LA Rams News: Madden ratings adjusters missed it by a mile

What Madden Got Right

LA Rams DL Aaron Donald was assigned a 99 overall rating, enough said. Hall of Fame and arguably the greatest defensive lineman to ever step foot on a football field. Even so, I have trouble putting Donald in the “What Madden Got Right” column. Why do I almost have an issue with this? Madden used to have 100 ratings in 1999. He is in the top-five for most 99 ratings given out in madden history and it is his fourth year in the row starting off at a 99. They should bring back the 100 overall just for him.

Other players on defense with reasonable ratings are DB Jalen Ramsey at a 94, S John Johnson at 84 and, DE Michael Brockers at 83. While Ramsey could have been a little higher, the game based his rating on dealing with being traded to a new team and injuries. If he gets back to his old form expect him to have a 99 overall by the end of the year. One could make the same case for Johnson being a little higher as well, but after missing a majority of the season last year due to injury,  losing a few points is expected.

Offensive weapons

Offensively, wide receivers Cooper Kupp and Robert Woods got an 89 and 86 overall. It’s good that these two got some respect. Both had a 1000 yards receiving, and while not transcendent talents, they perform better than most people would expect. It is nice however to see that they got the respect they deserve.

Sticking with pass catchers, Rams tight end Tyler Higbee received an 82. He had a solid stretch ending the 2019 campaign with over 500 yards in five games. He ended up being the 14th best rated tight end in the game so far which is fine because he hasn’t been the most consistent.  While that late-season run proved he is far better than an 82, it was too small of a sample to move the rating higher. However, if he keeps up the performance he should get a boost by the end of the year.

Swapping to offensive line Andrew Whitworth the ageless wonder gets an 86. Even in old age, He has been more than serviceable. Other offensive linemen include IOL Austin Blythe and OT Rob Havenstein at 78 and 79. The offensive line did have a down year so a hit to their overall rating was expected. They will have to prove themselves in a bounce-back year to get a better rating.