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AMLoB NFC North Review of Madden 18 and Preview of Madden 19

by Ljdubzero | 6 years ago | 0 Comments

NFC North Preview

 

Chicago Bears

 

  • Review of Seasons 6-13: The Bears posted a terrible 46-80-2 in Madden 18 with little to no success outside of a couple of seasons. This team was on the cusp of doing something special in the 6th and 7th seasons of the cycle but choked away the playoffs both times. Looking back there weren’t many redeeming things about the team other than the fact they got rebuilt through good drafting and some ok player development also helped. Tim had this franchise looking like they might be there through his ability to draft but couldn’t quite capitalize on it, missing the playoffs both times by the skin of his teeth. Steitz developed really well but never quite had the great season which is underwhelming given the talent but in a tough division it makes sense. This cycle wasn’t a good one for this team overall and there wasn’t much good that came from it.
  • Preview to Madden 19: Coming into Madden 19 the Bears already have a leg up on last year with Austin taking the reigns on this team after 2 successful cycles with the division rival Vikings. The Bears roster is a really good team to build with so many good young pieces on the team. Austin has always really developed and built his teams well so it’ll probably be another case of him doing the same here. Having a proven user running the show should bode well for a team that struggled so mightily in the last cycle. The Bears will definitely be in the mix for not only one of the best teams in the division but a perennial playoff contender as well.

 

Detroit Lions

 

  • Review of Seasons 6-13: The Lions success in Madden 18 spanned for pretty much the entire cycle with 6 playoff appearances and 4 division titles between 2 different users. The playoff record was bad at 1-6 but no one can deny the regular season dominance with a overall record of 90-38 which includes an 8-8 and 3-13 record in 2 of those seasons. Jarrad Davis proved to be one of the best off ball backers in the league with 3 really amazing seasons and the team as a whole was just really developed well by Snippy and built on by Emmons who will take the team into Madden 19. The Lions had a great madden 18 despite the lack of playoff success which I think was mostly attributed to attrition with injuries. With AP guys on the 1st and 2nd team the Lions proved that they could make it happen, but need to find a way when they need it most in the postseason.
  • Preview to Madden 19: The outlook on the Lions going into Madden 19 is that they’ll be just as successful as they were in the last cycle, if not more. Emmons returning with this team after a great run in Houston that led to a couple really good seasons to end Madden 18 with the Lions. He took the reigns after a down year of inactivity from the team and returned them to glory which he has the opportunity to sustain in Madden 19. His team building skills will be tested though as this roster is older but overall they have some nice pieces. I look to this Lions team to do well across the entire cycle once again.

 

Minnesota Vikings

 

  • Review of Seasons 6-13: The Vikings had a great run in Madden 18 til the inactivity of the last couple seasons. Take out the 3-13 and 0-16 seasons due to the inactivity and this Vikings team was 67-29 with 6 playoff appearances, 3 division titles, 3 conference championship appearances and 1 Super Bowl in their only appearance across the first 6 seasons, that is amazing production right there. The really great thing about this team was how Austin continued to build and develop as he went along. He made this roster into a juggernaut combined with his ability to play and it went very well for him with the Vikings in the cycle. There’s no telling what could’ve happened across the last 2 seasons but I think it’s safe to say that it would’ve been a sight to behold. The Vikings had a very successful run in Madden 18 and looked like one of the best teams in the league in the same space.
  • Preview to Madden 19: Despite the success in the last cycle I have a hard time seeing it continue at least not at the rate it was in Madden 19. New user with a greatly talented roster could be really good but only time will tell. We don’t know much about Spencer’s ability in the league yet because he inherited a terrible situation in Miami that didn’t lead to much production. The thing I will say though is that even though he is in what should be one of the league’s toughest divisions, the roster is still very talented so it’ll be a matter of how well Spencer can build upon and develop talent as well as do the most important part which is play well.

 

Green Bay Packers

 

  • Review of Seasons 6-13: 55-71 is a misleading overall record for this team given they have 3 playoff appearances, a division title and a conference championship appearance. Most of that can be attributed to one user though, and that is Dicey. Dicey turned this team into something that worked for him in the last 2 seasons of the cycle. He overachieved with this team as they were a lowly rated mid 70’s overall and turned them into a team that ended as an 83 overall. Other than the last 2 seasons this team really struggled with a revolving door of users and no one taking the time to rebuild this team from the ground up. Dicey’s ability to play is what helped make this team what it was the last couple seasons which helps the case for this Packers team in Madden 18. There’s no way to tell how it could’ve went if he controlled them the whole cycle.
  • Preview to Madden 19: The Packers have some really good pieces to build on on the defensive side of the ball, and of course on offense you have A-Rod and the crew which is good for early success but not sustained success in Madden. The offense has quite a few older guys and will probably have to be rebuilt sooner rather than later which works in Dicey’s favor because he always molds teams into his style. Looking ahead I think this team can definitely compete in this really tough division and show the league a good time in the process with what could be seen as questionable moves that work out for Dicey.

 

Division Predictions

 

  • Most Successful: I think the Lions will be the most consistent team which makes me believe they’ll be the most successful. This division will have the crown change hands quite a few times as the King of the North, but I think this will be the Lions as the most consistent team.
  • User(s) to Watch: There are 2 users to watch in this division solely because either one could’ve been considered to potentially be the most successful team. The Packers and Bears have good users running the show as well as talented rosters to build and develop. This division as whole will be interesting to see and should definitely cause excitement around that division race.
  • Team That Will Struggle: Although we don’t quite know what Spencer is capable of yet getting a team from the jump that has a lot of talent on it, but this is a really tough division and being the only won that doesn’t have a track record of success yet in the league he just finds himself as the odd man out. He could make a splash though and surprise the masses.
  • Breakout Star: Jordan Howard should be a huge piece to the Bears success and with how well Austin ran the ball with Dalvin Cook last cycle I could see that crazy production being replicated by Howard here. Jarrad Davis could be but I doubt his production from last cycle is replicated.
  • Most Likely to Win a Super Bowl: I believe with the combination of youth and talent that the Bears would be the most likely to win a Super Bowl. It helps that Austin has proven that he can win them before being 2 for 2 between Madden 17 and 18.