****Updated Posts 12-15-16****

Budget Running Offense

Budget Passing Offense

Budget 4-3 Defense

Budget 3-4 Defense

 

Like I said in my last video, gold studs will be added each week so this list through promotions like Football outsiders and Team of the Week amongst others. So this list could look very different in February. But anyways, I’m going to try and give you the best options at each position for different styles of gameplay, whether that is run heavy or pass, 3-4 or 4-3, a mobile QB or pocket passer and other various styles.

And before going forward I want to say thank you to Muthead for having all these stats.

I’m not sure yet if I want to maximize my style bonuses as those styles over 90 get +5 to certain stats.

Without further ado,

QBs:

Pocket passer: There are a few different players you want depending on your play style. But there isn’t much that is more important that throw power for a pocket passer. Because when you are in the pocket and looking at routes between zones, every moment is important once you decide to throw the ball. Don’t let the defenders have any more time than necessary to defend the pass.

But if you are the guy who likes to throw between zones in the middle of the field I like Matt Stafford here. Because his middle accuracy is good and that’s where a lot of your throws will take place when you need to thread the ball. Joe Flacco is another good candidate if you like to throw the ball a little deeper.

If you primarily throw short routes, I’d say get a mobile QB, but for a pocket passer go with Philip Rivers because his play action is so high and you can fool LBs to biting on it easier if you like to call the play action.

But mobile QBs –

Best compromise for throw short and medium – Go with 76 overall Marcus Mariota – 88 speed, 90 acceleration, 90 throw power, 90 short, 91 medium. But don’t chuck it deep or take a hit from a defender with him due to 71 throw deep and 54 carrying.

If you want someone with better carrying and throw power, there’s 84 overall Cam Newton. Unfortunately, his accuracy stats aren’t that good so stick with Mariota if you want a running QB.

RB – I think you should have Dri Archer as a back to run your tosses.

75 overall Jerick McKinnon can be your number 1 running back.94 speed, 88 elusiveness and 93 Carrying.

84 overall LeSean McCoy is interesting due to his 99 agility but he’s pushing the envelope for budget as he’s over 9k on the Xbox One and higher on the other consoles. And that’s why you won’t hear me recommending golds 74 and under. Because they are rare due to the way packs are set up and set that require them.

Another rotation stud would be Todd Gurley’s 77 overall. 91 speed, 91 truck, 91 carrying and all around solid other stats. He’s the poor man’s Adrian Peterson.

Your short yardage back should be 79 overall LeGarrette Blount to use in FB dives or goal line work. 250 pounds with 96 trucking.

Receiving back – 77 reggie bush and 78 Shane Vereen are your men here. Get whichever is cheaper. And if that guy drops some balls for you, quicksell him and buy the other.

Full back – I use them primarily for blocking and sub in my receiving HB or TE when I want to catch passes. Since all the run blocking FBs are expensive right now, I suggest going with a TE and putting him there. Ben Hartsock and Lee Smith are good, but they are slow for tosses. Craig Stevens is your best bet here. But remember Hartsock and Smith, I’ll reference them in a bit.

Tight Ends – Two types, receiving and blocking.

Receiving – I like a guy that is fast with high route running and obviously that has good hands. Being tall doesn’t hurt. The best receiving TE is Jordan Cameron.  But take a second look at Tyler Eifert because his catch in traffic is good at 90 if you find your TE gets hit a lot as he catches the ball.

Blocking – remember what I said earlier about Ben Hartsock and Lee Smith. Get them to block. But to get the best run blockers, you want Tackles that you can sub in here at TE while those TE’s are subbed in at WR. The tackles you want are King Dunlap 81 overall who has 94 strength and 96 run block. The other tackle you should get is Greg Robinson, who I know is a 73 overall, but he’s very cheap for a low overall gold. He has 96 strength, 90 run block and 85 accel and 75 speed.

a guy who is a jack of all trades is Delanie Walker, can run block at 81, can catch a little, decent route running for gold TEs, and has decent speed at 85. He’s short though so he can’t go up and get the ball like a tall TE could. He’s a good guy to get to sub out a WR on runs.

