Is the Madden Curse real or fake?
The popular video game Madden has lore to it that anyone who has ever played the highly touted sports game will know. It’s said that whoever graces the cover of the fabled game will be doomed for the upcoming season. The question is, is this a real curse or is this something that people have made up to justify a player having a subpar season?
The idea that a curse exists for 23 separate players across the video game’s franchise is certainly one that is of intrigue. I’m sure we can all recount a time when we’ve seen that cover come out and saw that player have a terrible game or two. However, a few games are not a season whole.
I’ve decided to put this curse to the test and analyzed the stats of each Madden cover athlete for the past 10 years. Madden 23 had John Madden and Madden 25 (14) had Barry Sanders on the cover so they were not used for this exercise. It’s also important to remember that these games are released the year before the advertised year. For example, Madden 24 was released for the 2023 season.
Previous Madden Cover Athlete’s Seasons Review
How does one define a successful season in the NFL? Is it based on individual awards? Team success? I believe it is a combination of both.
Let’s start with individual awards. All the players made the Pro Bowl the following season except Rob Gronkowski (8 games), Lamar Jackson, and Josh Allen. Two players, Tom Brady (2021) and Odell Beckham Jr., were named second-team All-Pros. Three players, Calvin Johnson, Richard Sherman, and Tom Brady (2017), were named first-team All-Pros. Only one player was named MVP, and that was Tom Brady (2017).
Now we are on to team accolades. Only two cover athletes have won a Super Bowl in the last 10 years: Rob Gronkowski in 2016 and Patrick Mahomes in 2019. In the other 8 years, 5 of the cover athletes have made the playoffs and lost at varying points, and 3 of the cover athletes have missed the playoffs.
As far as I can tell, there does not seem to be a pattern or a reason that has developed when it comes to the success of a player a year after the Madden cover is released nor does it make much difference what team they are on. Historically, good teams will make it into the playoffs and go far whereas bad teams will not. There have been a lot of good players on good teams and therefore they “break” the Madden curse, but there have been some good players on bad teams that still keep whisperings alive.
Current Madden Cover Athlete’s Season Outlook
Gracing the cover of Madden 25 is San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey. As most football fans know, CMC is arguably the best running back in the NFL and is the top receiving threat out of the backfield in the league. Entering his 8th season in the NFL, McCaffrey has totaled 10,505 yards from scrimmage (6,185 rushing and 4,320 receiving), 81 total touchdowns (52 rushing and 29 receiving), 5 Pro Bowl selections, 1 2nd-team All-Pro, 2 1st team All-Pros, and 1 Offensive Player of the Year (OPOY) awards.
CMC is nothing short of incredible, even if he gets tagged with an “injury-prone” label (missed 24 career games). He’s also in the perfect system that allows him to thrive and truly be the difference maker that everyone knows that he can be. But is he doomed now that he has been on the cover of Madden? The answer is no.
As you can see by the reviews of previous seasons, there is no rhyme or reason as to how a player does the next year. Good players make the cover of Madden and they don’t crater into nothingness the next year. Sure, you can make an argument that their stats have declined and they did not play up to the level of the previous year, but what players do? It is incredibly hard to sustain elite production year after year.
Christian McCaffrey’s season is not doomed and you should draft him with full confidence, in your fantasy drafts, and enjoy watching him play during the season. He looks to be the driving force for a Niners’ team that has Super Bowl aspirations and CMC is one of the few players that can take you there with minimal help. Let’s put an end to the Madden curse and just marvel at how great these human beings are. They are truly superstars among us.
Hailing from Jacksonville, Florida, by way of Cincinnati, Ohio, this diehard Kansas City Chiefs, Michigan Wolverines, and Cincinnati Reds fan is dedicated to fantasy sports. Constantly touted as “obsessed” by friends and family members, Anthony likes to think it’s just a dedicated hobby. For over a decade now, Anthony has played in and commissioned many different types of leagues but prefers the confines of dynasty. Outside of fantasy sports, Anthony is a school counselor at a local high school who loves reading, biking, rollerblading, doing puzzles, and pretty much anything with his beautiful wife.
