Pittsburgh Steelers insulted in release of Madden 21 ratings

The Pittsburgh Steelers have built a competitive roster, but here’s why they were disrespected in the release of Madden 21 ratings.

The Pittsburgh Steelers were the only team in the NFL to boast three first-team All-Pro defensive players last year. T.J. Watt, Minkah Fitzpatrick, and Cameron Heyward all proved to be the top two players at their positions in 2020. While it remains to be seen if they can keep up the pace, there is no doubt they will continue to be dominant players at their respective positions.

In addition to these stars, the Steelers have other young key contributors like JuJu Smith-Schuster, Devin Bush, and Diontae Johnson. But despite all of this, and the return of Ben Roethlisberger, the Steelers were insulted upon the release of the Madden 21 ratings. Here’s how Madden ranked some of the top Steelers players:

Now, I don’t really care much about what Madden has to say about things, but these ratings are an embarrassment to their brand.

Most notably, T.J. Watt as an 86 overall. Let’s put this into perspective for a minute. Six players have the same or better rating on the team, despite Watt finishing as a runner up to the Defensive Player of the Year award in 2019. Watt was arguably the best defensive player in the NFL last season with his ability to dominate at every level of the field. He led the NFL in both pressures and forced fumbles last year.

Watt has now had three terrific seasons and has gotten better every year. At the very least, he deserved a rating in the mid-90s. But this isn’t the only thing Madden got wrong. Veterans Ben Roethlisberger, Matt Feiler, and Steven Nelson didn’t crack the list of top 10 rankings for the Steelers despite Ben throwing for over 5,100 yards in 2018 and Nelson and Feiler grading out as some of the top players on the team last year, according to Pro Football Focus.

Madden also proved that they are just carrying their ratings over from year to year, and going off players’ past reputations. While Maurkice Pouncey was once a very good player for the Steelers, he graded out as the worst center in the league last year, according to Pro Football Focus. Yet, somehow, he is given the same overall rank as T.J. Watt – the best overall player on the team.

If you are a big fan of Madden, continue to do your thing. But don’t let these bogus ratings change your opinions on players. Please consult the experts for that. These ratings are not an accurate representation of the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2020.