Eli Manning makes his case for the Madden cover
February 3, 2008 by pastapadre
Right around mid-season I wrote how Adrian Peterson had positioned himself to be the leading contender for the cover of Madden 09. Along with him there is a decent sized list of players I could come up with who would also get consideration. A few however may have dropped off the list while another entered it after the Super Bowl today.
Eli Manning, as Super Bowl winner and MVP, becomes a definite possibility. Until the last game of the regular season no one would’ve given him any shot. But playing well through the playoffs and coming up big on the winning drive late in the Super Bowl propelled him to another level. Even prior to all this happening he had become more recognizable in a marketing sense with several commercial spots. Where brother Peyton has probably surpassed any desire to be on the cover (he makes too much money being in half the commercials out there) Eli is more on the rise and may be able to use that exposure to his advantage.
Patriots players such as Tom Brady, despite winning the MVP and having an absolutely incredible season, are likely not as appealing anymore. I doubt he would’ve been the guy either way due to a few different factors but it seems even less likely now. While EA has put players from the Super Bowl losing team on the cover the following year, this loss is especially crushing considering the undefeated season being wiped away. That is how players on this Patriots team will be remembered. Seeing him or another Patriots player on the cover would just conjure up memories of that.
I’ll be doing a cover candidate analysis in the coming weeks but right now the top names that come to my mind are Adrian Peterson, Eli Manning, Braylon Edwards, and Antonio Cromartie.
The same thought crossed my mind as the game ended. IMO, it’s a two-horse race between AD and Eli.
I wouldn’t count out John Madden himself or an old player. At the Madden Bowl they were saying how they were doing a lot of historical stuff for the 20th anniversary game.
look at some stats please Tom brady (but he lost) and tony romo. So what if they lost
eli had a 73.9 passer rating in the regular season and 13 less tds than romo
I don’t want another garbage quaterback on the cover like vince young even if he won the superbowl. lets put an elite player on the cover this year
^Tony Romo also has top jersey sales
A historical player would be sweet. Or, why not the first Madden cover????
In my opinions, I think Madden should show a photo of a team, or several key players from one team. The New England Patriots prided themselves on “team” in the current day of individualism.
The 2001 Pats were the first team to be announced as a team, not as individuals, in their win in SB XXXVI over the Rams (which, quite fittingly, strangely resembled SB XLII, with the Pats playing the role of favorite).
Since that time, every team that has participated in the Super Bowl has been announced as a team. EA should focus on the “team” concept. Although Manning was the MVP (and played extremely well), the Giants’ front four owned that game….
In regards to the Pats being remembered for losing after an 18-0 start, everyone should remember that the NFL is not a video game. Going 18-0 is unbelievably difficult and this team should be remembered in a positive light.
I am not a Pats fan but I feel that this team has changed the way the NFL is perceived. Regardless of “Spygate”, the Patriots did something many people thought would never happen since the inception of free agency and the salary cap — become a dynasty…Yes, the Pats are a dynasty….
Can’t wait until August…..
AK wrote:
You’re kidding right? Tony Romo? What has he ever done but collapse late in the last two seasons and choke in the playoffs?
Is he a good player? Sure. Elite? Definitely hasn’t reached that level yet.
At least Vince Young had won rookie of the year (even if not deserved) and Manning the Super Bowl MVP.
You can put Romo on the cover as long as Jessica Simpson is with him — in a bikini….
Put Giants’ punter Jeff Feagles on the cover. He was in the NFL when the first Madden was released….Talk about classic…
Romo played well in this years playoff game…wasn’t his fault they lost…they lost because of some bad calls by the refs and a some crucial drops by crayton…the giants were lucky to get by dallas…but strahan will retire and he is the heart of that team and the cowboys will make the superbowl next year….romo is better then eli .
As far as the pats being a dynasty, they are but they are the worse 1. First off who knows if they win the 1st superbowl if they don’t tape the rams practice. But beyond that they won by 3 each game. They weren’t really dominant. The cowboys of the 90’s were dominant, also the 90s was the best era in football history.So thats why I think the cowboys of the 90’s is the best dynasty ever.
everyone thought it would be peyton last year because of the super bowl and mvp. I think it will be Adrian Peterson, Tony Romo, Brett Favre, LT, Tom Brady. I think it should be Brett Favre or Tom Brady.
That would be cool to see Eli on the cover but EA is most likely to put ‘All Day’ on the cover because he is already so popular.
IMO, I think we need a NEW WR feature and Moss should be on the cover.
Tony Romo is also a born loser.
