Based on our model and the most current set of data2 released Madden nfl 22 coins through the Madden website, we found some players on which Madden as well as a pure model-based approach appear to differ in their results. The results are interesting.
Injecting human judgment into a system of grading isn’t necessarily bad. Daniel Sorensen is a good example. He’s had a disastrous season in his team, the Kansas City Chiefs, and he’s playing a role in their defense’s surrender of 69.5 points that was more than expected this season. They rank 31st in the league. Sorensen’s performance has earned a coverage grade at 42.2 percent by Pro Football Focus and an overall grade of 35.5. But despite his struggles, Sorensen is still quick! Based upon his on-field speed as determined by player tracking data, we’d anticipate to see a speed score purely based on model for Sorensen of 89 or so, almost 7 more points than Madden’s grade for Week 9 of 82. Perhaps the folks at EA are loath to be able to reward a player doing as badly as Sorensen with a top score in an important category like speed score, as it has such an outsized impact on the game. If that’s so there’s no reason to blame them.
Other notable outliers are Chiefs Wide receiver Tyreek Hill, who holds the highest speed rating in all of Madden at 99. Hill is definitely fast, and maybe we’re splitting our hairs but his best-ever speed of 22.8 mph puts him just fourth in the league , since 2017.3 And his current average weekly speed although very impressive, doesn’t even crack the top 50.
Two Baltimore Ravens teammates also make the list of somewhat overrated speedsters. Lamar Jackson appears to be slower this year likely due to recurring back injuries. The average speed he reached per game of 19.4 mph last year was almost a mile faster than the speed he has been running this season. Madden does not seem to care, though. The 96 speed score Madden gives Lamar halfway through the season is 11 points more than his model-based score.4
Middle linebacker Patrick Queen is a stronger case of overestimating. The 2020 first-rounder’s speed data is less than the speed that EA typically requires of an athlete with 90 speed scores, and Queen has seen a significant slowdown during his sophomore year, averaging a per-game max speed of 17.1 1 mph by 2021.
Last but not least, Keenan Allen is still underrated, if only buy Madden 22 coins slightly. Keenan Allen should request the speed rating to increase by 2 or more pointsand he’s earned it.