Awwwww, Steelers upset with Ben's ratings in Madden '06

[Tom [Giants fan]]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/05235/558374.stm

'Madden 06' video game gives Big Ben no respect

Tuesday, August 23, 2005

By Timothy McNulty, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Prognosticators with enormous influence across the NFL have weighed in on the No. 1 question facing the Steelers this year -- how quarterback Ben Roethlisberger will fare his sophomore season -- and the results are not too pretty.

Big Ben in the 'Madden 06' game

Graphic: Virtual Big Ben limited by ranking

The findings could reverberate in locker rooms league-wide, where the experts' opinions are hotly debated in contests that go late into the night.

The experts rate "Big Ben" as a slightly above-average quarterback. Last year's rookie sensation isn't even among the highest-rated Steelers, they say.

Who's behind this? The Cleveland Browns fan club? No, these experts are the makers of "Madden 06," one of the most popular video games in the country and one played feverishly around locker rooms across the National Football League.

Producers of the Madden game, which was released two weeks ago, rank Roethlisberger the 12th best quarterback in the 32-team league. The ratings affect the performance of the characters within the video game and, more importantly to many inside football, are the foundation for a whole lot of trash-talking on and off the real field.

"Big Ben got completely disrespected," said Jon Robinson, the editor in chief of the game information site IGN Sports (sports.ign.com), who often plays the game with pros.

The main reason for the Roethlisberger wariness? The makers of "EA Sports Madden NFL 06," in an attempt to make the game more realistic this year, have given extra weight to each quarterback's vision around the field, a skill typically developed a few years into a QB's career, and not enjoyed by second-year quarterbacks like Big Ben.

So, while Roethlisberger gets great marks for his speed, throwing power, accuracy and other skills, his awareness gets an 80 percent grade, compared with the 99 or 98 given to Peyton Manning or Tom Brady.

That fits with Roethlisberger's breakdown at the end of last season, when he threw 10 interceptions in the last five games of the year, including two playoff games.

Before tossing this article aside, saying it shouldn't matter what a dumb video game says, consider this: The ratings are based on real-life scouting reports, studies by the Sporting News and ESPN, interviews with coaches and players, and actual statistics, such as players' 40-yard-dash times. A Sports Illustrated critic this month called it the best football video game ever.

The game -- the only one licensed by the NFL -- also is massively popular among fans, selling an estimated 1.7 million copies in its first week, and especially popular among players themselves. The Steelers, like most other teams, have video games set up at their South Side practice facility. Many players have "Madden 06" matches going near constantly in their St. Vincent College dorm rooms, between training camp practices.

Steelers veterans get so caught up in the games that they send rookies to get their snacks, or order pizzas, during evening Madden tournaments. Team officials even planned to set up additional game consoles for the players, so they could play the game while waiting for pre-game haircuts on Friday.

"We play the game day in, day out," running back Willie Parker said last week. "We've got a little push-up rule: You lose, you've got a hundred push-ups. If you lose by three touchdowns, you've got 200 push-ups."

Players also watch closely for themselves in the NFL-sanctioned game -- and how they are rated, on the 100 point scale -- and try to show up the video version of their opponents whenever possible.

"We do a lot of smack talking when it comes to Madden," Parker said.

The game's producers are proud of how realistic the 16-year-old game has become and how seriously real football players take it. The realism is especially apparent when it comes to passing.

For the past couple of years, the most popular Madden quarterback has been the fleet-footed Michael Vick, whose video game character was almost supernatural, avoiding sacks while still throwing precision passes like the slow-poke Manning.

Game makers added the emphasis on quarterback awareness to change that. Each quarterback has a shaded "vision cone" he must throw into. If he doesn't, the ball can go into the stands or the arms of a defender. Roethlisberger's cone looks like a single slice of pizza; Manning's looks like the rest of the pie.

"One of the goals of this product was to level the playing field," said the producer of "Madden 06," Phil Frazier, in a telephone interview last week. "Historically, the fast quarterback is the one everyone has used. ... They were quick and could run, while just as good passing as Peyton Manning. They had a distinct advantage in passing, while others suffered in the running game."

The real Roethlisberger, like Vick, was great on the run last year, using his improvisational abilities to help win games, but faltering late in the season when teams sat back, waiting for him to make a mistake. In emphasizing the new vision rating, EA Sports gave more points to veterans with more feeling for the game, driving Roethlisberger's overall rating down.

Roethlisberger has helped EA Sports promote the game, playing in its "Madden Bowl" video game playoff in February and giving playing tips on "Madden 06" on the company's official Web site.

"I'm a little bit above-average, I think," Roethlisberger said after a practice last week, when asked about his 88 rating in the latest game. But he is clearly not a fan of the quarterback changes.

"I think a lot of guys don't like it as much because it makes it much harder. I know they're trying to make it more realistic and stuff, but it makes it harder, and I don't know if it's as fun," he said.

Should Roethlisberger prove the critics wrong and improve his awareness this year, it could lead him to the ultimate prize -- not the Super Bowl of course, but the cover of the next Madden video game. (Roethlisberger said the cover "doesn't really matter" to him.)

