Did Patrick Mahomes really break the Madden curse?
After leading the Kansas City Chiefs to a win in Super Bowl LIV and earning MVP honors, EA was quick to pronounce the Madden curse broke, but is it really?
Earlier this season, when Patrick Mahomes went down with what was feared to be a serious knee injury, many — myself included — were quick to pin the blame on EA Sports’ Madden. After all, Mahomes had just been named the cover star for this year’s Madden NFL 20 and anyone familiar with the franchise knows what that means: the dreaded Madden curse would strike.
Well, turns out the injury was not as bad as many had feared and after missing a few games, Mahomes returned and helped lead the Kansas City Chiefs to an eventual Super Bowl victory. Among those celebrating the victory was, of course, Electronic Arts who was quick to claim that the curse was effectively broken.
What’s a Madden Curse? #SuperBowlLIV
— Electronic Arts (@EA) February 3, 2020
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Here’s the thing though, I’m not entirely sure that’s true. Sure, Mahomes won the Super Bowl and in doing so he is the first ever Madden cover star to play in and win the big game (as well as its MVP).
But we’re talking about a curse that has spanned decades. It’s not so easily broken with one performance. It works in mysterious ways and it has not always impacted players with injury. Some players just went on to play mediocre seasons as their team failed to live up to expectations.
We also have to remember that the curse may not be limited to just football. If you recall back in 2015, Ronda Rousey was announced as the cover athlete for EA Sports UFC 2 just a week before her big title fight against underdog Holly Holm. As I’m sure you all remember, Rousey was knocked out in devastating fashion by a brutal roundhouse kick and immediately everyone pointed towards the EA cover curse.
Next. When will Madden 21 be announced?. dark
Let’s be honest, the EA or Madden curse probably isn’t real — especially if we’re only judging it based on a player’s ability to win the biggest game in their respective sport (of course most will fail at that). Still, it’s a fun thing to keep track of year-in and year-out. The question now is who will be the cover star for Madden 21?