The “Madden Curse,” which describes the unfortunate events that have periodically happened to an NFL player when he appears on the cover of the video game, was in question when last year’s fortunate player, Brett Favre, seemed to have a pretty good season, unlike previous cover models Shaun Alexander or Vince Young. With this season’s duo of Larry Fitzgerald and Troy Polamalu on the cover, chances were doubled for a statistical downfall for at least one of the players.
Fitzgerald has been great so far this season despite a couple bumps and bruises, and as of writing this, has 94 receptions for 1,075 yards and 12 touchdowns.
Polamalu, on the other hand, has had one he could probably bear to forget.
With the Pittsburgh Steelers 8-7 and relying on a slim series of events to survive and reach the playoffs, it seems hard to believe that this almost-identical team of Steelers were Super Bowl winners a season ago.
Here’s a quick summary of Polamalu’s season in 2009, courtesy of the ever-reliable Wikipedia:
In the 2009 season opener against the Tennessee Titans, Polamalu recorded six tackles and one interception before getting injured while trying to recover a blocked field goal. He sustained a sprained medial collateral ligament in his left knee, and missed the next 4 games. He returned to play in the week 6 matchup against the Cleveland Browns. He later reinjured himself against the Bengals.
Well, that’s a pretty lame follow-up to a damn good season in 2008. But hey, at least his Samson-esque hair is free of dandruff thanks to his Head & Shoulders endorsement and commercials!
This is a warning to all NFL players, especially you, Chris Johnson. I know you might get an offer to be on the cover due to your amazing season so far, but the “Madden Curse” is alive and well. Be careful of your choice, because your next season might be at stake. With the royalties and fame from being on that cover, immortalized in video game history, comes danger of injury affecting your season and possibly the rest of your career. Let someone nobody really likes, like Philip Rivers, be on the cover.
You can’t deny the curse. you just try to stay outta its way.