Some new updates to the zone coverage. I've rewritten the algorithm, so let me know your feedback - does it look better? Anything strange happen? (2030 week 8)

Zone playbook installed.

I know I'm new to this league and haven't really seen much. The things I notice the most being to much of a factor is the play familiarity. It seems like the whole defense goes into slow motion and it's almost guaranteed 20+ to 80 yard play. Also the blocks are held downfield for the duration of the whole play. OL are making up to three blocks on one play. Also average rbs are breaking long ones to the house on average like A. Peterson in his prime would do. Once they are in the open they seem to be gone, a lot to do with the play familiarity being a factor also.

I have only watched a few games , my two since I joined and around three other games.

I've noticed that too, I'm going to study some more film and work on solving that. The recent changes have swung the favor to the offensive side too far.

A radical idea would be just to set play familiarity to 100 or 0 for all players on all teams and see if there is actual parity. We all know that offenses gain play knowledge (both individually and as a team) a LOT faster than defenses gain play knowledge (7 seasons running basically the same defensive plays? you get 50% play knowledge as a team).

But I don't think play knowledge is the real problem here. For me the problem has been, why is there so much open field? And why are LBs so non-existent in the game now? I looked at the stats from the first 5 or so seasons of MFN-1 and LBs were getting 100-150 tackles a year. Now a good LB may get 100 if he's REALLY lucky. And the "best" LBs in the league are going to average 60 or so. What I've been seeing is that LBs are getting sucked up into the block more than the OL is coming to the second level to make the block. ILBs should be playing 5 or so yards off the LOS, move laterally until the RB cuts, and then pursue to the hit. ILBs in the game are playing 2-3 yards off the LOS most of the time, especially if they are in M2M and immediately taking pursuit angles to the RB and getting eaten up in blocks. Or getting caught in situations where the OL is already blocking one player and ends up "blocking" two or three as the LBs all converge on the same spot. The WLB is the only LB that plays close to his talent level because, I'm almost certain, he plays in space most of the time and doesn't get sucked into blocks because there is not a blocker near. WLB is the only position worth having an LB above 70 overall unless you are going to treat your MLB as an extra DB in the nickle defense.

Since zone coverage has been really terrible for so long, most people resort to playing a lot of M2M unless you just want to get run over. So I see the issue as compounding. Not enough good defensive plays, bad player alignment, not enough lateral movement, players getting sucked into blocks, and finally (my favorite rant) poor tackling. I think that physical weight + speed + strength all need to be added to tackling skills. It's obnoxious to watch 190-215# RBs ping pong off of 240-260 pound LBs that hit them at full speed. The only way I've found to counter this at all is to only look at LBs that have 90+ tackling.

In short, if LBs played better, running stats would probably be more realistic. Right now, if the safety doesn't get the RB, he's gone.

Well Linebackers are killing it in the sacks department as of late. Defensive ends are pretty much the players that are non-existent atm. The top DE (at least listed as a defensive end) has 6 sacks and isn't even in the top 12.

I think a small boost to the pass rushing + speed attributes should go into effect for defensive ends. Either that or slightly turn the strength of blocks by O-Lineman down as the offensive line is overpowering the D-line nearly every play.

After more than a calendar year of being under pressure EVERY SINGLE PASS PLAY, I'm perfectly fine with the OL actually blocking to its potential. I wish the interior OL would block BETTER.

You have to remember we're only half way through the season. DTs and LBs blitzing up the middle are getting all the stats right now, but some DEs (Jennings is listed as an LB but plays DE) are still racking up numbers. If we double the average number of sacks that elite DEs are getting they will still be double digits at the end of the season. That's perfectly reasonable OL and DL play.

What this will do is expose the problems in pass defense since QBs accuracy won't be artificially deflated anymore.

+1

I've always considered tackling to be the #1 requirement for a LB.

After all the complaining you've done about missed tackles (or LBs not getting enough tackles), I am pretty surprised that you don't.

I don't mean that to sound rude, but I know it does. I can't think of a more pleasant way to say it right now.

No worries. I consider tackling the number one requirement for LBs as well. But I still think that a LB with good speed, strength, and intelligence should be an OK tackler with say 50 tackle. Right now, I cringe when I have to put an LB on the field that has less than say 75-80 tackling unless he's a nickle LB playing coverage only.

The complaints that I have mostly involve my LBs with a high tackle rating having so many tackles broken.