Picking a team in Madden NFL 27 starts with the numbers on the roster screen. The Los Angeles Rams sit on top of the default rankings at 90 overall, but the gap between the strongest rosters and the middle of the pack is smaller than it looks, and a few lower-rated teams punch well above their overall grade on one side of the ball. The ranking below sorts all 32 clubs into tiers so you can match a roster to how you actually want to play.
Quick answer: Pick the Los Angeles Rams (90 OVR, 93 offense, 89 defense) for the best all-around roster with no obvious weak unit. Choose the Baltimore Ravens for a mobile quarterback, the Denver Broncos or Houston Texans for defense, and the Detroit Lions for a pure offensive shootout.
Madden NFL 27 team tier list by overall rating
Teams are grouped by their overall rating, with clubs that share an OVR listed together. Use the tiers as a starting point, then check the offense and defense splits in the full table further down before you commit.
| Tier | Teams |
|---|---|
| S | Los Angeles Rams (90) |
| A | Philadelphia Eagles (88), Baltimore Ravens (88), Denver Broncos (87), New England Patriots (87) |
| B | Detroit Lions (86), Seattle Seahawks (86), San Francisco 49ers (85), Buffalo Bills (85), Kansas City Chiefs (84), Dallas Cowboys (84) |
| C | Chicago Bears (83), Cincinnati Bengals (83), Pittsburgh Steelers (83), Los Angeles Chargers (82), Indianapolis Colts (82), Houston Texans (82), Tampa Bay Buccaneers (81), Atlanta Falcons (81), Green Bay Packers (81) |
| D | Carolina Panthers (80), Minnesota Vikings (80), Washington Commanders (79), New York Giants (79), Jacksonville Jaguars (79), Cleveland Browns (78), New Orleans Saints (78), New York Jets (77), Las Vegas Raiders (77), Arizona Cardinals (76), Tennessee Titans (76), Miami Dolphins (74) |
This ranking reflects EA’s current default team ratings at launch. It orders teams by overall rating first, then uses the offense and defense splits to separate clubs that share the same OVR.
Why the Rams sit alone in S tier
The Los Angeles Rams lead every major category. Their 93 offense is the highest in the game, their 89 defense is also first, and no other roster combines top marks on both sides of the ball. They start with two 99-rated players in Matthew Stafford and Myles Garrett, with Puka Nacua close behind, which makes them the safest choice for a new player or anyone who does not want to manage a weak unit.
The A tier and how its four teams differ
The four teams below the Rams share nearly identical overall grades but feel very different in a game. The Eagles and Ravens both land at 88 OVR, while the Broncos and Patriots sit at 87. The right pick depends on whether you want a mobile passer, a balanced roster, or a defense-first build.
| Team | OVR | OFF | DEF | Best fit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Philadelphia Eagles | 88 | 88 | 87 | Balanced roster, strong both ways |
| Baltimore Ravens | 88 | 91 | 86 | Mobile quarterback with Lamar Jackson |
| Denver Broncos | 87 | 86 | 88 | Defense-first with a usable offense |
| New England Patriots | 87 | 87 | 85 | Offense-leaning, led by Drake Maye |
The Ravens have the second-best passing threat of this group thanks to Lamar Jackson, who rewards designed runs, read options, and improvisation on broken plays. The Broncos carry the highest defense in the tier at 88, anchored by cornerback Patrick Surtain II, and their 86 offense keeps them from becoming one-dimensional. The Eagles are the most even of the four, and the Patriots lean slightly toward offense with Drake Maye and cornerback Christian Gonzalez as their headliners.
Best teams by playstyle
Overall rating is a quick summary, but the offense and defense splits tell you how a team wants to play. Several rosters that rank lower on the full list are strong picks if you commit to one side of the ball.
| Playstyle | Team | Key numbers |
|---|---|---|
| Best all-around | Los Angeles Rams | 90 OVR, 93 OFF, 89 DEF |
| Mobile quarterback | Baltimore Ravens | 91 OFF with Lamar Jackson |
| Pure offense | Detroit Lions | 92 OFF, 83 DEF |
| High-scoring shootout | Cincinnati Bengals | 88 OFF, 77 DEF |
| Defense-first, balanced | Denver Broncos | 88 DEF, 86 OFF |
| Underrated defense | Houston Texans | 88 DEF at just 82 OVR |
| Even both ways | Seattle Seahawks | 86 OFF, 86 DEF |
The Detroit Lions own the second-best offense in the game at 92, so they are the sharpest pure-scoring team outside the Rams. The Houston Texans are the biggest value pick for defensive players. Their 88 defense ties for second in Madden NFL 27, yet an 80 offense drags their overall down to 82, meaning you can grab an elite defense without spending a top-tier slot. The Seattle Seahawks are the highest-rated team with perfectly even 86 offense and 86 defense, which makes them a clean choice if you do not want a roster tilted one way.
