Inconsistent Madden ratings. Spotlight - WR carry (CAR) attribute

This will be the first of many posts where I will discuss the inconsistencies in Madden attribute ratings.  I will be comparing attributes for players who play the same position.  Today, the focus is on wide receiver carry (CAR) ratings.

The following WR's currently lead the NFL this year in fumbles lost (FumL) with 2 at the WR position:

P. Harvin (MIN)
M. Jenkins (MIN)
J. Cribbs (CLE)
M. Williams (TB)

The following is their current Madden 12 carry (CAR) rating:

P.  Harvin      = 79 (5th among all WRs in Madden 12)
M. Williams  = 71
M. Jenkins    = 70
J. Cribbs       = 82

Note - Only 4 WRs in Madden 12 have a CAR rating of 80 or above, therefore I would consider a 70+ an above average to good rating for a WR.

At first glance, there is obviously some major incosistency here.  So I decided to look deeper and check out career stats for these players.

The following are the career Fum/FumL totals for the same for players:

P. Harvin         =  3 Fum/2 FumL in 3 seasons.
M. Jenkins       =  2 Fum/2 FumL in 8 seasons.
J. Cribbs          =  27 Fum/6 FumL in 7 seasons.
Williams (TB) =  5 Fum/4 FumL in 2 seasons.

Now it really gets interesting.  You could make a case the M. Jenkins should have the highest CAR among these four players.  He does have two fumbles lost this season, but they are the first fumbles he has lost in an 8 year career.  He needs to take a hit in his carry rating, but he has the best track record for taking care of football among these players.

Harvin on the other hand has only three seasons under his belt and although his two FumL are the first of his career, he has no business being the 5th best wide receiving in Madden 12 when it comes to CAR rating.

So why has Mike Williams of the Tampa Bay Bucaneers and Josh Cribbs been giving a pass for their  fumbles.  A player like Devone Bess of the Dophins has paid a very high price in the Madden ratings for his 14 career fumbles with a 46 CAR rating.

Hmmm.  Folks, it doesn't take much to find these inconsistencies in the Madden ratings.  I am going to keep bringing things like this to EAs attention until they design a better QA program for the ratings system.

Now that you have a grasp on the stats for these four players, what if I told you a rookie WR with 45 catches for 718 yards, 3 TD, and 0 Fumbles has a CAR rating of 62 in Madden 12.  Would that make a whole lot of sense based on what we just discussed.  I don't think so.  193 WRs in Madden 12 have a better CAR rating than this rookie, 34 of those 193 are rookies themselves.  Where is the consistency in these Madden ratings and attributes?

I looked at one more attribute of these WRs, and that was strength (STR).  The following are the strength ratings of all four WRs plus the rookie WR I just discussed.

Harvin     = 67 STR
Jenkins    = 72 STR
Williams = 75 STR
Bess        = 43 STR
Rookie    = 44 STR

It's possible that if the ratings folks believe a player has a lot of strength at his position, than they give that player a high carry rating regardless of Fum/FumL.  Hmmm

Please add any comments or theories as to why this attribute is so inconsistent among wide receivers in Madden 12.

By the way, that rookie WR is the undrafted FA Doug Baldwin of the Seahawks.

- Update

More research to add to this.

Take a look at Josh Cribbs for example.

Career:
12 Punt Return fumbles
8 Kick Return fumbles
2 Rushing fumbles
4 Receiving fumbles
26 Total fumbles

Cribbs has the highest CAR rating of all WR in Madden 12 at 82.   

Devin Hester had more fumbles than Bess.
Career fumbles for Hester (60 CAR):
28 total fumbles
19 punt return
5 kick return
1 rushing
3 receiving

Devone Bess (46 CAR)
Career fumbles:
14 total fumbles
8 punt return
1 kick return
4 receiving
1 rushing
Patrick Peterson has 3 fumbles as a return man this season, yet has a 75 CAR rating.  While he is an electric return man, 3 fumbles should not be ignored.