Colts Player Ratings — Season Recap

The Madden rating series is back for a 3rd season!!! In this series on Stampede Blue, I’m going to break down each player on a 50-100 Madden-style scale each week to help identify and illustrate which players are the best and most valuable to the team. Please note that these are current values and don’t consider the value or future improvement/potential (or regression) of a player. Here is a breakdown of the tiers:

Tiers

95 to 100 — One of the 3 or 4 best players at his position in the NFL

90 to 94 — An elite, top 10 NFL player at his position in the NFL

85 to 89 — A borderline elite player who will make plenty of plays in each game

80 to 84 — An above-average starter

75 to 79 — An average starter

70 to 74 — An average starter who should only be used in small spurts

65 to 69 — A below-average starter and above-average backup

60 to 64 — An average backup

60 or below — A borderline roster player

Note: Bracket gains/losses reflect changes from the beginning of the season

Quarterbacks

Matt Ryan — 73 (-13)

Sam Ehlinger — 68 (+1)

Nick Foles — 67 (-7)

Running Backs

Zack Moss — 71 (+1)

Deon Jackson — 69 (+6)

Jordan Wilkins — 66 (+2)

Jonathan Taylor — 88 (Injured Reserve) (-10)

Wide Receivers

Michael Pittman Jr — 84 (-4)

Alec Pierce — 77 (+6)

Parris Campbell — 76 (+4)

Ashton Dulin — 69 (-1)

Michael Strachan — 67 (0)

Tight Ends

Jelani Woods — 74 (+5)

Mo Alie-Cox — 73 (-8)

Kylen Granson — 69 (+1)

Nikola Kalinic — 62 (0)

Offensive Line

Quenton Nelson — 91 (-6)

Braden Smith — 81 (-3)

Ryan Kelly — 70 (-9)

Bernhard Raimann — 70 (+5)

Dennis Kelly — 68 (+2)

Danny Pinter — 66 (-5)

Will Fries — 64 (+1)

Wesley French — 62 (0)

Matt Pryor — 61 (-12)

Defensive Line

DeForest Buckner — 97 (0)

Grover Stewart — 96 (+7)

Kwity Paye — 84 (+3)

Dayo Odeyingbo — 78 (+7)

Ben Banogu — 69 (0)

Eric Johnson — 68 (0)

Khalid Kareem — 65 (+2)

Byron Cowart — 64 (-2)

Chris Williams — 64 (0)

Cameron Kline — 62 (0)

Yannick Ngakoue — 87 (Injured Reserve) (+2)

Tyquan Lewis — 76 (Injured Reserve) (+1)

Linebackers

Bobby Okereke — 82 (+1)

Zaire Franklin — 81 (+9)

E.J. Speed — 79 (+9)

Jojo Domann — 64 (0)

Segun Olubi — 64 (0)

Grant Stuard — 62 (0)

Cameron McGrone — 61 (0)

Darius Shaquille Leonard — 94 (Injured Reserve) (-3)

Secondary

Stephon Gilmore — 95 (+8)

Kenny Moore III — 84 (-4)

Rodney McCleod — 79 (+7)

Rodney Thomas II — 77 (+10)

Julian Blackmon — 74 (-5)

Nick Cross — 71 (-2)

Brandon Facyson — 68 (-2)

Dallis Flowers — 65 (+2)

Tony Brown — 63 (0)

Darrell Baker Jr. — 62 (0)

Isaiah Rodgers — 79 (Injured Reserve) (+3)

Armani Watts — 68 (Injured Reserve) (0)

Special Teams

Luke Rhodes — 87 (0)

Chase McLaughlin — 86 (+9)

Matt Haack — 80 (0)

Rigoberto Sanchez — 85 (Injured Reserve) (0)

Biggest Riser

Rodney Thomas II

Thomas had as good a rookie season as you can ask for from a late round pick. He made big plays, such as key interceptions, and showed versatility in his role, playing centerfield and in the box. He is going to be a very good player on the backend for the Colts for years to come.

Zaire Franklin

Franklin emerged as a legitimate above average starting linebacker in the NFL and his ascension is quite remarkable considering the strong and crowded the Colts linebacker group is. He made a ton of tackles and even held his own in coverage, an area that previously held him back from getting serious snaps. He is a keeper on a great contract.

Biggest Dropper

Matt Ryan

Matt Ryan struggled mightily this season, especially under pressure. Even though, his arm has severely deteriorated and he had issues making passes outside the numbers. His career is probably over and this season was a brutal way to go out.

Ryan Kelly

Ryan Kelly, inexplicably, had a horrible season. He gave up a ton of pressures, was even worse in the run game, being slow to get to the 2nd level. This comes after the Colts gave him a large contract that they will for sure need to reconsider in the offseason. I doubt they move on from him, but it wouldn’t surprise me since his season was that bad.