If you’re looking for a position that traditionally allows you to do a lot of running at defenses, you should be considering the halfback spot.
Halfbacks, or running backs, do a large part of the running when the team is on the offense, with the QB handing you the ball rather than throwing it up field.
If that’s your idea of a fun time, then this guide to the best running back build for Madden 24 will set you on your way.
There are three halfback builds to suit all playing styles.
Halfback Skills and Abilities in Madden 24
Here’s a list of all the upgradable skills of a halfback in the game:
- BC Vision – increased chance to reach for first downs/touchdowns
- Spin – an increased chance to fakeout defenders with spin moves
- Juke – an increased chance to fakeout defenders with juke moves
- Hurdle – an increased chance to fakeout defenders with hurdles
- Trucking – an increased chance to break truck tackles
- Stiff Arm – an increased chance to break stiff-arm tackles
- Break Tackle – an increased chance to break tackles
- Short Route Run – an increased chance to win cut moves on short routes
- Catching – an increased catch chance
- Catch In Traffic – an increased chance to hold on to catches when tackled
Here’s a list of abilities that can be equipped by a halfback in the game:
- Freight Train XFactor – an increased chance of breaking the next tackle
- Satellite XFactor – an increased success rate on possession and RAC catches against single coverage
- Truzz XFactor – better possession maintenance. No tackles made against this player will result in a fumble
- Human Joystick – an increased ability to quickly shift momentum; change direction; and turn the corner without sacrificing speed
- Backfield Mismatch – better catch in traffic and route running when coming out of the backfield against linebackers and linemen
- Hurdle Elite – increased ability to avoid fumbling during hurdles
- Iron Grip – unaffected by catch chance penalties due to being double covered
- Juke Elite – steerable juke animations
- RB Route Elite – access to four extra hot routes when lined up at RB
- Second Wind – the ability to replenish stamina once per play when it is half depleted
- Shake It Off – increased ability to almost always break strip tackles
- Spin Elite – steerable spin animations
- Sticky Fingers – an increased ability to catch tipped passes
- Stiff Arm Elite – an increased chance of connecting on stiff arm tackles
- Truck Elite – an increased chance of connecting on truck tackles
- Twenty Twenty – frequently gain additional yards after being tackled
Power Runner Build
The power runner HB build is an option modeled to create a halfback that excels in any situation that involves running with the ball.
This includes beating man coverage, executing juke and spin moves with finesse, and generally streaking past opponent defenses like it’s nothing.
While the name “power runner” might make you imagine a big and strong player, that’s not the idea here. This player needs to be quick on his feet and the “power” in that name only alludes to being an unstoppable force due to sheer speed and trickery.
Physique
In case you already built a player and started a career in Superstar Mode, don’t worry. You can still change your physique anytime without losing progress.
The best physique for what we’re trying to do here is an Agile one. Set the player’s height to 5’11” and weight to 195 lbs. to make him agile.
This will provide important boosts to your base physical rating with 90 for speed and agility and 81 for strength and stamina. Positive core skill impacts on your Jump, Spin Move, and Juke Move abilities will also come in handy.
Any negative core skill impacts will be addressed with skill upgrades once you earn enough skill points from playing.
Skill Upgrades
The skill upgrades discussed here will take your player to the maximum 99 OVR. This build will cost you a total of 80 skill points.
The order of priority for upgrading the most important skills is as follows: Spin >> Juke >> Hurdle >> Break Tackle >> Catching >> Catch in Traffic.
Abilities
- XFactor Slot – Freight Train
- Slot 1 Gold – Hurdle Elite
- Slot 2 Gold – Spin Elite
- Slot 3 Gold – Juke Elite
- Silver – RB Route Elite
- Bronze – Human Joystick
Receiver Build
The key difference between the Receiver RB build and the Power Runner build is that the receiver does his best work off the ball.
While the power runner will cover more ground with the ball in his hands, the receiver will find space off the ball to run into and catch a pass.
This does not mean that the receiver never runs with the ball though. He still needs to be adept at ball-carrying over various routes. This build finds the balance that lets the advantage of off-the-ball running shine through while still retaining sufficient quality on the ball.
Physique
For the receiver build, we’ll go with the same physique as the power runner. Set the player’s height to 5’11” and weight to 195 lbs.
The positive and negative core skill impacts remain the same, as do the base physical ratings for the player.
Skill Upgrades
The skill upgrades discussed here will take your player to the maximum 99 OVR. This build will cost you a total of 79 skill points.
The order of priority for upgrading the most important skills is as follows: Catching >> Catch In Traffic >> Spin >> Juke >> Short Route Run >> BC Vision.
Abilities
- XFactor Slot – Satellite
- Slot 1 Gold – Iron Grip
- Slot 2 Gold – Spin Elite
- Slot 3 Gold – Sticky Fingers
- Silver – Twenty Twenty
- Bronze – Second Wind
Possession Build
The idea behind the Possession half back build is to create a player whose first priority is to make sure that the team does not lose possession in offensive transitions.
The initial thought behind the idea for me was to create a modified version of the traditional fullback role which seems to be getting less attention in the modern game.
Fullbacks are known to be the defensive cover for more adventurous halfbacks in a game of football, but this possession-focused build has more than defending in his arsenal of skills.
This guy will almost never fumble the ball from a tackle, and you can use him as a safe outlet when the more offensive halfbacks are out of ideas.
Physique
You need a more physical stature for this build, but not so much that he can’t move the ball if need be. To achieve this, set his physique to a height of 6’2″ with a weight of 186 lbs. for a Balanced body type.
This will peg your base physical ratings for strength and stamina to 85 while speed and agility will be 86. Pretty “balanced”, I’d say. There are no standout positive or negative core skill impacts, but that just gives us more room to tweak the skill upgrades exactly as needed.
Skill Upgrades
The skill upgrades discussed here will take your player to the maximum 99 OVR. This build will cost you a total of 81 skill points.
The order of priority for upgrading the most important skills is as follows: Catching >> Break Tackle >> Catch In Traffic >> Stiff Arm.
Abilities
- XFactor Slot – Truzz
- Slot 1 Gold – Iron Grip
- Slot 2 Gold – Shake It Off
- Slot 3 Gold – Sticky Fingers
- Silver – Stiff Arm Elite
- Bronze – Backfield Mismatch
If you’re interested in more builds for offensive players, check out our guide to the best wide receiver build for Madden 24 Superstar Mode next, and make sure you know how to get drafted as first pick.
