf]

Quote: Originally Posted by TNT713

LOL... I'm with you on that one. Been using the Panthers since Madden '97... Sometimes they're good, other times had Weinke and Peete at QB (don't laugh, it could happen to your team).

Weinke actually started a game for the Niners a few years ago.