General Concepts

Question 1

A Gap

Answer 1

The gap in the offensive line between the center and the guards is the A gap. There is one to the right and one to the left. This is the fastest way to the QB since it’s right up the middle.

Question 2

Audible/Audibling

Answer 2

The act of coming to the line and then changing your play. If you call something in the huddle and get to the line of scrimmage and realize the defense is doing something different than you expected, you want to call an audible. This will allow you to change your play to something you think will work better. You can set up to five audibles before the game to make sure you are ready for any situation.

Question 3

Blitz

Answer 3

On offense, the defense may look to blitz you by bringing more defenders towards your QB than you can block. On defense, you blitz by rushing more players at the QB than your opponent can block. This leaves your coverage vulnerable, but you may force the offense into a bad decision or get a sack.

Question 4

Block a Halfback

Answer 4

Blocking a halfback is done by putting a player behind the line into a blocking hot route. This will help if you sense a blitz coming at your offense and want him to stay in and block.

Question 5

Blue Route

Answer 5

This is a “block-and-release” route, which tells your offensive player (whose route is blue) to help block before releasing out on his route for a pass.

Question 6

The Box

Answer 6

The area on defense before the snap where the defensive line and LBs line up. Looking at “the box” can help you decide if the defense is defending a run and has “eight defenders in the box” or not.

Question 7

Bunch Set

Answer 7

Three players stacked tightly together on one-half of the field makes a bunch set. A bunch is great for flooding certain areas of the field. An example is Ace Bunch.

Question 8

Check Down

Answer 8

To dump off a short pass to the halfback or last option on a play, especially after seeing that your other options are covered.

Question 9

Chew Clock

Answer 9

This new setting in the Play Call menu allows you to run off additional seconds on the clock in between snaps. This speeds up the end of a game when the score isn’t close.

Question 10

Clicking onto a Player

Answer 10

This is the act of switching your player mid-play to control someone close to the action. “I clicked onto the WR and tried to make the catch.”

Question 11

Concept

Answer 11

A specific set of routes that work together to beat a specific defense. For example, a mesh concept is having two crossing drag routes on a play.

Question 12

Depth Chart

Answer 12

The area of the game where you can set your lineup. Access this by pressing the Pause menu and you can set which players play where.

Question 13

Draw

Answer 13

This is a run play that makes believe the offense is passing. The QB drops back and the receivers start to run routes. Once the defense is fooled, the QB hands off to the RB, who looks for open running lanes.

Question 14

Dropping a Lineman

Answer 14

Placing a defender on the line of scrimmage into a zone assignment. This is most common with a zone blitz play.

Question 15

Empty Set

Answer 15

A common formation with an empty set is Shotgun Empty. The backfield is “empty” because there are five WRs in on the play.

Question 16

Flat

Answer 16

The area of the field near the sideline in line with the line of scrimmage. The most common term is a “pass to the flat,” which means a short pass to the HB who is running towards the sideline from out of the backfield.

Question 17

Flood

Answer 17

When you send more receivers into a certain area of the field than the opponent has coverage. One example is Four Verticals against a Cover 3 defense. You have four receivers downfield and the opponent only has three defenders deep

Question 18

Formation

Answer 18

The formation is how players line up before the snap of the football. There are offensive formations and defensive formations. Singleback and Shotgun are offensive formations, for example.

Question 19

Horizontal Passing Concepts

Answer 19

Attacking the field with a short to medium passing game that uses safe throws to keep the chains moving. This offense lacks the big plays of a vertical passing game but should yield a higher percentage of completed throws. The mesh concept is a horizontal passing concept.

Question 20

Hot Route

Answer 20

Before the snap, you can change any of your players’ route assignments to one of eight pre-set routes based on his position. If you read that the defense is weak in a certain area, look to call a hot route or use multiple hot routes to create a new play on the fly.

Question 21

Hurry-Up Offense

Answer 21

After a play you can call your players back to the line of scrimmage without going back to the Play Call screen. The last play you called will be selected and the defense won’t be able to substitute. This up-tempo offense can be used to tire out the defense and keep them off balance. It is also known as a no-huddle offense.

Question 22

Item Binder

Answer 22

In Madden Ultimate Team, all of your items can be found, organized, and filtered in the Item Binder.

Question 23

Juke

Answer 23

Use the right stick to have your offensive player make a move to fake out the defender.

