There are two players that stand out from a full evaluation of the rosters that I would consider taking #1 in a fantasy draft for this year’s Madden: J.J Watt and Richard Sherman.

There is no player in the game that can compare to the dominance of Watt. 99 Power Moves, 97 Block Shedding, 97 Strength, 95 Tackle, 94 Toughness, and 84 Hit Power. He could even be put at tight end with his 78 Catching and 75 Spectacular Catch.

The question is whether a defensive end makes the same impact as players at other positions. They might not, given that many other user-controlled DE’s can be very effective in getting to the QB.

That brings me to Richard Sherman. Madden 16 is all about the deep ball and the “aggressive catch”. There is no player in the game better equipped to stop it than Sherman. He has 99 Zone Coverage, 99 Press, 99 Play Recognition, 98 Jumping, and 85 Catching.

Corners are generally not user-controlled (until the moment of making a play on the ball or man) so all those ratings are critical. They’re relied upon more than most positions as they put them into situations where a play can be made or prevented.

For that reason I’d go with Sherman #1, though it’s hard to argue against anyone who would take Watt or Aaron Rodgers.

In the NFL, you can’t win if you don’t have a quarterback. So, obviously EVERYONE should unanimously agree that your first pick in a Madden Fantasy Draft should be JJ Watt…destroyer of quarterbacks. If your opponent’s quarterback doesn’t have time to throw the ball, he/she can’t win.

I believe there are only five 99 overall players this year, but none of them are more imposing than Watt. With ratings of 99 Power Move, 97 Block Shedding and 97 Strength, he is likely to pressure the quarterback on almost every down. On top of that, on passing downs, DE is my favorite position to control.

Some might argue that someone like Calvin Johnson is THE player to have with this year’s new passing mechanics, but I would argue that having a defensive lineman is almost more valuable because you can shorten the amount of time a quarterback has to throw deep to Calvin Johnson.

With the #1 pick my team would trade down and take defensive tackle Jesse Williams, running back / kick returner Jarryd Hayne and punter Brad Wing. Aussie Aussie Aussie!

98 Jumping and 98 Spectacular Catch on a 6’5″ frame, I’ll take Megatron all day, every day. The proof is in the pudding.

Aaron Rodgers is a no-brainer #1 pick. If you pick someone else you literally have no brain.

With Rodgers at 31 years old, I’m probably getting another 4-7 seasons of him being rated a 95 or higher. He has the best deep pass accuracy in the game. His throw power is 95, play-action is 98, throw on the run is 88 and he has a 94 and 92 for short and medium accuracy, respectively.

Heck, his Make Goofy Videos With Your Celebrity Girlfriend rating is a 97.

A few years ago when Madden could be dominated with a good running game, you could survive a franchise league with average QBs.

That’s not nearly the case anymore.
Having a stud QB is the way to go. The list of truly elite QBs, even in Madden, is not a long one, so I’ll try my luck with Aaron Rodgers.

Hey, if it’s good enough for Olivia Munn, it’s good enough for me. And in case you hadn’t noticed, she has a brain.