Madden 09 Making up for the past mediocre years!

Alright so first thing in the morning I went and purchased Madden 09. I come home pop it in the 360 and begin playing. Being an Eagles fan I played with them my friend choosing the Titans. The first thing I noticed is the grass is so realistic. Unlike 08 where the grass looks computer made. Now to the gameplay, I love the IQ it helps you become a better player if you have played the series for many years. The passing is more realistic you cannot complete easily from anywhere on the field everything has to be earned, it's not like 08 where your QB just launches the football like it's a baseball and the wr cannot jump 30 feet in the air to catch a pass he actually has to have good seperation. I might be the only one who noticed but the camera really zooms out when you pass which I am adjusting to. The play calling bluffs put you right in the shoes of an NFLZ quarterback. I think I was a little spoiled in Madden 08 with the running game because I was getting 5 yards per carry easily, now I have to fight for every yards I get and I'm so glad they added the slide protection so it makes my life a bit easier. The juking is so realistic the running back actually plants his feet on the ground, if you paid close attention in 08 it looks as if the players are ice-skating. You can easily see that the developers for Madden decreased the fumble rates because last year the fumbling was getting out of hand. Playing with the defense I realized that the interception rate is high this year. In the hours I played I lost count of how many pics I got. I respect that though because you have to actually earn interceptions unlike fumbles where sometimes it has to do with luck. The new gang tackles were amusing as well as the solo tackles. When you use the hit stick the screen shakes which I think is very cool. Overall jaw-dropping hits. On a side note I like how this year the kickers are not on steroids like in 08 where the every kicker during the kick off would kick the ball into the end-zone and field goals are a little chalenging now to with the new camera angle. The comentary is so much better with the NFL network team then the radio broadcaster last year...that was terrible. Last but not least, it's nice to see replays while your choosing a play. Overall this game definitley made up for last years Madden and the 07 version. The only thing,only thing I feel was waste in this years Madden was the "NFL rewind" come on give me a break. Other than that it's was a good bounce back for EA and for the Madden fanboys. I'll be playing again ina couple hours! -Feel free to share your thoughts.