6 Takeaways From Madden NFL 27’s Ratings Release Week

The Madden 27 ratings began to roll out this week, and, as usual, there’s no shortage of controversy, confusion or surprises. So let’s get into what we’ve learned from Madden’s reveals, mostly regarding the top 10 ratings. I’m not surprised to see the Los Angeles Rams are the best team in the game. That was an obvious choice. But it felt notable that the New England Patriots were tied for fifth in overall rating with the Denver Broncos at 86. Those teams are also tied for second in the AFC behind the Baltimore Ravens (87). Meanwhile, the Seattle Seahawks were tied for ninth at 84 overall. They are ranked fifth in the NFC. Where’s the respect for last year’s Super Bowl squads? Even as the Patriots added star receiver A.J. Brown, among others, this offseason, they couldn’t crack the top four. Even after the Seahawks won the Super Bowl, they barely made the top 10. I can’t help but be surprised, even considering Seattle’s offseason departures (Kenneth Walker III, Boye Mafe, Riq Woolen). Both teams should be elite yet again. Meanwhile, the Philadelphia Eagles rated an 88 score and the Detroit Lions were third with an 87 rating. Nos. 2 through 4 weren’t what I expected. And the Chicago Bears — who might be the NFL’s most polarizing team — didn’t make the top 10. I’m frankly upset that there were no offensive linemen in the “99 Club.” Namely, that Lions perennial All-Pro tackle Penei Sewell and Bears guard Joe Thuney, who won the NFL’s inaugural Protector of the Year Award, were excluded. Heck, even San Francisco 49ers legend Trent Williams was a 96. It’s crazy to think that there isn’t a single offensive lineman who made the club. I suspect it’s more about the position itself (often underappreciated and unheralded) than about the players themselves. There was one 99 that surprised me: Rams QB Matthew Stafford. I get it, he is coming off an MVP season. But Stafford is QB2 in my quarterback rankings. His top MVP competitor, Patriots QB Drake Maye, was a 92. Bills QB Josh Allen also rated a 99, while Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow ranked third among QBs at 97. That’s actually where I think Stafford should’ve landed. Maybe I’m splitting hairs, but it feels like the “99 Club” should be reserved for the NFL’s truly elite players. So I was surprised to see the 38-year-old Stafford. I love the two 2026 NFL Draft picks Madden graded highest. On defense, there’s Cowboys safety Caleb Downs at 82. And on offense, there’s Cardinals running back Jeremiyah Love, also at 82. On the other hand, I was stunned to see Chargers linebacker Akheem Mesidor get the same rating as Giants LB Arvell Reese (79). There were two grades that seemed — at least to me — to be downright disrespectful. And Commanders linebacker Sonny Styles landed all the way down at 78. He could have easily been an 82 with Love and Downs, Styles’ former Ohio State teammate. Seahawks running back Jadarian Price is a 75. (A 75!?) The first-rounder out of Notre Dame isn’t going to let that grade stand for long. It’s hard to take the rookie QB grades too seriously, because they’re always low. Raiders QB Fernando Mendoza, the No. 1 overall pick, is a 74 and Ty Simpson, whom the Rams selected at No. 13, is a 71. Mendoza’s rating is higher than last year’s No. 1 overall pick, Titans QB Cam Ward (72), but lower than that of 2024 No. 1 pick Caleb Williams (76). It’s on par with Drake Maye’s rookie year 74. Not only were the Baltimore Ravens atop the AFC, but their QB landed fourth at the position with a 94 rating. It seems — unlike NFL players — Madden’s creators will not fade Lamar Jackson after a bad year. This is seemingly a thing for Madden, which rated Jackson at 79 as a rookie (which is very high!), even after he slipped to the final pick in the first round back in 2018. Meanwhile, Jackson slipped to 68th on the 2026 “NFL 100” list. His status among the NFL’s elite QBs seems to be in jeopardy, depending upon whom you ask. And that’s because his production dipped in 2025 due to injuries. It seems like Madden has faith that Lamar is going to get back to his MVP-caliber ways. When Madden released the top 10 QBs in the “throw power” category, it wasn’t Josh Allen or Patrick Mahomes or even Aaron Rodgers atop the list. No, it was Cowboys backup quarterback Joe Milton. You might be wondering: Who the heck is that? He was a sixth-round pick by the Patriots in 2024. But the truth is that you don’t really need to know who Milton is. You just need to know that his arm is genuinely the strongest in the NFL. It’s a surreal thing to watch in person. So the Madden creators got it right when they put Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs at 98 for speed — second-fastest player in the game. But I take some offense at Chiefs receiver Xavier Worthy’s rating as the No. 1 speedster in the league. Sure, he ran the fastest 40-yard dash time in the history of the combine. So when it comes to the underwear Olympics — and a straight line — he’s fast. But look at Next Gen Stats. Worthy didn’t crack the top 20 among the fastest plays by a ball carrier in 2025. And he landed at 20th in 2024. Worthy might’ve been the fastest guy at the combine, but in the NFL, his speed isn’t all that competitive with the best of the best. Playing speed isn’t the same as sprinting speed. Prime example: Colts running back Jonathan Taylor ran the fastest among all ball carriers last year, hitting 22.38 mph. And yet he did not rank in the top 10 in speed. Make that make sense.