That happened four years ago, when producers had to add a second-year quarterback to the latest Madden game, after he wasn't included in the original version but started burning up the league on his way to a Super Bowl win.

That was Tom Brady, who has not appeared on the cover, either.

[bird_1972]

Wow. I've never played this game, but it sure seems popular. It must be weird for actual players to be playing a game based on themselves.

[TheREALJBird]

I think they were a little gracious in "Big Ben's" rating, it should be lower, his rookie season his team won the games, not him....had Maddox not gone done with injury he would of had the 15-1 team, with better stats than Ben might I add

[dahurt002]

I usually use the game to rate players in the league, and for the most part the rating have been very accurate (in my opinion). Most of the excitement that I had for the game was so I could see how much the players progressed. I thought Patrick would be a 86 overall, the game has him at 83 so close enough for me.

Oh yeah for all the LaVar haters he is ranked at 95 overall - now that is great scouting

[Walking Deadman]

I think for the upset Big Ben Madden players, I can say this.....GET A LIFE!!!!

Jeeze, they'll update rosters and player ratings later anyway right?

[dragon_mikal]

had Maddox not gone done with injury he would of had the 15-1 team, with better stats than Ben might I add

Uh...no he wouldn't.

[skinzfan4life]

I will say that while his TEAM played good last year, his ratings are fine.

If he goes 15-1 this year then he can talk about how he should see the whole field. But I think his team had more to do with his success then just him.

[TheREALJBird]

Uh...no he wouldn't.

uhhhh...yes he would, and i'm glad you gave such great reasoning to back up your statement, worry about your drew's in dallas, they need all the help they can get

[G-Prime]

Ben was exposed last season in real games.. Maybe teams figured him out late in the season..

[FLRedskins]

What is Ramsey's rating :eaglesuck :gaintsuck :dallasuck

[Ron Mexico]

He's good for a rookie but c'mon the guy was surrounded by a good team that had a phenominal year. This is the NFL, the Steelers could go 8-8 this year and the guy could look horrible, besides he only threw like 10 times a game. I know it's a respect issue but if you really don't agree with a rating you can always edit it to you're liking, unlike the Madden's throughout the 90's where Emmitt Smith's speed was like 96 haha yeah right

[dragon_mikal]

uhhhh...yes he would, and i'm glad you gave such great reasoning to back up your statement, worry about your drew's in dallas, they need all the help they can get

Maddox is a bum. He had the talent around him before Ben got there, yet couldn't do anything with it.

You don't need great reasoning when your opinion is based on common sense and facts. Maddox would never have led that team to 15-1. Ever.

It's a shame that Ben doesn't get the credit he deserves. A rookie coming in and leading his team to 15-1 record is just amazing. I love how people try to use that lame ass argument about him having good players around him. Please name a team that went 15-1 that didn't have good players around the quarterback.

[MoeRedskins]

BOOHUU! Ben is only an 80. We won 15 games and we still aren't happy about anything. WAAAA

[TheREALJBird]

Maddox is a bum. He had the talent around him before Ben got there, yet couldn't do anything with it.

You don't need great reasoning when your opinion is based on common sense and facts. Maddox would never have led that team to 15-1. Ever.

It's a shame that Ben doesn't get the credit he deserves. A rookie coming in and leading his team to 15-1 record is just amazing. I love how people try to use that lame ass argument about him having good players around him. Please name a team that went 15-1 that didn't have good players around the quarterback.

How many pass attempts did he have per game??? If it were more than15 i'd be shocked. he was surrounded by a hell of a team, his job was to hand the ball of to bettis, he was the leader on offense last year, you lack common sense, you have before and ive called you out on it, you've done nothing to make me believe otherwise

[RedskinPryde]

I think for the upset Big Ben Madden players, I can say this.....GET A LIFE!!!!

Jeeze, they'll update rosters and player ratings later anyway right?

problably not a good idea to go tell ppl to get a life when u have 4,000+ posts here dude...lol...

[MiamiDolphins13]

The only thing he should be rated good in is "handoff stats" because that's all he's really proved. Maybe if he throws the football, puts up some good numbers and wins then he'll be rated higher. But right now he's a guy that makes plays when he needs to, still makes stupid errors, cant read defenses and hands the ball off to a great backfield. In time he'll be a terrific QB, but not yet.....Guys only like 22 years old

[redman]

The key thing that Ben did last year to help his team was to avoid making major mistakes. That was all the team needed to win . . . until the playoffs.

I'm interested to see whether he can carry the team on his back if they need him to.

[Big Weirdo]

']http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/05235/558374.stm

'Madden 06' video game gives Big Ben no respect

Tuesday' date=' August 23, 2005

By Timothy McNulty, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Prognosticators with enormous influence across the NFL have weighed in on the No. 1 question facing the Steelers this year -- how quarterback Ben Roethlisberger will fare his sophomore season -- and the results are not too pretty.

