As we predicted, EA will begin its Madden 26 Ratings Week this week. The developer confirmed the ratings reveal will kick off on Monday, July 28th and continue throughout the week with the full reveal coming on Friday, August 1st.
While past years have seen EA team up with ESPN for Madden Ratings Week, it appears that the video game publisher is going at it alone this year. There was no press release announcing a collaboration with the leading sports network.
Madden 26's Ratings Week will kick off with the 99 Club reveal on Monday, July 28th. The "99 Club" is the prestigious group of NFL players who receive a 99 overall rating in EA's Madden NFL video game. 99 is hte highest possible rating a player can earn in the game, and usually only a handful of players receive it.
Last year's Madden 25 featured five players in the 99 Club at launch: Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, Aaron Donald, Justin Jefferson, and Zack Martin. By the end of the season, the 99 Club looked much different, featuring Derrick Henry, Justin Jefferson, Lamar Jackson, Travis Kelce, and Trent Williams.
Players who are in the 99 Club are usually celebrated with exclusive merchandise and typically hav emarketing campaigns around them.
Tuesday, July 29th will be the rookie reveal, and there are quite a few intriguing prospects we'll have our eyes on, including Titans' quarterback Cam Ward, Jaguars' two-way superstar Travis Hunter, and Browns' controversial quarterback Shedeur Sanders. Those are probably the most high-profile rookies, but other intriguing prospects that we are looking forward to seeing include Abdul Carter, Ashton Jeanty, Tetairoa McMillan, Colston Loveland, and Tyler Warren.
Rookies typically don't receive high ratings in Madden as EA tends to be cautious due to the fact they've got no NFL track record. Top 10 picks usually fall int he 74-79 overall range, though there have been some exceptions like Browns' DE Myles Garrett, who was rated 83 in Madden NFL 18.
The full reveal for offensive players will be on July 30th, followed by the full defense reveal on July 31st. The week will conclude on Friday, August 1st with the full roster reveal as well as Superstar X-Factors.
Madden NFL 26 will launch on August 14th for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Windows PC, and Nintendo Switch 2. It will not be available on PS4 or Xbox One. Early Access for those who purchase the Deluxe Edition or MVP Bundle will begin on August 11th.