04-17-2007, 03:10 PM
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| Senior Monk
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Rep Power: 2  | Madden 08 Cover Athlete Revealed
Quote: 
Vince Young has survived the so-called "SI cover jinx" — three times to be exact.
Can he escape the "Madden curse?" It looks like everyone will get a chance to find out this fall.
According to his agent, the Tennessee Titans quarterback has been told he'll appear on the cover of Madden '08, the popular football video game. However, whether it's a coincidence or a curse, recently players have suffered from injury problems during the year they appeared on the cover.
Young's agent, Major Adams, said they didn't believe in jinxes.
"People said when they put Vince on the cover of Sports Illustrated, it was going to jinx him in the Rose Bowl game, and (Texas) won the national championship," Adams said. "We don't believe in stuff like that."
Officials from EA Sports wouldn't confirm Young is this year's choice for the cover, which was to be officially announced on Jimmy Kimmel Live, which airs Tuesday night at midnight ET on ABC.
Seattle Seahawks running back Shaun Alexander was on the cover of Madden '07, and he broke a bone in his left foot early in the season. The past four cover players have been injured, including Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb, who suffered a sports hernia the season he was on the cover of Madden '06. Before that, it was Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis (injured wrist) and Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick, who suffered a broken leg during an exhibition game in 2003 when he was on the cover.
"Being on the cover of Madden is such a big honor nowadays; no one ever turns us down because of (the so-called curse), that's for sure," said Chris Erb, director of marketing for EA Sports.
There has been plenty of speculation about who might be on this year's cover, with reigning NFL MVP LaDainian Tomlinson and Super Bowl MVP Peyton Manning considered favorites.
Young was the NFL's Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2006, when he guided the Titans to six straight wins at the end of the season.
"Everyone wants to be the Madden guy," Erb said. "The issue is the guys that have been on the cover tend to be the guys that are around the football more often, and football is a rough sport. We've had a string of unfortunate incidents, I guess you could say ... but we really don't believe in the jinx."
IS THERE A MADDEN CURSE?
After Eddie George in 2000, the last six players on the Madden cover have missed games in the season of their cover appearance:
• 2006 — Seattle Seahawks running back Shaun Alexander (2006): He broke a bone in his left foot early in the season and finished with 896 rushing yards.
• 2005 — Philadelphia Eagles QB Donovan McNabb (2005): Eagles started out 4-5, and McNabb missed the final seven games because of a sports hernia.
• 2004 — Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis (2004): Suffered wrist injury, which caused him to miss a game and limited his production. It was the only season of his career in which he had no interceptions.
• 2003 — Atlanta Falcons QB Michael Vick (2003): Suffered a broken right leg during an exhibition game, causing him to miss the first 11 games of the season.
• 2002 — St. Louis Rams RB Marshall Faulk (2002): Missed two games with an injured ankle.
• 2001 — Minnesota Vikings QB Daunte Culpepper (2001): Missed the final five games with a knee injury after throwing almost as many interceptions (13) as touchdown passes (14).
• 2000 — Titans RB Eddie George (2000): Rushed for 1,509 yards and 16 touchdowns, both career highs.
| [i]Courtesy of USAToday[/img] |
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