The player ratings for Madden NFL 25 are out, and many Detroit Lions players have received questionable scores. Which player was snubbed the most with their overall rating?
The full slate of Madden NFL 25 ratings were released over the weekend in anticipation of the next edition of the popular video game. Madden ratings have gotten flak for many years for their questionable scores, and this year’s version is no different.
Los Angeles Rams receiver Puka Nacua amassed an impressive 1,486-yard rookie campaign, but that netted him a Madden rating of just 84 overall, ranking him as the 32nd-best receiver in the game. Despite running away with the Rookie of the Year crown, Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud is just the 14th-highest quarterback. Kyle Hamilton, first-team All-Pro and arguably the best safety in the NFL, is eighth-best by Madden ratings. Another All-Pro was snub on defense, this time with DaRon Bland coming in 15th among cornerbacks.
Madden has their own method to their madness, but it becomes easy for local fans to spot egregious ratings. Detroit Lions have no shortage of questionable scores, but which one stands out as the greatest snub?
Today’s Question of the Day is:
Which Detroit Lions player was snubbed the most with their Madden rating?
My answer: Jahmyr Gibbs.
There were a few candidates also worth considering. Sam LaPorta had a phenomenal rookie season, yet his Madden rating is just 86 overall, good for seventh-best at tight end. I think LaPorta is better than the likes of Evan Engram (sixth) and David Njoku (fifth), but perhaps this is a case of Madden favoring veterans over young stars. I think Jared Goff was also snubbed, coming in with an overall rating of 82. This is one spot above Stroud, also a snub, yet they both are ranked behind players like Aaron Rodgers (83), Kirk Cousins (84), and Tua Tagovailoa (88).
However, the biggest snub without question is Jahmyr Gibbs. After an electrifying rookie season, Gibbs has an overall of just 84. He is tied with Breece Hall and Kyren Williams—two talented young backs—for 16th out of all running backs.
To call Gibbs the 16th-best running back in the NFL is absurd, especially when you factor in the players ahead of him. Joe Mixon, cast off from the Cincinnati Bengals this offseason, comes in as the fifth-best back. The next five backs are Travis Etienne, Josh Jacobs, Aaron Jones, Kenneth Walker, and Isaiah Pacheco.
How many of those backs are truly better than Gibbs going into 2024? Gibbs had all six of those backs beat in yards per attempt. Etienne was first in rushing yards (1,008 compared to Gibbs at 945), but it also came on 267 attempts—85 carries more than Gibbs, who played two fewer games. Walker had fewer yards on more carries and enters 2024 in a position to cede carries to Zach Charbonnet. As for Jacobs, Jones, and Pacheco, the simple stats illustrate it nicely:
— John Whiticar (@Whiticar) July 30, 2024
Gibbs has played but one season in the NFL, yet after such a rookie performance, there is little reason to doubt that he can reach the upper echelon of running backs in the NFL. Ranking Gibbs behind the likes of Christian McCaffrey or Derrick Henry? I understand it, given their track record. I am fine with Nick Chubb being ranked highly despite a devastating knee injury. However, in no world should Gibbs be rated so lowly.
Was Gibbs the biggest Madden snub, or is there another Lion ranked far too low? Let us know in the comments below.