Kevin Fagan Madden Career 1992-1994 - Peak 69 OVR

Kevin Fagan was a Miami Hurricane on the 1983 national championship team, strong enough to set a school bench-press record, and San Francisco took him in the fourth round in 1986. A knee injury cost him his rookie year, but he came back to start at defensive end for seven seasons, a run-stopper doing the unglamorous work next to bigger names on two Super Bowl fronts.

Madden's grades for him wobble the way early-1990s numbers on the old 1-to-15 scale tend to, without telling you much. Fagan was a 56 for the 1991 season, fell to a 40 for 1992, then jumped to a career-best 69 for 1993, his final year, the readings bouncing around a player the game never had a firm handle on. None of it captured what he actually did, which was hold the point of attack so the linebackers could run free.

He won rings in Super Bowls XXIII and XXIV, finished with 25.5 sacks, and retired after 1993 when his back and knees gave out. Fagan was a starter every champion needs and no video game knows how to grade: not much of a stat line, and a job done well for years.