Chicago Bears: Madden disrespects rookies with low ratings

Duke Shelley was a sixth-round pick and has an overall rating of 62. Based on the other ratings for rookies, that is not too bad. He should easily make the team and will likely be the backup to Buster Skrine as the nickel corner.

Despite his size, Shelley is a big hitter who has the ability to make plays on the football. The only attributes that stood out to me incorrectly was a catch score of only 67 and a play recognition score of only 62. Shelley has great instincts and the ability to grab balls out of the air. Both of these should be higher and I think his score should be more like 65.

Kerrith Whyte – Overall: 63

As a seventh-round draft pick who should see most of his plays on special teams, I find that Kerrith Whyte’s score is right on. His overall speed of 92 is spot on. His overall rating is clearly dictated based on speed.

Stephen Denmark – Overall: 60

Stephen Denmark is a project. I am not sure if he actually makes the team or not this year. He has great attributes, but a score of 60 is not bad since he is very raw still. He has the potential to become much better, but starting out with a low score here makes sense.

Emanuel Hall – Overall: 67

I love the Emanuel Hall signing as an undrafted free agent. However, I did not expect Madden to have his rating only two points lower than Riley Ridley. This alone proves that speed is too big of a factor in how the Madden people create their rookie ratings.

Hall had the potential to make the Bears roster if not for his surgery. The team expects him to be back before the season, but with how deep the Bears receiver position is, I would not be surprised if they start him out on the PUP list.

Dax Raymond – Overall: 63

Dax Raymond was another undrafted free agent signing that I loved. I was surprised he was not drafted. Raymond also has a solid shot at making the team as the Bears third or fourth tight end. I think his catch rating of 75 is slightly too low and could see him more like a 67 overall and not only a 63.

These scores mean nothing if we are being honest. However, it is a fun thing to consider when analyzing players. The question is, did Madden get any of these rankings correct? Probably a few just by dumb luck, but I’d put more money on them being mostly wrong.