It is just a Madden ranking, but it does create a few questions.

Jonathan Taylor had a rough 2023 season. It was so rough that he almost didn’t spend last year with the Indianapolis Colts. We remember the drama all too well. From the running back’s Zoom call, to the private sit down with Jim Irsay on the team bus, to the bum ankle that just couldn’t quite heal, to the hold out for more money. All’s well that ends well, though, as Taylor ended up inking a lucrative contract to stay with the team. Maybe the injuries and the shortened season made him disappear from the public eye because although he was productive while on the field, Madden has him ranked outside of the top ten running backs.

I know it is just a video game, and it isn’t that deep. I get that. At the same time, if you are creating a ranking of the top ten running backs in the game, how is Taylor not on it?

No disrespect to the players on this list, but are you telling me JT is below Kenneth Walker III? In 10 games last year, Taylor had 741 yards on 169 rushes with a 4.4 yards per carry average and seven touchdowns. Comparatively, Walker played 15 games with 905 yards on 219 rushes. That is a 4.1 average with eight touchdowns. Not to single Walker out, so let’s look at Travis Etienne Jr. too. He played all 17 games and averaged 3.8 yards per carry on 267 rushes. Let’s do one more just for fun. Josh Jacobs had 805 yards on 233 rushes which is a 3.5 yard average. He only had six touchdowns.

I am confused how this list makes any sense. The total number of rushes and yards don’t really matter when looking at these numbers. It really comes down to yards per carry and maybe to a lesser extent, touchdowns. Taylor averaged more yards than those three whenever the ball was handed off. Outside of Etienne who had eleven touchdowns, that number is comparable or better to the others too. How can Madden look at stats and think Taylor is below any of those players? Make it make sense.

A list like this doesn’t mean much except for fans to discuss and debate. Nevertheless, why make a list if is going to be so deeply flawed? Did the people at Madden forget Jonathan Taylor was in the league? I am not saying he should be even in the top five necessarily, but to not even make a top ten list is borderline ridiculous.