10 Lowest Rated Players In Madden NFL 23, Ranked

Madden NFL ratings are often a topic of great debate. For example, just this year, Madden rated Aaron Donald and Myles Garrett a 99, but only gave defensive player of the year TJ Watt an 96. There are always talks about which players are rated too high and which players are rated too low, but what is rarely talked about are the lowest-rated players in the game.

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These players are typically never used in the game, as they are just afterthoughts that nobody would pick up or sign. But there is an interesting pattern for Madden 23’s lowest player ratings, as they seem to give no love to the long snappers.

10 Morgan Cox – 29

A 29 rating is disrespectful when it comes to Morgan Cox. Many football fans may not know who he is, but surely Titans fans know. Cox is a long snapper for the Tennessee Titans who has been selected to four Pro Bowls, is an all pro long snapper in 2020 (the first time ever a long snapper was voted to the all-pro team), and helped the Baltimore Ravens win the Super Bowl at Super Bowl 47.

Cox went undrafted out of the University of Tennessee and spent 10 years from 2010 to 2020 with the Baltimore Ravens before signing with the Tennessee Titans. From 2015 to 2020, Cox was at his peak with the Ravens and he is still quality to this day.

9 Blake Ferguson – 29

Blake Ferguson is a national champion long snapper, who is a part of the iconic LSU team led by Joe Burrow that won the national championship in 2019. Unlike most long snappers, Ferguson was actually drafted, being selected by the Miami Dolphins in the six- round in the 2020 NFL draft.

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The position runs in his family, as his brother Reid Ferguson is also a long snapper for the Buffalo Bills currently. Ferguson is extremely young in his career, and with the fact that he was a captain at LSU in two of his four seasons, he could have a potentially great and long career in the NFL.

8 Jon Weeks – 28

Jon Weeks has a truly unique and unlikely career. After going on drafted coming out of Baylor University, Weeks was a part of the Detroit Lions minicamp squad in 2008, but did not make the team and did not play football from 2009 to 2010. However, after a trial with the Houston Texans, Weeks signed with the organization and has been with the team ever since. While not many fans may not know who Jon Weeks is, Houston Texans fans should know as he holds the franchise record for most games played consecutively. Weeks made the pro bowl in 2015, and as long as he is still at the top of his game, he continues to build on the record he already has.

7 Taybor Pepper – 27

Taylor Pepper has had a rocky start to his NFL career. Getting signed by the Green Bay Packers after being an undrafted free agent in 2016, Pepper would bounce around from the Packers, Ravens, back to the Packers, Giants, and Miami Dolphins, before finding himself with the San Francisco 49ers.

Pepper has been with the 49ers since 2020, and it looks like he is finally finding stability within the NFL. Madden may not give him a great rating, but now that Pepper has that stability, he may be able to make a name for himself in the list of great long snappers in the NFL.

6 Luke Rhodes – 27

The Indianapolis Colts are known for their special team players, as Pat McAfee is one of the biggest names in all of the sports. In fact, Rhodes did snap to McAfee as a rookie in McAfee’s last season in the NFL. Rhodes also has the highest tackle rating on this list, as Madden gave him a 75 rating for his tackling due to Rhodes being a backup inside linebacker at the beginning of his career for the Colts as well.

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Rhodes also has an 84 jump rating, so if players are looking for a possible sneaky backup tight end, Rhodes may be a potential diamond in the rough or nevertheless a player to throw to on a fake punt play.

5 Zach Triner – 26

Like Weeks, Triner was not in the NFL immediately after college. After being drafted out of Assumption College, Triner sold mutual funds for a financial service company in Boston while working on becoming a long snapper in the NFL. He was given a futures contract by the New York Jets, but was released just months later, and was picked up by the Green Bay Packers and put on the practice squad. Triner wouldn’t find much success with the Packers. However, Triner would sign with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2019 and help them on their way to a Super Bowl win in 2021 and has continued with the team since.

4 Ross Matiscik – 26

Ross Matiscik was even an all-state linebacker in Texas. The Jacksonville Jaguars long snapper made the Baylor Bears team as a walk on and spent five years with the university, as he redshirted his freshman year.

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Matiscik made the Jacksonville Jaguars roster by beating out another long snapper on this list, Matthew Orzech in 2020. Matiscik has been with the Jaguars ever since and signed a five-year extension in April of 2022.

3 Zach Wood – 25

Zach Wood has almost all of the best pass rusher ratings of all the players on this list. This is due to the fact that Wood was not a long snapper coming out of college. Wood is one of the few players on this list that was drafted at a different position, as a defensive end coming out of SMU. After going undrafted in 2016, during training camp with the Dallas Cowboys, Wood decided to focus solely on long snapping, and it has brought him to where he is today. After beating out four other players in a last-minute tryout in 2017, Wood signed with the New Orleans Saints and has been the long snapper in New Orleans ever since.

2 Matthew Orzech – 25

Matthew Orzech was cut by multiple teams coming out of college. Like most of the players on this list, Orzech was undrafted after his collegiate career at Azusa Pacific. From 2019 to 2021, Orzech was signed and released by the Baltimore Ravens, Jacksonville Jaguars, Miami Dolphins, and Tennessee Titans.

However, Orzech would get the last laugh in the NFL as he signed with the Los Angeles Rams and became a Super Bowl champion long snapper this past season, helping the Rams defeat the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl 56. His Madden rating may be tied for the worst, but he can say he is a reigning Super Bowl champion.

1 Joe Cardona – 25

Joe Cardona is the highest drafted player on this list, which is a little confusing considering he is also tied for the worst player in terms of Madden ratings. Cardona also has arguably the most achievements in the NFL out of anyone on this list as well. Cardona was the fourth pure long snapper ever drafted when the New England Patriots selected him in the 2015 NFL draft. Cardona came out of the Navy, and worked as a command duty officer for the Naval Academy Preparatory School during his rookie season.

Cardona has gone on to win two Super Bowls with the New England Patriots and has even been voted to the Patriots All-Dynasty Team as a long snapper. Not too bad for a guy who is Madden’s lowest-rated player.