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Less than 48 hours away from the start of training camp means another installment in EA Sports' annual football video game franchise—Madden NFL—isn’t far behind.
The football video game series releases in August each year, but in the weeks leading up to its drop, the team at EA Sports has made a yearly tradition out of revealing the ratings for the players in the game. Over the course of this week, ratings for various positions will be revealed on ESPN as part of a partnership between the network and the video game company.
Yesterday, the overall ratings of the top ten rookies were revealed and the Detroit Lions first-round pick, Penei Sewell, was among those coronated with their first-ever Madden rating.
— Zirksee (@Zirksee) July 25, 2021
Sewell’s 75 overall rating makes him the highest-rated rookie offensive lineman which comes as no surprise since the coveted Oregon product was also the first one off the board on draft night. Atlanta’s tight end Kyle Pitts, the fourth pick in this year’s NFL Draft, leads the way for this rookie class with an 81 overall at launch. Two players selected later than Sewell in April’s draft ended up with overall ratings higher than him: Denver’s Patrick Surtain II and Philadelphia’s DeVonta Smith.
Last year, Lions' first-round draft pick Jeff Okudah was given a 76 overall rating to begin the season, but after an injury-plagued season, it’ll be interesting to see how he’s rated in this year’s iteration of Madden.
Keep tuned into Pride of Detroit for more ratings reveals and analysis as we get closer and closer to the game’s release on August 17.