Bengals rookie Shemar Stewart sold himself far too short when predicting his own Madden 26 rating

Cincinnati Bengals rookie defensive end Shemar Stewart didn't have high expectations for himself when predicting his Madden NFL 26 rating, believing his low sack total from his final year in college would be used against him.

“1.5 sacks? 65 overall,” Stewart said with a laugh back in April. “I see it coming man, it’s okay. You’re forgiven in advance.”

Madden and EA Sports do not need forgiveness since Stewart's actual rating is notably higher than his initial prediction.

Shemar Stewart receives Madden NFL 26 rating ahead of rookie year

65 overall was in fact way too low of a guess from Stewart as he's rated 77 overall by the folks at Madden. He's tied with seven other rookies for the 11th-highest rating in the launch version of the upcoming release.

Armand Membou, Derrick Harmon, Omarion Hampton, Tetairoa McMillan, Tyleik Williams, Tyler Booker, and Walter Nolen, all first-round picks, share a 77 rating with Stewart.

While Madden has developed a reputation for disappointing rookies with low ratings compared to the best players in the league, it would've been very unusual for Stewart to be significantly lower compared to those drafted around him. 65 overall is lower than any of the five other rookies drafted by Cincinnati this year.

Second-round pick Demetrius Knight Jr. is 74 overall, second behind Stewart for Bengals rookies. Sixth-rounder Tahj Brooks is somewhat surprisingly tied for third with third-rounder Dylan Fairchild at 71 overall. Fourth-rounder Barrett Carter falls below the 70 threshold at 68 overall, and fifth-rounder Jalen Rivers rounds out the draftees at 67 overall.