Manley at OLB/DE

[StIlLpUsHiN']

I went through some of the threads and didn't see any posts so I decided to start one...

I've been playing the game for a while now and feel like I'm happy with my stars on offense and defense but at times in my base 4-3, 3-4 I'd like to have an extra LB (currently have 2) so I thought why not move Manley back to the OLB spot because I don't normally defend deep passes out of 4-3 or 3-4 so why not add the extra run support. I know there are alot of people that are very picky or well opinionated about substitutions so I thought I'd ask before I got bombarded with negative FB.

He played LB in college at Oklahoma State, and while listed at 6'3 256 (ran a 4.5) he fits the LB mold pretty well, as far as in the NFL I'm sure he took a few snaps standing so will this adjustment be accepted or frowned upon. :confused:

[wolfman23]

I think its fair enough. In fact I think its a very good idea, let me know how effective he is.

Of course, that's my own personal opinion, if however, he ends up getting five sacks a game, the majority of people won't like it. Will you be blitzing manually with him?

[StIlLpUsHiN']

Not so much this is actually to give a third LB on non-passing downs. I don't manually blitz often. Just as a DE a gainst the run he has games where he's invisible, so hopefully this allows him to be a bigger impact and make my defense a bit more flexible, in given situations.

[wolfman23]

Sounds good to me. Like I say, post after a few games and let us know if its a success.

[nyknicks33]

I'm not sure why'd you want to do it. the Rush LB spot in the 3-4 in this game just doesnt function properly.


Ive tried every pass rush LB in that spot and got nothing. I didnt start having success with the 3-4 until I moved the OLB out of that spot and to the strong side.

[StIlLpUsHiN']

I'm not sure why'd you want to do it. the Rush LB spot in the 3-4 in this game just doesnt function properly.


Ive tried every pass rush LB in that spot and got nothing. I didnt start having success with the 3-4 until I moved the OLB out of that spot and to the strong side.


He's not gonna be used as a Pass Rusher in the BASE defenses he's being stood up for Run Support, though now that you all have me thinking I may control him on designed blitzes.:D

[JUIC3D 3]

It looks like people aren't getting the point here.

He is saying that his run defense is weak and that he is putting Manley at OLB to try to improve this.

As others have said, let me no the results of this.

[StIlLpUsHiN']

It looks like people aren't getting the point here.

He is saying that his run defense is weak and that he is putting Manley at DE to try to improve this.

As others have said, let me no the results of this.

Actually moving Manley from DE to OLB to help.:D

[Reed#20]

Actually moving Manley from DE to OLB to help.:D


I used to do this. All I can say is good luck. The way I constructed my team was Manley was the rush OLB and Brazile was coverage OLB and I patrolled the middle with Carson. Another guy I used in Manely spot is L.C. Greenwood. I didn't notice too much of a difference in run defense and pass rush so I gave up on the idea. Although I think having guys like Manley and Greenwood at OLB is more beneficial than any of the OLB's in the game simply because the DE's have pass rush moves whereas the OLB's do not. Another guy I experimented with was Doleman.

[StIlLpUsHiN']

I used to do this. All I can say is good luck. The way I constructed my team was Manley was the rush OLB and Brazile was coverage OLB and I patrolled the middle with Carson. Another guy I used in Manely spot is L.C. Greenwood. I didn't notice too much of a difference in run defense and pass rush so I gave up on the idea. Although I think having guys like Manley and Greenwood at OLB is more beneficial than any of the OLB's in the game simply because the DE's have pass rush moves whereas the OLB's do not. Another guy I experimented with was Doleman.

This is kinda what I'm hoping for.....if at worst hopefully they'll be able to shed more blocks because of the moves they possess. Plus as DE's the can make better tackles, I picked Manley b/c of the Speed Burner attribute, though he is not the only DE I've seen walk down an RB to the edge.:cool:

[StIlLpUsHiN']

Bump**I need more feedback.

[Kdrontle]

You may have to manually use him to get him to react to the run fast enough to be especially successful. The game may lower his awareness given he isn't listed at OLB in the game obviously.

[StIlLpUsHiN']

Hmm thats a good point, I'll keep an eye out for that....I figure Banks and Wilson aren't Run Cov LB's but IMO they are top notch against it on the game, hopefully Manley will have the same carry over.

