Underrated: Tyrod Taylor, 69
The Madden ratings adjusters are clearly not thrilled about Tyrod Taylor being the Chargers’ starting quarterback. Taylor will begin the 2020 season ranked at a 69 overall.
No one expected Taylor to get a particularly high score. It’s been a while since he was really a starting quarterback. Even considering that though, his score feels a little bit low. He’s a point behind Justin Herbert and two points Jordan Love despite them most likely sitting out significant portions of their rookie years to develop for the future? Politely, give me a break.
Taylor sits behind Joe Flacco, who has been permanently downgraded to the backup tier, as well as Mitchell Trubisky. With this roster, I don’t think Taylor could be worse than Trubisky if he actively tried to be.
Again, it’s understandable that people aren’t thrilled with Taylor. I’m not asking the ratings adjusters to put him at a 90 overall. At the same time, Taylor possesses a few key traits that should really prevent him from bottoming out like this.
He’s really accurate with the football. In the three Buffalo seasons, he never once fell below 61.7% completion. Turnovers have never been an issue for him in the same way they have for other quarterbacks.
Of course, Taylor also has some mobility. He can give the offensive line some margin for error by extending plays with his legs and evading pressure, unlike Philip Rivers. The Madden team has clearly taken some credit away from Taylor for not starting consistently in a while, which is totally understandable. I can’t agree with the extent that they penalized him though, especially with some of his key attributes as a starter.
What it should be: 75