Sports The vaunted Madden “quilt curse” can personal struck again this season.
San Francisco 49ers star running help Christian McCaffrey, who turned into on the quilt of Madden 25, will seemingly miss the relaxation of the 2024 season after suffering a PCL ache of their Week 13 loss to the Buffalo Bills. McCaffrey is anticipated to be out for six weeks and must be placed on injured reserve, 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan suggested newshounds.
For just a few years, the perception has been that whichever participant is featured on the quilt of the enduring on-line sport will either miss necessary time on account of ache or personal a necessary regression of their on-field performance. So, McCaffrey’s potential season-ending ache (while performing in lawful four games prior on account of an Achilles ache) would unquestionably match that criteria.
With one necessary exception, it appears as although the curse has truly misplaced its luster over the previous several years earlier than McCaffrey’s placement on the quilt. Nonetheless, many of its victims were running backs, esteem McCaffrey. That talked about, let’s rob a leer at how Madden quilt athletes personal fared over time following the open of the sport with their image on it.
(Trace: Madden 23, the 2022 edition of the sport, did not feature any contemporary participant on its quilt but as but another honored the dull John Madden, the legendary common NFL on FOX analyst who furthermore helped construct and lent his title to the sport. Madden turned into furthermore featured on every quilt of the sport except 2000.)
Madden 25: Christian McCaffrey
After just a few dormant seasons, the Madden curse came help with a vengeance in 2024. McCaffrey ignored the broad majority of practicing camp and the total preseason on account of calf and Achilles injuries. He turned into expected to approach help for the originate of the recurring season, but he turned into dominated out for Week 1 at the last minute. McCaffrey injure up missing the 49ers’ first eight games, visiting an Achilles specialist in Germany at one point. When he returned, McCaffrey struggled to personal the identical affect he did when he received Offensive Participant of the Year in 2023. He recorded lawful 348 scrimmage yards and did not secure a touchdown in the four games he played earlier than the PCL ache.
As McCaffrey dealt with injuries, the 49ers personal faltered. They’re 5-7 thru their first 12 games and peek removed from the crew that made the Tall Bowl in 2023. They’ve furthermore dealt with long-time length injuries to Brandon Aiyuk, Prick Bosa and Talanoa Hafunga all missing necessary time in 2024.
VERDICT: Cursed
Madden 24: Josh Allen
At one point, it regarded esteem the Madden curse turned into coming help with a vengeance. The Buffalo Bills were 6-6 after their first 12 games and fired their offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey in the heart of the season. The Bills stormed help with their star QB main the style, a hit their last five games to take hold of their fourth straight AFC East title. Sure, Buffalo misplaced to the eventual Tall Bowl champion Kansas City in the divisional spherical on account of a ignored field aim that evoked but another ugly 2nd in Bills historical previous, but that shouldn’t be the curse we’re centered on.
VERDICT: Now not cursed
Madden 22: Patrick Mahomes and Tom Brady
Whatever Madden curse existed in 2021 turned into no match for 2 of the sport’s most gripping gamers. Mahomes played the total season, throwing 37 touchdowns and main the Chiefs to a 12-5 report. The 43-twelve months-used Brady led the league with 5,300 passing yards in his 2nd season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Neither participant in a roundabout plan returned to the Tall Bowl one twelve months after facing off against every other in the sport, nonetheless it is unfair to issue their seasons were cursed.
VERDICT: Now not cursed
Madden 21: Lamar Jackson
The defending NFL MVP rushed for over 1,000 yards and led the Baltimore Ravens help to the playoffs, the set up they avenged the old twelve months’s postseason defeat by beating the Tennessee Titans on the road in the wild-card spherical.
VERDICT: Now not cursed
Madden 20: Mahomes
If there turned into ever a Madden curse-breaker, it turned into Mahomes, who led the Chiefs to their first Tall Bowl get in 50 years after his first appearance on the on-line sport’s quilt.
VERDICT: Now not cursed
Madden 19: Antonio Brown
Brown did plug on to personal a productive 2018 season at the moment after he turned into featured on the quilt, catching a profession-high 15 touchdowns. But the Pittsburgh Steelers did not reach the playoffs and Brown’s profession fell apart soon after as he dealt with pretty just a few off-field points and clashed with teammates and coaches in every single position he went, including with the Las Vegas Raiders, Unique England Patriots and the Bucs. He has simplest appeared in 16 total games for the rationale that 2018 season and none since 2021.
VERDICT: Cursed
Madden 18: Brady
The long bustle Corridor of Famer in a roundabout plan graced the quilt of Madden with 2017’s “GOAT edition” and, sure ample, proved himself proof against the curse, a hit the last of his three NFL MVPs and main the Patriots help to the Tall Bowl. Despite shedding to the Philadelphia Eagles in that sport, it turned into infrequently a cursed season for Brady.
VERDICT: Now not cursed
Madden 17: Rob Gronkowski
Injuries caught up with Gronkowski in 2016, as the well-known particular person tight pause simplest appeared in six games on account of a herniated disc in his help and other ache points. That remains to be the last instance of a “old” Madden quilt curse.
VERDICT: Cursed
Madden 16: Odell Beckham Jr.
OBJ graced the Madden quilt lawful as his star turned into ascending heading into his 2nd NFL season, and the curse did not quit his upward thrust. Beckham position profession highs in receiving yards (1,450) and touchdown catches (13) in 2015, then helped the Unique York Giants help to the playoffs with 101 receptions in 2016. Trip, Beckham dealt with injuries and regression in the years that adopted, however the peak of his profession performance-realistic clearly came after he turned into featured on the Madden quilt.