[Reed#20]

I just discovered a great guy to use manually, you will need some good coverage guys though so that the QB can't have that 1 second then throw. But if you get this guy down at OLB he is pretty good. I'm going to use him in an online game in a second. PM me and I'll tell ya who it is. The one thing I don't like about him though is if you do not use him manually he tends to take a really wide rush to the QB. It's funny because I just used Leslie O neal and he didn't take that wide rush. O'neal is another guy that you can use manually and bring pretty good heat.

[Valdarez]

My guess is that you want to use Manley at LB because he has Speed Burner, and no other LB has that attribute. My question is, would you play other DE/DT's at that position, or just Manley?

[greekstile]

My guess is that you want to use Manley at LB because he has Speed Burner, and no other LB has that attribute. My question is, would you play other DE/DT's at that position, or just Manley?

Derrick Thomas has Speed Burner

[wolfman23]

My guess is that you want to use Manley at LB because he has Speed Burner, and no other LB has that attribute. My question is, would you play other DE/DT's at that position, or just Manley?
__________________


Even though Manley has speed burner, would he not, within the game be slower than the average OLB bearing in mind attributes are relative to position and also the speed/ weight factor?

[Valdarez]

Derrick Thomas has Speed BurnerRight, I meant no other LB at the Bronze level has the Speed Burner attribute.

[nyknicks33]

Even though Manley has speed burner, would he not, within the game be slower than the average OLB bearing in mind attributes are relative to position and also the speed/ weight factor?


Good point. Speed burner is relative to the position. So He may be fast for a d-end, but necessarily have the speed of a LB.

Its like if you tried to use derrick thomas to cover willie gault. He'd get torched.


Still would be interesting to see what results someone has with it. More so for a 3-4 scheme. It would be nice to get something out of that rush LB spot.

[ElGreazy78]

I always wondered how the "awareness" is affected by moving players in this game. For instance, moving a Gold DT to DE on 3-4 downs or moving Lott from FS to SS.

[StIlLpUsHiN']

My guess is that you want to use Manley at LB because he has Speed Burner, and no other LB has that attribute. My question is, would you play other DE/DT's at that position, or just Manley?

No not really I like him as my DE, and I don't really want another LB on my team so on non passing downs I like the extra run support....Speedburner helps because naturally as a DE in the game he isn't as fast but he's been surprisingly effective as my 3rd LB for short yardage situations because he's able to bring down the bigger backs better than my other two LB. As far as using another DE/DT they'd probably be way too slow to be effective, plus most of them are much larger than Manley's 6'3 256lb mold, so it wouldn't make to much sense to try another Lineman there in the Bronze tier, maybe Gold or Silver, but my Gold and Silver spots are locked up because other than the lack of a third LB I'm pretty happy with my team.:D

[Reed#20]

My guess is that you want to use Manley at LB because he has Speed Burner, and no other LB has that attribute. My question is, would you play other DE/DT's at that position, or just Manley?


I use other DE's at that position and they do not necessarily have speed burner. To me the best two guys to use at that position are Chris Doleman and Leslie O'neal. I give them grade A. I tested both of them out last night and their pass rush move sets are phenomenal. Rarely did I ever get stuck on a block. O'neal's best move is the spin but you do not need to charge up to use it. Doleman does everything well. I tried using Greenwood but his move set is not as effective. You can bring some pretty good heat with these guys. Then just make sure you have two good ILB's to cover the middle of the field and two Safety players. One of my teams right now on defense = 3-4 Robert Brazile - WILB, Dave Wilcox -SILB, Leslie O'neal - Sam or Will, Marion at FS and Anderson at SS, Albert Lewis - Field Corner. I had Saleamua but didn't really need him in the middle, I might go back and get him and drop Lewis.

[nyknicks33]

I use other DE's at that position and they do not necessarily have speed burner. To me the best two guys to use at that position are Chris Doleman and Leslie O'neal. I give them grade A. I tested both of them out last night and their pass rush move sets are phenomenal. Rarely did I ever get stuck on a block. O'neal's best move is the spin but you do not need to charge up to use it. Doleman does everything well. I tried using Greenwood but his move set is not as effective.