LT – Now we get to the big uglys (like yo mamma) Luckily EA made linemen smarter this year. But I base my offense around running the ball, so we’ll start there. I don’t pull my tackles like I did a little in 15 on counters because they don’t seem to be as effective as last year. So we will throw impact block out the window. I look first at strength, then run block, pass block then end up with awareness and speed stats. But more than any other position, LT needs to be well balanced.

My guy at this position is Taylor Lewan. 90 strength, 91 run block, 84 pass block, 85 accel, 76 speed which is really good for a LT. His biggest problem is his low awareness. But I’ll see how much that effects his output

Pass blocker – Trent Williams – 74 speed, 80 acceleration 91 strength, 91 pass block, 82 awareness.

LG – You have to decide if you want a puller or a straight ahead grinder here. Both inside and outside runs are valuable this year. Gabe Jackson 77 overall is a great straight ahead grinder. But Ronald Leary might be the best run blocking, both straight ahead and pulling guard you can get. 95 run block, 89 impact and 88 strength along with average speed at 63 and 76 acceleration.

But the guard I’m going to get is Orlando Franklin 84 overall, It was a tough decision between him and Kelechi Osemele, but I’m going with the guy who has higher strength, speed and acceleration. He has a lower impact block which hurts, but unfortunately nothing is cut and dried better when you are looking at guys around the same overall.

If you are a pass first offense, I’d still use Orlando Franklin.

C – I don’t pull my center except on screens, which are powerful, so speed is needed but not high on the list of needs. I want a strong center to deal with defensive tackles. I really like Corey Linsley, but I’m concerned about the awareness. I might just take him but see if screens start to suffer with his low awareness.  Corey Linsley also has the second highest pass block of gold centers so stick with him in that scheme too.

RG – Alex Boone 83 overall is awesome. 90 strength, 93 impact block with 85 awareness. He’s not that fast and has low stamina, but it’ll have to do. If you can go out and get Brandon Brooks, do, he’s 85 and looks great with the exception being stamina.

If you pass first, get David DeCastro’s 84 football outsiders version. 96 strength, 91 pass block. His awareness is a little low at 78 though.

RT – I like a mauler here. I’m going to go with Phil Loadholt 82 overall until I see him get beat around the edge too often and need to invest in a faster tackle. 95 strength, 92 run block, 85 aware, 81 acceleration. Only 80 pass block, but we’ll see if that’s a big problem.

For a pass blocking RT, get Lane Johnson, although his stats aren’t that amazing like Zach Strief, he doesn’t have the debilitating problem of being slower than a snail. Lane has 80 speed and 87 acceleration compared to Strief’s 54 speed and 70 acceleration. I think Strief would be beat around the edge to often. Lane Johnson only has 87 pass block and 86 strength, but he does have 92 run block and 89 impact block. There just aren’t that many fast pass blocking right tackles that are any good.

Wide Recievers –

If you are a run first scheme, you probably want to sub in a TE in for the WR in the direction you are running on each play. But if you don’t want to do that, your number 1,2 and 3 WRs should have excellent run blocking. The guys you want are Anquan Boldin, Michael Floyd and Donte Moncrief. Alshon Jeffery is another solid choice.

I would suggest having James Jones Team of the Week or Mike Evans on your team as a player that can beat man press coverage. Mike Evans would be good to beat the coverage then go deep for the jump ball because he’s 6’5.

That James Jones 83 overall also has amazing catch in traffic at 96 so he can be your possession guy to catch 3^rd down passes if your TE is being usered effectively by the opponent.

If you like to run WR screens or just want a shifty WR to catch the ball short and run well, juking and spinning out DBs, get Tavon Austin 75 overall. 95 speed, 98 agility, 94 elusiveness, 94 spin, 97 juke move. He’s also a good kick returner.

But if you want the Madden 16 cheat code at WR, get Breshad Perriman. Many offenses right now are based around sending him deep and having him out run the defense. He’s very expensive though.

But if you are a pass first offense, do you throw it down field? In the middle or short? Or a mix?

Keenan Allen has a 95 route running. I wish it was 96 because of the feet chop on post routes, but it is still amazing. Maybe look at him for a precise middle passing game.

Martavis Bryant offers a nice blend of height and speed. 6’4 with 91 speed. Okay catching stats on him.

Those are my gold studs for now on offense.

Please let me know if you have any others.