Madden 2010 New Features And Ratings

Football season is right around the corner! And that means 3 things. First, sports fans get a break from baseball. Second, its time to start looking at Fantasy Football players. And finally, a new season of Madden Football is here (Aug 14th release date). This means new game features and adjusted team & player rankings have to be figured out. And this is what we aim to provide in this story. We’ve got a lot to cover so lets get started. Oh, and before we start keep an eye on Larry Fitzgerald and Troy Polaumlu health this season. They have landed on the dreaded Madden cover and if past trending prevails at least one of the two players will get hurt or have an awful season.

New features: Learning the new features are critical to being successful in Madden Football. You’ve got to figure them out early before the opposition. The biggest objective of EA Sports in Madden 2010 was providing a more realistic game. Check out how they did it:

QB improvements - This season QB accuracy will be broken down by short, medium, and long passes. This will be a huge improvement and make gameplay much more realistic to the NFL. Guys like Chad Pennington who are accurate on short passes, but have weak arm strength to throw the long bombs will be affected the most. Additionally, QB’s will have improved ability to throw on the run or fool the defense with play action. QB’s that will be improved by the new roll-out functionality are Donovan McNabb and Ben Roethlisberger
WR-DB adjustments – DBs this season will have to take a more realistic “turn for the ball” approach. WR’s route running and DB coverage skills will be much more defined by related skills. Expect a lock down corner like Nnamdi Asomugha to dominate the game if you know how to effectively turn and defend the pass.
Wildcat formation – The Miami Dolphins utilized this formation to perfection last season and Madden has added it to the offensive package. All teams can use the package, but like mentioned above expect the Dolphins to be the best at using it. They were fabulous last year with Ronnie Brown, Ricky Williams and with slash quarterback Pat White being added to the mix they will only be better at this formation.
Adaptive AI – This new keeps track of plays being called by the player. This will allow opposing coaches and players to adapt to what is working so they can adjust accordingly. This feature will certainly make single player action be more realistic by eliminating the use of certain plays that work over and over. We all know in past seasons plays like the HB Pass could be perfectly executed on key 3rd down situations – look for the AI to prevent repeat plays from working.

Team rankings:

Nothing causes more frustration than having your favorite team get a raw deal in the Madden 2010 ranking system. The highest ranked teams are the Patriots, Steelers, Giants, Chargers, Eagles, and Titans. The lowest ranked teams are the Lions, Rams, Bengals, Browns, and Chiefs. My opinion is that the Falcons and Redskins got a raw deal. The Falcons have one of the most dynamic offenses in football with Matt Ryan, Michael Turner, and Roddy White. Now, with TE Tony Gonzalez added to the mix they should have been higher than a 81. Also, I think the defense of the Redskins with the addition of Albert Hayneswoth got the shaft. This team is getting better each year and should be better than their 79 ranking. Here is the full set of team rankings:

Bears (79), Bengals (67), Bills (76), Broncos (70), Browns (68), Buccaneers (74), Cardinals (86), Chargers (88), Chiefs (69), Colts (87), Cowboys (85), Dolphins (77), Eagles (88), Falcons (81), 49ers (73), Giants (89), Jags (71), Jets (78), Lions (65), Packers (78), Panthers (83), Patriots (93), Raiders (71), Rams (66), Ravens (82), Redskins (79), Saints (74), Seahawks (77), Steelers (92), Texans (75), Titans (87), Vikings (80)

Player Ratings:

Player ratings this year had a few surprises as always. A drastic difference was made between players that are top tier, middle tier, and lower tier. Here are the top 10 players by position:

Quarterbacks:
1. Peyton Manning- 99
2. Tom Brady- 98
3. Drew Brees- 97
4. Kurt Warner- 94
5. Ben Roethlisberger- 93
6. Donovan McNabb- 91
7. Philip Rivers- 88
8. Carson Palmer- 87
8. Jay Cutler- 87
8. Tony Romo- 87

It’s hard to argue with any of these selections. If I had to choose one on this list a bit overrated it would be Carson Palmer. The addition of Laverneus Coles should help, but he isn’t better than TJ Houshmandzadeh who took off for the Seahawks. And all of this is being said without the unfortunate situations we all know the the Bengals will eventually have.

Running Backs:
1. Adrian Peterson- 97
2. Michael Turner- 95
3. LaDainian Tomlinson- 94
3. Brian Westbrook- 94
3. DeAngelo Williams- 94
6. Clinton Portis- 93
7. Steven Jackson- 92
8. Frank Gore- 91
9. Brandon Jacobs- 90
9. Thomas Jones- 90

The running back ratings were a surprise. LT was once an amazing player, but there is no way in 2010 he should be ranked the same as Westbrook and Williams. In fact, I wouldn’t place him in the top 10 due to the injuries he has had the past few seasons and the hits he’s taken. In his place, Matt Forte from the Chicago Bears got a raw deal. Last season as a rookie he looked sensational and will only get better with the addition of Jay Cutler providing some deep passes to open up the field.

Wide Receivers:
1. Larry Fitzgerald- 99
2. Andre Johnson- 98
3. Steve Smith- 97
4. Randy Moss- 96
5. Reggie Wayne- 95
6. Anquan Boldin- 94
6. Roddy White- 94
8. Brandon Marshall- 92
8. Calvin Johnson- 92
10. Terrell Owens- 91

The WR list looks accurate. You could argue that Brandon Marshall won’t be the same player with Jay Cutler moving onto the Bears or Terrell Owens but on raw abilities alone these guys are top 10 talent. I also think Larry Fitzgerald is going to be the best player in the game. The type of player you crave to use – just throw it deep and he ends up with the ball type of guy.

Tight Ends:
1. Tony Gonzalez- 98
2. Jason Witten- 97
3. Antonio Gates- 95
4. Chris Cooley- 91
4. Dallas Clark- 91
6. Kellen Winslow- 90
7. Heath Miller- 88
8. John Carlson- 87
9. Zach Miller- 86
9. Owen Daniels- 86

The TE list looks accurate with Tony Gonzalez leading the way with his new explosive team the Falcons. Jason Witten will be close behind due to the TO less Cowboys.

Defense:
1. Nnamdi Asomugha (CB, Raiders)- 99
1. Albert Haynesworth (DT, Redskins) – 99
1. Ed Reed (S, Ravens)- 99
1. Troy Polamalu (S, Steelers)- 99
5. Patrick Willis (LB, 49ers)- 98
5. Jared Allen (DE, Vikings)- 98
5. DeMarcus Ware (LB, Cowboys)- 98
8. Kevin Williams (DT, Vikings)- 97
8. Ray Lewis (LB, Ravens)- 97
8. Julius Peppers (DE, Panthers)- 97

The defense list looks solid. Asomugha was so good last year that QB’s weren’t throwing to his side last season. And it goes without saying Reed and Haynesworth are great playmakers on the defensive side of the ball.

You can download the full player ratings at PastaPadre.

Enjoy the game and best of luck to our cover players Larry Fitzgerald and Troy Polaumlu. As always your comments are welcome discussing team rankings, player rankings, and all that good stuff. Lets get ready for football!