Well, I picked up Madden 10 the other day, don't wanna buy 11 yet if I know I suck at Madden in general. I do well in offline against the CPU, but then again it's the CPU. I don't know how to play defense. I am currently 6-9 online but every one of those 9 losses I got absolutely torched against an opponent who knew what they were doing. I'm using the NE PB and the NYJ defense because people told me those were the best but still, I need to learn the basics beforehand.

Can anyone help me out?

the reason the jets d book is good is because it gives you alot of good packages and they are all great for pressure blitzing. if you want good defense you have to do a few key things. 1: use hot routes to strengthen your defense... you need to do your homework and look for some good adjustments for each play you like to run. 2: Keep a mix between man and zone coverage. always mix it up keep the opponent guessing. 3: always put pressure on the other teams QB. Find the best gaps for your LB to squeeze through. your secondary is nothing without pressure from your boys in the box . ill add more to this in the morning when i wake up.. im tired lol. if you have any more questions.. go ahead and ask.

Agree, great post by shaker.

Learn to user the safety, we have a few articles on MB that will help. You will get beat early, but its important to get better.

Have your audibles set up, Be able to get to a

Run Stopper
Zone Blitz
Man Blitz
Man Coverage
Zone Coverage

No Matter what play you come out in, you should be able to audible above. Then I usually put my 11 best playmakers on the field and let them run free.

Pressure burst pipes so make sure you utilizes NYJ's zone blitzing 2. User the safety farls has great articles on that 3. Make sure your Audibles that compliment your scheme and KNOW your right stick audibles it's vital 4. Find a formation that you can run and pass equally and effectively ( your gonna want to pound the rock it opens up alot if you can do it well. Lastly put the best personnel on the field.
( see gibson dime depth chart for a general idea or visit the depth chart part of the forums) good luck

I tried watching a few defensive adjustment videos on YouTube and what not, but whenever I slide the DL or try to hot route the LB's, they always get stuck. My defense is absolutely atrocious, not to mention I can barely stop the run against stud RB's like AP, CJ, or Slaton.

On a good note, I did win a game 28-21 by scoring 21 unanswered in a comeback against someone who was 78-76, by far my most impressive Madden victory at this point.