Four players surely are happy with their Madden 20 ratings. DeAndre Hopkins, Aaron Donald, Khalil Mack and Bobby Wagner can have no argument with their 99 ratings.
Every other player in the NFL likely believes his rating is too low.
Case in point: DeMarcus Lawrence.
The Cowboys defensive end received an 89 rating despite 14.5 sacks in 2017 and 10.5 last season. His rating is only sixth-best among defensive ends, tying him with Philadelphia’s Brandon Graham, who has never had more than 9.5 sacks in nine seasons.
Further, Lawrence has only sixth on his own team behind Zack Martin (96), Ezekiel Elliott (94), Travis Frederick (94), Tyron Smith (94) and Byron Jones (91).
Lawrence, needless to say, is not happy. In fact, in a social media post, he called for Cowboys fans to go on a Madden strike.
“Hold up, [EA Sports],” Lawrence tweeted. "[You’re] not just going to disrespeck me like that with an 89 and get away with it. PUT. SOME. RESPECK. ON. MY. NAME. UNTIL THEN COWBOYS NATION IS ON MADDEN STRIKE! RT @dallascowboys Nation show em we ain’t playin bih.”
Yes, Lawrence calling for a boycott of Madden 20 by Cowboys fan might be going overboard. But it goes to show the trivial things NFL players use to motivate themselves.