During a recent television broadcast of 60 Minutes, Michael Vick told James Brown, “It’s the only way I made it through prison...believing in God.”


When I mentally committed to taking the keys to the Detroit Lions for a season upon purchasing Madden 2010, I was thinking, "If I was going to make it through this, I too, would need a great deal of help from the man upstairs."


After all, I’m investing 45 minutes of my time, for 16 games.* The main reason I play those 16 games is to earn a reward of possibly playing for the Lombardi Trophy.  If I don’t make the playoffs, you could say I wasted my time with the respective team.

Then again, you could say I wasted my time playing a video game anyways. But that’s a conversation for another day.


I’m a guy who loves a challenge: I moved to New York, unemployed, with $2,000 in my pocket. I graduated from college with a degree in Print Journalism, during a time when newspapers contribute as much to society as the Early Bird Special.


But after playing three games with the Motor City Kitties, and going 2-1 with two quarterbacks, I’ve pretty much come to the conclusion that you can make the playoffs with this team. Just follow the guideline of eleven critical steps to take-in no order of importance-and I assure you an 11-5 season (barring the injury bug).


-Throw the ball to Calvin Johnson a lot; but remember to outsmart the defense first.
Everyone who is an NFL junkie knows that Calvin Johnson, a.k.a, Optimus Prime, is a freak and should be mentioned in the same breath of elite wide outs such as Larry Fitzgerald, Randy Moss, and Andre Johnson.


Johnson is a big target to throw to, and he can go get the ball with the best of them in this game. I have had a hard time keeping his receptions under a 20 yard average. Through three games he has shown me that he can make ALL the grabs. He was the difference maker in my week one squeak out win against the Saints, going for three TD’s and 160 yards receiving. Nobody on the Saints can touch him.

But if you want to hit the home run ball against a defense that will allow you to do so in the Saints, you still have to be creative, further meaning, don’t shove curl routes and straight deep balls on 3rd and 10 down Johnson’s throat.

On second and one, however, throw No. 81 the deep ball EVERY time, no matter who you are playing against. The defense in Madden has a tendency to bite on play-action, pump-fakes, and routes with double-moves. If you can buy yourself enough time, Johnson will come down with the big play 90 percent of the time.

Calvin Johnson will win you a game or two, single-handidly. He already accomplished that feat in week one. Just remember, as good as Calvin Johnson is, YOU still have to be 10 percent smarter than the defense. You can’t go through the motions anymore. It’s not Madden ’95-Brett Favre to Sterling Sharpe-anymore.


-Shuffle the offensive line around; they stink at pass protection, but you can run the ball with this team.
In case you’ve actually read this far, I won’t begin to bore you with overly-focused offensive line talk. For those of you who are overweight, nobody appreciates watching an above average offensive line move bodies more than I do. The game is won and lost in the trenches. Just not in the video game world.


Like almost every other position on the team, the Lions have no depth at offensive line. You’ll notice that the starting left guard’s rating is considerably lower than anyone else’s. When it comes to ratings, these are the only positions on the field that I pay a great deal of attention to.  For sake of balance in ratings across the line, I just substituted the backup center, an 80+ rated run blocker, into left guard. Now everyone on the line was 80 or better at run-blocking. I like to run a lot of pitches, counters, and screens, therefore, it helps to have an above average run blocker pulling from his guard spot.


As far as pass protection is concerned, you’re on your own. Or you can pray. They don’t have it.


-Stick with running the 4-3 on defense, even if you prefer the complicated 3-4.
With Ernie Sims, Julian Peterson, and Larry Foote, the Lions have three sound veteran linebackers. But keep your fingers crossed, because it ends there.


I know a lot of Madden geeks like to run the entertaining and blitz happy 3-4, but the Lions simply don’t have four linebackers that should be on the field 75% of the time. They have three. Again, this team is already walking on ice 1/8th of an inch thick when it comes to overall roster depth.  While the linebacker position is certainly a strength on this team, it is not the exception to the underlying theme.


The 4-3 is simple. Simplicity need apply with Detroit.


-Blitz on passing downs and press the coverage while doing it.
You would be amazed how well this works. The third down percentage will go down and the turnovers will increase in this situation. The personnel will obviously dictate which package you should use. I like to run nickel with Detroit because I believe in having your best players on the field (in this case Peterson and Sims) if you can help it, and blitz everyone in the box, including the nickel back. When I use dime, I will often simultaneously blitz the dime backs. This makes life hell on the computer because it NEVER calls an audible necessary for saving the quarterback from becoming a Life Alert Certified Member.


Detroit simply has no pass rushing threats. Where have you gone Robert Porcher? So you have to be resourceful on defense.


-Don’t pay any attention to the player ratings, especially at quarterback; Stafford and Culpepper can both make all the throws necessary.
In 2001, Daunte Culpepper premiered as the Madden cover boy for Madden ’02. A yacht scandal, reconstructed knee, and eight years later the former Pro-Bowler is now a Detroit Lion fighting for a starting job with a rookie.


While he maybe a fraction of his Madden ’02 talents, Culpepper can still move around well enough to make plays. And perhaps even more importantly, he can still throw a deep ball. With Calvin Johnson meeting him halfway, I like the odds.


With all that said, I decided to go with Stafford as my starter, and with the exception of a few brain farting/rum & coke decisions on my end, he has been exceptional.


