Madden 16: Release Date and Stars with Most Overblown Player Ratings
The Denver Broncos' Demaryius Thomas had a really good season in 2014 for the Denver Broncos. As the focal point of the pass-happy offense, he had 1,619 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns.
He also had 10 dropped passes, which tied for the league lead in that dubious category. Because of that, it's hard to support his receiving a 93 overall rating in Madden 16.
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It might sound like splitting hairs, but something close to a 90 should be the cap for a receiver who leads the league in drops.
Some might point to the amount of targets Thomas receives per game. He was targeted 184 times, which means he dropped 5.4 percent of the passes thrown his way. Compare that to guys such as the Green Bay Packers' Randall Cobb (4.7 percent), the Atlanta Falcons' Roddy White (4.8) and the Chicago Bears' Alshon Jeffery (3.5) who were all rated beneath Thomas in overall ratings. There seems to be a disconnect there.
Is Thomas one of the 10 best receivers in the game? Perhaps, but the 93 overall is a tad too high.
Andrew Luck
While Andrew Luck might be the future of the quarterback position in the NFL, the ratings guys at EA Sports are rushing his arrival into elite status, just like most folks who are prematurely singing his praises. Luck is rated a 94 overall in Madden 16.
Are we just going to act as if he didn't throw 16 interceptions in 2014? That number was the sixth-highest total in the NFL. Yes, Luck led the league in touchdown passes, and he is destined for stardom. But it's hard to rationalize him being rated higher than the Broncos' Peyton Manning (92).
Luck had just 34 more passing yards and one more touchdown pass than the Broncos legend. Manning had a higher completion rate at 66.2 to 61.7 and a better QB rating at 101.5 to 96.5. Luck also fumbled a whopping 13 times compared to just five for Manning.
It would seem as though Manning had a larger edge on Luck in the categories in which he had an advantage. So, how is Luck rated higher?
Terrell Suggs
Giving the Baltimore Ravens future Hall of Famer a 93 overall rating almost feels like a legacy award. Terrell Suggs is still a good pass-rusher, but his overall rating implies he's a great one. He tied for ninth in the NFL with 12 sacks, but let's remember, he is still a 3-4 outside linebacker.
While his primary responsibility is to rush the passer, who could Suggs cover at this point if he had to? Even if he dropped into a zone, there would have to be legitimate questions about how well he could defend an area.
As a pass-rusher, Suggs has even fallen off a bit. In 2014, there were 66 players with more quarterback hurries. Also, what rationale are we using to rate Suggs ahead of the Philadelphia Eagles' Connor Barwin?
The latter had more sacks, total tackles, passes defended and just one fewer tackle for loss. Suggs as an 88 overall is permissible, but the 93 should cause some raised eyebrows.
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All stats courtesy of SportingCharts.com.
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