What to Watch For: Madden Ultimate League Week 9

Tune in every Saturday to watch the first-ever Madden Ultimate League (MUL) season streaming on various digital channels including Twitch, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and Mixer. The season culminates with the playoffs and finals from the NFL draft in April, live on ESPN2.

Last week’s gameplay from the 2018 Madden Ultimate League Elite Conference competitors kept up the trend of high scores, frequent passing, and a ton of insane stick work. In case you missed any of the action, catch the cliff notes version in this in-depth recap, or watch the full stream embedded below. Now, it’s time to gear up for another regular season weekend stream, and of course hone in on exactly what you should be watching for on Saturday.

Can anyone stop Abbott “Blocky” Lopez?

The Miami Dolphins 2018 Club Champion is on a four-game tear, going undefeated to begin his Madden Ultimate League campaign. He’s averaged more total yards per game (312) and passing yards per game (240) than any other competitor to this point and is tied for the Elite Conference lead with 10 takeaways following last Saturday’s stream. But Blocky faces two of the conference’s heavy hitters this week, with matchups against Michael “Skimbo” Skimbo and Shay “Young Kiv” Kivlen.

After four contests, Skimbo is holding steady with a 2-2 record. He has three matchups during this weekend’s upcoming stream, so there’s an opportunity for him to make waves in the standings if he can get a couple of wins. It’s worth noting that Skimbo has yet to score a rushing touchdown; he’s averaging just 11.25 rush attempts per game. On the flipside, he ranks second in the Elite Conference in pass attempts per game with 28.5.

Can Michael “Noble Prodigy” Scott stay hot?

After starting the season 0-2, Noble Prodigy won two straight to even his record at 2-2. He’ll face Taylor “Spotmeplzzz” Robertson and Skimbo during Saturday’s stream and will look to keep rolling. He currently ranks second in the conference in rush attempts per game with 21.25 and has only turned the ball over three times through four games (also ranks second).

Has Hassan “GOS” Spall found his form on offense?

The pendulum seems to be swinging for GOS. He defeated Young Kiv in a 38-10 blowout last week in which he notched a Madden Ultimate League record 14 sacks. Before that big win, GOS had scored just 10, 10, and 12 points in his previous three matchups, so the scoreboard light-up could be a sign that he’s ironed out some offensive wrinkles from earlier in the season. He’ll face Stephen “Noble SteveyJ” Javaruski and Spotmeplzzz this weekend.

Can Spotmeplzzz mount a comeback?

Owning last place with a 1-3 record, Spotmeplzzz will have to fight if he wants a playoff shot. He has just one takeaway through his four contests, which isn’t going to cut it. One positive stat that Spotmeplzzz can hang his hat on: he leads the conference in pass defense, allowing just 128.5 pass yards per game. That may well be a result of opponents passing less against him because he’s having a hard time scoring (fewer than 20 points in his last three games), but the West Virginia native needs every bit of confidence he can get at this point.