{"id":44906,"date":"2025-06-13T14:09:11","date_gmt":"2025-06-13T18:09:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/?p=44906"},"modified":"2025-06-23T15:06:10","modified_gmt":"2025-06-23T19:06:10","slug":"is-saquon-barkley-worried-about-the-madden-cover-curse-he-says-its-in-gods-hands","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/2025\/06\/is-saquon-barkley-worried-about-the-madden-cover-curse-he-says-its-in-gods-hands.html","title":{"rendered":"Is Saquon Barkley Worried About the Madden Cover Curse? He Says it\u2019s \u2018in God\u2019s hands\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
@Saquon \/ Instagram, Inset: EA-Sports<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Saquon Barkley wasn\u2019t going to turn down the chance to be the Madden NFL 26 cover star.<\/p>\n

When he got the invite, he stayed focused on how many people would love to be in his shoes \u2014 not the so-called \u201cMadden curse.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know so many people, so many kids that … would love to be in the position I\u2019m in right now,\u201d the Philadelphia Eagles running back told\u00a0NFL Network<\/a>\u00a0on Monday.<\/p>\n

Barkley went on to explain that he believes in God, not curses.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve had injuries before. I tore my knee, I stepped on a foot and rolled my ankle and was out 4-to-6 weeks, and there was no curse then,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s just how life works. You\u2019re gonna have your ups and downs, but my mindset is coming in, work, do what I need to do, and the rest is in God\u2019s hands.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Madden Curse<\/h2>\n

Barkley was asked about the Madden curse because it\u2019s become a major talking point in conversations about the popular video game.<\/p>\n

Some fans believe the athlete featured on the cover is doomed to perform poorly in the future, whether because of a significant injury or some other factor.<\/p>\n

\u201cNumerous stars to grace the Madden cover have (dealt) with injury issues,\u201d per\u00a0USA Today<\/a>. \u201cThat includes Madden 25 cover athlete\u00a0Christian McCaffrey<\/a>, who was limited to four games in 2024 because of Achilles tendonitis and a PCL sprain in his knee.”<\/p>\n

The article noted that rumors of a Madden curse have circulated for more than two decades.<\/p>\n

The 1999 cover star,\u00a0San Francisco 49ers<\/a>\u00a0running back Garrison Hearst, is widely believed to be the first victim, since his 1998-99 season was disrupted by a gruesome ankle injury.<\/p>\n

\u201cComplications from the injury \u2014 including avascular necrosis, which caused a bone in his injured foot to die \u2014 kept him out of the league for two seasons before he returned to play for the 49ers in 2001,” USA Today reported.<\/p>\n

Saquon Barkley on Madden Cover<\/h2>\n

Even if he\u2019s right about the Madden curse, Barkley may regress in the upcoming NFL season simply because his 2024-25 season would be hard to exceed.<\/p>\n

Barkley rushed for\u00a0more than 2,000 yards<\/a>\u00a0and scored 13 touchdowns.<\/p>\n

He was named the NFL\u2019s Offensive Player of the Year just before he and his Eagles teammates\u00a0won the Super Bowl<\/a>.<\/p>\n

For the Madden NFL 26 cover, Barkley recreated his iconic reverse hurdle from a Nov. 3 game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.<\/p>\n

He told NFL Network that the photo shoot for Madden made him \u201crealize how special (that play) was.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we had to recreate it, I was like, \u2018I don\u2019t know if I feel comfortable doing this not in the midst of a game,\u2019\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Barkley and the Madden team ultimately decided to use a harness for the photo shoot, he explained.<\/p>\n

Article written by Kelsey Dallas and originally appeared on Deseret News<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Saquon Barkley wasn\u2019t going to turn down the chance to be the Madden NFL 26 cover star. When he got the invite, he stayed focused on how many people would love to be in his shoes \u2014 not the so-called \u201cMadden curse.\u201d \u201cI know so many people, so many kids that … would love to…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":630,"featured_media":45017,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-44906","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-television"],"yoast_head":"\nIs Saquon Barkley Worried About the Madden Cover Curse? 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