Picking My Son's Team For Madden 15

            Back in the day, I used to waste way too much time playing Madden. I’d run multiple franchises (one with the Dallas Cowboys, another with me created as a quarterback on a crappy team, and another where I would simulate the entire season and manage all 32 teams) and play on-line (ranked somewhere around 2,100 in the world on PS2 sometime around 2005. As you could guess, I didn’t date much back then). These days, I only have time for one franchise, with virtually every game I play occurring well after my son goes to bed. Speaking of my spawn, he has replaced me as the person created for Madden (it would be a little weird to create yourself when you have a kid), and he’s already had a very successful virtual career. Let’s recap the stops he’s made.

Madden 11 = After failing to win a Super Bowl in his first three seasons, he piloted the Buffalo Bills to six straight titles before I ran the team into salary cap hell by trading players for draft picks after signing them to new contracts (true story… I’d never gotten that far into a franchise before, so I didn’t realize how the cap penalties worked yet. Needless to say, we only trade players on expiring deals now).

Madden 12 = Arriving in Seattle a year before Russell Wilson did in real life, my son dominated with the Seahawks. Seattle was the most complete team I’ve ever constructed in Madden.

Madden 13 = Taking his talents to Kansas City, Jamaal Charles was the most dynamic runningback my son got to play with during a rookie season.

Madden 25 = My son took over the Jacksonville Jaguars, which was extra fun because after one year I moved the team to Los Angeles and renamed them the Aftershocks. We’re into the sixth year of this franchise, and the Muir to Dez Bryant connection is lethal.

            We’re already looking ahead to Madden 15, and I want to figure out who my son is going to play for next. Here are the things we are looking for when we are trying to produce the best Madden franchise experience.

-         The quarterback situation should be awful. We don’t want to replace an established superstar (my son will not be replacing Tom Brady this year), a player a team has invested in as it’s franchise quarterback (sorry Rams fans, we don’t get the infatuation with Sam Bradford either), or a young quarterback drafted during one of the previous three drafts (Oakland would’ve been a slam dunk for this, but had to take a Carr brother in the second round).

-         The rest of the roster should be pretty shitty too. The more positions I have to reload through the draft or free agency, the better.

-         A stud rookie wide receiver or runningback would be nice.

            Today we’ll share our top-5 teams that were considered, with the number one team being the place my son will suit up for on the virtual gridiron.

5. New York Jets

QB Situation = Geno Smith is going into his sophomore campaign, and Michael Vick was brought in to push him
Why They Aren’t the Team = Of recent early round quarterback picks (recent being within the last three drafts), Geno appears to be the one with the least stability in terms of support from his own team. If he was in his fourth year, we probably would make the move to replace him.

4. Arizona Cardinals

QB Situation = Carson Palmer lost the ability to see defenders lurking in the flat shortly after joining the Raiders, which is sort of a problem.
Why They Aren’t the Team = Arizona is a little over qualified for my son’s services after winning 10 games last season. While it would be fun to throw to Larry Fitzgerald and Michael Floyd, we don’t want to start off with things being too easy.

3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

QB Situation = Tampa signed journeyman Josh McCown, and still has second-year QB Mike Glennon on the roster.
Why They Aren’t the Team = While not as stout overall as Arizona, getting to throw to Vincent Jackson and rookie Mike Evans would be ridiculous in a rookie season. Doug Martin also is a guy whose talents are well suited for Madden, so we’d be piling up some easy Super Bowl wins very early.

2. Houston Texans

QB Situation = Passed on taking Johnny Fucking Football first overall, and are weirdly content with rolling into 2014 with Ryan Fitzpatrick as their starting quarterback. Case Keenum is still around, and the team used a fourth round pick on Tom Savage.
Why They Almost Were the Team = Houston was the worst team in football last season, and even with using a mid-round pick on a quarterback, it’s unlikely their long term starter is on the roster.
Why They Aren’t the Team = Despite being so awful last season, they are still just two years removed from winning the AFC South. J.J. Watt leads a talented defense (we like to start our franchise mode with a defense that puts us in early holes), which with a little fine-tuning, would be too Super Bowl caliber for me in Madden.

 

1. Tennessee Titans

QB Situation = I think Jake Locker just hurt himself again, and we’re still more than two months away from playing real games.
Why They Are the Team = Locker is in the last year of his rookie deal, and has done nothing to establish himself as the QB the Titans need to build around. Furthermore, their starting runningback is a rookie (Chris Johnson is wearing a Jets uniform now), and while there is some decent talent at wide receiver, there isn’t a dominant player to make things too easy in year 1. Lastly, the defense is mediocre at best, and they are shifting to a 3-4. We’re not terribly excited about it, but my son will be leading the Tennessee Titans for the foreseeable future in Madden 15.

2012 AFC South Preview

            Here’s the AFC South, aka “the worst division in football”.

