Playbooks
Field Goal Return
At a Glance
Overview
Field Goal Return is a special teams set inside the Special formation, and it operates on the opposite side of the ball from every other grouping in that formation. Where Field Goal, Extra Point, Punt, and Kickoff sets put you in a scoring or possession-change role, Field Goal Return puts you in the block-and-return role. The only play here is Fg Block Return, so there are no route combos, no hot routes in the traditional sense, and no play-action shells to work through. Your job is pressure off the edges and a live returner behind the play in case the kick comes up short or gets tipped.
Personnel is handled automatically by the game: your best blocking-unit defenders (typically high Block Shed and Jumping guys along the interior and edges) plus a designated kick returner deep. There is no personnel group to swap in the traditional sense, which means the leverage you create comes from user control rather than from formation manipulation. Move your user to an edge blocker and time the snap to get vertical faster than the wing can set, or take control of the returner and read the flight of the ball for a return opportunity on short attempts.
The concepts this set enables are all situational rather than schematic. Long field goal attempts (52-plus yards), backed-up kicks with wind, and kickers with low Kick Power ratings are where Fg Block Return actually generates value. On a blocked kick that stays behind the line, any defender can scoop and score. On a short kick that falls in the field of play, the returner is live and the opponent's coverage unit is spread thin. Recognize that the game engine heavily favors the kicking team here, so treat this as a low-frequency, high-leverage call rather than a default.
Strengths
- Live block opportunity on the edges when the kicking team's wings have low Pass Blocking and Strength ratings, which is common on backup-heavy special teams units.
- Blocked kicks behind the line of scrimmage are fully live for any defender, creating instant scoop-and-score chances that swing win probability more than any single offensive drive.
- Short kicks that fall in the field of play give your returner a live ball against a coverage unit that has already committed forward, and the kicking team's field goal personnel are not built to tackle in space.
- User-controlled edge blockers can time the snap and get vertical faster than the AI wing sets, giving you a real path to the ball on long attempts against kickers with sub-90 Kick Power.
- Zero risk to your offensive game plan since this is a special teams call, so it costs you nothing in terms of tendency tells or personnel wear.
Weaknesses
- The Madden engine heavily favors the kicking team on field goal attempts, so block rates stay low even with ideal personnel and perfect user timing.
- No route combos, hot routes, or pre-snap adjustments exist in this set, which means you have almost no way to manipulate the look before the snap.
- Jumping the snap too aggressively can draw an offside or encroachment penalty, handing the opponent a first down and extending a drive you were trying to end.
- Committing your user to an edge blocker leaves the returner on AI control, and the AI returner frequently fields short kicks poorly or takes a bad angle into coverage.
- Against high-rated kickers with strong Kick Power and Kick Accuracy, this set provides essentially no defensive value compared to simply accepting the three points and setting up your kickoff return.
Usage Tips
Save Fg Block Return for attempts of 52-plus yards or against kickers rated under 85 Kick Power, where the kick trajectory is flatter and the ball spends more time in blockable space.
Take user control of an edge blocker rather than an interior lineman, since the edge rush lane gives you the shortest path to the kick point and the wing blockers are the weakest link on most special teams units.
Watch the play clock and snap timing rather than guessing, because a penalty here is far more costly than the marginal chance of a block, especially inside two minutes of a half.
If the opponent is attempting a very long kick with the game on the line, consider controlling the returner instead and playing for the short-kick return, which has a higher realistic success rate than the block itself.
Check the wind indicator and stadium conditions before committing, since a strong headwind on a long attempt significantly increases the chance the kick falls short and becomes returnable.
