The Curse of Madden (1 Viewer)

[BustedKnuckles]

http://videogames.yahoo.com/ongoingfeature...2415&page=0

The Curse of Madden

In almost a decade of endorsement fallout, those who grace the cover of EA's Madden NFL suffer a horrible fate.

By Russ Fischer

31 Jan 2007

Curse or Coincidence?

Sports fans know more about curses than Stephen King. Then again, as a Red Sox fan and sufferer of the Curse of the Bambino, maybe more of King's fearful ideas come from sports than anyone knows.

The most famous curse in sports might be the Sports Illustrated cover jinx, which has rained tragedy upon featured players since the 1950s when ball player Eddie Matthews, photographed for the first cover, suffered a hand injury and missed seven games. The S.I. jinx affects every facet of sports -- even paper pushing, as MLB commissioner Bart Giamatti died of a heart attack the same week he was quoted on the cover.

Since video games hit the scene, it initially seemed as if they were unable to exert any supernatural power over the sports world. And then came Madden NFL 2000.

Madden NFL Football had been around for a decade, but early editions saw Madden himself grace the cover. 'Grace' may not be the right word -- Madden's mug dominated the game. And from 1989 to 1999, the NFL played on, never suspecting than Madden's presence protected some of the game's most visible players from injury and heartbreak.

In 1999, breaking with tradition, Madden's face wasn't the only one on the game's cover. In the background was star running back Barry Sanders. And with Sanders' startling announcement in July of 1999, the curse began...

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[Jous]

If I were a star football player and asked to be on the cover, I wouldn't care if I were superstitious or not... I would decline that offer. there's just so much negativity surrounding that game's cover

 

[EBF]

I think the problem is pretty simple. They always pick guys who are coming off career years.

What usually happens after a career year? Regression to the mean.

What goes up must come down.

 

[Jous]

I think the problem is pretty simple. They always pick guys who are coming off career years. What usually happens after a career year? Regression to the mean. What goes up must come down.

But it's usually not just regression. It's almost always a big injury.

 

[EBF]

I think the problem is pretty simple. They always pick guys who are coming off career years. What usually happens after a career year? Regression to the mean. What goes up must come down.

But it's usually not just regression. It's almost always a big injury.

Yea. That's a bit bizarre, but football is a brutal sport. It's almost a miracle that guys like Tomlinson and LJ have stayed healthy as long as they have. I won't be the least bit surprised if either goes down next season. I know, LJ has only been a starter for two seasons, but they're working him to death. The 400+ carry RB is to be avoided like a leper.

 

[GRIDIRON ASSASSIN]

NOT AGAIN...

Eddie George was a football God and had his best season when he was on the cover.

How about EA Sports "HEAD COACH"? Cowher was a Super Bowl Champion Head Coach, and now he's not working.