To this point, I’ve played all three of my games indoors, but I like what I have seen from Stafford’s arm. The rookie’s arm is certainly live, but to my surprise, he’s accurate and mobile (enough) as well.


However, there is a But when it comes to Stafford, although it has nothing to do with his skills: the Lions cannot pass protect. I mentioned it before, I’m emphasizing it now. Stafford went down with a sprained MCL in the first quarter of my win over Washington in week three. This is where I learned two things: Daunte Culpepper is still effective, and I am going to have a hell of a time keeping Stafford healthy this season.


Stay tuned for further details on how to counter one of the team’s glaring weaknesses.


-Use Rookie TE Brandon Pettigrew as your second favorite target, and don’t even waste your time with the No. 2 TE other than for extra blocking.
Meet the next Jason Whitten: Not Will Heller, but Pettigrew, the rookie tight end out of Oklahoma State. He isn’t great at one thing (yet) but he’s good at everything, including run blocking.


The first passing play I called in week one, Pettigrew was my hot read. Running a go route from his spot on the line of scrimmage, and by the time he reached the secondary, he was already behind the linebacker. The safety double-teamed Calvin Johnson, who is lined up on the same side of the field as Pettigrew. This meant Pettigrew, who not only had a step on his man, but also nobody between he and the end zone. This made for an easy twenty yard gain.


Pettigrew could, and should conceivably catch 75 passes. The reasoning? A.) tight ends don’t get any extra attention from the defense B.) Pettigrew has Calvin Johnson, who will get the bulk of the double teams, to ensure single coverage (if any at all) for an entire season, and C.) by utilizing the slew of short, tight end friendly routes in the passing game, this limits the chances of Stafford taking an unguarded hit.


-Get used to the "pro formation," either three wide outs or standard.
I don’t even know which angle to attack this part of the article with first, so I’ll just go ahead and tell you to experiment with it for yourself-with caution, however.
Just remember that Detroit cannot pass protect, so make your decisions a split second earlier than normal. If you can get comfortable with this formation, you can make the defense look like school girls trying to stop it. With Calvin Johnson in the slot, the computer isn’t smart enough to make the adjustment and double team him. Good-night, Irene.


This is the bread & butter formation for a team with pass-catching running backs like Detroit has in Kevin Smith and Maurice Morris. You’ll find that Smith is a do-it-all back anyways, and Morris is too quick for linebackers to cover in the flats.


Back to that cautionary flag, before we move on. Just remember that the Pro-formation exposes the quarterback to limited protection. If it looks like the defense is going to blitz, then don’t hesitate to notify your backs or tight end to pass protect.


-Pick up a realistic No. 2 Wide receiver to replace the existing No. 2 in Dennis Northcutt.
I like to give myself one  free-agent gift when I have a team with little overall talent like the Lions. Dennis Northcutt is the existing No. 2 wide out. I don’t mind Northcutt as a return guy, but I have never cared much for him as a receiver. I felt I needed a dependable guy who could move the chains in a pinch, so I went with Koren Robinson.


I know this is all fiction anyways, but if I can help it, I try to stay away from making free agent acquisitions that are 1,000-1 shots in real life. For instance, picking up Plaxico Burress would have been fun, but it would never happen. Koren Robinson I could see.


Now I have never actually thrown a pass to Dennis Northcutt a day in my life. So if you like him, by all means, keep him. Koren Robinson is one of “my guys” in Madden, like Parcells had Dave Megget and Bryan Cox.


-You will give up a lot of rushing yards, just live with it.

You see Reggie Bush (who looks like Marshall Faulk in this game), Adrian Peterson, Clinton Portis, Matt Forte to start the season.
Not a lot to emphasize here. The Lions have one of the worst d-lines in the NFL. You will give up a lot on the ground. Deal with it. Don’t let it frustrate you into throwing video-game fits. Just concentrate on your game plan, and continue to pray.


-The only position you are deep in is running back. Use your running backs in all phases; especially Kevin Smith, he can do it all.
Kevin Smith will not blow you away with Adrian Peterson-like talents, but like Brandon Pettigrew, he is pretty good across the board of skill set.


Run the ball with Smith 25 times a game if you can. If Smith is getting that many carries, chances are, you will win the ball game.


The Lions don’t take much of a step back on third downs, as Maurice Morris is one of the better novelty backs in the league. He’s quick, he catches most passes, and for reasons I can’t explain, he’s tough to tackle once he gets his wheels in full motion.
I like to bore the defense to death with Smith and Morris, then deliver the knockout punch with Calvin Johnson.


-If you can successfully accomplish all the above, you will make the playoffs if you can win the turnover battle. I lost to Minnesota in week two because of turnovers.
The Lions are simply not good enough to overcome a handful of mistakes in one game. I completely outplayed and outmuscled the Minnesota Vikings in week two, yet they beat me in the last :10 of the game. How? I turned the ball over three times. The Vikings scored three of their four touchdowns off of turnovers. It was that simple, yet that game told me a lot about the Madden 2010 version of the Detroit Lions.


It’s not impossible to make the postseason with a team coming off of a zero win season, but I would still make time to pray to the Madden gods anyways.


*Disclaimer: I play All-Pro level, five minute quarters, no game fatigue (I find I am in the minority with this option, but think about it, it is a 45 minute video game!). Everything else is pretty much default settings.