Well, it's all starting again. This time earlier than most people hoped.
Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Troy Polamalu sprained his MCL in the NFL season opener. Polamalu along with Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald are the cover stars of this year EA Sports game Madden NFL '10.
The "Madden Curse" is known to all fantasy football players around the country and every fan. It started in 1998 when Garrison Hearst managed to have an outstanding regular season.
The postseason was not as good to Hearst. He severely broke his ankle and missed the ext two seasons. Next came Barry Sanders. What happened to him? He retired. So maybe he missed the curse.
Following Sanders were Eddie George, Daunte Culpepper, and Marshall Faulk, each who had the worst full seasons of their respective careers at the time. The worst news came in 2003 when Madden 2004 cover boy Michael Vick broke his leg and was the first 11 weeks. Luckily, Ray Lewis seemingly avoided the curse that following year, missing only one game to injury.
Then came Donovan McNabb and Shaun Alexander, neither of whom was able to play a full season due to injuries. The two most recent cover stars were Vince Young and Brett Favre. Enough said there.
But now, one game into the 2009 NFL season, the Steelers are going to be without their standout safety for up to six weeks.
"They are reading the scans and so forth," Steelers coach Mike Tomlin told reporters. "It is speculation [how long Polamalu will be out] at this point."
The Tennessee Titans' quarterback was able to take advantage of Polamalu's injury. Kerry Collins led his team down the field for a touchdown immediately following the injury, but the Steelers still won, 13-10 in overtime.
"We definitely were aware of him not being in there," Collins
said after the game.
Steeler fans and fantasy football owners everywhere are all holding their breath waiting to hear the results.
Article comments
1 - Russ Evenhuis
Don't forget the Larry Fitzgerald is on the cover too. As a Seahawks fan, believe me, I am hoping the curse is true. :-)
2 - Tony
I use to be borderline annoyed by all this Madden Curse talk but it really does seem to happen every single year. Its so weird.