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This week and every week for the remainder of the NFL season, we will bring you weekly game predictions courtesy of EA Sports’ Madden NFL 25. Our methodology: Each week we will update the rosters using the game’s roster download feature to make sure the game lineups reflect the real teams, then we’ll simulate the week’s match-ups using the Franchise Owner mode. We’ll record the simulation’s scores, its best players of the week, and the injury reports, then post these results each Saturday. This makes the Thursday game something of a litmus test (Madden 25 is 5-2 so far this season on Thursday games) – you can use this info for fantasy or gambling purposes. Or you can ignore it entirely. What does Madden know about football, anyway? |
Say what you will about Madden 25’s ability to predict the winners, the game isn’t afraid to pick blowouts. Despite the parity in the NFL that can turn Super Bowl winners into sub .500 teams, Madden continues to predict the odd blowout. And not just a win by a few touchdowns, but a staggering display of dominance.
This week’s blowout is sponsored by Tom Brady and the Patriots, who Madden 25 picks to win big over Miami. 51-0 big. That doesn’t come close to the epic, record-setting beatdown the Chicago Bears put on the Washington Redskins in 1940, but it would probably sting Dolphins fans a bit. It would also drop the Dolphins net points this season from -5 to -56. Now, second-year QB Ryan Tannehill may be coming off of a game where his QB rating was 71.2 and he threw for under 200 yards with 2 INTs, but the Patriots defense is a few injuries away from going up into the stands of Foxboro Stadium and conscripting fans into service. A 51-point blowout seems a tad unlikely, but it is a divisional game at home for the Patriots, and the 3-3 Dolphins are a tied with the Pats at 2-2 in the division. Maybe Belichick will decide it’s time to make a statement.
Last week Madden 25 went a decent 9-6, but also predicted the Chiefs winning streak would come to an end while selecting the Broncos to continue theirs. Although it was only by a point, a win is a win, and the Chiefs remain the only undefeated team thanks to some help from the Colts, who ruined Peyton Manning’s Indianapolis homecoming. According to Madden 25 though, the Chiefs will move to 8 and 0 in week 8, while the Broncos will pick up a second loss. Of course, neither result is anything close to guaranteed, but Madden is off to a good start this week. It correctly predicted the winner of Carolina versus Tampa Bay – although with both Jacksonville and Tampa Bay in a sprint to the bottom, maybe that wasn’t a huge stretch.
Week 8 League Leaders:
Quarterbacks
| Tom Brady: 416 yards 4 TD 1 INT |
| Drew Brees: 352 yards 3 TD |
| Peyton Manning: 343 yards 3 TD 2 INT |
| Andy Dalton: 312 yards 2 TD 1 INT |
| Robert Griffin III: 267 yards 2 TD, 93 yards rushing 1 TD |
Wide Receivers
| Danny Amendola: 153 yards 2 TD |
| AJ Green: 121 yards 1 TD |
| Dez Bryant: 118 yards 1 TD |
| Calvin Johnson: 116 yards 2 TD |
| Demaryius Thomas: 107 yards 1 TD |
Running Backs
| Jamal Charles: 146 yards 1 TD |
| DeMarco Murray: 123 yards 2 TD |
| Maurice Jones-Drew: 111 yards 1 TD |
| Reggie Bush: 108 yards 1 TD |
| CJ Spiller: 105 yards 1 TD |
Injuries
| Wes Welker(WR): 4 weeks Dislocated elbow |
| Frank Gore (HB): 3 weels Pulled groin |
| Marshawn Lynch (HB): 8 weeks Broken fibula |
| Owen Daniels (TE): 2 weeks Pulled groin |
Week 8 Game Results
Thursday Night Game
| Madden Result | Actual Result | ||
| Carolina: 27 | Tampa Bay: 3 | Carolina: 31 | Tampa Bay: 13 |
Sunday Games
| Madden Result | Actual Result | ||
| San Francisco: 20 | Jacksonville: 0 | San Francisco: 42 | Jacksonville: 10 |
| Kansas City: 20 | Cleveland: 17 | Kansas City: 23 | Cleveland: 17 |
| New England: 51 | Miami: 0 | New England: 27 | Miami: 17 |
| New Orleans: 38 | Buffalo: 28 | New Orleans: 35 | Buffalo: 17 |
| Detroit: 32 | Dallas: 23 | Detroit: 31 | Dallas: 30 |
| NY Giants: 28 | Philadelphia: 14 | NY Giants: 15 | Philadelphia: 7 |
| Pittsburgh: 26 | Oakland: 14 | Pittsburgh: 18 | Oakland: 21 |
| Cincinnati: 39 | NY Jets: 21 | Cincinnati: 49 | NY Jets: 9 |
| Atlanta: 27 | Arizona: 3 | Atlanta: 13 | Arizona: 27 |
| Washington: 34 | Denver: 31 | Washington: 21 | Denver: 45 |
| Green Bay: 30 | Minnesota: 10 | Green Bay: 44 | Minnesota: 31 |
Monday Night Game
| Madden Result | Actual Result | ||
| Seattle: 20 | St. Louis: 13 | Seattle: 14 | St. Louis: 9 |
