This year Madden 24 special teams are big, so much so that special teams alone can win you games. One game of head to head I played recently, the opponent won the game simply because he recovered 3 out 4 onside kicks.
Here is the best way to kick the onside that gives you the best odds. I’ve tried many different ways, and after finally figuring out how that guy was so successful here is what we came up with.
How to Onside Kick & Best Tips for Madden 24
The set up goes like this:
Choose Strong Onside kick, then kick it sky high (triangle or Y), next move the left stick (aim) slightly back towards your team (you will see a guy on the sideline, try to aim it right before you get to his foot), then kick it to about 80% to 90% power (inside the blue marker but not max). This should pop the ball up high into the air. What it should look like if you did it correctly is, the ball will be high pointed by the receiving team behind the receiver on the front line. When your team collides with his, the ball could pop out and then try to scramble to recover it.
How to Kickoff & Best Tips for Madden 24
This year any kickoff has the chance to go all the way. The blocks are so good this year that even a average kick returner could look like Deion Sanders or Rod Woodson back there. Past years you could short kick it to the full back, but in Madden 24 the fullback is replaced with a wide receiver, making that a none attractive choice also.
You don’t want to give the other team a chance to return the ball, so your bet is a bit of keep away. To do this choose middle kickoff, then do a regular kick (not sky high or squib), aim the kick all the way to the left and aim it down. If done correctly the ball should go directly to the end zone one and then strait out of bounds before the returner has a chance of getting to the ball. If he does get the ball use the guy closest to when you kick off, then run strait towards him staying near the sideline (about 3 to 5 yards away), once you get to around his blockers turn inside of the middle of the field which will force the receiver to take it back towards the sideline where he should get minimal gain.
How to Block Kicks & Best Tips for Madden 24
Field goal kicks were possible to block at times in past Madden games, but this year it seems like they are a lot easier. What you want is to pick the farthest outside blocker (he will have an a number – above his head), tap and hold the sprint button (RT or R2), don’t hold it down and don’t just tap, you want to tap and hold for a brief second (kind of like doing a touch pass).
When the ball is hiked if you do this correctly you have a good chance of jumping the snap and getting into the back field to block. If you did it correctly the controlled player will sprint full fledge in a round about motion, continue to hold the sprint button and press dive (Square or B?) when close to the kicker.
How to Return Kicks & Best Tips for Madden 24
To give yourself the best chance at returning the kickoff, first always wait for your opponent to pick their kick off, you never want to be caught off guard if they decide to do an onside kick and you are not matched up correctly.
First try return middle, most of the time people tend to kick a strait kick into the end zone. I would suggest to change the camera to zoom out all the way (this is done by pressing up on the directional pad before the kick off), the reason it’s good to zoom all the way out is you can see the blocks develop all across the field. I like to choose one of the front return men before the kickoff, take him and move him up about 20 yards in front of you and primarily to one side slightly (keep him in the middle still), when you catch the ball don’t hold down the sprint button yet, start to one side (left or right) keep in that direction for about 7 to 10 yards, then move back to the other side and watch for your blocks to develop. Play off of your blocks to and a lot of the time a big hole will open up to free you
Hopefully this gets you better prepared to win on special teams.
