player-ratings
Latest
Madden 15's franchise mode instills confidence, wraps up ratings
EA Sports introduced its changes to Connected Franchise mode in Madden NFL 15 this week, which includes the replacement of the the series' hot/cold streak system with "game prep" and "confidence." The team-management mode now has players preparing their teams with individual position drills and activities to boost experience points and influence a dynamic confidence rating. The confidence rating fluctuates throughout the season with the highs and lows of athletes' performances. It also changes with trades, team wins and losses, and even more with blowout victories and defeats, impacting other key ratings along with it. Additionally, Madden 15's Connected Franchise mode will include a tweaked free agency system in which available athletes will take factors like a team's needs, scheme and coaching ability into account when deciding where to take their career. It will also include entirely random draft classes for a change, with randomized names, ratings and traits for all incoming rookies. That marks a departure from previous franchise draft classes that had guaranteed-to-appear stars, such as Madden 11's Aspha Savage and K.C. Williams or Madden 25's Leon Sandcastle (yes, that Leon Sandcastle).
Madden 15 gets a kick out of its top safeties
EA closed out its top athlete rankings for Madden NFL 15 this weekend with lists of the highest-rated safeties and kickers/punters in the game. Saints free safety Jairus Byrd (96 overall) as well as strong safeties Kam Chancellor of the Seahawks and the Steelers' Troy Polamalu (both 93 overall) topped the final lists for defensive players in the game. Likewise, Miami Dolphins punter Brandon Fields will be the highest-rated player in the game to boot the pigskin with his foot, thanks to his 96 overall rating. This follows EA Tiburon's gradual ratings reveal in best-of list form, in which it covered defenders, offensive players like quarterbacks and running backs as well as the NFL's best rookies. EA Sports is now in the midst of unveiling its full team ratings on a division-by-division basis. It currently has spreadsheets loaded with ratings for players in the AFC and NFC North and South divisions available on the game's site. Madden 15 will launch August 26 for PS4, Xbox One, PS3 and Xbox 360.
Madden 15 tackles top linemen, cornerback ratings
Last week, EA Sports dished out its player ratings for the top NFL rookies and positions like quarterbacks and running backs for Madden NFL 15. The athlete-ranking countdown to the game's launch continues with ratings for the top players at six positions: Offensive line, defensive end, defensive tackle, inside linebacker, outside linebacker and cornerback. Madden 15 attempts to settle the debate as to who is the best corner in the league by giving Seahawks star and cover athlete Richard Sherman a 99 overall rating. The game's top defensive end, J.J. Watt of the Houston Texans also came away with a 99 rating. EA ranked two San Francisco 49ers players at the top of the middle linebacker position as well: Both Patrick Willis and teammate NaVorro Bowman bested Panthers linebacker and reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year Luke Kuechly with 96 overall ratings compared to Kuechly's 94. Head past the break for the full list of ratings provided by EA Tiburon. Madden 15 will launch August 26 for PS4, Xbox One, PS3 and Xbox 360. The game will attempt to turn players into better students of the sport and emphasizes improved defensive control.
