Saquon Barkley willing to tempt fate on Madden cover, doesn't believe in curse
There was nothing that could stop Saquon Barkley in his first season with the Philadelphia Eagles. Now, some might argue that he's tempting fate as he enters Year Two in Philadelphia.
Barkley was announced as the cover athlete for "Madden NFL 26" on Monday, with his memorable reverse hurdle play being used for the cover. While many view being on the cover of Madden as an honor, the longstanding "Madden curse" has lingered over star players' decisions whether to appear on the cover of the hit EA Sports game.
For Barkley, though, the curse wasn't a consideration when he was asked to appear on the Madden cover.
"Nah, I'm a believer in God," Barkley said on "The Insiders" when asked if he believed in the Madden curse. "That's my mindset, to be completely honest."
A curse might have been the only way to stop Barkley in 2024. The Eagles' running back rushed for 2,005 yards on 5.8 yards per carry and 13 touchdowns during the regular season, falling 100 yards short of Eric Dickerson's regular-season record for most rushing yards. He also added 33 receptions for 278 yards and two touchdowns to help him win Offensive Player of the Year.
In the postseason, Barkley continued to run at a high level. He rushed for 499 yards on 5.5 yards per carry and five touchdowns over four postseason games, playing a major role in Philadelphia's run to a Super Bowl title. His 2,504 total rushing yards are the most ever in an NFL season (regular season and playoffs combined).
But prior to joining the Eagles in 2024, Barkley was often slowed down due to injury during his six-year stint with the New York Giants. That's why he doesn't believe he's tempting fate by appearing on the Madden cover.
"I've had injuries before. I tore my knee, I stepped on a foot and rolled my ankle and was out four-to-six weeks. There was no curse then," Barkley said. "That's just how life works. You're 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's hands."
The Madden curse has seemingly been a thing since before the turn of the century. After being named to the cover of "Madden NFL 2000," Detroit Lions running back Barry Sanders suddenly retired before the start of the 1999 season. Since then, there have been several instances in which star players have either gotten hurt or played below expectations in the year they appeared on the cover of Madden. Just last year, San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey missed 13 games due to multiple injuries after appearing on the cover of "Madden NFL 25."
[Related: Madden cover curse: Curse returns with vengeance on Christian McCaffrey]
As Barkley is the second Eagles player to appear on the cover of Madden, it could be argued that the curse struck in the only other time a player from the franchise appeared on the cover of the game. Former quarterback Donovan McNabb missed eight games in the 2005 season after being named to the cover of "Madden NFL 06." He also had a public feud with teammate Terrell Owens that year as Philadelphia's four-year streak of reaching the NFC Championship Game also ended, with the Eagles going 6-10.
Before last season, though, there was a good run of players having a strong year after appearing on the Madden cover. Tom Brady ("Madden NFL 18," "Madden NFL 22") and Patrick Mahomes ("Madden NFL 20," "Madden NFL 22") avoided the curse twice, with the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback actually winning the Super Bowl in one of those years. Josh Allen ("Madden NFL 24") and Lamar Jackson ("Madden NFL 21") also had strong seasons after appearing on the cover of Madden.
But players who've appeared on the cover of Madden have had a tough time helping their team win the Super Bowl that same season. It's only happened twice, with the New England Patriots winning Super Bowl LI after Rob Gronkowski appeared on the cover of "Madden NFL 17" that year (although Gronkowski suffered a season-ending injury earlier that year).
Barkley is hoping to become the third player to join that list. He knows that winning a Super Bowl is tough and going back-to-back is even tougher, but he believes the Eagles learned last year the formula to winning the Lombardi Trophy.
"The best way I can answer that question is success is not an accident. We know the recipe. We know what it takes," Barkley said. "We can't skip any steps to get to where we want to get to. Last OTAs, it was the same thing, and we already know how training camp's gonna be and we know how it's gonna be during the season.
"We know the recipe, and we just got to stick to it and a little bit of luck when that comes in with staying healthy. We do that, with the talent that we have and the coaches that we have, we'll be in a good position."
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