Madden 22 rookie ratings: Trevor Lawrence paces QB group; Kyle Pitts scores great rating

"Madden 22" is inching closer to its August release, which means it's time to get irrationally mad online about some imaginary numbers made up to properly evaluate the talents of NFL players in a video game. (Get off my lawn, you little brats!)

First up, as is custom, the 2021 rookies: Some of the ratings game's top-ranked neophytes were released in late July, with a few surprise rankings on the list — namely in the quarterback and wide receiver categories.

The Madden rookie ratings always stir the pot and encourage spirited debate, more than any other position group or experience level in the game. After all, EA Sports and the "Madden" devs have college production to work from, meaning they're taking educated guesses on how their production and talent might translate.

Here's how the rookies shake out for 2021.

The first wave of rookie ratings was released in an ESPN special on Sunday, July 25.

While it's unclear whether these are the 10 best rookies in the game, their ratings are as follows:

Patriots quarterback Mac Jones was also revealed to have a 71 overall rating.

— Zach Wilson, not Justin Fields or Trey Lance, is the second-highest rated QB on the list, behind Trevor Lawrence.

— Patrick Surtain, Broncos DB, is the highest-ranked — and only — defender on this list. We'll see whether that sticks when more ratings are revealed in the coming weeks.

— A surprise at the top: Jaylen Waddle, not 'Bama teammate DeVonta Smith or LSU rival Ja'Marr Chase, is the highest-rated wideout of the three here. Kyle Pitts is at the very top as the only player with an 80 or higher rating.