With every new NFL season there comes a new version of Madden. Yes it’s reached that one name status; you say the name Madden these days and most assume your talking about the iconic video game. I’ll bet half of the game’s players couldn’t pick its namesake out of a lineup. I’ll bet some of you are asking yourself right now; “Who’s John Madden?“
It’s the most anticipated video game release every single year. And with every new version of Madden comes their season simulation that gives the prognosticators something to debate. That sim recently took place and we have the regular season results right here.
No surprises with their top two teams. The Green Bay Packers and the Pittsburgh Steelers both finished with 13-3 records. The sim had the Packers with the Defensive Player of the Year in Clay Matthews and the Steelers had the Coach Of The Year in Mike Tomlin.
The other NFC division winners were the Philadelphia Eagles led by League MVP Michael Vick, the New Orleans Saints with a rushing attack led by Offensive Rookie of the Year Mark Ingram, and the St. Louis Rams.
The two NFC Wildcard teams were the Atlanta Falcons with Offensive Player of the Year Roddy White, and the Detroit Lions. The Defensive Rookie of the Year also resides in the NFC, and that was Patrick Peterson of the Arizona Cardinals.
Over in the AFC the Madden sim saw the New England Patriots, the San Diego Chargers, and the Indianapolis Colts win their respective divisions, with the Wildcards going to the New York Jets and the Baltimore Ravens.
For those interested, and if you’ve read this far my guess is you are, here are the top 10 in some key statistical categories as predicted by Madden NFL 12;
Quarterback | ||||
Player | Team | Yards | TDs | INTs |
Philip Rivers | SD | 4699 | 29 | 11 |
Aaron Rodgers | GB | 4633 | 36 | 11 |
Drew Brees | NO | 4572 | 31 | 9 |
Peyton Manning | IND | 4519 | 32 | 9 |
Tom Brady | NE | 4181 | 35 | 8 |
Matt Schaub | HOU | 4169 | 32 | 11 |
Tony Romo | DAL | 4090 | 33 | 11 |
Michael Vick | PHI | 3876 | 29 | 7 |
Matthew Stafford | DET | 3689 | 30 | 12 |
Josh Freeman | TB | 3610 | 26 | 9 |
Running Back | ||||
Player | Team | Yards | TDs | |
Ray Rice | BAL | 1638 | 12 | |
Adrian Peterson | MIN | 1576 | 11 | |
Jamaal Charles | KC | 1512 | 12 | |
Rashard Mendenhall | PIT | 1350 | 10 | |
Darren McFadden | OAK | 1349 | 8 | |
Arian Foster | HOU | 1337 | 13 | |
Chris Johnson | TEN | 1295 | 11 | |
LeGarrette Blount | TB | 1221 | 9 | |
LeSean McCoy | PHI | 1173 | 8 | |
Peyton Hillis | CLE | 1136 | 10 | |
Wide Receiver | ||||
Player | Team | Rec | Yards | TDs |
Roddy White | ATL | 113 | 1350 | 16 |
Andre Johnson | HOU | 112 | 1290 | 12 |
Hakeem Nicks | NYG | 88 | 1203 | 12 |
Calvin Johnson, Jr | DET | 98 | 1188 | 14 |
Greg Jennings | GB | 93 | 1176 | 11 |
Larry Fitzgerald | ARI | 99 | 1150 | 13 |
DeSean Jackson | PHI | 75 | 1096 | 11 |
Miles Austin | DAL | 88 | 1044 | 11 |
Reggie Wayne | IND | 91 | 1025 | 9 |
Chad Ochocinco | NE | 74 | 925 | 10 |
Sacks | ||
Player | Team | Sacks |
DeMarcus Ware | DAL | 17 |
Clay Matthews | GB | 15.5 |
Jared Allen | MIN | 14.5 |
Shaun Phillips | SD | 13 |
Tamba Hali | KC | 12 |
Ndamukong Suh | DET | 11.5 |
Carlos Dunlap | CIN | 11.5 |
LaMarr Woodley | PIT | 10.5 |
Chris Long | STL | 10.5 |
Da’Quan Bowers | TB | 10 |
Interceptions | ||
Player | Team | INTs |
Ed Reed | BAL | 10 |
Tramon Williams | GB | 8 |
Joe Haden | CLE | 7 |
Earl Thomas | SEA | 7 |
Patrick Peterson | ARI | 7 |
Eric Berry | KC | 6 |
Devin McCourty | NE | 6 |
Troy Polamalu | PIT | 6 |
Brent Grimes | ATL | 5 |
Antonio Cromartie | NYJ | 5 |