Madden 15 says Russell Wilson is as good as Tom Brady
After EA offered its take on the top NFL rookies heading into the upcoming season earlier this week, it started dishing out Madden NFL 15 player ratings by the handful. While it isn't pulling the curtain back for every player yet, the developers at EA Tiburon unveiled the top-rated athletes in the game at five positions so far: Quarterback, running back, fullback, tight end and wide receiver. Among the more eye-opening appearances on the lists are Seattle Seahawks QB Russell Wilson, whose 93 rating is tied with Patriots passer Tom Brady, though Wilson's Super Bowl win in February provides a healthy argument about his place in the game. Leading the charge for quarterbacks are Denver's Peyton Manning and Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers, both rated 98 overall. Fellow Packers player John Kuhn is the top fullback in the game with a 93 rating, while Vikings running back Adrian Peterson's 98 rating barely eclipses that of Eagles rusher LeSean McCoy and Chiefs runner Jamaal Charles (both rated 97). New Orleans' Jimmy Graham is the top tight end in the game at 97 overall, and Lions receiver Calvin Johnson is the lone 99 overall-rated player in the bunch. Head past the break for the rest of EA's rankings. Madden 15 will launch August 26 for Xbox One, PS4, Xbox 360 and PS3. [Image: EA Sports]
Madden 15 ranks the NFL's top ten rookies
EA Sports kicked off its annual player ratings reveal yesterday with a list of the top 13 rookies in the Madden NFL 15. The first-year athletes are led by Houston Texans' outside linebacker and first overall draft choice Jadeveon Clowney, whose 83 overall rating comprises stats like 88 speed, 95 hit power and 94 power moves. The developers at EA Tiburon will issue regular player ratings updates for Madden 15 over the next few weeks, the culmination of months of work by Madden's "Ratings Czar," Donny Moore. Head past the break for the full list of Madden 15's top 13 rookies and their overall ratings. The game will launch August 26 for Xbox One, PS4, Xbox 360 and PS3, and features an "overhauled" defense and aims to encourage players to learn football strategy within the game. [Image: EA Sports]
How football players make the grade in Madden
If you watch the NFL and play Madden every year as the season progresses, you might use the game as a barometer for real-life player performance. There are over 1,600 athletes playing in the NFL during the regular season, but due to increased roster limits during the offseason - when coaches are testing players to compile their final roster - there could be over 1,100 more players to account for on the field and in the game. Someone has to create and manage the skill ratings for these players in the series every year, and that someone is EA Tiburon's Donny Moore, known at the developer as the Madden team's "Ratings Czar." Moore knows firsthand that some athletes are simply better than others, and they prove it as the NFL season progresses. Take Victor Cruz, for example. He started Madden NFL 12 with an overall player rating in the 60's out of a possible 99, among the worst players in the game. Like other NFL player hopefuls, the New York Giants receiver was an afterthought, since he wasn't selected among the 255 athletes chosen in the seven-round NFL Draft. The odds of an undrafted free agent, and even the occasional players drafted in a lower round in some cases, making a team's final 53-man roster is fairly low, and the perceived talent level of those players, compared to their drafted peers, are even lower. Cruz made the cut, and eventually wowed fans and fantasy football owners throughout the 2011 season. In his debut season's third week, Cruz caught three passes for 110 yards and two touchdowns against the Philadelphia Eagles. In that week's Madden 12 roster update, his overall rating - the out-of-99 score given to players based on performance - jumped from 64 to 72. By season's end the Giants were Super Bowl champions and Cruz's overall Madden 12 rating leapt to 88, thanks to an astonishing 1,536 yard, nine-touchdown season. As Cruz impressed fans, Moore increased his Madden rating, which meant his virtual counterpart's abilities improved as well. %Gallery-188881%
Rank NFL players, impact weekly Madden 25 roster updates
NFL.com is hosting a Madden 25 player rankings challenge hub, in which users can sort through a list of players every week to decide who is the best of the best. EA says these lists will be compiled, similar to EA's cover athlete voting process in the past, and used as a resource when the team does its weekly Madden 25 roster updates. The voting challenge also includes a special list of 25 young athletes making their mark on the sport today, such as Cardinals corner Patrick Peterson or Packers wide receiver Randall Cobb. EA says fans are "solely responsible" for determining who the top "Next Generation" player will be this year, as each week in the voting process the top player earns 25 points toward their cumulative season total, second place earns 24 points and so on. Given that Madden 25 will launch on next-gen systems this November, crowning a top Next Generation player through fan voting is appropriate. The fan rankings for the other listed positions won't have a direct "one to one" impact on the in-game roster updates that happen after every week of the NFL season, but they also won't be totally ignored, EA says.
Here's the full player ratings list for Madden 25
EA Tiburon's player ratings list for Madden 25, at least as it stands for preseason football before the weekly roster updates start in September, is now available. Sporting News has a full spreadsheet with every NFL player's rating, from Seahawks QB Russell Wilson's 86 speed rating to Jets rookie CB Dee Milliner's 88 man coverage rating. Madden 25's release is just around the corner: The game launches August 27 on Xbox 360 and PS3, and will come to Xbox One and PS4 at a later date. Feel free to check out the above trailer for the game's top defensive players, but who doesn't prefer spreadsheets over videos?
