Each year ahead of the annual Madden release, EA Sports announces the “99 Club” for the upcoming game.
The 99 Club is an exclusive honor given to just a handful of the very best players in the league, as the prestigious 99 overall rating is the highest a player can receive in the video game.
The 99 Club for Madden 26 consists of:
- Eagles RB Saquon Barkley
- Eagles OL Lane Johnson
- Bills QB Josh Allen
- Bengals WR Ja’Marr Chase
- Ravens QB Lamar Jackson
- Vikings WR Justin Jefferson
- Browns DE Myles Garrett
Notably absent is Buccaneers left tackle Tristan Wirfs.
Madden 26 totally snubbed Tristan Wirfs on his rating
No disrespect to Johnson, but overlooking Wirfs in favor of a 35-year-old tackle feels like another case of Tampa Bay being overlooked in favor of bigger markets.
If Wirfs played for Philadelphia, would he have gotten the recognition he deserved?
Jeremy Fowler’s annual ESPN ranking of the NFL’s top offensive tackles — voted on by league executives, coaches and scouts — had Wirfs at No. 1. Johnson came in at No. 3, behind Wirfs and Detroit’s Penei Sewell.
Pro Football Focus graded Wirfs as the league’s best pass-blocking tackle in 2024.
He also became the first offensive tackle in NFL history to earn All-Pro honors at both right tackle and left tackle.
With Wirfs widely respected as the NFL’s best at his position, it’s hard not to feel like he was massively snubbed in the Madden 26 ratings.
Most glaring omissions. pic.twitter.com/qzjrQw60tc
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Wirfs wasn’t the only star disrespected by the ratings team. Broncos cornerback Patrick Surtain II, who won Defensive Player of the Year last season and is almost unanimously regarded as the league’s top corner, was also missing from the list.
As Wirfs continues to recover from the knee surgery expected to keep him out for the first few games of the 2025 season, a video game rating is probably the last thing on his mind.
But when it’s time to return to the field, this snub could serve as great bulletin board material, and give the NFL’s best offensive tackle one more chip on his shoulder as he seeks to turn in yet another elite season.
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