Colts Madden-style player ratings — Week 8

The Madden rating series is back for a 3rd season!!! In this series on Stampede Blue, I’m going to break down each player on a 50-100 Madden-style scale each week to help identify and illustrate which players are the best and most valuable to the team. Please note that these are current values and don’t consider the value or future improvement/potential (or regression) of a player. Here is a breakdown of the tiers:

Tiers

95 to 100 — One of the 3 or 4 best players at his position in the NFL

90 to 94 — An elite, top 10 NFL player at his position in the NFL

85 to 89 — A borderline elite player who will make plenty of plays in each game

80 to 84 — An above-average starter

75 to 79 — An average starter

70 to 74 — An average starter who should only be used in small spurts

65 to 69 — A below-average starter and above-average backup

60 to 64 — An average backup

60 or below — A borderline roster player

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Quarterbacks

Matt Ryan — 79 (-5)

Nick Foles — 74

Sam Ehlinger — 67

Running Backs

Jonathan Taylor — 96 (-1)

Nyheim Hines — 79 (-1)

Deon Jackson — 67

Wide Receivers

Michael Pittman Jr — 89

Alec Pierce — 76

Parris Campbell — 72 (+3)

Ashton Dulin — 69

Michael Strachan — 67

Tight Ends

Mo Alie-Cox — 83 (-1)

Jelani Woods — 73

Kylen Granson — 71

Offensive Line

Quenton Nelson — 96

Braden Smith — 81

Ryan Kelly — 77

Bernhard Raimann — 68

Dennis Kelly — 68

Danny Pinter — 66

Matt Pryor — 65

Danny Pinter — 66

Dennis Kelly — 66

Will Fries — 64

Wesley French — 62

Luke Tenuta - 62

Defensive Line

DeForest Buckner — 96

Grover Stewart — 92

Yannick Ngakoue — 82 (-2)

Kwity Paye — 80

Tyquan Lewis — 76

Dayo Odeyingbo — 72 (-1)

Ben Banogu — 69

Eric Johnson — 68

Byron Cowart — 67

Ifeadi Odenigbo — 67

Linebackers

Darius Shaquille Leonard — 97

Bobby Okereke — 82

E.J. Speed — 77 (+1)

Zaire Franklin — 74

Jojo Domann — 64

Grant Stuard — 62

Secondary

Stephon Gilmore — 93

Kenny Moore III — 84 (+1)

Isaiah Rodgers — 77

Julian Blackmon — 76

Rodney Thomas II — 75

Nick Cross — 73

Rodney McCleod — 73

Brandon Facyson — 68

Dallis Flowers — 63

Tony Brown — 63

Armani Watts — 68 (Injured Reserve)

Special Teams

Luke Rhodes — 86

Matt Haack — 82

Chase McLaughlin — 81 (+1)

Rigoberto Sanchez — 85 (Injured Reserve)

Biggest Mover

Parris Campbell

Campbell was the most consistent and explosive player on the offense against the Titans and might’ve had his best game as a pro. He was dominant on crossing routes and a vriaety of intermediate routes and looked like a true starting receiver. If he can play like this and cement himself as a #3 receiver in this offense, it would take a lot of pressure off Michael Pittman Jr and open things up for the tight ends and Alec Pierce.

Biggest Dropper

Matt Ryan

Ryan takes a large drop in part because his rating was a little too high to start with, but he also had a terrible game. All season, Ryan has been terrible under pressure. In today’s NFL, you need to be able to play under pressure and make plays outside the pocket, which are things Ryan just can’t do. On top of that, his arm has clearly weakened as he struggles to make throws towards the sidelines. He can play well when given time, but the offensive line has been weak this year so he has really been exposed.