Another year, another iteration of Madden football is coming to consoles. Ahead of the official release on August 14, EA Sports is giving gamers and fans alike a look at the important player ratings for the start of the game.
These ratings are heavily scrutinized. Every franchise’s NFL team will nitpick their players’ ratings and ask them what they think about it for content. While players claim not to care about the video game rating, it is clear that many do. For gamers, the ratings can show you not only your favorite players and how they fare, but also the worst teams in the league for rebuilds.
In the past, EA Sports released a different position group each day of the week. This year, they are switching it up. They released the 99 Club on Monday, July 28. The rest of the week will consist of daily reveals with rookies, the offense as a whole, defense as a whole and then a full ranking and X-Factor Ability reveal on Friday.
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The Sporting News is tracking the best players by position in Madden 26 as they are leaked or revealed.
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Madden 26 ratings
EA Sports will be rolling out its ratings throughout the week of July 28. In the past, they have done it by position, but this year, they are doing a different format. It is worth noting that these ratings are only for franchise and offline modes. MUT ratings will be separate.
Get Ready! #Madden26 Ratings Week kicks off on Monday 😤
Who’s in your 99 Club? #Madden26Ratings pic.twitter.com/CWt9oNJx8P
— Madden NFL 26 (@EAMaddenNFL) July 25, 202599 Club
Every year, a select group of players is chosen to have the top overall rating in the game. The exclusive group is called the 99 Club. When it started, it was only four players, but in Madden 26, there are a whopping SEVEN players in the club, and fans of the game have plenty of problems with who wasn’t included.
This year’s 99 Club will be represented by:
Eagles RB Saquon BarkleyEagles OL Lane JohnsonBills QB Josh AllenBengals WR Ja’Marr ChaseRavens QB Lamar JacksonVikings WR Justin JeffersonBrowns DE Myles GarrettSaquon Barkley, RB, Eagles
Ahead of last season, the Giants decided to let Barkley walk in free agency. He joined the divisional-rival Eagles and went on to put up one of the best offensive seasons in recent memory. Barkley sat out the final game of the season and still managed to post 2,005 rushing yards with 13 touchdowns on the ground while adding another 278 yards and two touchdowns through the air.
He finished just 101 yards short of Eric Dickerson’s all-time record for rushing yards in a season. Along the way to winning Offensive Player of the Year, Barkley backwards hurdled over a Jaguars defender, creating an instant viral highlight. A re-creation of it is gracing the Madden 26 cover.
Saquon Barkley and his hurdle grace the cover of Madden 26 🔥🦅 @EAMaddenNFL pic.twitter.com/13v5alJK6S
— ESPN (@espn) June 2, 2025Lane Johnson, OL, Eagles
In front of every great running back is a great offensive line. Johnson is the top option among Philly’s star-studded offensive linemen. The 35-year-old’s career is winding down, but he is currently signed with the Eagles through the 2028 season thanks to options in his deal.
Josh Allen, QB, Bills
Since the start of the ’99 Club’ with Madden 20, no reigning MVP has started that year’s game with a 99 overall rating. That changes in Madden 26. Bills quarterback Josh Allen finished with 3,731 passing yards, 28 touchdowns, and six interceptions last year, adding another 531 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns to his resume, which earned him the 2024 NFL MVP Award.
While the argument against him is that he still needs to get Buffalo past its nemesis, Kansas City, in the playoffs, he can focus on doing that this year with a 99 rating in Madden.
MORE: Early look at Madden 26 new features
Ja’Marr Chase, WR, Bengals
Chase became the fifth receiver in history to win the WR triple crown, leading all players in receptions (127), receiving yards (1,708), and receiving touchdowns (17) in 2024. Chase doesn’t have the marketable touchdown dance like Justin Jefferson of the Vikings, but he showed in 2024 that he was deserving of the highest possible rating to start the Madden 26 game cycle.
Yet another demonstration of why Ja’Marr Chase is simply the best in the business the footwork at the back of the end zone one-handed. pic.twitter.com/PjE9jbfikJ
— Mike Petraglia (@Trags) July 25, 2025Lamar Jackson, QB, Ravens
Offense looks like it will be the name of the game in Madden 26. Players will have to deal with a 99 overall Allen and a 99 overall dual-threat Lamar Jackson. To make matters worse, they gave Jackson 96 speed out of the gate. For reference, he is the fastest player in the 99 Club to start the year.
