[8] Hynde has acknowledged that "Middle of the Road" uses the same chords as the Rolling Stones' song "Empty Heart" and that it does not have much melody.

"[9] AllMusic critic Liana Jonas called "Middle of the Road" a "classic example of pure, unadulterated rock music."

She ascribed this to the fact that the lyrics focus on people's innate desire to "get up and go" and the "driven" music backs up the sentiment.

"[10] Ultimate Classic Rock critic Matt Wardlaw rated it the Pretenders 7th greatest song, saying that "The Pretenders kick out the jams in fine fashion, from that famous opening drum break to Chrissie herself wrapping things up with a killer harmonica solo.

"[7] Ultimate Classic Rock critic Bryan Wawzenek rated it as drummer Martin Chambers' top Pretenders song, saying that "he gets to do a little bit of everything: swing for the fences on the danceable beat, wake Chrissie Hynde from her daydream with a pair of lightning quick snare hits and keep pushing, pulling and racing to the song’s harmonica-drenched conclusion.