- Mar 13, 2002
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Reality or ridiculous, the Madden curse is always an intriguing aspect to ponder as the upcoming NFL season approaches. The last eight cover boys have seen their share of bad luck after gracing the front of the fabled football franchise. This year looks to be as interesting as any; and with Brett Favre adorning the cover, we can let the Madden curse analysis begin.
When it was announced that Favre would appear on the cover of the 09 installment of Madden, it looked as if the curse had met its greatest nemesis. Favre is known as the NFL?s ?Iron Man;? he has started in 253 consecutive games and has only left six of those games due to injury. The curse would have to have some pretty hefty voodoo to cast an injury onto a player like Favre, but this year?s curse took an interesting turn when Favre announced his retirement in March.
Had the curse struck again? Or was it finally beaten? Both sides of the argument could be justified as Favre would not be playing in 2008, but he also hadn?t been injured or performed poorly in the season in which he was placed on the cover. Both ideas were shot down when Favre announced he wanted to return to football in early July, but the Packers had other plans, and only offered Favre a spot on their team as a back up to Aaron Rogers.
The ?curse? seems to have a way of simply keeping players off the field; in Favre?s case it appears to be preventing him from playing at all. Over the past eight seasons the curse has struck by affecting the individual player, the team of the player, or both simultaneously. Four of the eight cover athletes? teams have experienced losing seasons, and seven out of eight players have experienced a severe drop in production. Shaun Alexander, Marshall Faulk, Eddie George and Michael Vick no longer play in the NFL, with Vick, Faulk, Culpepper, Lewis, McNabb, and Alexander all sustaining injuries while on the cover.
Results like this seem to make the curse far from ridiculous, and Favre?s off-season drama is simply adding to the fire. Maybe EA should ditch the cover athlete approach and go retro by placing John Madden himself back on the cover. Then, of course, we?d all have to worry about John choking on his Thanksgiving Turducken.
When it was announced that Favre would appear on the cover of the 09 installment of Madden, it looked as if the curse had met its greatest nemesis. Favre is known as the NFL?s ?Iron Man;? he has started in 253 consecutive games and has only left six of those games due to injury. The curse would have to have some pretty hefty voodoo to cast an injury onto a player like Favre, but this year?s curse took an interesting turn when Favre announced his retirement in March.
Had the curse struck again? Or was it finally beaten? Both sides of the argument could be justified as Favre would not be playing in 2008, but he also hadn?t been injured or performed poorly in the season in which he was placed on the cover. Both ideas were shot down when Favre announced he wanted to return to football in early July, but the Packers had other plans, and only offered Favre a spot on their team as a back up to Aaron Rogers.
The ?curse? seems to have a way of simply keeping players off the field; in Favre?s case it appears to be preventing him from playing at all. Over the past eight seasons the curse has struck by affecting the individual player, the team of the player, or both simultaneously. Four of the eight cover athletes? teams have experienced losing seasons, and seven out of eight players have experienced a severe drop in production. Shaun Alexander, Marshall Faulk, Eddie George and Michael Vick no longer play in the NFL, with Vick, Faulk, Culpepper, Lewis, McNabb, and Alexander all sustaining injuries while on the cover.
Results like this seem to make the curse far from ridiculous, and Favre?s off-season drama is simply adding to the fire. Maybe EA should ditch the cover athlete approach and go retro by placing John Madden himself back on the cover. Then, of course, we?d all have to worry about John choking on his Thanksgiving Turducken.