Tyreek Hill is ranked as the best player in the NFL by his peers, so it is fitting that the Miami Dolphins wide receiver is 99 overall in this year’s edition of Madden NFL, which was released on Friday.
The same goes for this year’s cover athlete, San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey. He and Hill are two members of the exclusive 99 club, which also includes McCaffrey’s teammate Trent Williams and Kansas City Chiefs stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce.
No one can argue with the five who received the highest rating from Madden, but not every player was given the award in this year’s game.
Here are three highly ranked players in Madden NFL 2025:
Rams WR Puka Nacua: 84 overall
Nacua may not be a top-tier receiver yet, but he shouldn’t be ranked below 29 others at the position.
The Los Angeles Rams’ electrifying receiver is coming off a thrilling debut season in which he set rookie records for receptions (105) and receiving yards (1,486). The fifth-round pick also shined when it mattered most, setting a rookie playoff record with 182 receiving yards in Los Angeles’ wild-card loss to the Detroit Lions.
Nacua finished his first NFL season among the league’s top 10 in catches, receiving yards, yards after the catch and 20 yards a play.
He is also consistent. Nacua’s 87.4 receiving yards per game are sixth best in the league and more than top players like AJ Brown (95 overall), Davante Adams (94 overall) and Ja’Marr Chase (93 overall).
Somehow, Nacua is tied for 30th among all receivers in Madden’s rating this year. Hopefully a similarly strong sophomore season will honor the Rams’ young pass rushers.
Ravens S Kyle Hamilton: 89 overall
Despite an All-Pro season for the NFL’s best scoring defense, Hamilton is tied with the Chicago Bears’ Kevin Byard III—on his third roster in seven months—as the seventh-highest ranked safety.
I’m frankly not sure what the future superstar of the Baltimore Ravens can do to earn a higher ranking. Hamilton tallied 81 tackles, including 10 tackles for loss, defended 13 passes, and snagged four interceptions, including a pick-six, as a 22-year-old in just his second NFL season.
Hamilton’s peers took notice, ranking him as the top safety and the 43rd overall player in this year’s NFL Top 100. Fellow safety Antoine Winfield Jr. slotted in as No. 46 player in the Top 100, but the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ veteran is. Madden’s second-highest safety (94 overall).
Like Nacua, Hamilton’s limited NFL experience may be the biggest reason for his low rating. But because he developed so quickly for Baltimore’s elite defense, Hamilton will rise to the top of the rankings.
Eagles LG Landon Dickerson: 85 overall
Dickerson is the second-best run blocker in 2023, per ESPN Analytics, but the left guard’s Madden block rating barely cracked the top 50.
The Philadelphia Eagles’ underrated star posted an 81 percent win rate last season, second only to teammate Lane Johnson (82 percent). Dickerson’s win rate was four percent higher than any other interior lineman.
Madden’s 82 run block rating for Dickerson seems a little low on the surface. It’s borderline egregious when you compare that rating to Dickerson’s peers.
Trent Williams (99 overall) and Penei Sewell (96 overall) are tied for the highest block rating (98), despite not being in the top 10 in block win rate. Tyler Smith (88 overall), who leads all left guards with an 88 block rating, also placed outside the top 10 last season.
Again, Dickerson is better on the field than those three, but he’s the 49th-ranked run blocker among all linemen and just the sixth-best at his own position.
Dickerson’s overall rating is well below Williams’ benchmark for all linemen and Joe Thuney’s 91 grade, the highest among left guards.
And it’s not like Dickerson is a liability in pass protection. His 96 percent pass-block win rate last season was tied for fifth among all linemen.
