Tag: Madden 21 ratings

‘Madden 21’ ratings guru says Lamar Jackson is ultimate cheat code

If you’ve got Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson on your “Madden 21” team, you’ve got the ultimate cheat code.

USA TODAY’s Mackenzie Salmon sat down with EA Sports’ Madden rating adjuster Clint Oldenburg to find out which player is the biggest cheat code in the game right now between Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson and Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes.

While Jackson is the cover athlete for “Madden 21” and Mahomes on last year’s cover, you really can’t go wrong. Oldenburg noted this year’s version of the game is going to be focused more on passing the football than running, which would seemingly give an edge to Mahomes and his highly-rated arm. But with Jackson being the fastest quarterback in the history of the video game franchise, he has something special that’s difficult to combat.

Jackson earned a 94 overall rating in “Madden 21,” which doesn’t make him the highest-rated quarterback in the game. Still, it’s tough to bet against Jackson digitally, especially after what Ravens wide receiver Marquise Brown did with him, both in the celebrity championship and virtual Super Bowl LV.

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‘Madden 21’ ratings continue to disrespect Ravens K Justin Tucker

Despite being the best kicker in the game right now and arguably the best in NFL history, Justin Tucker doesn’t even hit 90 in “Madden 21”

If you’ve been following the release of “Madden 21” ratings, you’ve likely seen both fans and some players complain about how people are rated. While the game brings a little controversy every year, I’m still flabbergasted EA Sports hasn’t fixed Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker’s rating for their newest version.

According to the initial “Madden 21” ratings, Tucker is at 87 overall. Though he tops all kickers in the game by at least two points in overall ratings, in real life Tucker is head and shoulders above his competition as the best kicker in the game. So why isn’t Tucker a 99 overall considering he’s the unquestioned top player at his position and arguably the greatest kicker in NFL history?

While each position weighs ratings differently, Tucker seemingly has everything a kicker would need to have a top rating. In “Madden 21,” Tucker has a 98 rating in both kicking power and kicking accuracy, along with a 95 injury rating. Tucker is actually one of the fastest kickers in the video game with his 75 speed rating.

It could be the “awareness” rating is a little low at 71, which typically carries more weight in the overall rating for players. Though we can certainly question and debate how Tucker has middling “awareness” in this game, it seems odd that it would dramatically drop his overall rating from his 98-rated kicking skills.

Kickers and punters have never gotten much love in the “Madden” franchise. But at a time when kickers are finally starting to earn some respect from the general public — largely thanks to the poor kicking in recent years — Tucker’s 87 rating is a slap in the face to the best kicker in the sport.

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See every Madden 21 player rating for the Chicago Bears

After a week of leaks, EA Sports has finally revealed their Madden 21 ratings, which includes roughly 74 Bears players.

After a week of leaks, EA Sports has finally revealed their Madden 21 ratings, which includes roughly 74 Chicago Bears players.

Outside linebacker Khalil Mack is Chicago’s highest-rated player, earning a 97 overall rating. Long snapper Patrick Scales earned the lowest rating with a 30.

The Bears’ top five players according to Madden 21 are Mack, safety Eddie Jackson (89), receiver Allen Robinson (89), defensive end Akiem Hicks (88) and cornerback Kyle Fuller (85).

Madden 21 doesn’t have any clue as to how the Bears’ quarterback competition will pan out, as Mitchell Trubisky and Nick Foles earned nearly identical ratings with 72 and 71, respectively.

The Bears have an overall team rating of 81, which is the 11th best mark. As for individual units, Chicago’s defense landed an 85 rating, which is tied for the top spot with the Los Angeles Chargers. The offense notched a 79 rating, which is one of the lowest among the game.

Here’s a look at the ratings for every Chicago Bear in Madden 21:

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Richard Sherman still dominant in video games entering 10th season

Richard Sherman was No. 3 in the Madden 21 ratings, and the best at play recognition.

Don’t let Richard Sherman’s age and the typical timeline for cornerback dominance fool you. The 10-year NFL veteran is still one of the NFL’s best players at his position. He was rewarded for his stellar 2020 campaign with a Pro Bowl trip and Second-Team All-Pro nod. Now he’s receiving accolades from a popular football video game.

EA Sports has begun releasing its rankings for ‘Madden NFL 21,’ and Sherman is one of the game’s best corners. He checked in with the third-highest rating behind reigning Defensive Player of the Year Stephon Gilmore, and Rams star Jalen Ramsey.

EA Sports was also cognizant of what makes Sherman such a great player. While his athleticism has started to decline, his always-stellar football IQ has risen to the surface as his best attribute. The game has Sherman with the best possible rating, 99, in play recognition.

This is something Sherman has always excelled at. The former receiver has had a knack for running routes with the opposing pass catcher, often beating them to the spot they intended to go. And it’s rare he gets beat on the same thing twice.

Some teams found success going over the top on Sherman, but even then it was rare. He was targeted only 61 times last year including the postseason, allowing a 55.7 percent completion rate and just one touchdown. Sherman hauled in five interceptions, broke up six passes and allowed a paltry 45.3 passer rating when targeted according to Pro Football Focus. That’s never easy to do, but it’s even more difficult after turning 30 with a pair of Achilles surgeries.

It speaks to the type of player Sherman is that at a point in his career where most cornerbacks begin to fade, he’s still producing at a high level for the NFL’s best pass defense. Aging gracefully is hard at the cornerback position, but Sherman’s experience and high football IQ allow him to continue playing like one of the NFL’s best.

If tape and numbers aren’t enough, now you can ask ‘Madden.’

How fair were the ‘Madden 21’ ratings for rookie SEC QBs?

LSU’s Joe Burrow was on top, to the surprise of no one.

There’s a lot about the upcoming NFL and college football season that remains up in the air, but if there’s one thing that’s for certain, it’s that fans will have Madden.

EA Sports’ ‘Madden 21’ released the ratings for NFL rookie quarterbacks on Thursday, and while the name at the top of the list in overall rating wasn’t shocking, there were question marks surrounding the other standings and numbers.

Here’s a look into some of the ratings for each former SEC quarterback selected in the 2020 NFL Draft and how fair each of them were.

Joe Burrow, LSU (Cincinnati Bengals)

Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Overall: 76

Speed: 83

Accuracy: 86

Strength: 68

Agility: 82

Awareness: 77

Throw Power: 86

The verdict: It comes as a surprise to absolutely no one that Burrow received the best overall rating considering that he just finished recording one the best seasons by a quarterback in college football history.

His throw power was only the ninth-best of among rookie quarterbacks, which is reflects perhaps his only trait that can’t be classified as elite — arm strength. Burrow may not put the same type of impressive zip on the ball that other rookie quarterbacks like Jacob Eason do, but he makes up for it in quite literally every other category.

Burrow’s awareness rating of 77 led all rookie signal-callers. Overall, the former Tiger’s ratings seem pretty fair, although he is “sneaky fast” and may prove worthy of a higher speed rating.

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