EA has added quite a few new formations to Madden NFL 09. One of my favorite is the Shotgun Flanker Close formation. The reason I like this formation, initially, is because it offers a spread alignment on one side of the line of scrimmage, and a bunch alignment on the opposite side of the line of scrimmage. This offers several options when coming out of the huddle. Because of my affinity for the term 'Brangilina' for my favorite Hollywood couple, I decided to coin this formation (actually, this principal of spread / bunch combo) the "Bread" set. That's Bunch + Spread = Bread. Here's what it looks like:
The "Bread" set has two wide receivers lined up to the left of the OL, in a spread set. On the opposite side of the LOS you see two receivers lined up in a bunch set. This offers better spacing for the offense, and can create more mismatches with motion. Take a look at the different motion options available for this set.
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In this example, you can see that we highlighted the far outside left receiver. In the image to the right, we put him in motion and he lines up to the inside of the receivers on the right. This gives us a trips bunch set on the right side of the line of scrimmage.
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Here you can see that we sent the receiver lined up in the slot to the left side in motion. This receiver stops in a spread set to the far right of the formation. Now we have a bunch and a spread alignment on the same side of the field.
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When the receiver lined up on the inside right goes in motion, it leaves you with a spread look to the left of the line, with a lone receiver to the right of the offensive line. The receiver to the right is lined up in a bunch set, which gives great spacing when the ball is lined up on the right hash.
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The outside, right receiver is the most versatile in this set. He can move in motion both inside and outside. This allows for more unique looks. Here we have moved the outside right receiver toward the touchline. This gives us a true spread set.
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However, here we have moved the receiver in motion toward the inside. He stops just inside the receiver to the left. Again, this gives us great spacing if we're on the right hash. Let's take a look now at a sample play where we can take advantage of this "Bread" set.
Shotgun Flanker Close 'Bread' - Stick
In the example above, we are running the Stick play out of the Shotgun Flanker Close formation. You can see the receiver assignments in the image to the left. Notice in the image to the right, we can see that the defense is in a man to man defense. As in Madden NFL 08, it seems as though reading man vs. zone before the snap can usually be done by seeing where the defensive backs line up as they break the huddle. If the defender lines up directly in front of the receiver, it's going to be man to man defense.
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In the first example, we going to show this play against no bump. You can see in the image to the left that the defense is playing a few yards off the line of scrimmage. This indicates that bump and run coverage is likely not on. Now, in the image to the right, we have sent the far outside WR in motion toward the inside. Notice how the receiver is directly behind the inside receiver. It is at this point we want to hike the ball. This causes confusion for the defense as they aren't sure who to guard.
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As you can see, the receiver initially lined up on the outside has come off the line of scrimmage clean, and the defense was confused. This leads to several yards of separation and an easy completion. This is the main reason teams in the NFL use the bunch sets. They are very confusion to defend against and often lead to quick, short passes being wide open.
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The throw has been made and the receiver turns up field for a quick 12-yard gain. As you can tell, this will be quite frustrating to defend against, and will likely require a zone on the outside of the field. Now, let's take a look at how this same play works against the bump and run coverage.
Shotgun Flanker Close 'Bread' - Stick (against bump and run coverage)
In the image to the right, you can see we're running the exact same play. However, in the image to the right you can see that the defense has move close to the line of scrimmage and is going to attempt to jam the receivers. This is called bump and run coverage.
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Again, we hike the ball as the receiver is in motion and directly behind the inside receiver. As our WR breaks to the outside, look at the defender. He's anticipating the WR to be moving across the middle because of the receiver's pre-snap movement. However, our receiver has cut in the other direciton, leavin the defender far behind the play.
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As our receiver moves to the outside, you can see the defender is now trying to recover. As we make the throw, you can see that there is at least five yards of separation between the receiver and the closest defender. This reception goes for a quick 12-yard gain.
Conclusion
There are several new formations this year in Madden NFL 09. However, it seems like each year there are a handful of formations that find themselves as the most popular. I anticipate that this new concept of creating bunch and spread alignment from the same set, the Bread concept, will be extremely popular. When you get your hands on Madden, try it out to see how you can effectively create a dynamic offensive scheme.
Subject: Madden 09 New Shotgun Formations 
