Legendary Raiders coach John Madden himself graced the cover of the "Madden" video game series from 1988 to 2000. There's no way the Madden Curse -- when a player appears on the cover of Madden, and then either ends up injured or his production drops the following season -- is anything other than happenstance. He was in the midst of a great run and even helped lead his San Francisco 49ers' team to the NFL Playoffs. More Sports. The most notable curse for sports video game fans is the Madden curse, where an NFL player becomes a cover star for a Madden NFL installment, and then they get injured during the season. I Jim Rogash/Getty Images. By. The Peyton Hillis. Hot Clicks: The curse … Before 1998 it was only John Madden on the cover with some other graphics, so it doesn't count as John Madden being affected by it. The Madden Cover Curse. SI Staff. Donovan McNabb as the feature athlete also gets a tick on what was a good cover. It went away from the circular design around the Madden type, instead, leaning towards a slightly more modern style.

Vince Young and Peyton Hillis, who was a surprise vote-in choice for Madden NFL 12, come to mind. Brett Favre, Drew Brees and Marshall Faulk are some of the bigger names to appear on Madden NFL covers. Legendary Raiders coach John Madden himself graced the cover of the "Madden" video game series from 1988 to 2000. While the lone athlete to avoid the curse in the season he was on the cover was George, who was also a member of the Tennessee Titans, the past … And there is also that pesky curse that is rumored to plague the cover athletes. However the player that is on the cover is said to experience either a injury or poor performance the following season after getting on the cover. Longtime Madden NFL fans are well-aware of what is known as the Madden Cover Curse, and it appears to have struck again: current Madden NFL 20 cover … EA Sports decided to put a player on the cover, and the San … It took Tom Brady that long to make the Madden Cover and, as expected, Brady didn’t suffer any Madden Curse-related symptoms. And now we come to the crown jewel of the phenomenon: Peyton Hillis. 18. Although it is a relatively simple cover, Madden 06 is as high as it is due to a subtle change in format. Gallery. Hillis is now in Kansas City. Brady’s biggest issue that year was a Super Bowl loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. By SI Staff. It’s safe to say that Hillis is known more for being “that guy that somehow got on the cover of Madden and then disappeared” than for his rushing prowess, especially considering the number of articles written about him for being the epitome of the Madden Curse. Since 1998, Players have been chosen to be on the Madden Cover. Tom Brady avoided the Madden Curse and led the 2017 New England Patriots to the Super Bowl. Hot Clicks: Anna Kournikova, Madden Curse, MLB rookie hazing.

18 Images. The “Madden Curse” didn’t bear that name when it claimed its first victim. The Madden curse didn't seem to affect him, so it must have started with Madden 99. Most of the cover athletes you'll see on the list excelled on offense or defense at least one year before appearing on a Madden NFL cover, but they were either affected by the "Madden curse" or that supposed phenomenon did not affect them. 7. As for the so-called Madden curse, Jackson said he isn’t concerned. Madden 99: Garrison Hurst. Peyton Hillis embraced the Madden cover, and said he was ready to break the curse. Jackson was just recently announced for the cover of Madden NFL 21, and the 2020 season doesn’t start until September, so it remains to be seen if … Others, though, haven't fared so well. Madden Curse Timeline 1. Last year's cover athlete, Kansas City Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes, went on to win the Super Bowl--despite the ever-present threat of the so-called Madden Curse. Instead he rushed for only 587 yards and three touchdowns to continue the streak. Garrison Hurst was the first player to appear on the cover of the Madden video game and at the time, he seemed like a viable choice.