Madden 15 Draft Class Analysis

[DrDoctor]

I have simmed probably about 30 seasons so far, and have combed through each draft class as I have gone.

I thought I would share my opinions on the strengths/weaknesses of the new generated class system. In general, I think it's mostly a solid function of the game and I prefer it over the custom handcrafted classes from the previous few Maddens. It makes online leagues way more interesting as there are no draft guides to cheat from, and it makes any stud you find very special cause you'll never see that player again in any other franchise.

On to my observations...

QB: Possibly the best position in terms of quality and variation. True studs exist, but you won't see one every year. Good mix of pocket and mobile guys. Well done position.

HB: My least favorite position. You will never find any true physical studs. STR is broken for the position. In the current NFL roster you will find many HB's with 75+ STR.. some well over 80STR even. It's rare to see an HB in a generated class that has 70STR.. in fact, I'm not sure I've seen it. 69STR may be the max. While there are decent and serviceable HB's that come out, the generating formula keeps there from being any true studs. You won't find the next AP, Shady, or Jamaal Charles. 10 years into your franchise most starting HB's will be pretty vanilla, from a physical standpoint (OVR means nothing to me when it comes to HB).

WR: Decent all around. True year one studs are rare, but they do occur. A good mix of serviceable high intangible guys, plus raw physical players. STR is an issue here, as well. You won't find a WR with 70STR, even though plenty of NFL roster guys will. And lots of generated CB's have high STR. Why is the max STR for WR 69, while CB seems to be around 85?

TE: Similar to HB. You can find serviceable guys, but don't expect to find the next Gronk or Jimmy Graham. Mostly vanilla stuff here.

OL/DL/LB: Mostly well done. You can find studs that come with different strengths. Strong guys, fast guys, smart guys, total package freak guys, etc. This accounts for a lot of players, so I'm glad these positions are dialed in well.

CB: Perhaps the most high powered position. Almost every class you can find a handful of future studs. Some need some grooming, some don't. But there's always a good amount of highly physical CB in every class. Again, not sure why CB's get up to 85STR when WR's get 20 below that.

S: A bit vanilla. Don't expect to find crazy physical players here. But overall pretty decent.

-------

Again, overall I think EA did a good job with this. I was worried that it would be a lot more broken than it is. Here's hoping that next year they will tweak some of this and make it even better.

One Last Random Thought: This will sound silly to some of you, but one of my biggest issues with the generated classes are the dreadlocks. For one, they are on SO many players this year. Which honestly, isn't a huge deal. I just wish EA would include player photos of guys with dreads and attach dreads only to those players. There is only one player photo used that has a dude with dreads... and typically that player model doesn't actually have dreads in-game! It really kills the suspension of disbelief. EA, add some more player photos with dreads and make it consistent that only those guys will have them in-game!

[seahawks13]

How does strength play in for WR? Doesn't the rating of release matter versus the rating of press? When talking WR vs CB?

Also strength for the HB? Does it help break tackles? I have a RB that I have maxed out at Trucking and has the every Trait and he seems to run people over often.

I'm just curious. I've done about 12 drafts and found the same things as you. I've had a tough time finding any truly elite TE's and LB's with high speed have been rare. I mostly like speed for my players and they have definitely toned this down this year. HB's almost all come in around high 80's to low 90's on SPD and ACC. Same with WR's.

There are a lot of good CB's. But after the update....it's nearly impossible to get a CB up into a high rating. Zone and Man coverage are 5-6K to once you get in the high 80's to low 90's even with Superstar development.

[DrDoctor]

I am not sure exactly what STR does for RB's.. but when guys like AP and Eddie Lacy have 80-90STR, you assume it has some bearing? Or perhaps it doesn't, which is why none of the guys in the draft classes have above 69? Be interested to see some testing on STR and how it works in different positions.

Agreed about the SPD/ACC of HB's too. I'm not sure you will find an RB that is 94SPD or higher. That, coupled, with the low STR, just makes for a bunch of vanilla HB's whose only true differences are their intangibles.

I've found plenty of fast WR's, though. There's way more speedy CBs.. but there's always one or two wideouts that are between 97-99SPD... and then a handful who are 94-96.

[Sheba2011]

While it does seem to be rare I have found a few AP type RB's in draft classes, not so much his stature but all around beast of RB's. They were actually the only ones that I ever saw taken in the top 10 of the draft. But I have found plenty of Stevan Ridley/Knowshown Moreno types guys that might never put up 2000 yards in a season but will be good 1000 yard backs for multiple seasons.

[nusie]

In my first draft with the Giants, I picked up a HB from Texas that didn't have less than 100yds in his senior year. That translated well to the NFL, as I was able to pick up 1,681 yards (4.8 ypg) and 11 TDs in his rookie season.

So good RB's are out there in the draft.

[tharding16]

I have the same general findings as you after ~10 classes. I did find a stud HB though. Heisman Winner. Had to take him in the Top 10 but he has 95 or 96 speed/acc and all of his intangibles are pretty great now after 3 years. He is sitting at a 95. Won SB MVP last year. All around stud.

I also got a great tight end but it took some game prep and I agree they are pretty hard to find. I like that kind of though, TE is such a dynamic position these days, its a rare skillset to be Jimmy or Gronk, it should be difficult to get player like that IMO.

As for the Linebackers/Tights being slow. I don't really have a problem with that. Linebackers and Tight Ends are slower than WR/HB/CBs (in almost all cases). Linebackers already track down fast wide receivers too often IMO. I think making most linebackers with B or C speed makes the game more playable. They shouldn't be running down a fast WR or RB on a regular basis anyway.

I have had an easy time drafting LBs that have quickly become 90+ but I think that is due to scheme more than anything. I have had an incredibly hard time finding LBs that have good pass rush attributes though.

Overall this is my favourite the draft has ever been in Madden. I do wish they didnt wear goofy equipment (every player wearing REVOs) but its a small price to pay. I hope in the future they give us hard measurables from the combine to make it more realistic though.

[Hawks11]

Easiest to find:

QB
WR
OL
CB

Hardest to find:
HB
TE
MLB
S

[Nuke LaLoosh]

I continue to restart my franchise before really making any progress but one franchise I did make it a couple years in. First draft class had a WR projected 13th. I scouted him heavily. 6'6", 239lbs. Spd, acc, both in the 90s. Superstar progression. Traded up to pick #7 to get him. Guy was a beast. No dreads either.