With all of the talk about how the Eagles are going to be the best team in Madden 12, I think that many are overlooking the New England Patriots. Are the Patriots the real Dream Team? There’s no doubt that Tom Brady is the top quarterback right now in the game.  Manning is good but he’s not going to have many weapons on his team this year for you to throw to. Let’s look at why we see the Patriots as a heavily used team in Madden 12.

While teams were making huge trades in the last two weeks, the Patriots quietly signed the anchor to their O-Line in Logan Mankin. After the dust settled some, the Patriots went on the hunt. First they signed Chad Ochocinco. Or will it be Chad Johnson at the WR spot. OchoJohnson will immediately be Brady’s number one target outside. He has the speed and the hands still to be a top receiver in Madden.

Remember the second that anyone thinks about double-teaming Chad, Wes Welker will once again be open in the middle of the field. Running deep routes isn’t going to be a problem with this team. Brandon Tate and Taylor Price will both be rated around 95 speed when the game drops. So now you have OchoJohnson, Welker, and two speed receivers on the outside.

But let’s not forget that the Patriots have one of the best TE tandems in the NFL with Gronkowski and Hernandez. Both of these TEs have great hands, and Hernandez will be carrying a 84 speed. Even if you run dual TE sets you are going to be able to stretch the field. This is an offense that you will be able to put up BIG numbers with this year.

On the defensive side of the ball, the Pats have lost what once got them to the Super Bowl. Gone is the linebacker corp that was among the best ever, and gone is a secondary that that every team feared. Now this team is based on size. The second big splash that the Pats made was picking up one of the largest stars in the NFL in Albert Haynesworth. You could easily pair him up with Vince Wilfork and clog the middle against any team in Madden with only two players. This leaves you the ability to blitz with more players or drop back in zone more without giving either A gap.

With these two players on the field it will be hard for anyone to run the ball through the middle. This is what we are always looking for in Madden, a way to create an advantage on the field. If Haynesworth can regain his mental strength and overcome everything that has happened in the last few years, he could once again be the best DT in the NFL. The Patriots also have X factor players on their team. Wes Welker and Danny Woodhead are two players that can take a simple five yard pass in the flats, and turn it into an 800yard TD. Players like this are a must on Madden teams and many teams don’t have two on their roster. Only time will tell if the Pats go after another free agent, or trade one of the hundred second round draft picks that they have acquired, but I think that this is one of the best Madden teams.

Do you think the Pats will get Madden love this year? Let me know what you think by posting a comment below.

The last few weeks have been crazy in the NFL. The moment that the lockout was lifted, all 32 NFL teams went into high gear signing players. This has truly been one off season that I will always remember as what used to take months happened in just two short weeks. I couldn’t turn ESPN off because every thirty minutes another big deal was going down. There are many teams that completely changed their roster in just two weeks.

I woke up today to realize that it is August 1st. With all of the NFL trade news happening, it just hit me that Madden is coming out less then a month away. Having witnessed all of the blogs and talk coming out of EA Sports over the Internet over the last month, we just can’t wait to get our hands on Madden 12. I wanted to go over a few key dates for this month, so you guys are ready for release day.

On August 9th EA Sports will be releasing the Madden 12 Demo. This year’s demo will feature the Green Bay Packers and the Chicago Bears. The game will take place at Soldier field. With some of the signings the Bears have made in the last two weeks, you are going to want to play with both of these teams. The game will be set to five minute quarters, so you will have the chance to orchestrate some long drives.

The other date you are going to want to mark on your calendars is August 30th. This is the release for Madden 12. With many stores having a midnight opening, I’m sure we will see most of you online by 1 A.M. Make sure that you have reserved a copy of the game so you don’t miss out on getting the game that night.

Be sure to sign up for our FREE 30 Plays in 30 Days list, by entering your name and email address on our homepage at http://www.maddentips.com. We can’t wait to show you guys what we are bringing to the table this year. You’ll see new products never before seen in the Madden community along with the great content that VG Sports is known for.

I’m fortunate enough to live in a city that has the reputation of being the best sports city in the country. Home of the Eagles, Phillies, Flyers, and 76ers, Philadelphia is known for having the most dedicated fans anywhere. Our love for our teams makes us die-hards when it comes to praising, defending and criticizing our teams.

National media often comes to town to talk about how ruthless we are, and how we once booed Santa Claus. I’m sure if you saw a Santa on duty that was drunk as a reindeer you would boo as well. What the media doesn’t talk about is how our love for Philadelphia teams can turn a normal training camp practice, into a sea of twenty-five thousand excited Eagles fans.

So you ask, why is this important to Madden?

I have seen many people get upset in Madden because their teams are not good in the game, but they never look at the fact that their team isn’t that good in the NFL. I love my Eagles but even after the trade for cornerback Dominic Rogers-Cromarti and the acquisition of free agent defensive end Justin Babin, we still have holes on the defense.

We have two great corners but also have two unproven safeties. We even have questions at the linebacker level. If we notice this in real life, we need to keep our expectations in Madden realistic. EA Sports does a great job at reflecting the true teams on the field into Madden. If your team has a few weaknesses, they will be visible in Madden.

Although there are many players that will use their favorite team to play with in Madden, most are going to jump on the two or three hottest teams. They will go with these squads to play online the rest of the season. We expect this to happen in Madden 12, and we expect the Patriots and Eagles to be two of the most used teams. Both have done a great job filling the needs in their rosters and strengthening their teams. Both teams have dangerous weapons on offense that will help them put up big scores.

So my question today is…

Are you the type of player that sticks with his favorite team through the good and the bad times, or do you run with the best team every year no matter who it is?

Let us know by posting a comment below.

PhillyRon