National Football League

Derrick Henry vs. Christian McCaffrey: Which RB should be the best in 'Madden'?

Published Jul. 30, 2021 8:23 a.m. ET

The release of the rankings for the "Madden" NFL video-game franchise is an event in and of itself.

"Madden NFL 22" comes out in a few weeks, but the rankings are already causing quite a stir, as is tradition.

One of the biggest points of contention is the running back rankings, which rate Carolina Panthers star Christian McCaffrey a 97 overall, ahead of Tennessee Titans bulldozer Derrick Henry at 96.

Make no mistake, it truly is like choosing between cake and ice cream when it comes to McCaffrey or Henry.

Any team in the NFL would be happy to have either guy tote the rock on Sundays. But when it comes to "Madden" rankings, there's an element of bragging rights, along with a matter of respect.

It might seem inconsequential, but a lot of NFL players pay attention to their ratings. And rest assured, many of them feel as though they've been slighted in some capacity, even if they're a 98 overall ⁠— like Kansas City Chiefs wideout Tyreek Hill.

Clearly, ratings carry weight among players.

So, back to the McCaffrey vs. Henry debate. Did the "Madden" brain trust make a mistake putting McCaffrey above Henry?

Brandon Marshall sure thinks so. He said not only should "King Henry" be the No. 1 overall running back, but the "First Things First" co-host also campaigned for Henry to be in the illustrious "99 Club."

"Think about what Henry has done over the last couple of years," Marshall said. "Not only has he been the best running back and gotten it done and went for 2,000 [rushing] yards, but he also stayed healthy.

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That's a fair observation from Marshall. Henry is coming off of a career season, rumbling for 2,027 yards, 17 rushing touchdowns and an average of 126.7 yards per game ⁠— all of which were league highs.

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McCaffrey, on the other hand, spent most of the 2020 season banged up with various injuries.

A high-ankle sprain was the most limiting of the ailments. He played in just three games for the Panthers a season ago, racking up six touchdowns and 374 yards from scrimmage.

Prior to 2020, however, McCaffrey had three consecutive seasons with eye-popping numbers, capped by an All-Pro year in 2019.

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It would seem the "Madden" ratings crew viewed 2020 as an anomaly, and is banking on the 25-year-old's ability to bounce back this coming season.

If the video he posted of his recovery in March is any indication, he seems to be progressing quite well.

A deeper dive into the ratings reveals that McCaffrey didn't get dinged too badly for missing much of 2020.

In the tale of the tape between Henry and McCaffrey, the Panthers RB actually has an advantage in the injury-rating department, 96 to 93.

However, Henry has the edge in toughness at 97 to 96. This rating suggests Henry would recover from an injury more quickly than McCaffrey, per Madden Wiki.

Availability is a big component of being the best running back, but it's not the only factor. If you're talking about the running part of the position, Henry is the prototypical option.

The 27-year-old checks in at 6-foot-3, 247 pounds, while McCaffrey is a more streamlined 5-foot-11, 205 pounds.

It's Henry's brute force that has Joy Taylor also in the camp that believes the Titans' human semi-truck should be the higher-rated running back.

The "Madden" ratings back that up, too.

When compared to McCaffrey, the game rates Henry higher in strength (87 to 72), break tackle (95 to 83), trucking (90 to 59) and stiff arm (99 to 77).

But if Henry is the thunder, McCaffrey is the lightning.

The Panthers stud gets the nod in several other categories, including acceleration (93 to 89), agility (97 to 86), change of direction (94 to 79), spin move (91 to 75) and juke move (93 to 86).

He also holds a distinct advantage in part of the game Henry isn't known for, catching the ball, with an 81 to 62 disparity.

The debate between these two is interesting because they are arguably polar opposites when it comes to how they play the game.

No matter which you prefer, though, you can bank on either being a good bet to find the end zone.

When it's all said and done, that's more important than any rating.

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