Hey Madden fans! This week’s top 10 list is a bit different than our previous lists. It focuses on the best abilities in the game and players that can equip these abilities for a discount in terms of AP (Ability Point) values.
We limited the list to only one instance of each ability, so if you don’t see a player item that you feel really deserves to be here, check the honorable mentions section below.
If you’re new to MUT and/or abilities, check out our Abilities Tier List. We teamed up with the pros at Huddle.gg to rate each ability. Also, you can click on just about every ability to see what Madden pros have to say about it.
Top 10 Ability Discount Players in MUT 23
1. 90 OVR Demarcus Ware | 1 AP Under Pressure
Under Pressure is one of the best defensive abilities in the game and for 1 AP, it’s an absolute steal on Ware. Under Pressure increases the distance at which a pass rusher can impact opposing QBs which improves the chances of an inaccurate pass. Beyond the AP discount for Under Pressure, Ware is probably the best all-around pass rusher in the game.
2. 91 OVR Justin Herbert | 3 AP Fearless
With the heavy blitz meta and the rise of Under Pressure’s popularity, Fearless is more important than ever. It makes your QB immune to pressure, from the Under Pressure ability, and pressure in general. You’ll be able to throw with defenders in your face without any accuracy penalties. Also, Herbert can get Set Feet Lead in the same ability bucket for 2 AP (same as Vick) if that’s your preference.
3. 90 OVR Michael Crabtree | 1 AP Slot Apprentice
Slot Apprentice is an elite WR ability. It gives you four extra hot routes when your player is lined up in a slot position. The post, corner, and crosser are three of the best routes in the entire game. On top of that, because Crabtree has the Slot - WR archetype, he gets Short In Elite for 1 AP as well. That’s not technically a discount, but it is still a great value for a top ability.
4. 90 OVR Chris McAlister | 1 AP Medium Route KO
Medium Route KO is the best of the knockout abilities with the current meta. It gives you a high chance to knock out passes that otherwise would be completions between 10 and 20 yards of the line of scrimmage when you run man defense. This applies to posts, corners, crossers, and other routes that do a good job against man coverage. It’s even better when you blitz since the routes won’t have time to get any farther down field. You’ll have to power up McAlister all the way to get 1 AP Medium Route KO, but it makes him the best man coverage CB in the game.
5. 90 OVR Michael Vick | 2 AP Set Feet Lead
Set Feet Lead adds extra ball velocity on precision passes when your QB’s feet are set. It can be the difference between completing a pass in a tight window and throwing an interception. Vick gets it for only 2 AP and it can make up for a slower release. You will have to power Vick all the way up to get this AP discount.
6. 90 OVR Herman Moore | 1 AP Deep Out Elite
If you love exploiting mismatches on the outside with aggressive catches and you have unlimited coins, look no further than Herman Moore. He’s the fastest WR in the game (90 SPD) with 92 jumping and 92 spectacular catching. Deep Out Elite gives you increased catch chances on passes 20+ yards downfield and outside the numbers. Moore gets it for just 1 AP. Put him on a streak or a fade, throw a high ball pass, and hold Y/Triangle for the aggressive catch.
7. 90 OVR Larry Fitzgerald | 1 AP Outside Apprentice
Outside Apprentice gives you four extra hot routes when your WR is lined up outside. While all the routes have value, the post and corner route (C route) are the best. If you’ve watched high level Madden, you’ve likely seen pros using the Outside Apprentice C route to beat man coverage for a big gain. Fitz getting Outside Apprentice at 1 AP with great WR ratings means he’s one of the top outside WRs in the game.
8. 89 OVR Jay Hilgenberg | 2 AP Threat Detector
If you watched the Ultimate Kickoff MCS tournament, you saw plenty of Threat Detector. It shows you which linebackers, cornerbacks, and safeties are blitzing on 3rd and 4th downs. It’s extremely valuable to know who is blitzing before the snap in the most important situations in a game. Keep in mind that you have to fully power up Hilgenberg to get the ability discount here, but it’s worth it to get Threat Detector for 2 AP.