Question 24

Line of Scrimmage

Answer 24

A horizontal plane where the ball is spotted right before it’s snapped. This is where the linemen blocking the defense take their places.

Question 25

Motion a WR

Answer 25

Before the snap, you can highlight an offensive player (WR, TE, or HB) and have him move to a new position. When the blue circle is underneath him, use the D-pad to move him to a new position. This can create new formations and forces the defense to watch where you move your player.

Question 26

Option Run

Answer 26

A play where the QB can either hand off the ball to his teammate or keep it for himself depending on what he sees with the defense. Also known as Read Option.

Question 27

Press Coverage

Answer 27

When press coverage is called, your defensive back will stand close to the WR and play physical at the snap. This will force the receiver to use his hands to get off the jam at the line and can throw off timing with the QB. The danger is that if the WR can get free, he will often get good separation from the defender. This is also known as bump-n-run coverage.

Question 28

Packaging

Answer 28

Using packages at the Play Call screen with the right stick can sub specific players into the game for special situations. For example, the Dual HB package will take out the FB and place another HB into the game at his position.

Question 29

Pistol

Answer 29

This is a unique formation where the QB takes a shotgun snap but the HB still lines up behind him. You’ll find the Pistol in the Redskins playbook, for example.

Question 30

Play-Action Pass

Answer 30

Play action involves faking a handoff to the back to try to fool the defense into thinking it’s a run. The QB still has the ball and looks to throw.

Question 31

Quick Audible

Answer 31

Before the snap, you can quickly audible to another play if you read that the defense is weak against something. You can call a quick pass, deep pass, play-action pass, or run from any formation by using the right stick in a specific direction.

Question 32

Read Option

Answer 32

An option run in which the QB either hands the ball off to his HB or keeps it. The QB must “read” the defender and make a quick decision!

Question 33

Screen Pass

Answer 33

Screen passes are most often used when facing an aggressive defense. They look to hit the HB near the flat and try to get the offensive linemen out in front to block.

Question 34

Set

Answer 34

Once you select a formation, the set is how your players will align within it. For example, 4-3 is a defensive formation, and then Over Plus is the set.

Question 35

Shotgun Snap

Answer 35

Any formation where the QB lines up 4–5 yards behind the center, who snaps the ball to the QB in the air. This increases chances for bad snaps and most commonly is used with formations that lean heavily towards the pass. The QB catches the snap and doesn’t have to backpedal, so he is all set up to throw.

Question 36

Slide Protection

Answer 36

Before the snap, you can tell your linemen to slide left, right, or pinch into the middle. This will help them pick up blitzers if you sense them coming from a specific area.

Question 37

Strafe

Answer 37

On defense, strafing will square your hips to the line of scrimmage and give you better control of your player. You will not be able to move as fast when strafing.

Question 38

Swat

Answer 38

Having your defender try to knock the ball down rather than go for the interception. He looks to knock away the pass, which gives him more range and can be safer than trying for an interception.

Question 39

Tight Set

Answer 39

Tight sets bring your receivers into the middle of the field rather than out wide as in most formations. This will create a lot of action in the middle of the field and force the defense to bump into each other as they try to cram into a tight area. Shotgun Tight Flex is a tight set.

Question 40

Trips Set

Answer 40

These formations place three WRs onto one side of the field. This forces your opponents to shift their attention towards that side since there are more players on that side of the field. Trips sets are great for flooding zone coverages. Shotgun Trips is one example.

Question 41

Truck

Answer 41

A ball carrier who tries to run over a defender when being tackled is a truck. Trucking is most common with power backs, especially near the goal line.

Question 42

Under Center

Answer 42

Any formation where the QB lines up directly behind the center and takes a handoff directly from him. This is the opposite of a shotgun snap.

Question 43

Usering/User Control

Answer 43

When you actively control a player during a play. Whatever player you use on defense is who you are “usering.” The best players believe they can make more plays than if the computer was controlling the same player.

Question 44

User Catch

Answer 44

The act of clicking onto a WR and holding the Catch button to go after a pass.

Question 45

Verticals Passing Concept

Answer 45

This passing concept looks to stretch the field aggressively towards your opponent’s end zone. Most often the deep pass audible, by flicking the right stick right, will give you this style of play. The most common way to attack the defense is with Four Verticals, which looks to flood coverage deep by sending all four receivers deep downfield.

Question 46

Zone Blitz

Answer 46

The art of bringing pressure from one area of the field while dropping defenders into another. This is a tactic used to confuse the offense.