49ers: Madden '13 roster breakdown

For gamers, Tuesday was a holiday of sorts. It was the day Madden '13 was released.

Compared to last year's team ratings, the San Francisco 49ers saw the biggest jump of any team in the NFL. The 49ers were given a 77 overall rating in Madden '12 and were bumped up to 89 in this year's edition. Only the Packers (91), Patriots (91) and Giants (90) have a higher rating.

Here's a roster breakdown with each player's individual rating:

Quarterbacks

Pos	Name	Rating
QB	Alex Smith	83
QB	Colin Kaepernick	70
QB	Josh Johnson	70
QB	Scott Tolzien	65

Comment -- Kaepernick and Johnson are even? Sorry, but no. Kaepernick has clearly shown throughout training camp he's a better player. In a video game, Johnson's speed at QB makes him more valuable than Scott Tolzien, but in real life, they're close.

Running backs

Pos	Name	Rating
RB	Frank Gore	92
RB	Brandon Jacobs	81
FB	Bruce Miller	77
RB	Kendall Hunter	75
RB	LaMichael James	73
RB	Anthony Dixon	68
RB	Rock Cartwright	67

Comment -- Hunter's rating seems a bit low, especially when compared to Jacobs.

Wide receivers

Pos	Name	Rating
WR	Randy Moss	84
WR	Michael Crabtree	83
WR	Mario Manningham	82
WR	Ted Ginn Jr.	74 (99 return)
WR	Kyle Williams	69
WR	A.J. Jenkins	69
WR	Brett Swain	64
WR	Chris Owusu	62
WR	Nathan Palmer	53

Comment -- Looks about right. It'd be hard for the game developers to gauge how good Moss should be after not playing last season and a forgettable 2010. For guys like Swain, Owusu and Palmer, the rating essentially means nothing.

Tight ends

Pos	Name	Rating
TE	Vernon Davis	95
TE	Delanie Walker	80
TE	Konrad Reuland	62

Comment -- That works.

Offensive line

Pos	Name	Rating
LG	Mike Iupati	91
LT	Joe Staley	87
C	Jonathan Goodwin	79
RT	Anthony Davis	77
RG	Alex Boone	69
G/C	Daniel Kilgore	67
OT	Mike Person	65
OG	Joe Looney	63
OL	Derek Hall	62
OG	Leonard Davis	--

Comment -- Mildly surprised that Iupati is rated ahead of Staley, but EA showed both guys some love with their ratings. Their rating of Boone was a shot in the dark, considering he's never played G before.

Defensive line

Pos	Name	Rating
DE	Justin Smith	98
WR	Ray McDonald	92
WR	Isaac Sopoaga	85
WR	Ricky Jean Francois	74
WR	Ian Williams	64
WR	Demarcus Dobbs	64
WR	Will Tukuafu	63
WR	Tony Jerod-Eddie	53

Comment -- A year after being named All-Pro at two positions, Smith was rated appropriately. McDonald at 92 seems a little high when compared to Sopoaga.

Linebackers

Pos	Name	Rating
ILB	Patrick Willis	98
ILB	NaVorro Bowman	91
OLB	Aldon Smith	89
OLB	Parys Haralson	85
OLB	Ahmad Brooks	84
ILB	Larry Grant	74
LB	Tavares Gooden	69
OLB	Cam Johnson	59
LB	Joe Holland	48

Comment -- Willis is the best LB in the game, but Bowman played at a similar level last season when he earned a Pro Bowl berth in his first year as a starter. He'll need another season like that to get on Willis' level in the eyes of the Madden developers.

Secondary

Pos	Name	Rating
CB	Carlos Rogers	91
SS	Dashon Goldson	88
FS	Donte Whitner	84
CB	Tarell Brown	83
CB	Tramaine Brock	77
CB	Chris Culliver	74
CB	Perrish Cox	70
S	C.J. Spillman	68
S	Colin Jones	68
S	Trenton Robinson	67

Comment -- Of all the ratings, the biggest oversight might be Brock being rated better than Culliver. Culliver graded out better than Brock last year and should have been rated accordingly.

Specialists