With the arrival of 2025, there is an opportunity to look back at the last 25 years to find the most dominant video game athletes of the modern era. The NFL has a long history of unstoppable athletes dating back to Bo Jackson running literal circles around defenses in Tecmo Bowl on the NES. In the modern era, Madden is king of football games, so we thought it would be fun to put together an All-Quarter Century Madden team.
Quarterback
There have been some truly dominant virtual quarterbacks through the years in Madden — from giant passing cone Manning to the modern wizardry of virtual Pat Mahomes — but there’s one undisputed king of modern video game quarterbacks and it’s early 2000s Michael Vick.
Mobility and scrambling were already overpowered in Madden, so having the speed, agility, and arm talents of Vick made him an absolute nightmare to defend. When Madden 2004 rolled around, Vick was on the cover even though he was not the top-rated QB (that honor belonged to Brett Favre) — that speaks to his power. And even if he wasn’t the top-rated QB, he was the fastest. He could get out of trouble all on his own, and even if you contained him, the newly introduced Playmaker controls were also OP. This gave Vick cheesers another weapon as they could use Playmaker controls to tell 6-foot-5 Brian Finneran to go deep and make a play on a 50/50 ball.
Friendships were ended over Madden Mike Vick, and Madden 2005‘s gameplay was almost entirely designed around giving people ways to contain Vick. When an entire video game is designed around trying to stop you, that’s dominance.
Skill Positions
In football video games, the skill position players are how you define what your team is going to be about. These players are some of the most broken and unplayable ever and would make for a terrifying roster to defend against.
- Backfield: We start with a split backfield, with LaDainian Tomlinson and Chris Johnson. Tomlinson’s combination of receiving skills and running talent made him one of the most explosive players ever on real fields and a nightmare to defend in Madden. Johnson is here for the raw speed, always valuable in video game sports. The Titan running back was the cover athlete for Madden 10, where the game debuted larger attribute ranges, but that didn’t stop CJ2K from staying maxed out at 99 speed for game-breaking evasion. For good measure, we toss Mike Alstott in at fullback to open holes for both of them.
- Wide Receiver: At wide receiver we have a trio of all-time receiving threats. Randy Moss has perhaps the most unstoppable digital versions in history and his Madden 04 edition stands out. He had 99 Speed and Acceleration to go with elite Jumping and Catching. While it left him at third overall at 98, in practice he was the GOAT. At number two, Calvin Johnson was a freak of nature with hands to boot. To round out the unit, we get one of the purest route runners and reliable catchers ever in Larry Fitzgerald.
- Tight End: Choosing among Tony Gonzalez, Antonio Gates, Travis Kelce, and Rob Gronkowski is a no wrong answer scenario, though the freakish athleticism for Gronk felt just a bit more OP in his prime. His Madden 16 edition resides in the famous 99 Club which left a clear gap between himself and even other elite tight ends.
Offensive Line
Your best players can only do so much if there aren’t any holes to run into or time to complete routes, so a bruising offensive line is a must. Fortunately, the all-21st Century team gets access to all the most dominant big men to keep their backfield safe and blow open holes for the running game to slash through.
- Tackles: The tackle positions are key, particularly on your quarterback’s blindside, and this squad has that covered and then some in Trent Williams and Joe Thomas. Two of the most unbeatable linemen ever, they’re the rocks to build around.
- Guards: The thing about the best guards in football is they end up playing tackle. Just as teams will often slot tackles into their guard positions, we put Lane Johnson and 99er 2005 Jonathan Ogden on the inside for an unbreachable line.
- Center: Completing the line, the only other man besides the QB to touch the ball on every play of the game will be Olin Kreutz completing an offensive wall that is beyond compare.
Front Seven
Across the ball it’s just as important to dominate the line of scrimmage, and this All-Quarter- Century team is built to hassle quarterbacks and destroy running backs’ dreams. Bad times await any team lining up against this front seven:
- Defensive Line: The front line helps establish the tone and put offenses on the back foot. With Julius Peppers and Jevon Kearse bringing pressure and Casey Hampton parking his massive frame at nose tackle to stymie opposing interior games, this group would keep opposing offensive coordinators up all week. Hampton was a line play monster, with elite Play Recognition to ID a play, Awareness to identify the best path, and Strength and tackling to blow it up.
- Linebackers: The glamor defensive position for many Madden players, linebackers are athletic freaks who often have to do it all. Making the cut for the All-Quarter Century team is a core of Ray Lewis, Patrick Willis, Brian Urlacher and Tedy Bruschi. Hall of Famers to the last man, this crew of linebackers would pile up the stats together and ruin your opponent’s day on repeat. While the hit stick may have been available to everyone, no player seemed more made for it than digital Lewis who had the Speed and Awareness to blow up plays and a knack for separating a runner from the ball when you flicked that stick, particularly with its debut and his 99-rated Madden 05 edition.
Secondary
The secondary is all about big hits and big plays, and the All-Quarter Century secondary is nothing but players capable of doing both when needed. Opposing receivers are in for a miserable day against this group.
- Cornerbacks: At cornerback, it’s all about lockdowns and ball-hawking, as Darrelle Revis and Patrick Surtain II get the call. Revis handed in one of the best defensive seasons in history in 2009, which has led to some of the most oppressive options ever for a MUT secondary. Two guys with high-90s across all key coverage stats capable of completely erasing an opposing WR from the game plan, these two free up the safeties to be at their predatory best.
- Safeties: And what a predatory best it is with NFC North rivals Troy Polamalu and Ed Reed a couple of hard hitters who also had a nose for a game-changing pick and rambling return. Many a pick six has come from switching to these two when the ball is in the air, while a career of athletic wizardry from Polamalu translated into one of the most dynamic and fun defenders to use ever.
Special Teams
The kicking game may not always be the most thrilling, but it is crucial, and the full 2000s does come with the added benefit of pulling from a time when dynamic returns were still a thing that happened.
- Kicking: While there’s not generally a morality clause on video game teams, recent Justin Tucker news and the equally stellar peak of Adam Vinatieri means the former Pats man gets the call, while 90+ Johnny Hekker gets the easiest job in the world punting for an unstoppable offense.
- Returns: There are only two names in contention here, and while Devin Hester is the real-world greatest, Dante Hall was called The Human Joystick with good reason. An opposing score with Hall on your team in Madden 07 at least meant another chance to get him running in open field. 99 Returns. 99 Acceleration. 99 Agility. 99 Spin Move. 99 Juke. 97 Speed. Need I say more?
That rounds out our starting units for the Madden All-Quarter Century team. Did your favorite digital player get on the list or was there a player you found unplayable in video games that deserved a spot?
