Just when everyone wanted to believe the Nacua being a breakout star in Los Angeles should have gotten the recognition he deserves, EA Madden decided to go ahead and drop the news that Puka Nacua is finally a 90 overall in Madden 26. The official Madden account only tweeted, “Puka officially enters the 90s,” with the glitter star emoji and a link but seriously, the replies made the story.
There were demands and pleas for this update from crowds seemingly since time memory-now Corey says, “Took yall long enough,” and honestly? That just sums up the mood. Even a fellow user with the creative name Kupps_Legacy went ahead and copy-pasted the same comment, which just shows how universal this sentiment is.
However, there are others who actually state that a rating of 90 is too low. Paul Greer of LASportsW says, “Should be 95,” and considering what Puka has done this season, perhaps I might agree with him. That guy was practically unknown until he broke some records. Rookie records. And what has Madden been doing? Keeping that guy at an 88 for far too long. This is painful to hear from a frustrated Rams fan called Buford T. Justice (great name, by the way): “wtf are you guys watching still only a 90? Would love to know one damn reason he was an 88 to begin with. Whoever is in charge of your ratings is worthless.” I mean, he’s not exactly wrong.
Now, the crazy thing is the debate going on in the comments. There’s an entire thread debating if Puka is better than receivers like Amon-Ra St. Brown and Nico Collins. One user, v8der, came through with a stats rant, backing Puka with statistics about yards per route run and how offensive efficiency for the Rams surged when he was on the field. The guy literally brought analytics.
Then DamienDaGoat counters, saying, “Nah, ASB has better hands and route running,” and then it just goes downhill. Fans are going full-throttle on these virtual football ratings and that captures the entire Madden community in a chaotic passionate storm, and sometimes it just doesn’t make any sense at all. Another reply stated exactly: “kudune ki ket wingi wingi bang,” which I suspect to be keyboard smashing or lost in translation or something. Who knows?
And then, of course, you get in and around the Puka-Nacua chatter, soldiering through the classic Madden whining. One dude by the name of SlickGtv is pleading them to fix the draft classes in franchise mode, saying, “There have been enough time for an update to fix that.” Another person, gmondiff, sees DK Metcalf playing on defense in franchise mode and goes on to say “How are yall so bad at making games?” Which is a legit question.
It’s not just about Puka, though-another user requested an A-Rod adjustment (while means Aaron Rodgers, for those who don’t know), hinting at the fact that while Puka’s upgrade is the main headline, the entire community always has an array of requests for EA’s ratings viewers.
What really stands out here is the deeper unraveling of disconnection sometimes between how the game rates players and how the actual fans- sorry players-see them. Puka had one of the most impressive rookie seasons ever; the game took its time to reflect that, and now that he has officially broken into the 90s, there’s celebrating going on, but there’s also questioning of what took so long and whether it’s high enough at all.
The Madden ratings crew find themselves in a no-win scenario: too high, and they are murdered for overhyping; too low, and they are accused of not watching games. In Puka’s case, the majority seem to agree that they were too conservative for too long. And now even at 90, many feel he should be rated higher. This debate never ends and pumps up the community every single time ratings updates hit the stage.
At the end of the day, it’s just a number in a video game, but for football fans, it matters. It’s a recognition of performance, a badge of honor. And for Puka Nacua, hitting that 90 OVR mark is a symbolic milestone that the community has been waiting for. Even if some think he should already be in the 95+ club. The discussions, the arguments, the random complaints about other game issues–it’s all part of the Madden experience. And honestly, wouldn’t have it any other way. Now if they could just fix those franchise draft classes…
