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Madden 20 Cycle Recap / Madden 21 Hopes

by Brees4TheWin9 | 5 years ago | 1 Comments

Hey RedZone! 

Our tenure with Madden 20 is beginning to come to a closing. The final seasonal draft is tomorrow morning, I'm on AP for the remainder of the cycle, and Astin is adding more rings to an already expansive collection. The RedZone had to endure the pains of Brandon Beech winning a Super Bowl, as well as celebreate when Caveman broke the streak of NFCCG losses and won a championship. Needless to say, it has been an eventful cycle that reminds us how strong this community is, as well as how strong it will continue to be. 

I wanted to contribute, (as more should), in a fashion that goes beyond chat and getting wrecked in Overwatch for the enjoyment of my fellow league members. I wanted to look at what made the Madden 20 cycle special, as well as my hopes for what will happen with Madden 21 coming soon. 

Anyways, I hope you enjoy, and let's get into it. 

Madden 20 Recap

A New Team Draft Format

I genuinely believe that this was the best way to begin working towards the next cycle. Last summer, a new idea was put into action as we took into account the amount of league activity and sent each respective coach 5 contracts. The contract offering system was randomized, and it mixed up divisions and opened doors to more parity within the RedZone. There was no possible way that divisions would end up the way that WE wanted them. From Adel's number 1 draft choice of the Arizona Cardinals, all the way to Brandon's fortune of accepting a contract with a stacked Patriots team. We saw divisions like the AFC North offer a chance to newer users to make some noise and come into their own. There were also divisions like the NFC West where I would not have a prayer in winning 6 games. This draft format was an excellent addition to the league, and I am excited for the Madden 21 team draft. 

 

The Unexpected Beech Super Bowl Run

There is no chance in hell that any RedZone member could have predicted the outcome of the first season. Disturbingly enough, the run of a lifetime happened in the postseason of a Tom Brady led Patriots squad. After fighting off some strong AFC opposition, the Patriots went on to play against the New Orleans Saints under Moji. If I was a betting man, I was going all in on Moji. I felt as if the lights were too bright for the Patriots under their new leadership and that it would be a blowout. As to my surprise, like many of you, the Patriots pulled off the craziest run in recent memory as the Patriots were crowned. I'm sure we will be hearing about it for the remainder of this league's existence, but it would be difficult to write a recap article without that highlight. 

 

Breaking the Streak - The Terrance Reid Story 

Caveman is a RedZone veteran, and has been to several confernce championship games in his time in the league. When he accepted the offer from San Fransisco to become their next head coach, many were hoping for him to bring a trophy home with his favorite squad. He dominated the NFC West in the early stages of the cycle, with multiple playoff appearances and oppurtunities to accomplish something not yet seen. This 49ers team was stacked from top to bottom with a fierce running game, and a strong defensive front to break opposing defenses. The 49ers fought through adveristy and defeated the Kansas City Chiefs under Coach Ernest in Season 56 to become a Super Bowl champion. The league was hoping for this day to come, and it finally did. Coach Porter then returned to the big game once again to play the Jaguars under Coach Sm(zero)kes. Despite the controversey surrounding the Jaguars franchise, Smokes had won his first Super Bowl with an asterisk next to it. Once again, Caveman returned to defeat Coach Astin and the LA Chargers to win his second ring. This was a massive highlight to this cycle, too bad he is retiring following this cycle. (not)

The X Factor - Superstar Abilites

I know Silk, you are excited for this portion of the article if you've made it this far. Madden 20 offered fresh gameplay in the way of separating the superstars from the average Joe. The X-Factor players became the hot commodity and were the cornerstone of how GMs league-wide built their teams. There is one particular group that shined among the rest in Madden 20: X-Factor defensive linemen. These guys changed the way that we drafted and played this cycle. Guys like JJ Watt, Khalil Mack, the Bosa's and many m0re wrecked havoc on offensive lines league wide. We saw 50+ sack seasons from several players, needless to say, that is quite disgusting. I have 100% enjoyed the implemented system of X-Factor/SS players and I hope that EA will grow from their mistakes in balancing them. With that being said, each GM had repeated chances to go get one. Even Adel gave up all that he owned for Khalil Mack from an imprisoned Bears team. Important to note that OP O-Line are incoming. 

There were many things that made this cycle one that we will not soon forget. These in particular are what come to mind, but there are countless others that made it something special. Astin won more Super Bowls, we got Roc and Ramesu back, and many more awesome things that we will never forget.

On a final note, this article would be incomplete without mentioning a dear friend of each of us. Michael Miles, also known as Corn, brought a unique energy to the RedZone that will never be forgotten. His humor and love for this community has changed the fibers of what this league is about, family. He will be dearly missed, and we were lucky to have him here. 

Again, thanks for reading this, my Madden 21 cycle predictions / expectations are coming soon.