Aaron Rodgers, Adrian Peterson top Madden 25's players on offense
EA kicked off its Madden 25 player ratings reveal this week, issuing a single trailer to cover the top five players in each offensive category. The top-rated QB to start the game is Aaron Rodgers at 98 overall, while the top running back is Adrian Peterson, who is rated 99 overall.
Joe Flacco is the only new clutch player in Madden 25
EA Tiburon introduced its "clutch trait" for in-game athletes in Madden 12 as a means of providing a boost in players' ratings when the right circumstances were in place, namely when the game is on the line in the 4th quarter or overtime. That trait will carry over to Madden 25, and oddly enough, the list of players that will start the game out with the clutch trait is nearly identical to the one announced for Madden 13 last year. One name is new to the list: Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco. Flacco certainly earned the trait, given his stellar playoff performance and Super Bowl win. Only two other names are missing from last year's list, Ray Lewis and Brian Urlacher, and that's because those linebackers retired during the offseason. EA Tiburon's Donny Moore, the "Ratings Czar" for the Madden series, tells Joystiq the team "decided when we added these traits that we wanted it to be a special thing, very unique, there wouldn't be a clutch player on every team necessarily, so we sort of stuck to that mantra when we assigned the traits." %Gallery-186852%
Madden 13 getting Ultimate Team 'key packs,' complete player ratings revealed
EA's Madden team detailed new card packs for Madden Ultimate Team this week called "key packs." By completing full sets of solo challenges and card collections in the Madden NFL 13 mode, players earn one random key card, one of 38 rare collectible player cards available at the game's launch. Those addicted to the series' card-collecting mode will be happy to know that these ultra-rare key pack cards can be traded and auctioned away in the game.Also, for the accountant in all of us, EA Sports revealed a spreadsheet that contains every rating of every player in Madden 13 this week. After seeing a gradual reveal of specific ratings for individual positions over the last few weeks, this wealth of information should be beneficial for those starting their own leagues in Connected Careers mode when Madden 13 launches Tuesday.
Madden 13's top ten defenders, more receivers ratings revealed
With Madden NFL 13 launching in less than a week, EA Sports unleashed its latest category of player ratings for the game. The video above details the top ten overall defenders in the game to start the season.Notably missing from the top ten list are defenders from the Super Bowl champion New York Giants team, such as Jason Pierre-Paul. Even considering his offseason injury, it's a curious decision to leave the 2011 Defensive Player of the Year winner Terrell Suggs out of the top ten list as well, while putting his fellow Baltimore Ravens teammates Haloti Ngata and Ed Reed in the mix.As usual, EA Sports began casting votes for the top-rated defenders in speed, tackling, hit power, and man coverage on their Facebook page this week. Currently, Arizona Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson is winning in the speed category, Patrick Willis of the 49ers has a slim lead over Ray Lewis of the Ravens in the hit power category and also is in the lead for the tackling category. Darrelle Revis, New York Jets cornerback and number one defender in the game is leading the vote for the highest man coverage rating.Lastly, EA Sports recently released a complete list of ratings for every receiver in the game. Take a look at a more thorough breakdown of the top ten wide receivers and tight ends in Madden 13 and their overall, speed, acceleration, strength, awareness, and catching ratings after the break.
Madden 13's top ten running backs and quarterbacks revealed
Leading up to the release of Madden NFL 13 on August 28, EA Sports started a campaign to reveal the oh-so-important player ratings last week. The developer at EA Tiburon has released a video featuring hall of fame running back Marshall Faulk, who discusses the game's initial top ten-ranked running backs.Over the course of the week, fans can vote for individual players to receive the highest skill ratings in the speed, acceleration, trucking, and elusiveness categories on EA Sports' Madden NFL Facebook page. As of now, Chris Johnson (Tennessee Titans) and Marshawn Lynch (Seattle Seahawks) received the most votes for the speed and trucking categories, respectively.