Big Ben in the 'Madden 06' game

Graphic: Virtual Big Ben limited by ranking

The findings could reverberate in locker rooms league-wide, where the experts' opinions are hotly debated in contests that go late into the night.

The experts rate "Big Ben" as a slightly above-average quarterback. Last year's rookie sensation isn't even among the highest-rated Steelers, they say.

Who's behind this? The Cleveland Browns fan club? No, these experts are the makers of "Madden 06," one of the most popular video games in the country and one played feverishly around locker rooms across the National Football League.

Producers of the Madden game, which was released two weeks ago, rank Roethlisberger the 12th best quarterback in the 32-team league. The ratings affect the performance of the characters within the video game and, more importantly to many inside football, are the foundation for a whole lot of trash-talking on and off the real field.

"Big Ben got completely disrespected," said Jon Robinson, the editor in chief of the game information site IGN Sports (sports.ign.com), who often plays the game with pros.

The main reason for the Roethlisberger wariness? The makers of "EA Sports Madden NFL 06," in an attempt to make the game more realistic this year, have given extra weight to each quarterback's vision around the field, a skill typically developed a few years into a QB's career, and not enjoyed by second-year quarterbacks like Big Ben.

So, while Roethlisberger gets great marks for his speed, throwing power, accuracy and other skills, his awareness gets an 80 percent grade, compared with the 99 or 98 given to Peyton Manning or Tom Brady.

That fits with Roethlisberger's breakdown at the end of last season, when he threw 10 interceptions in the last five games of the year, including two playoff games.

Before tossing this article aside, saying it shouldn't matter what a dumb video game says, consider this: The ratings are based on real-life scouting reports, studies by the Sporting News and ESPN, interviews with coaches and players, and actual statistics, such as players' 40-yard-dash times. A Sports Illustrated critic this month called it the best football video game ever.

The game -- the only one licensed by the NFL -- also is massively popular among fans, selling an estimated 1.7 million copies in its first week, and especially popular among players themselves. The Steelers, like most other teams, have video games set up at their South Side practice facility. Many players have "Madden 06" matches going near constantly in their St. Vincent College dorm rooms, between training camp practices.

Steelers veterans get so caught up in the games that they send rookies to get their snacks, or order pizzas, during evening Madden tournaments. Team officials even planned to set up additional game consoles for the players, so they could play the game while waiting for pre-game haircuts on Friday.

"We play the game day in, day out," running back Willie Parker said last week. "We've got a little push-up rule: You lose, you've got a hundred push-ups. If you lose by three touchdowns, you've got 200 push-ups."

Players also watch closely for themselves in the NFL-sanctioned game -- and how they are rated, on the 100 point scale -- and try to show up the video version of their opponents whenever possible.

"We do a lot of smack talking when it comes to Madden," Parker said.

The game's producers are proud of how realistic the 16-year-old game has become and how seriously real football players take it. The realism is especially apparent when it comes to passing.

For the past couple of years, the most popular Madden quarterback has been the fleet-footed Michael Vick, whose video game character was almost supernatural, avoiding sacks while still throwing precision passes like the slow-poke Manning.

Game makers added the emphasis on quarterback awareness to change that. Each quarterback has a shaded "vision cone" he must throw into. If he doesn't, the ball can go into the stands or the arms of a defender. Roethlisberger's cone looks like a single slice of pizza; Manning's looks like the rest of the pie.

"One of the goals of this product was to level the playing field," said the producer of "Madden 06," Phil Frazier, in a telephone interview last week. "Historically, the fast quarterback is the one everyone has used. ... They were quick and could run, while just as good passing as Peyton Manning. They had a distinct advantage in passing, while others suffered in the running game."

The real Roethlisberger, like Vick, was great on the run last year, using his improvisational abilities to help win games, but faltering late in the season when teams sat back, waiting for him to make a mistake. In emphasizing the new vision rating, EA Sports gave more points to veterans with more feeling for the game, driving Roethlisberger's overall rating down.

Roethlisberger has helped EA Sports promote the game, playing in its "Madden Bowl" video game playoff in February and giving playing tips on "Madden 06" on the company's official Web site.

"I'm a little bit above-average, I think," Roethlisberger said after a practice last week, when asked about his 88 rating in the latest game. But he is clearly not a fan of the quarterback changes.

"I think a lot of guys don't like it as much because it makes it much harder. I know they're trying to make it more realistic and stuff, but it makes it harder, and I don't know if it's as fun," he said.

Should Roethlisberger prove the critics wrong and improve his awareness this year, it could lead him to the ultimate prize -- not the Super Bowl of course, but the cover of the next Madden video game. (Roethlisberger said the cover "doesn't really matter" to him.)

That happened four years ago, when producers had to add a second-year quarterback to the latest Madden game, after he wasn't included in the original version but started burning up the league on his way to a Super Bowl win.

That was Tom Brady, who has not appeared on the cover, either.[/quote']

This is funny that this is even a problem. It's a video game for god sake.

[Bigskinbauer]

23.5 QB rating today, had somewhere in the 30's before today, i think it is generious