You know what..im going to give it a try lol

personally I think any pass rusher without a pass rush is move is borderline useless in this game..which is why L.C Greenwood isnt all that effective on a consistant basis.

I like to run the 3-4, but I never put a LB in that rush backer position, because they dont do anything. None of the pass rush LB's have a pass rush move, so I move my Lb that I would have there to the strong side...and let the generic OLB be the one that gets "insta-blocked" I always go with 3 LB's when I play 3-4.

I have a CAP LT with Pass Rush, Speed Burner, Ball Strip, Club, and rip (basically how this dang game should have made DT) and I'm going to see how he does at that "rush LB" spot.

If I get nothing out of that, I'll try sopmeone like Doleman, or O'neil and see what the heck happens.

[wolfman23]

On a similar note I tried Leon Lett at ILB in a 3-4 a while back when I thought teams were likely to run. This was mainly due to the lack of success of ILBs generally.

On passing downs I put him in his natural position. He was pretty effective against inside runs with his size, but not surprisingly not great against anything outside or in the air.

I abandoned the idea after a while but paired with a gold ILB who could cover the middle against the pass and outside runs it might be something I try again.

[StIlLpUsHiN']

Hmm maybe I have sparked some interesst.

[FunkyRezident]

My bet is that clyde simmions and too tall jones would be good at doing this with.
Id be trying it with run cover de's that have size and can rush.
Even a Made up CAP DE tweener . Hmm, good idea as well cuz for me the de's in a 3-4 rarely do anything but block.

[nyknicks33]

Hmm maybe I have sparked some interesst.



Well, it does make logical sense for a 3-4 scheme. The Rush LB is blitzing on virtually every play of the playbook basically.

I guarantee you this though: if it is effective (and it sounds like it has a chance to be)..then someone is going to scream bloody murder and call it cheese.

[greekstile]

I've tried them all, and by far, the best pass rush OLB is Greg Lloyd. I love to rush him from the outside on passing downs out of 3-2 dime formation. I've gotten like 4-5 sacks a game with him, but consistently get at least 2-3, depending.

He doesn't have a single pass rush ability, but don't let that fool you. In real life, he was quite adept at rushing the QB.

[Reed#20]

Well, it does make logical sense for a 3-4 scheme. The Rush LB is blitzing on virtually every play of the playbook basically.

I guarantee you this though: if it is effective (and it sounds like it has a chance to be)..the someone is going to scream bloody murder and call it cheese.


Some people are already calling it cheese lol. I don't care though, I'm trying to develop a scheme that's different than what most people have.

Too Tall Jones is too slow IMO. He has a slow first step. He needs to play off the line. Doleman and O'neal had good first steps. Bethea is more of a guy that you can just let the A.I control and do his thing. I'm going to test Youngblood out later today. But if you want to manually control a guy, Doleman and O'neal are excellent as rush OLB's IMO. Manley, didn't do much for me. He was not as good getting off blocks.

[nyknicks33]

I've tried them all, and by far, the best pass rush OLB is Greg Lloyd. I love to rush him from the outside on passing downs out of 3-2 dime formation. I've gotten like 4-5 sacks a game with him, but consistently get at least 2-3, depending.

He doesn't have a single pass rush ability, but don't let that fool you. In real life, he was quite adept at rushing the QB.


I would agree with this, he's my fav OLB outside of wilcox, for all around versatility.

[StIlLpUsHiN']

Thats why is started this thread, to get an idea (no one has disagreed yet) this way if it turns into an all out CHEESE cry there will be some substance to back it up....But as I've seen here and on the game before if it works well consistently its called cheese. And I am not referring to known glitches or A.I. abuse, just good solid football. Some people think two HB's is cheese, others think 4 WR's, or spread sets are cheese, truth is there really isn't that much cheese, just like people who complain when they stack their D-Line and add 3 legend LB's and sit in 4-3 all game and complain when you go spread or avoid the center of the field....I guess there's no way to appease everyone though. I just want a diverse team that can Run, Pass, defend the Rush/Pass so if that means I have to get creative (heaven forbid I think outside the box) then I will.