Rupert Giles wrote:
Another WR feature? Didn’t we get one last year? I think putting Cromartie on the cover and something to beef up/enhance pass defense would be great. Once you get away from the amazing psychic DB’s and crouching tiger hidden linebacker type stuff, that’s really the weak point in the game right now IMO. Then again, I mostly play offline.
Sammyboy wrote:
Your a hater. People need to realize Eli Started off his playoff career 0-2 , Peyton had his early struggles, Romo will
win Dallas a superbowl.
Who cares about the cover? The game is still gonna be the same thing every year…. which is not that good!
Mark wrote:
They really got to focus on the sideline animations. Its stupid when people get their toes down like 4 yards out of bounds. Also they need to make it so wide receivers jump for the ball every time or at least go for it. Half the time they don’t and it gets pick off.
Romo may be better than Eli but Eli has a ring….Also, the Cowboys teams of the 90s were hopped up on dope and rope….
The Patriots, although admittedly video taped the Jets, could tell the other team what they are running and they would still score. Stating that they video taped the Rams is mere speculation since there is zero proof.
And even if they did, I don’t feel that it would create that much of an advantage. These guys are pros and they are the best at what they do.
No disrespect to Dallas’ teams of the 90s, but the Steelers of the 70s are the best team dynasty of all time. Dallas will get to a Super Bowl but not because of Romo.
Not to mention, Dallas couldn’t beat New England on their home field.
In regards to the next Madden, I am not concerned with animations. Madden 08 was a solid game. We, as gamers, are spoiled. When I first started playing video games there were no teams, no player faces, no alternate jerseys (no jerseys for that matter). We had to pretend we were using Seattle or Dallas.
I think a cool cover for the next Madden would be to use a player from all the versions of Madden. Have 20 squares, each with a graphic of a player from each iteration of every single Madden game created.
From the original sprite-based players on the Apple, to the players of the original Madden on the Sega Genesis to today’s current polygon players…And place John Madden in the middle…
Bring back classic….
Brian Westbrook. Done.
Elmira Express wrote:
You sound like a die hard cowboys fan. Which is fine but your eyes might have cowboy blinders on though. But hey at least my vikings helped build your dynasty by giving you a whole pile of players for Herscal Walker.
As a viking fan I hope they put Favre on the cover
Favre sounds the most likely with the aniversaty thing. However Eli was on the cover (alog with Chad Pennington) here in New York when I reserved it last year. O and who deserved the ROY more than VY last year
Eli on the cover? one word, PUKE!
Eski wrote:
yeah lets put out 3 editions one with vinny testaverde and one with morten andersen as well
EA wont put another QB on the cover. for every new feature for madden each year, there is a player that does it (Example: Hit Stick 1.0 in 2005 with ray lewis on the cover) and another example is presision passing in 2006 with donovan mcnabb and a 3rd example is 2007 with shaun alexander and the truck stick. what else can u possible have for a QB in this game?
alex wrote:
Not last year, there was no touted QB feature. Plus they went after LaDainian Tomlinson first but he turned them down, and that would’ve made 2 straight years of RBs. And again there was no touted RB feature. So they’ve broken off that pattern.
Eski wrote:
Great Idea…I hope they do something similar to what you suggested.
Eli is a fine choice. Patriots fans would love it, especially the ones that pre-ordered a 19-0 book.
NO BRAYLON EDWARDS!!!!!
-Love Browns fan who knows we dont need another dan curse or what not
I’m hoping to see another Viking on the cover.
Let’s hope that Adrian breaks the curse…
XxMadCowxX wrote:
I a vikes fan I disagree for a couple reasons.
A. The dreaded madden curse
B. Theres already enough Viking Fan posers because of how popular AD is.
BustyBuffet wrote:
That is hilarious….
I certainly hope next year’s game has classic teams. I miss the Houston Oilers.
Also, I hope EA goes the path that 2K did with the jerseys and supply every jersey ever worn by each team. With that, I sure hope EA displays the jerseys in a jersey selection screen. I would like to see what they look like before I select the jersey.
Madden 2009 needs to:
Have wrs go for the ball/jump when needed.
People should go for the toe grabs instead of waiting till they are out of bounds.
Online should have weather.
You should be able to pick your jerseys online
Bring back online mini games .
There should be hardcore rank matches-all pro is to easy.
They need to make the defensive lines more powerful
Eski wrote:
Common sense sometimes escapes EA to a baffling degree.
I also wish they would stop cutting to floating shots of the stadium between plays. Yes, the stadiums are pretty. We get it. And no more zooming into the scoreboards, too.
Before this evolves into a full-blown Madden 09 wish list, I’ll stop.
EA should put a player from the Giants on the cover. The Giants beat an undefeated team in the most watched Super Bowl ever.
