Why Chargers’ LaDainian Tomlinson turned down Madden cover

This is music to the ears of Chargers fans who believe in the Madden Curse — a superstitious belief that the cover athlete of each year’s Madden game is doomed to encounter something negative in the near future. Believers fear that the athlete stuck with the Madden Curse may suffer a major injury, have a decline in the quality of their play, or simply suffer from a streak of bad luck.

However, this superstition did not impact Tomlinson’s decision to turn down the opportunity to appear on the cover of Madden 07. The Chargers legend made it clear on The Pivot podcast that he doesn’t believe that the Madden Curse is real.

“No I didn’t, I never believed in it,” Tomlinson admitted. “But you know it was weird that it kept happening right, it was weird that everybody that got on there, and people speculated that, oh that’s the reason why he turned it down, but nah it wasn’t.”

Past victims of the Madden Curse include Detroit Lions’ legend Barry Sanders (who abruptly retired in 1999 and never suited up for that year’s NFL season) and Atlanta Falcons superstar quarterback Michael Vick (who fractured his fibula less than a week after the game’s release and faced legal troubles later in his career).

In case you were curious how LaDainian Tomlinson would have fared against the Madden Curse, here are his rushing statistics from the ’06-’07 NFL season:

• Attempts: 348 (2nd most)
• Rushing yards: 1,815 (Most)
• Rushing TDs: 28 (All-time NFL single-season record)
• Yard per attempt: 5.2 (4th most)

By comparison, Seattle Seahawks running back Shaun Alexander, who was on the cover instead after winning the NFL MVP Award the year prior, broke his foot three games into the next campaign and only played two more seasons in the NFL. So, no matter why Tomlinson decided to pass on the Madden cover, it seems like a smart decision for the Hall of Fame running back.