9. 90 OVR Christian McCaffrey | 1 AP Short In Elite
Passing to your HB is one of the best ways to attack the man coverage meta due to mismatches and alignment issues. Short In Elite gives you better separation on cuts and better catching within 10 yards of the line of scrimmage and between the numbers. That’s basically every route your HB could run. CMC is already the best receiving back in the game and 1 AP Short In Elite makes him even better.
10. 91 OVR Jeffery Simmons | 1 AP Inside Stuff
Inside Stuff is the best run-stopping ability in the game. Simmons gets it for just 1 AP. When you have Inside Stuff on your DT, it almost completely neutralizes inside runs, regardless of your play call. When you don’t have to worry about inside runs, it opens up your playbook on defense.
Honorable Mentions
There are a lot of ability discounts on good abilities already in Madden 23, so it was hard to narrow it down to just 10. Here are some players that were considered but didn’t quite make the cut:
89 OVR Deacon Jones | 1 AP Under Pressure
Deacon could easily have been #1 on this list. It came down to him and Ware. Ware has the better pass rush ratings, but if you plan to run Edge Threat with 1 AP Under Pressure, Deacon is the better player since he gets Edge Threat for 3 AP instead of Ware’s 4 AP Edge Threat.
90 OVR Troy Polamalu | 3 AP Acrobat
Acrobat is just as good as it was last year, if not better. It increases the range of a defender by allowing him to swat and intercept passes with diving animations. The only reason you’re not seeing Acrobat everywhere is that it normally costs 4+ AP. Polamalu gets Acrobat for 3 AP and he’s a great user safety/sub linebacker, where Acrobat has the biggest impact. Someone is certainly going to reply that Polamalu being 5’10” means he’s a terrible user, but just ignore them and try it yourself.
90 OVR Jahri Evans | 1 AP Identifier
Identifier lets you know which player your opponent is user controlling before the snap. It helps you know where to avoid and to narrow down your reads before the play even starts. Evans can equip Identifier for only 1 AP which is great value. The downside is that he’s around a million coins, which we know is a lot more than most of you are willing to spend on an offensive lineman.
90 OVR Ryan Fitzmagic | 1 AP Identifier
If you don’t want to break the bank on Evans, Fitzmagic also can equip Identifier for 1 AP and you’re looking for a new QB.
90 OVR Jeremy Shockey | 1 AP Slot Apprentice
Shockey is an interesting player that’s perfect for certain schemes. Normally a TE getting Slot Apprentice wouldn’t make much sense. However, in Gun Bunch, the TE is treated as a slot WR, so Shockey gets the extra routes in Bunch. He also has WR as a secondary position if you want to run him as a true slot WR in your offense.
90 OVR Samuel Womack | 1 AP Medium Route KO
Womack gets overlooked because he’s a 5’9” CB, but his ability discount makes him viable in certain defenses. If you’re running a scheme built around heavy man blitzes, Medium Route KO is very powerful and Womack won’t be in many jump ball situations where his knockout ability won’t bail him out. The downside is that he’s a limited edition player so his price floor is 350,000 coins.
90 OVR Chad Johnson | 1 AP Deep Out Elite
Ochocinco gets the same 1 AP Deep Out Elite ability as Moore, but he suffers from not being 6’4”. That’s why Herman Moore made the list instead.
Give Us Your Feedback
Who didn’t make our list that definitely makes your list? Who wasn’t on our radar at all that you feel should have been included in this article? Let us know. We love hearing from you guys.
Thanks again to Hurc and Hodgey from the MUT.GG Discord server for their help and analysis in putting together this list. Also, a big thanks to the pros at Huddle.gg that contributed to the Abilities Tier List that also influenced this list.
Have a great weekend MUT community!
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