EA Sports gave Houston Texans wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins a 99 rating in “Madden NFL 20,” making him only the fourth player to earn the highest mark in this year’s edition of the game.
Hopkins caught 115 passes, tying a Texans single-season franchise record, for 1,572 yards and 11 touchdowns last season. In 2017, with virtually no quarterback, he led the NFL with 13 touchdown catches. In 2018, as virtually quarterback Deshaun Watson’s only option, he still earned a first-team All-Pro honor, the second of his career.
Adding the 99 rating from EA Sports is in a league of its own.
“Oh, man, it was cool,” Hopkins told reporters Friday at Methodist Training Center. “I’ve been playing the game since [I was] a kid. A lot of guys never make that 99 club, so it’s a privilege.”
Hopkins is hardly letting the honor go to his head, and he is not about to let an individual honor get in the way of team goals.
“It’s nice to be recognized, but that’s individual accolades,” said Hopkins. “I want it to carry over to the team winning. I haven’t won the ultimate goal of what I feel like is the best any player can have, so there’s still a lot of room I can improve on.
“Even though my rating is 99 on a video game, I’ve got to improve it every day.”
Hopkins started training camp on the physically-unable-to-perform list but was passed his physical after just one day on the list. The former 2013 first-round pick from Clemson will be teamed up with speedy No. 2 wideout Will Fuller and shifty slot receiver Keke Coutee to provide a bevy of explosive options for Watson.
In some ways, the “Madden” ratings are dictated by team success. If the Texans advance to the AFC championship game or further, even if Hopkins statistically has a lesser year compared to 2018, chances are he keeps the 99 heading into next year.
