Nobody is asked to do more on defense than a linebacker. They have to stop the run and the pass. They have to blitz and drop back into coverage. The first string wide receiver is just as much their responsibility as the second string halfback. They're assigned to contain the league's fastest QBs and RBs. They have to change their coverage from man to zone on almost every play.
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Truly great defenses are built on linebackers, who frequently lead the team in tackles. So anybody hoping to play with a championship team in Madden NFL 22 will want to make sure the linebacker situation is in good shape. These are the best of the best for a position that already requires athletes that are the best of the best.
10 Eric Kendricks - MLB - 90
Despite only once playing a full sixteen-game season, Eric Kendricks has managed to get 92 tackles or more in each of his six years with Minnesota. He's frequently asked to cover wide receivers and elite tight ends in addition to knocking down running backs.
And it's here that the Vikings love him the most. Last year alone, he had three picks to go along with the 41 passes he has deflected in his career. As a guy who makes it hard to run or pass against, he's an invaluable part of the team.
9 Demario Davis - MLB - 91
Demario Davis has bounced around the league in his career, starting with the Jets, going to the Browns, then back to the Jets, before finally landing in New Orleans. But sometimes it just takes the right situation for a person to find the system they belong in.
With the Saints, Davis has been an All-Pro in each of his last two years. Younger players can boast about athletic ability, but as team captain of the defense, Davis combines his intelligence with superior talent to strike fear into his opponents.
8 Joey Bosa - LOLB - 92
When Joey Bosa is playing on the line, he's one of the most feared defenders in the game. Unfortunately, he's only had two complete seasons during his five-year NFL experience. Chargers fans know that a few healthy years and their defense could be regarded as an all-time great.
That hasn't stopped Bosa from getting double-digit sack totals in three years and forcing six fumbles during that time. Bosa's speed off of the line creates matchup nightmares for head coaches in the AFC West.
7 Bobby Wagner - MLB - 92
How's this for domination? In every season of his nine-year career, Bobby Wagner had recorded at least 104 tackles. Wagner is one of the few remnants of the Legion of Boom, but he's hardly a relic.
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In fact, over the past five years, he's led the entire league in solo tackles once, assisted tackles three times, and combined tackles twice. The man is simply on fire and his ten picks show that he's not merely a hard-hitting monster.
6 Von Miller - LOLB - 93
Fans of the game will be excited to see Von Miller on the field again next year after he missed the last season with an injury. In his nine years terrorizing quarterbacks, he's recorded 106 sacks.
He's a forced fumble machine. His Super Bowl 50 MVP performance was no fluke, as he's batted 25 balls out of the hands of the offense over his career. And don't underestimate his ability to play coverage, either. He's saved the Broncos more than once by swatting away balls in coverage against elite tight ends.
5 Lavonte David - MLB - 93
It's hard to think of anybody who deserved to win the Super Bowl more than Lavonte David did. In nine years, David has recorded triple-digit tackle totals in eight of them and he has never started less than thirteen games in any season.
The best offensive linemen know to account for David when he's on the field, as he's prone to popping through the line an uncharacteristically high amount of times for a middle linebacker.
4 T.J. Watt - LOLB - 94
Aaron Donald once again won the Defensive Player of the Year award, but Pittsburgh fans had every right to feel robbed. It was actually T.J. Watt that had the best statistical season of any player.
Watt did his older brother J.J. proud, leading the league in sacks (15), tackles for loss (23), and QB hits (41). Much like how Madden needs to change as a series, opposing teams are going to have to adjust next year to keep Watt off of their quarterbacks.
3 Fred Warner - MLB - 94
After only his third year, analysts have tagged Fred Warner as the best middle linebacker in the game. Running up the gut always seems like a good idea, until they run into Warner, who has never recorded less than 118 tackles in a season.
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He's also never missed a game for the 49ers, giving him the dependability that San Francisco sorely needs. He's also starting to pick up his game when it comes to turnovers, so of all the X-Factor abilities in Madden, it makes sense to give Warner as many superstar traits as possible.
2 Chandler Jones - LOLB - 94
It took a season-ending injury last year to interrupt Chandler Jones' consecutive seasons with double-digit sacks at five. In his entire career, he's recorded at least 43 tackles in every season besides the last year, no matter how halfbacks have improved to try and avoid getting clobbered by him.
Jones will be getting some help on the line next year with J.J. Watt joining the crew. If both of them remain healthy, Arizona will likely have the toughest line to move against in the NFL.
1 Khalil Mack - LOLB - 96
Here's something to consider: If Khalil Mack plays as he has over the first seven years of his career, then in a sixteen-year career, he will have broken Robert Mathis' all-time forced fumbles mark. He's already got 23 to his name and he's still in his prime.
The former Defensive Player of the Year has also recorded 8.5 sacks or more in each of his last six seasons, so even the best quarterbacks in the game have a reason to fear him on the field.