Teams that play differently from their overall
Overall rating is not a simple average of the visible offense and defense numbers, so two clubs with the same OVR can feel like opposites. The clearest example is the pair of 83-rated teams that share a grade but split in opposite directions.
| Team | OVR | OFF | DEF | Identity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati Bengals | 83 | 88 | 77 | Shootout offense, thin defense |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 83 | 78 | 87 | Field position and stops |
| Houston Texans | 82 | 80 | 88 | Defense far ahead of the OVR |
Picking the Bengals or Steelers on overall alone would hand you two very different games. Cincinnati wants to keep scoring, while Pittsburgh wants to limit possessions and control the field. Buffalo and Kansas City show the same quirk from another angle. Both carry a 90 offense and 80 defense, yet Buffalo sits at 85 OVR and Kansas City at 84, a reminder that the overall number hides more than it shows.
Best teams for Franchise mode
Team ratings mark your starting point in Franchise, not the full difficulty of the save. Contracts, player development, draft capital, and roster age matter more as seasons pass, so match the roster to the kind of run you want.
- Win now: The Rams give you the strongest immediate roster, and the Eagles are a close second at 88 OVR with 88 offense and 87 defense.
- Mid-level project: The Houston Texans hand you an established 88 defense and one clear area to build, so you are fixing the offense rather than rebuilding both units.
- Full rebuild: The Miami Dolphins sit last at 74 OVR with a 74 offense and 73 defense, the biggest challenge in the game for anyone who wants to develop a bottom-tier roster into a contender.
Full Madden NFL 27 team ratings
Here is every team with its overall, offense, and defense rating. Clubs listed with a tie share the same overall rank.
| Team | OVR | OFF | DEF |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Rams | 90 | 93 | 89 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 88 | 88 | 87 |
| Baltimore Ravens | 88 | 91 | 86 |
| Denver Broncos | 87 | 86 | 88 |
| New England Patriots | 87 | 87 | 85 |
| Detroit Lions | 86 | 92 | 83 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 86 | 86 | 86 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 85 | 89 | 82 |
| Buffalo Bills | 85 | 90 | 80 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 84 | 90 | 80 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 84 | 87 | 80 |
| Chicago Bears | 83 | 85 | 82 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 83 | 88 | 77 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 83 | 78 | 87 |
| Los Angeles Chargers | 82 | 85 | 79 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 82 | 84 | 79 |
| Houston Texans | 82 | 80 | 88 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 81 | 83 | 79 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 81 | 83 | 78 |
| Green Bay Packers | 81 | 82 | 81 |
| Carolina Panthers | 80 | 79 | 80 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 80 | 82 | 78 |
| Washington Commanders | 79 | 81 | 77 |
| New York Giants | 79 | 80 | 78 |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | 79 | 79 | 79 |
| Cleveland Browns | 78 | 75 | 81 |
| New Orleans Saints | 78 | 81 | 75 |
| New York Jets | 77 | 75 | 77 |
| Las Vegas Raiders | 77 | 79 | 76 |
| Arizona Cardinals | 76 | 77 | 74 |
| Tennessee Titans | 76 | 74 | 78 |
| Miami Dolphins | 74 | 74 | 73 |
These grades cover the default NFL rosters used in modes like Kick Off and Franchise. They do not carry over to Ultimate Team, where your lineup is built from separate player items and upgrades rather than a fixed team rating. For head-to-head play, individual player speed, positional depth, and your comfort with a scheme can outweigh a two- or three-point gap in team OVR, so treat the S and A tiers as safe defaults and the playstyle picks as your shortcut to a roster that fits how you like to play. Madden NFL 27 is available on PC, PS5, Xbox Series X, and Nintendo Switch 2.
