The Madden Challenge Finals concluded recently, with the winner taking home the cool $100,000 prize. In this tip, I'm going to supply SportsGamer followers the the qb sneaks that I used in Hawaii to get me all the way to the championship game. The reason these types of qb sneaks are so difficult to stop is because the offensive line acts as if you have called a running play after the snap. It's important to have a good offense to go around it, but if you are able to mix in some nice passing plays you can be unstoppable. Another great thing about these qb sneaks is that they are in every playbook, so this tip can apply to everyone.
Console(s)
XBOX / PS2
Playbook(s)
These QB Sneaks can be created with any playaction play where the running back is assigned to go out on a passing route. However, the New England playbook was used in the examples below.
Quick Setup
Step 1 - Come out in any play.
Step 2 - Audible to any playaction play where the running back goes out on a passing route.
Step 3 - Flip the play.
Step 4 - Smart route your running back to change his route to a blue route. (XBOX - Y + running back's icon + right analog stick down / PS2 - Triangle + running back's icon + right analog stick down)
Step 5 - Follower your blockers according to how the defense reacts and which playaction play you have called.
SportsGamer tip: Every other playaction play that you turn into a sneak will provide you with a different blocking scheme. This means that you need to be sure to practice any new plays that you find over and over again until you learn which way is the best to run after the snap.
Play Breakdown
Image 1 - In this image I have put the three playaction plays that I used in Hawaii from the New England playbook. Each play has a potential sneak that is designed to go a different direction. Find the playaction plays that you like the best within your playbook. You'll find that some playaction plays are better than others. However, you can come out in any play you want as long as you have the playaction play you like in your audible.
Image 2 - In this example, I've come out of the huddle in the Strong-I Normal Double Flares play.
Image 3 - You can see that the defense is in 4-3 2 Man Under with two qb contains and a spy.
Image 4 - Next, I audible to the I-Form Twins TE PA Fb Flat.
Image 5 - Then, I formation shift to Singleback Big. You dont have to do this, but this is what I did in Hawaii because in the Singleback Big formation you can't tell when the offense is flipping the play.
Image 6 - I've now taken step 3 of the Quick Setup steps by flipping the play. You will always have to flip the play to perform these types of qb sneaks.
Image 7 - All you have to do now is Smart Route your running back's route and the qb sneak is ready. This particular run works best to the left side of the field, so I like to hot route the receiver on the far right side of the field to slant over the middle to give me another read. Using this tactic will provide you with plenty of running room, but you can also pass the ball if you get into trouble in the backfield.
Image 8 - After I snap the ball, Mike Vick fakes the hand-off to nobody. Meanwhile, your blockers will move foward like it's a run play. You can take off with vick or throw to one of your receivers now.
Image 9 - I run with Vick towards the open area on the left side of the field.
Image 10 - The defense is caught out of position as I use Vick's speed to get to the sideline.
Image 11 - I'm not only able to get to the sideline, but I'm also able to turn it upfield for additional yardage.
Image 12 - The members of the Seahawks secondary finally close in on Vick.
Image 13 - Vick is pushed out after a gain of 22 yards on the play.
Image 14 - I'm going to show you one more example of a qb sneak that I used in Hawaii. This time I'm going to use the Singleback Twin TE PA TE Flood play. First, I come out of the huddle again in the Strong-I Normal Double Flares. Remember, you can call any play as you exit the huddle. The whole key to setting up a successful qb sneak is what you place into your audibles.
Image 15 - Here you can see that I have audibled to the Singleback Twin TE PA Flood .
Image 16 - Again, I formation shift the play to the Singleback Big formation to prevent my opponent from realizing what I'm doing.
Image 17 - I flip the play before the snap and prepare to make my final changes to my receivers.
Image 18 - I have Smart Routed the running back's route and placed both of my outside receivers on streaks. Now I am ready to begin the play.
Image 19 - As soon as the ball is snapped, you can see Mike Vick handing off to nobody once again.
Image 20 - This particular sneak is designed to go up the middle, so we look for the opening and explode through the hole.
Image 21 - Vick continues running upfield with plenty of room in front.
Image 22 - The defender prepares to lay a big hit on Vick.
Image 23 - I would recommend sliding or getting out of bounds whenever possible. Avoid getting your quarterback hit at all costs if you want to keep him healthy for the entire game.
Final Thoughts
Like I said earlier, this a key part of my offense in Hawaii. The three audibles shown in Image 1 were the exact same plays that I used when playing for $100,000. Using these sneaks can make your offense unstoppable, but you will need good passing plays to go along with them to throw your opponent off. Go find some nice playactions to go along with what ever offense you are running to take your game to another level. Remember, only the playaction plays where the running back goes out on a passing route will work. Otherwise, if he is assigned to block on a playaction play, then you will not be able to turn that play into a run/pass option for your quarterback. Head into practice mode to discover how many secrets your playbook still has in store for you.
