Warrior General Games

While I know there are a variety of guides on "How to build a DT", I'm more interested in determining the optimal set up for a 3-4 NT as they are quite different from a 4-3 DT in "the real world". In a common 3-4, the Nose Tackle is the "rock" of the defense. It is not a glory position that will rake in many stats, and the NT will also get the fire beaten out of him almost every game. With only three down linemen, he will be double-teamed on almost every down while simultaneously being responsible for clogging both A-gaps. This means the NT has to be larger than the average DT, stronger than the average DT, and yet be nimble and aware enough while this is happening to try to clog those gaps. If the NT can't hang tough, the D will be eaten alive with inside runs.

On pass plays, the typical 3-4 Defense does not call for the NT to be a source of pressure on the QB as opposed to him simply trying to get double teamed as often as possible and protecting his LBs so that they can be the stars of the game and fly to the QB. This means the 3-4 NT is nearly exclusively a run defender / block eater.

That said, if you are looking for the optimal 3-4 NT, I would expect that this puts the attributes in this order:

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Tier 1:
Strength - The 3-4 NT lives and dies to simply get double teamed and eat the O-Line blocks so the LBs don't have to. This by itself means STR has to be massive in order to have any chance to stand his ground against multiple O-Lineman.

Tier 2:
Agility - This isn't to help the NT "get off a block" so much as simply getting him to be able to move to clog the appropriate A-Gaps on a run whilst being double teamed. Raw strength and size trumps this, but it is still important.

Minor Importance:
Tackling - While it is great for the 3-4 NT to make a tackle on an inside run, ultimately all we really need him to do is to jam / clog up the running lane while getting double teamed and slow the runner. If he can consistently jam up the running lane (regardless of making an actual tackle) and slow the runner a step or two, he has arguably done his job perfectly and the rest of the team will eat the RB alive.

Vision - This is only needed to the extent that it helps the NT determine the correct A-gap to get to. I would think 30-40 might be plenty.


Unimportant:
Speed - With the primary responsibilities simply limited to getting double teamed and moving a step or two to either side to deal with the A-Gaps, raw speed seems to be of very little importance, in my opinion. The 3-4 NT is not expected to be zooming to the QB, but instead simply engaging the O-Line to protect his LBs.

Needless to say, the Pass Rushing skill tree would never even enter the picture as I've described this.

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Now this may be how an optimal 3-4 NT works in the "real world", but this is a game so I am not certain how well it translates. The problem with this notion is that most players *want* to see their guys making sacks / tackles. Nobody wants to have a guy who is good at "getting blocked" or "shielding LBs", so people tend to focus more on agility, speed, and tackling to help them make these plays.

So I'm in the process of building the optimal 3-4 NT slow build and looking to focus solely on STR and AGI (probably 2:1), minor investments in Tackling / Vision, and almost nothing in Speed. Given the above considerations (an NT that simply serves as a block eater / A-Gap stuffer), how well do you think this would work in this game?

And while I know there are many of you with NTs playing in a 3-4 who are not set up like this, please don't take this to mean "your NT isn't optimal". Again, this is just me wondering how well the real world 3-4 personell qualities translate into this game.

I thought that decent speed might be helpful to maximize the use of agility. I think speed between 30-40 should be enough to cover the A gaps quickly.

it's been done... by me and countless others. It won't really start to pay dividends until people build 3-4 DE's also.

Yeah, nobody is saying "wow, this has never been done before". The question is "does this real-world analysis of an optimal 3-4 NT hold true in GLB"? It may be that an optimal 3-4 NT in GLB is quite a different beast for reasons unknown to me.

true, it might be better to have really high agility so he can out-maneuver his man and get in the backfield, not just clog it

i don't see how clogging gaps has anything to do with GLB... yes, i agree that it works in the real world, but in THIS world they run right through your dot

Originally posted by shylock
i don't see how clogging gaps has anything to do with GLB... yes, i agree that it works in the real world, but in THIS world they run right through your dot, if you suck.


fyp

Might be a silly question, but how should 3-4 DE's be built? I am thinking about creating 6 man 3-4 D-line with slowbuild players.

Originally posted by Kyyberi
Might be a silly question, but how should 3-4 DE's be built? I am thinking about creating 6 man 3-4 D-line with slowbuild players.

You need a lot of str on the line. If there is only 3 guys there you need that much more.

if you take str up first, stopping at 68 will net you about 80 base str by L40. taking it up to 74 will net you 84 strength.

i would think 80 base is plenty (on the DEs)

Originally posted by Kyyberi
Might be a silly question, but how should 3-4 DE's be built? I am thinking about creating 6 man 3-4 D-line with slowbuild players.Again, I'm only speaking from the stance of a common, "real life" 3-4. Whether or not this holds true in GLB is debatable, I'm sure:

- In a 4-3, the DEs are the primary contributors to QB pressure and tend to be the glory-hogs where sacks go. In contrast, a basic 3-4 casts the OLBs as the "sack stars" of the game. On any given down, the offensive line won't be able to tell which OLB will be blitzing, making blocking assignments a little more confusing.

- To this end, the DEs need to be bigger and stronger than the average 4-3 DE in order to engage the O-line more frequently than a 4-3 DE would (in other words, a little more like a DT). Likewise, with only 3 on the line, each DEs is responsible for run support in the B/C gaps, meaning they need to be very tough "in the trenches" against the run with no other linemen assigned to help share those gap responsibilities.

- While they do try to pressure the QB some, they are more interested in shielding the LBs from the O-linemen so that they can fly in without issue. Obviously if you're more interested in going toe-to-toe with the O-Line fatties to protect your LBs, you are more concerned with getting very strong players as opposed to very fast / elusive DEs.

- In GLB terms, I think the optimal 3-4 DE would have a reduced need for Speed / Agility, a higher need for size and Strength, and a larger focus on run support skills than pass rushing skills. They really only need to be somewhat competent in pass rushing, but excellent in run support and standing strong against the O-line.

Originally posted by shylock
i don't see how clogging gaps has anything to do with GLB... yes, i agree that it works in the real world, but in THIS world they run right through your dot
Any replays I watch tend to show the carriers slow down dramatically when "running through defender dots" unless there is a gross mismatch or the defender is pancaked. But I confess that I am not very savvy about the AI behind GLB, so maybe I'm wrong. If your players are essentially ethereal when blocked, that's definitely important to know.

running back runs right through his own blockers too... there goes the "clog the middle" idea... i do give this game credit though, it's getting better

If you want to clog the middle, you need real high tackling so you bring down the ball carrier even when you are engaged by a blocker.

Well, I am going to make them today.

Any difference on LE/RE? Now that the game has blind side for QB, should RE be more of a pass rusher than LE?