Madden 20 is the latest game in the long-running American Football (or to Americans, just ‘Football’) series, and it’s getting its global release today, August 2nd.
The Madden series is not only a faithful recreation of the sport, but EA also analyses and rank nearly 3000 NFL players, rating them on a variety of skills and attributes.
As a result, each player gets a rating by Madden between 1-99 with 99 being termed the coveted ‘99 Club’. Even though Madden 20 is a video game, getting into the elusive 99 Club is a huge deal for the NFL and American Football, with severe bragging rights becoming associated with a high rating in Madden games.
This year the developers have aimed to make the game more realistic than ever, and as a result the rankings are a bit more severe than in previous years. Only 4 players have a 99 rating this year, compared to 7 last year.
Here’s the top 10 players in the NFL, according to Madden 20.
Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs Quarterback – Rated 97
The only quarterback in history to throw for over 5,000 yards in a season in both college and the NFL and one of the only players in NFL history to throw at least 50 touchdown passes in a single season
Todd Gurley II, Los Angeles Rams Running Back – Rated 97
Voted Rookie of the Year by the Associated Press in 2016, he was also later named NFL Offensive Player of the Year in 2017.
David Bakhtiari, Green Bay Packers Offensive Tackle – Rated 97
Rated 91st by his peers in the NFL Top 100 Players of 2018, he’s also a massive Settlers of Catan fan and is responsible for a group of Packers appearing in Pitch Perfect 2.
Luke Kuechly, Carolina Panthers Linebacker – Rated 98
The youngest recipient of the AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year Award in history, he also won the Associated Press 2012 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year award
Julio Jones, Atlanta Falcons Wide Receiver – Rated 98
With a career average of 96.7 receiving yards per game, Julio Jones has the highest career average in NFL history
Antonio Brown, Oakland Raiders Wide Receiver – Rated 98
Antonio Brown is the only receiver in NFL history to record five receptions and at least 50 yards in every single game of an NFL season, he is also the highest-paid receiver in the game.
Bobby Wagner, Seattle Seahawks Linebackers – Rated 99
The the highest-paid middle linebacker in the league, Bobby Wagner was drafted by the Seahawks in the second round of the 2012 NFL draft.
Khalil Mack, Chicago Bears Linebacker – Rated 99
The highest paid defensive player in NFL history. Mack is recognised as one of the most dominant defensive players playing in the NFL.
DeAndre Hopkins, Houston Texans Wide Receiver – Rated 99
After playing college football at Clemson, Hopkins was drafted by the Texans in the first round of the 2013 NFL draft.
Aaron Donald, Los Angeles Rams Defensive End – Rated 99
Known as the greatest interior lineman of all time, Donald is renowned for his strength. He has also been proclaimed a unanimous ‘All-American’ during his time at Pittsburgh
Madden 20 is out today, are you playing it and are you deep into the field of American Football? Let us know over on the community forums what you think of this years’ installment.
