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Madden 18: Every NFL team’s best Madden player ever

By David Austin Bumpus

HOUSTON - DECEMBER 1: New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady passes under pressure from Houston Texans J.J. Watt during the first quarter at Reliant Stadium on Sunday, Dec. 1, 2013. (Photo by Jessica Rinaldi for The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
HOUSTON - DECEMBER 1: New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady passes under pressure from Houston Texans J.J. Watt during the first quarter at Reliant Stadium on Sunday, Dec. 1, 2013. (Photo by Jessica Rinaldi for The Boston Globe via Getty Images) /
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ORCHARD PARK, NY – NOVEMBER 29: Marshawn Lynch
ORCHARD PARK, NY – NOVEMBER 29: Marshawn Lynch /

Buffalo Bills: Marshawn Lynch

It’s weird imagining Marshawn Lynch on any roster outside of the Seattle Seahawks, which will make this year’s edition of Madden especially interesting when he shows up in an Oakland Raiders uniform for the first time in the game. However, not many realize he actually started his NFL and Madden careers as a member of the Buffalo Bills’ backfield.

The Bills don’t have a ton of great Madden talent to work with on this list, and Lynch never got an incredibly high overall rating in the games he appeared in on the Bills roster. He was a part of three full years of Madden games in the Bills lineup, and made a brief appearance as a member of the Bills in Madden NFL 11 before transferring over to the Seahawks early on in that season.

While he wasn’t the top running back in the league in any game in his tenure with the Bills, he was a solid player to have in your backfield in the 2009 and 2010 editions of the game. After his rookie year in 2008, where he was an 83 overall, he jumped to a 90 overall in Madden NFL 09 and was a beast to use in games. That ended up being his peak in his time in Buffalo, before he dropped to an 87 the year after and an 81 in the year he was traded.

Lynch has always been a fun player to use in games, but he provided a rare spark for the Bills offense in games if you ever got stuck with them as your team in games with your friends. Guys like Willis McGahee and Lee Evans could get some consideration here, but if Beast Mode is an option anywhere, you have to jump on that opportunity.