There is no shortage of criticism towards EA Sports and its football franchise, and part of it could have something to do with the Madden 27 ratings. It may be a drop in the bucket, especially since the video game developer bribed the NFL into squashing its competition. The issue with monopolies is that there’s no incentive to be better, because there’s nobody to be better than.
The Madden ratings system has always been puzzling, to say the least, and yet they are revealed with what feels like pride in a weird accomplishment. There’s more than likely a team of people who analyze film and stats and try their best to put the most realistic product on the disk (or in the console). This year’s ratings, when compared to player 2025 statistics, suggest that maybe there aren’t enough people looking at every player and every stat thoroughly enough.
Madden 27 Ratings Offense
It all begins with the quarterback position, easily the most important for any real or virtual franchise. Josh Allen leads the group with the coveted 99 rating. It’s tough to argue that, but where it gets questionable is in accuracy ratings. Quarterbacks are measured based on their short, medium, and deep throw accuracy, and adding these, then dividing by three, gives an overall accuracy rating.
Bengals signal-caller Joe Burrow has a 97.7 overall accuracy rating, and last season completed 66.8% of his passes. This begs the question: why did Jared Goff get a 90.3 accuracy rating after a season where he completed 68% of his passes? In the eyes of EA Sports, is 66.8 somehow greater than 68? Drake Maye led the NFL is completion percentage last season at 72.0%, and he got an overall accuracy rating of 93.3. Shouldn’t he have the highest accuracy rating in the game?
Popularity plays a role as well. Lamar Jackson is an all-time great player, but does he deserve an accuracy rating of 89.3 compared to Kyler Murray’s 82.7? The inevitable Vikings starter is nowhere near as high-profile as Jackson, and he has battled the injury bug every season. When he’s on the field, though, he completes 67% of his passes (68.3% last year). Jackson sported a 63.6 completion percentage. Why does EA Sports consider him a more accurate passer?
Running backs never get love in real life, so it makes sense that they wouldn’t in video games either, but the ratings could be more consistent. Kenneth Walker III garnered a Madden 27 overall rating of 90 after a season where he carried the ball 221 times for 1,027 yards (4.6 ypc) and five touchdowns. On the receiving side, he caught 31 passes for 282 yards and no touchdowns. So, this is the standard for a 90 rating?
How does EA Sports explain D’Andre Swift then? He carried the ball 223 times for 1,087 yards (4.9 ypc) and nine touchdowns. He also caught 34 balls for 299 yards and a touchdown. Basically, better than Walker in every single statistical category, and he received an overall grade of 85. Is Super Bowl MVP really a +5 booster to any player’s overall grade?
The guys who catch the ball were all over the place, too. The Cleveland browns highlight this with tight ends David Njoku and Harold Fannin Jr. Fannin was arguably the steal of the draft last year. He was targeted 107 times, had 72 receptions for 731 yards and six touchdowns. His teammate, Njoku, who is currently unsigned, was targeted 48 times, caught 33 balls for 293 yards and four touchdowns. The Madden 27 results? Njoku gets an overall rating of 81, and Fannin gets an 80.
Madden 27 Ratings Defense
The other side of the ball suffers from the same issues. Carlton Davis of the New England Patriots received an overall rating of 85, while Devon Witherspoon of the Seattle Seahawks pulled in a 91. This is solely about name recognition and has nothing to do with performance on the field. Davis allowed a completion percentage of 58.1 when targeted, defending 10 passes, and allowing a 90.7 passer rating.
Witherspoon’s stats seem nearly identical, if not worse. He allowed a 69.5% completion rate, with seven passes defended, and a passer rating of 90.7 when targeted. Once again, it appears he received the undisclosed +5 Super Bowl boost. Jamel Dean was Darelle Revis reincarnated last year. He allowed a 49.2% completion rate, a passer rating of 63.1, and had three interceptions (one returned for a touchdown). He received an 86 OVR.
The highest-rated cornerback in the game is Christian Gonzalez, which, on name recognition, makes sense, but at 98 overall, is he truly deserving of a rating 12 points higher than Dean? The Patriots’ lockdown corner allowed a 53.6% completion rate, a 79.9 passer rating, and didn’t have a single interception on the season. He is a first-team All-Pro and deservedly so, but why didn’t Dean get the same kind of love?
At the end of the day, these inconsistencies and shoddy gameplay at times will always be signatures of the Madden franchise. Without 2k Sports challenging them, or anyone for that matter, there’s no incentive for them to get their acts together.
