Inside The Vikings

Vikings' Justin Jefferson is no longer a 99 in Madden (or the top receiver)

Jefferson's rating fell one point this year.
Will Ragatz|
Dec 31, 2023; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson (18) looks on before the game against the Green Bay Packers at U.S. Bank Stadium.
Dec 31, 2023; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson (18) looks on before the game against the Green Bay Packers at U.S. Bank Stadium. | Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports

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Minnesota Vikings

Justin Jefferson is no longer a 99 in Madden. The Vikings' superstar, who joined the prestigious 99 club for the first time last year, is a 98 overall in the newest edition of the game, which comes out in August. Tyreek Hill is the lone 99 at the receiver position.

Madden 25 WR ratings

1. Tyreek Hill, Miami Dolphins (99)
2. Justin Jefferson, Minnesota Vikings (98)
3. CeeDee Lamb, Dallas Cowboys (96)
T4. A.J. Brown, Philadelphia Eagles (95)
T4. Amon-Ra St. Brown, Detroit Lions (95)
6. Davante Adams, Las Vegas Raiders (94)
7. Ja'Marr Chase, Cincinnati Bengals (93)
8. Stefon Diggs, Houston Texans (92)
T9. Mike Evans, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (91)
T9. Brandon Aiyuk, San Francisco 49ers (91)

The only explanation for Jefferson's overall rating dropping one point this year is that he got hurt last season, missing seven full games and parts of two others. When he was on the field, he was as dominant and brilliant as ever. Jefferson still managed a 68-1,074-5 receiving line in just eight full games, including performances of 192, 159, 150, 149, and 141 yards. He got off to an incredible start with Kirk Cousins at QB, but also had a couple huge games late in the season while catching passes from Nick Mullens.

Taking out the Chiefs and Raiders games where Jefferson got hurt, he recorded 1,019 receiving yards in eight games. That's a 17-game pace of 2,165 yards. Jefferson was coming off a 2022 campaign where he finished with 1,809 yards and was named the NFL's offensive player of the year. He has smashed all kinds of records throughout his four seasons in the league and was rewarded this offseason with a four-year, $140 million extension.

Hill had a ridiculous 2023 with 1,799 yards and 13 touchdowns, hitting the 1,700-yard mark in Miami for the second straight season. He's deserving of the 99 rating — but so is Jefferson.

In other Madden rating news, Harrison Smith's 87 overall makes him the 11th highest-rated safety in the game. That's pretty impressive at 35 years old. The Madden folks will be unveiling the ratings at other positions over the course of this week.

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Will Ragatz
WILL RAGATZ

Will Ragatz is a senior writer for Vikings On SI, who also covers the Twins, Timberwolves, Gophers, and other Minnesota teams. He is a credentialed Minnesota Vikings beat reporter, covering the team extensively at practices, games and throughout the NFL draft and free agency period. Ragatz attended Northwestern University, where he studied at the prestigious Medill School of Journalism. During his time as a student, he covered Northwestern Wildcats football and basketball for SB Nation’s Inside NU, eventually serving as co-editor-in-chief in his junior year. In the fall of 2018, Will interned in Sports Illustrated’s newsroom in New York City, where he wrote articles on Major League Baseball, college football, and college basketball for SI.com.

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