Dave Thomas Madden Career 1995-2002 - Peak 87 OVR

Dave Thomas was a tall cornerback out of Tennessee, an eighth-round pick of the Cowboys in 1993 who won a Super Bowl XXVIII ring early and then found steadier work elsewhere. At 6-foot-3 he was a big, long corner before the position prized that build, a press defender who could match up with bigger receivers.

Madden rated him a solid, speed-based starter. Thomas peaked at an 87 in Madden NFL 99 for the 1998 season, built on a 93 speed rating, though his tackling grades were always modest, the profile of a cover man rather than a hitter.

Thomas started only briefly in Dallas before the expansion Jaguars took him in 1995, and Jacksonville is where he did his best work, a multi-year starter on those upstart late-90s teams. He later played for the Giants, reaching Super Bowl XXXV, and finished with nine career interceptions across nine seasons. He was a good, unspectacular starting corner who won a ring as a rookie in Dallas and built a solid career after. Madden's 87 marks him as exactly that, a fast, tall corner who stuck around because he could run and cover.