Aside from the cover id like to see EA get John Madden more involved like he used to. He doesnt really have any involvement besides if you have to ask him for a play which rarely gets used except maybe for learners. He used to make comments on the players and call the games and now he has a limited role. EA should change the name cause they are just waisting his talent and living off his name.
you guys should be worried about next years game… David Ortiz… is gone due to family reasons, and no this isnt the baseball player, it is the lead producer from EA Tiburon, he isnt helping make Madden NFL 09, im really nervous…
pastapadre wrote:
you have a point, but usually they have a feature for each cover athlete
Oh, HECK no! NO MADDEN COVER! I do not want to jinx the Giants in any way. I hope they DO put Romo on the cover. Then he can break his ankle when he and TO are frolicking in the daffodils.
I wont mind seeing Devin Hester on the cover
He was supposed to be on 08’s cover and should have been the rookie of the year. He’s amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!! BRAKING RECORDS LIKE THEY WERE MENT TO BE BROKEN + I dont think there will ever be another player to return the kick off in the SB
The feature that VY promoted in 08 was the option play. They should up Favre or the idea with 20 different squares and Madden in the middle, somewhat like wat Sports Illustrated does. WR’s jumping for the ball would also be nice and better DB controls so that they dont glide across the field or make interceptions while looking the other way.
what about sean taylor for the cover of madden?
I think its bs that whenever they put a quarter back on there he is black. I havent seen a white quarter back on there I have seen Donoven Mcnabb and vince young. Are they trying to say that black people took over the sport? Lets see Offensive linemen are white and so are punters the two most important positions in the game. So lets put a good white person on the cover.
How about Favre? I’m not a huge fan, but he had one hell of a season especially for how long he’s been around. Why isn’t he one of the top considerations?
Elmira Express wrote:
Let’s take a quick look at the stats shall we. First off, Romo complete 18 of 36 passes. Hitting 50% is not a good game last I checked. Also I believe it was Romo who threw that final interception. In what league is that a good game? The Giants weren’t lucky, the Cowboys got out played. The Giants just wanted that game more. As for Kee’s comment, that’s just ignorant. The black comment is just not needed. Even worse, claiming a punter is one of the two most important positions is too stupid for words.
Tyson wrote:
He still hasnt announced whether hes even coming back next season.
I am all for Eli Manning to be on the cover. But he couldn’t have won the super bowl without the help of the amazing d-line the giants have. So madden should really think about putting Justin Tuck or Osi Umenyirora. Those guys came up huge in that game as individuals and as a line with 5 sacks on Tom Brady; they should have been MVPs as a d-line even espn’s sports’ guy agrees with me.
Anyone else wanna see Micheal Strahan smiling on da cover of madden wit his gap teeth????
or just put the whole giants dline??? or is it jus tme
oh and offensive linemen are also black…. johnathan Ogden, Orlando Pace, Lenard Davis, Marcus Mcneil and the punter comment was just stupid…… u must have been a kicker
tony romo is a born loser and if he makes the playoffs again they will loser the first game AGAIN
I find it funny when people say Tony Romo is better than Eli after this season. To throw stats around like it makes a big deal in the end what his numbers were is stupid. All that matters is winning and the fashion in which Eli won the superbowl is on par with any great win in the likes of Montana and Elway.
Tony is not elite in any sense of the word. The only elite QBs in the league is Peyton and Brady. Tony has never won a playoff game and he has probably the 2nd or 3rd best offense in the league. There’s no excuse for that performance if you want to say he’s a elite QB. Lets face it Tony is very overrated. Anyone would have great numbers in an offense that features TO, Whitten, and Barber. At this point in his carreer, Tony isnt even good enough to lick Eli or Big Ben’s cleats, the QB’s who I consider to be on the second tier below the two real elite QB’s I’ve mentioned.
Also those haters of Vince Young are just stats people as well. Vince is a game changing player. Thats why the Titans are a playoff team again and thats why Vince dominated the Rose Bowl. Vince is a winner flat out. No amount of yards, TD’s, and BS stats that people keep up with can measure what a clutch QB looks like.
So those of you stats people who want to measure players by numbers, enjoy the off season with Romo and the Cowboy’s, cause their season ended in shambles.
I’ll stick with the players (like Eli and Vince Young) who come through in the final two minutes when it really counts.
P.S.
These group of Cowboys choked again this year and will probably choke again sometime in the future. The future of the NFC belongs in New York and enjoy the off season cause I am. Go Big Blue!
how bout just having “*18-1″ as the cover….lmao
GO BIG BLUE
either way i wont be buying madden as like 2k - 2k5
the game never has changed since madden 1999
I vote for jeff saturday of the colts he’s great madden should put a linemen for once
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