VERDICT: Now not cursed
Madden 15: Richard Sherman
Sherman’s Madden quilt appearance furthermore came right thru the end of his profession and furthermore did not gradual him down. At the time of the sport’s open, the star cornerback had simplest made one Skilled Bowl; he helped the defending champion Seattle Seahawks help to the Tall Bowl that twelve months and made the next three Skilled Bowls.
VERDICT: Now not cursed
Madden 25 (2013): Adrian Peterson**
After speeding for over 2,000 yards and a hit NFL MVP in 2012, Peterson declined in 2013, running for lawful 1,266 yards over 14 games that season. He then ignored honest about all of 2014 after being indicted on child abuse bills. Despite the undeniable fact that he returned to handbook the league in speeding in 2015, his numbers were peaceful effectively underneath his MVP stage, and Peterson struggled even extra in subsequent years.
**Peterson turned into featured on but another quilt of the sport, while its predominant quilt featured the long-retired Barry Sanders.
VERDICT: Cursed
Madden 13: Calvin Johnson
It could per chance presumably presumably not win sense to exclaim a participant fell victim to the Madden quilt curse when that participant position the NFL single-season receiving yards report at the moment after being featured on the quilt. Johnson remained a productive receiver except his retirement after the 2015 season.
VERDICT: Now not cursed
Madden 12: Peyton Hillis
After a hit a fan vote to be featured on the quilt of the sport, Hillis simplest appeared in 10 games in 2011 on account of ache and simplest averaged 3.6 yards per lift when he turned into on the field.
VERDICT: Cursed
Madden 11: Drew Brees
Brees led the defending Tall Bowl champion Unique Orleans Saints help to the playoffs, but furthermore threw a franchise-report 22 interceptions in the technique. Brees and the Saints’ 2010 season is ideal remembered as the actual person that ended at the hands of Marshawn Lynch and a 7-9 Seahawks squad in the wild-card spherical of the playoffs.
VERDICT: Cursed
Madden 10: Larry Fitzgerald, Troy Polamalu
Our first and simplest atomize up end result! The Tall Bowl 43 foes had vastly diversified 2009 seasons. Fitzgerald cemented his superstardom with over 1,000 yards receiving, a profession-high 13 touchdown catches and a Skilled Bowl nod, while Polamalu turned into restricted to 5 games and a profession-low 20 tackles on account of an MCL ache.
VERDICT: Now not cursed
Madden 09: Brett Favre
Jets followers can blame Madden for Favre’s inconsistent season. After the quilt featuring Favre in Packers equipment turned into already finalized, the quarterback retired, unretired and forced a commerce to the Jets so Inexperienced Bay might presumably presumably flip to its signal-caller of the future: Aaron Rodgers. (What’s that they pronounce about time being a flat circle?) Favre struggled with a shoulder ache and threw an NFL-high 22 interceptions as the Jets went 7-9 in his lone season in Unique York.
VERDICT: Cursed
Madden 08: Vince Young
Young led Texas to the college soccer nationwide title in 2005 and received NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2006. In 2007, then again, Young turned into benched dull in the season after a 9-17 touchdown-to-interception ratio, and his profession by no manner recovered from there.
VERDICT: Cursed
Madden 07: Shaun Alexander
After speeding for over 1,000 yards in five straight seasons, the 2005 NFL MVP rushed for 896 over 10 games in 2006 on account of a broken foot and turned into out of the NFL two years later.
VERDICT: Cursed
Madden 06: Donovan McNabb
McNabb adopted up a season whereby he led the Eagles to the Tall Bowl with one whereby he ignored eight games on account of ache and feuded with top receiver Terrell Owens as the Eagles went 6-10.
VERDICT: Cursed
Madden 05: Ray Lewis
Leave it to this Ravens franchise icon to beat the curse at the end of its powers. The Ravens ignored the playoffs, but Lewis recorded 147 tackles and remained among the NFL’s ideal linebackers for honest about a decade afterward.
VERDICT: Now not cursed
Madden 04: Michael Vick
Vick’s extraordinarily educated avatar on this version of the sport is assumed of as one of maybe the most gripping video-sport characters of all time, however the actual-life twin-chance quarterback simplest played in five games that season on account of a fractured fibula.
VERDICT: Cursed
Madden 03: Marshall Faulk
After recording 5 straight 1,000-yard seasons, the star Rams running help simplest started 10 games in 2002 and by no manner reached the 1,000-yard imprint again for the leisure of his profession.
VERDICT: Cursed
Madden 02: Daunte Culpepper
Culpepper ignored five games on account of a knee ache, fumbled 16 situations, went 4-7 as a starter, and had a touchdown-to-interception ratio of 14-13.
VERDICT: Cursed
Madden 01: Eddie George
What curse? George led the NFL in speeding makes an strive (403) and recorded a profession-high 1,509 walk yds and 14 speeding touchdowns.
VERDICT: Now not cursed
Madden 2000: Barry Sanders
Rapidly after he turned into announced as the first non-John Madden quilt star of the sport, Sanders with out warning retired earlier than the 1999 season and by no manner played in the NFL again. Madden returned to the quilt for one last time (earlier than 2023), while Sanders in a roundabout plan bought his appearance as the principle quilt star of the 25th-anniversary edition of the sport in 2013.
VERDICT: Cursed
Barry Sanders with out warning retired earlier than he had but another to be the Madden 2000 quilt star, but he in a roundabout plan bought his replace with Madden 25 in 2013.
FINAL TALLY: 15 cursed, 11 not cursed
Historical previous peaceful leans in direction of there being a Madden quilt curse. But with simplest one “cursed” participant since 2016, Allen and Bills followers can leisure easy that the contemporary style is favoring a colossal season for the quarterback in 2023 and beyond.
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