Here’s your full breakdown of every 99 OVR player in Madden NFL 26 — including their full attributes across speed, strength, agility, and more. https://t.co/Hbvmo643S2 pic.twitter.com/bRL8i627VR
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) July 28, 2025
Jackson has a career-high 4,172 passing yards in 2024 with 41 touchdowns and four interceptions. Despite his winning two MVPs previously and not in 2024, last season was the best passing season of his seven-year career. Jackson added 915 yards and four touchdowns on the ground.
Justin Jefferson, WR, Vikings
Jefferson was overshadowed by Chase in 2024, but he still had an impressive season. He finished with 103 receptions for 1,533 yards and 10 touchdowns. Jefferson has tallied at least 1,000 receiving yards in each of his five seasons so far, and his 10 scores from 2024 tied a career-high. This means that players can expect to drop the Griddy on opponents again in Madden 26. The iconic dance was invented because Jefferson’s mom called him boring on the field. Now, it is one of the most emulated celebrations across sports.
Justin Jefferson started hitting The Griddy because his mom called him boring 💀 pic.twitter.com/Zk6sRf1s8o
— Netflix (@netflix) July 13, 2024
This is the third time that the Vikings’ wide receiver has been named to Madden’s 99 Club to start a season. He was a 74 overall when he was a rookie, but now has been a 99 for three consecutive iterations of the game.
Justin Jefferson earns a 99 overall rating in Madden for the third straight year 🥇 https://t.co/vgidjgydSm pic.twitter.com/xSehtLZEEt
— The 33rd Team (@The33rdTeamFB) July 28, 2025Myles Garrett, DE, Browns
Garrett is the lone defensive player to earn a spot in the 99 Club, with many fans believing that reigning Defensive Player of the Year Patrick Surtain II was snubbed.
Garrett is still one of the best defenders in the league and will terrorize quarterbacks in the game. He notched 14 sacks last season, the second consecutive season that he has finished with that many. Garrett has played in the NFL for eight years and already has 102.5 career sacks to his credit. Bruce Smith’s 200 career sacks are a long way off, but Garrett has forged a strong foundation so far.
Myles Garrett in 2024:
🟤 14.0 sacks
🟤 3 forced fumbles
🟤 28 QB hits
🟤 22 TFL
Still one of the most unblockable forces in football. Here’s every sack from the All-22 — raw, violent, and relentless.
🎧 Gahh Damn – BDifferent
Let me know who else you want to see cut ups from!… pic.twitter.com/cbn8xHd2I0
— All 22 Parker (@All22Parker) May 31, 2025
MORE: Why was Saquon Barkley chosen for Madden 26 cover?
Here are the top 10 overall players in Madden 26.
RatingPlayerTeamPosition99Saquon BarkleyEaglesRB99Lane JohnsonEaglesOL99Lamar JacksonRavensQB99Ja’Marr ChaseBengalsWR99Justin JeffersonVikingsWR99Josh AllenBillsQB99Myles GarrettBrownsDE98TBA 98TBA 98TBA
MORE: When does Madden 26 come out?
Madden 26 QB RatingsRatingPlayerTeam99Josh AllenBill99Lamar JacksonRavens
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Madden 26 RB RatingsRatingPlayerTeam99Saquon BarkleyEagles
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Madden 26 WR RatingsRatingPlayerTeam99Ja’Marr ChaseBengals99Justin JeffersonVikings
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Madden 26 TE RatingsRatingPlayerTeamTBA
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Madden 26 OL RatingsRatingPlayerTeam99Lane JohnsonEagles
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Madden 26 DL RatingsRatingPlayerTeam99Myles GarrettBrowns
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Madden 26 EDGE RatingsRatingPlayerTeamTBA
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Madden 26 MLB RatingsRatingPlayerTeamTBA
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Madden 26 CB RatingsRatingPlayerTeamTBA
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Madden 26 S RatingsRatingPlayerTeamTBA
This article will be updated.