[nyknicks33]

Thats why is started this thread, to get an idea (no one has disagreed yet) this way if it turns into an all out CHEESE cry there will be some substance to back it up....But as I've seen here and on the game before if it works well consistently its called cheese. And I am not referring to known glitches or A.I. abuse, just good solid football. Some people think two HB's is cheese, others think 4 WR's, or spread sets are cheese, truth is there really isn't that much cheese, just like people who complain when they stack their D-Line and add 3 legend LB's and sit in 4-3 all game and complain when you go spread or avoid the center of the field....I guess there's no way to appease everyone though. I just want a diverse team that can Run, Pass, defend the Rush/Pass so if that means I have to get creative (heaven forbid I think outside the box) then I will.


well, Im going to try this out this evening when I get home. I'm going to plug him into the the Rush LB spot on my 3-4 squad and see how he does.

[Reed#20]

well, Im going to try this out this evening when I get home. I'm going to plug him into the the Rush LB spot on my 3-4 squad and see how he does.


To me, to get the most effectiveness out of them you will need to control them.

[nyknicks33]

To me, to get the most effectiveness out of them you will need to control them.


That's cool, I control my LB's pretty much exclusively..so it should be fun times if it works well :)

[nyknicks33]

Okay, 2 games with Dexter Manley as my 3-4 Rush LB.

My other 2 backers were Chuck Bednarik and Greg Lloyd
DT-Fridge
FS-Rod Woodson
SS-Nolan Cromwell

went 1-1, first game I gave up 10 pts. 2nd game I lost to Boffa 27-23

I played Dex at the rush spot exclusively, and in his traditional spot in dime and nickle sets.

Not bad. He had 7 tackles and a sack in the 2 games. He wasnt really tested in coverage all that much so I dont have a feel as to how he'll do in zones. I'll also probably move him to the strong side OLB just so I can do more things with him. But so far, it doesnt seem bad at all.

[Reed#20]

I never get a chance to see O'neal's complete stats. Dudes always quit because I don't know. The pressure SEEMS faster and they are throwing it faster. INT's have gone up with Brazile over the middle. Two games 4 INT's for Brazile, 2 for Anderson and one for Marion. But the games were ended mid third. I know O'neal had two sacks for sure, but don't know how many tackles. He had two sacks without me using him.

[nyknicks33]

I never get a chance to see O'neal's complete stats. Dudes always quit because I don't know. The pressure SEEMS faster and they are throwing it faster. INT's have gone up with Brazile over the middle. Two games 4 INT's for Brazile, 2 for Anderson and one for Marion. But the games were ended mid third. I know O'neal had two sacks for sure, but don't know how many tackles. He had two sacks without me using him.


yeah, this was the 1st time I have ever gotten any production out of the rush LB position, and Ive used everyone from Derrick Thomas to Bryce Paup there at 1 time or another.

Its insane in a way, but what else to do? Just sit back and allow that position to get insta-blocked with these crappy blitzing LB's??

[ElGreazy78]

I take exception to this substitution mainly because the player was not used as an OLB during his playing career but honestly it doesn't bother me much anyway because a smart player will know how to counter this. By having a DE at OLB you basically tell your opponent two things: he is a liabilty in coverage & more often than not he will mainly be used to blitz (either run or pass).

[mmasajo]

I just played someone that used Manley as OLB and I ran all over him. Of course I had Sweetness, Rathman and Green tho.

[nyknicks33]

I just played someone that used Manley as OLB and I ran all over him. Of course I had Sweetness, Rathman and Green tho.



That would certainly help :)

[s38s38s]

That wasn't me...I use Manley there and he has made a ton of saves...even got an INT on the Goaline for me last night on a two point conversion...previously I thought he was a waste as a D-Lineman on his own put using him in both positions has really increadse his value on my roster.

[SPLANCH]

that is fair al opt of nfl teams do it to get a better pass rush n 2 stopp the run

[Valdarez]

I think the Speed Burner attribute is going to make Manley better at the DE / LB position. It might not give him the ability to make more plays, but it's going to allow him to be in position to make a play more often. Isn't he the only bronze defensive player to have Speed Burner?

[s38s38s]

I believe he is, the other closest is Otis Wilson with Quick Feet.

[Numbski]

Brian Bosworth also has quick feet. I need to finish my teambuilder (it's down right now, along with the rest of my site at the moment...)