It’s summer time, which means vacationing, preparing for the upcoming football season and the annual release of the latest version of EA Sports’ Madden franchise.
NFL players who play the game undoubtedly keep a close eye on their rankings for bragging rights. For the 49ers, their top three are tackle Joe Staley (89), cornerback Richard Sherman (also 89) and second-year linebacker Reuben Foster (87) who was one of Pro Football Focus’ highest graded linebackers last season. The first rankings leaked this week ahead of the game’s release in August.
Screen shot courtesy Miguel “Gator” Lozada’s YouTube Clip
As a team, the 49ers are ranked a 78 overall, tied with the Panthers, Lions and Texans for 17th among the 32 clubs.
That’s not quite in line with all the optimism surrounding San Francisco this offseason after finishing 5-0 finish behind Jimmy Garoppolo as the starter. The 49ers are widely considered a candidate to compete for a playoff berth with Garoppolo at the helm for a full season. They were the first team in history to start 0-9 and finish 6-10.
Suffice to say, the 49ers still have a young and largely unproven roster. If they do end up winning more games than anticipated, their player and team ratings will take a jump. As always, the ratings are subject to change.
