NFL Draft

Cardinals Rookie Owen Pappoe is the Fastest LB in 'Madden NFL 24'

Arizona's fifth-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft has the highest speed rating at his position in this year's video game.

Luke Easterling

Kirby Lee - USA TODAY Sports
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Owen Pappoe hasn't played a down of NFL football yet, but he's already got an impressive feather in his cap when it comes to his standing among peers at his position.

EA Sports has been rolling out player ratings for this year's iteration of their "Madden NFL" video game, and Pappoe has the highest speed rating of any linebacker in the game.

Pappoe edged out a fellow rookie in Byron Young of the Los Angeles Rams, as well as Troy Anderson of the Atlanta Falcons and Devin White of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as the fastest player at his position. Another rookie, Trenton Simpson of the Baltimore Ravens, rounded out the top five.

It's hard to argue with the rating, as the Auburn product lit up the track at this year's NFL Scouting Combine with a blazing 40-yard dash time of 4.39 seconds.

Pappoe's speed will immediately be put to good use on special teams this season, but it won't be surprising if he uses it to eventually earn a spot in the starting lineup on defense, as well.

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Luke Easterling
LUKE EASTERLING

Luke Easterling (he/him) has been covering college football and the NFL for more than two decades, with a particular focus on the nexus of both, the NFL Draft. Writing for some of the largest and most recognizable brands in sports media, Luke's experience and expertise in evaluating potential NFL prospects and evaluating team needs/fits has earned the appreciation of his readers, and the respect of his peers. Luke cut his sports journalism teeth at The Tampa Tribune before spending two years at Bleacher Report as a featured columnist covering the NFL Draft and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Luke then spent nearly seven years at USA TODAY Sports Media Group as editor of Draft Wire and Bucs Wire, building both into authoritative destination sites for their respective audiences. Now at The Arena Group, Luke covers the NFL and college football for Athlon Sports, and runs Sports Illustrated's FanNation site for the NFL Draft. A graduate of the University of South Florida, Luke has been a featured guest on ESPN Radio, CBS Sports Radio, Fox Sports Radio, SiriusXM and more.  Based in Tampa, Florida (the true home of the Cuban sandwich), Luke plays the drums, loves 2000s pop-punk, watches way too many British murder mystery shows, and channels the energy of his deep-south Grammy and his full-Italian Nana in the kitchen. Twitter: @lukeeasterling Email: luke.easterling@si.com

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