4. Jacksonville Jaguars

2011 Record = 5-11, Third in AFC South

2012 Schedule = @ MIN, HOU, @ IND, CIN, CHI, BYE, @ OAK, @ GB, DET, IND, @ HOU, TEN, @ BUF, NYJ, @ MIA, NE, @ TEN

Franchise Players = RB Maurice Jones-Drew, DT Tyson Alualu, LB Paul Posluszny

Key Free Agent Acquisitions = WR Laurent Robinson, CB Aaron Ross
Potential Impact Rookies = WR Justin Blackmon (Oklahoma State) 1-5, DE Andre Branch (Clemson) 2-6

Outlook = Blaine Gabbert or Chad Henne will be the starting quarterback, they took a punter in the third round of the draft, and there's a great chance their best player could hold out for a good portion of the regular season. Maybe we’ll write more about this team when they move to Los Angeles.

Ceiling = 5-11

Floor = 0-16
No Credentials Prediction = 2-14

3. Indianapolis Colts



2011 Record = 2-14, Last in AFC South

2012 Schedule = @ CHI, MIN, JAC, BYE, GB, @ NYJ, CLE, @ TEN, MIA, @ JAC, @ NE, BUF, @ DET, TEN, @ HOU, @ KC, HOU

Franchise Players = WR Reggie Wayne, DE Dwight Freeney, DE Robert Mathis, S Antoine Bethea

Key Free Agent Acquisitions = DT Cory Redding, S Tom Zhikowski
Potential Impact Rookies = Andrew Luck (Stanford) 1-1, TE Coby Fleener (Stanford) 2-2, TE Dwayne Allen (Clemson) 3-1

Outlook = Has there ever been a more under the radar number one draft pick than Andrew Luck? Thanks to all the hoopla over Robert Griffin III, Luck has quietly gone about his business in Indy. His stellar performance in his first preseason game seemed to remind folks that he, not Griffin, was the top player selected in the 2012 draft. If he’s anything close to the “best college prospect since Peyton Manning”, it’s not outrageous to think that this team can be competitive. Sure the offensive line still stinks, and the defense is still a work in progress, but there are still veterans from Manning’s best teams that will not let the team quit on their young quarterback. Don’t expect a surprising playoff run, but look for the Colts to begin sowing the seeds for a successful 2014 and beyond.

Ceiling = 8-8

Floor = 4-12
No Credentials Prediction = 6-10

2. Houston Texans



2011 Record = 10-6, First in AFC South, Lost in AFC Divisional Game
2012 Schedule = MIA, @ JAC, @ DEN, TEN, @ NYJ, GB, BAL, BYE, BUF, @ CHI, JAC, @ DET, @ TEN, @ NE, IND, MIN, @ IND

Franchise Players = QB Matt Schaub, RB Arian Foster, WR Andre Johnson, T Duane Brown, DE J.J. Watt, LB Brian Cushing, CB Jonathan Joseph

Key Free Agent Acquisitions = LB Bradie James, S Alan Ball
Potential Impact Rookies = Whitney Mercilius (Illinois) 1-26

Outlook = Houston overcame a season ending injury to Matt Schaub and season-long hamstring troubles for Andre Johnson to win the franchise’s first division title and playoff game. The offensive line is strong enough that it doesn’t matter whether Arian Foster or Ben Tate is carrying the ball. With a healthy Johnson (which could be hard to ask for, he’s already had hamstring troubles in training camp) this offense could return to it’s 2009-10 level of production. My worries aren’t with the Texans offense, but their defense. Mario Williams left (for a ginormous amount of money) for the Buffalo Bills, leaving Houston without one of the ten best defensive players in the league. For Houston’s defense to maintain their high level of play from last season, J.J. Watt or Brian Cushing needs to fill that void. Color me a pessimist, but I don’t see that happening. 

Ceiling = 12-4

Floor = 7-9
No Credentials Prediction = 8-8

1. Tennessee Titans



2011 Record = 9-7, Second in AFC South

2012 Schedule = NE, @ SD, DET, @ HOU, @ MIN, PIT, @ BUF, IND, CHI, @ MIA, BYE, @ JAC, HOU, @ IND, NYJ, @ GB, JAC

Franchise Players = QB Jake Locker, RB Chris Johnson, WR Kenny Britt, T Michael Roos, DE Derrick Morgan, S Michael Griffin

Key Free Agent Acquisitions = G Steven Hutchinson, LB Kamerion Wimbley
Potential Impact Rookies =WR Kendall Wright (Baylor) 1-20

Outlook = Tennessee has more question marks than your average team. Will Jake Locker take the reigns at QB and raise the Titans to another level? Will Chris Johnson return to the form he showed before he was paid a significant amount of money? Will Kenny Britt stay out of jail? If the answer to all three of these questions is yes, Tennessee could be a surprisingly tough opponent for teams like New England, Chicago, and Green Bay. I’ll buy in on Locker and Johnson, which should be enough for Tennessee to take a weak division.

Ceiling = 11-5

Floor = 5-11
No Credentials Prediction = 9-7


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Click here to read about the AFC North
Click here to read about the AFC West
Click here to read about the NFC East

Click here to read about the NFC South
Click here to read about the NFC North
Click here to read about the NFC West